Edward I. Koch
Tuesday, Dec. 31, 2002

Syndicated columnist Bob Novak has a long history of hostility toward the State of Israel. I believe his venomous attacks on Israel and Prime Minister Ariel Sharon reflect more than his political views.

While I am a supporter of the State of Israel, I respect the rights of others to disagree on ways to settle the Palestinian/Israeli conflict. I do not believe that harsh criticism of Israel's policies automatically make a critic an anti-Semite. I have criticized some of those policies, but I count myself a staunch supporter of the Jewish nation. I am proud to be called a Zionist.

Which raises the question, what exactly is a Zionist? For me it means a supporter of the Jewish nation. For many years, Jews once sought to return to their ancient homeland, but they were excluded. Having finally returned, they now seek the right to live in their resurrected state free from attack by other hostile nations and terrorists who believe that all of historic Palestine belongs to Arabs and Islam.

How should we distinguish between those who are anti-Israel and those who are simply critical of the Jewish state? It is not difficult to make the distinction. First, as U.S. Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart said in discussing the distinction between lawful and illegal pornography, "I shall not today attempt further to define the kinds of material [pornography] … but I know it when I see it."

For those who need a more specific description, Abe Foxman, national director of the Anti-Defamation League, has provided one: "Those who only find fault with the Jewish people, the Jewish State and the actions of the Jewish sovereignty and never find anything that is positive are anti-Semites under the guise of anti-Zionism and anti-Israel."

Why do I believe Bob Novak is both anti-Semitic and anti-Israel? Because I know anti-Semitism when I see it. In my opinion Novak cloaks his true feelings by leveling his attacks on Israel and Prime Minister Sharon instead of taking aim at his real target – Jews in general.

Last year I pointed out that I had seen Novak on a CNN program during which he and other journalists were discussing terrorism. He stated that Hamas are "freedom fighters." Said his colleague, Margaret Carlson, "Bob, you're the only person who would call Hamas freedom fighters."

Outraged by his remark, I wrote to him pointing out that the U.S. Department of State had designated Hamas a terrorist organization. In pursuing our war against al-Qaeda and terrorism, the U.S. is criminally prosecuting those who give money to terrorist organizations, including Hamas. Novak never replied.

But he is still at it. In his New York Post column last week, Novak blamed Israeli Prime Minister Sharon for the U.S. preparing to go to war with Iraq. He wrote that Sharon's urging of such a war "is a major reason why U.S. forces today are assembling for war." He wrote deridingly, "In private conversation, National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice has insisted that Hezbollah is the world's most dangerous terrorist organization." It surely is one of the worst.

Hezbollah is financed by Iran, which refers to the U.S. as the "Great Satan." Many of Iran's clerical leaders call for the destruction of the U.S., and undoubtedly many of them support Osama bin Laden. Does anyone, including Novak, not believe that fundamentalist Iranians danced with joy, as probably did so many of Islam's adherents, at the destruction of the World Trade Center and the deaths on that day of 3,000 innocent men, women and children, mostly American civilians?

Novak wrote that the U.S. is losing its support of the Turkish government, and we are endangering our use of Turkish bases. The day before his column was published, the Turkish Parliament extended the agreement allowing the U.S. Air Force to continue its use of those bases for enforcing the no-fly zone in Iraq. The day after its publication, it was announced that "Saudi Arabia has given the U.S. permission to launch air support missions from Saudi bases in the event of a war with Iraq."

Now that is really a demonstration right out of the protocols of Zion of the worldwide power of the Jewish conspiracy.

Novak is the new millennium's Pat Buchanan. In his 1991 column, Buchanan – being either more courageous or more stupid than Novak – blamed the Jews directly. In what he referred to as the "Amen Corner," he listed the names of Jews he blamed for inciting war against Iraq and blamed Jews in advance for the deaths of American soldiers who were Christian.

In 1991, there was not one Jew in the first President Bush's Cabinet of advisers involved in the decision to go to war with Iraq against Kuwait. In 2002, the current president's Cabinet advisers are Vice President Dick Cheney, Secretary of State Colin Powell, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice. They support the president's position, and not one of them is a Jew. Is it possible that Tony Blair, prime minister of Great Britain and supporter of taking on Iraq, is a cryptic Jew, descending perhaps from the Marranos of Spain's Inquisition in 1492?

Why is Novak treated with such respect by his colleagues in the media? Why are such rabid columnists like Novak and Buchanan not subject to the same kind of scrutiny and castigation that the media apply to public officials like Trent Lott? It's time to let the sunshine in. It is one of the world's best disinfectants.

Edward I. Koch is the former mayor of New York. His commentary for Bloomberg radio is republished here. You can hear his weekly radio show by clicking here.

Read more on this subject in related Hot Topics:
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Editor's note:
Revealed: The Terrorists Living Among Us