In a surprise move, over a dozen of the most influential leaders of the Chasidic sects of Satmar, Bobov, Munkatch, Klauzenberg, Boyan, Belz, Krasna and Ger have dumped their preferred primary candidate Democratic State Senator Eric Schneiderman to endorse Republican District Attorney Dan Donovan for Attorney General in the hotly contested General Election next week Tuesday, November 2nd.
Insiders say that these leaders considered supporting famed prosecutor Dan Donovan immediately after Schneiderman pledged his allegiance and office space to controversial activist Al Sharpton. Others were disturbed by the revelation that Schneiderman’s biggest financial supporter is the radical left-wing anti-Israel billionaire George Soros who has raised well over $100,000 for Schneiderman.
Still, for others, the straw that broke the proverbial camel’s back was the report last week that Senator Schneiderman’s close colleagues in the Senate may have engaged in corruption regarding the distribution of a multi-billion dollar gambling contract at the Aqueduct Race Track in Queens. Schneiderman accepted over $75,000 from his Senate colleagues who have been cited in the Inspector General’s report detailing what may be illegal activities.
“Dan Donovan’s long, proven record of fighting crime and corruption make him the best choice to fight for and protect not only the members of our community but all of New York’s citizens,” said renowned Rabbi Aron Welz – the most prominent leader of the largest Chasidic sect in Boro Park.
Dan Donovan travelled to Boro Park yesterday to personally pick up the endorsements of: Rabbis Weltz, Goldberg, Dembitzer, Fischman, Lebowitz, Reicher, Barber, Langsam, Pinchas, Glauber, Tauber and Garfinkel to name a few. Donovan toured the famed institutions of Satmar, Bobov and Krasna before meeting with a larger Chasidic group for their formal endorsement.
These new endorsements put the Chasidic community on a direct collision course with local Democratic representative Assemblyman Dov Hikind and the lay leadership of Agudath Israel of America who have endorsed Schneiderman for Attorney General (in the primary election).
One political strategist explained, “These Donovan supporters and chasidic leaders seem like they are declaring their independence from the so-called ‘establishment’ once and for all.”
UPDATE: Rabbi Shmuel Lefkowitz, a spokesman for Agudath Israel of America, insists in an email to YWN that “ALL the Agudah LAYleaders who have previously endorsed Schneiderman did NOT endorse him in the GENERAL election”.
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17 Responses
“One political strategist explained, “These Donovan supporters and chasidic leaders seem like they are declaring their independence from the so-called ‘establishment’ once and for all.”. ”
What is the “establishment”? The people who tell you who to vote for? Who appointed them? In this case its pretty much a no brainer that Donovan would be the better choice! But can somebody decide for you that he’s better? Do your own research!!
Why the great surprise? It is more of a surprise that anyone would support “promise me everything” Schneiderman. Doesn’t anyone realize that you can’t be everything to everyone. Any candidate who tries to play all sides is really lying.
journalist Shimon Rolnitzki says it is crucial that we vote republican because if Dems control all the branches in NY both in Assembly, State Senate and Governor there will be no balance of power.
At last I am proud of our ‘leaders’, putting values over campaign promises. Hikind and Agudah should be ashamed of themselves for constantly backing those leading in the polls over Torah-views candidates. I predict that Hikind will flip-flop once again to show that his constituents voted for his candidate (Donovan will get all the votes now, obviously) especially if Donovan develops a lead in the polls. Remember! A vote for Schneiderman is a vote for the Sitra Achra! Literally. A candidate that supports Toeiva (although not excusable) is one thing, a candidate, for AG (that should be busy fighting crime), that runs only on a platform for Toeiva is troubling. If you want an attorney general that will be busy suing the feds for ‘discriminating’ against those marrying cows (or same-sex – same thing.), vote Schneiderman, otherwise…
Whom Are u trying to fool that Satmar endorsed Donovan cuz Soros is anti-isreal? or that any other Chassidus endorsed him cuz of AEG? STOP insulting the intelligence of your readers, we are smarter than that. why r these only BP leaders? and since when is Satmar endorsing Statewide candidates by their BP branch? its always done by d willamsburgh branch or KJ.
The REAL reason is known to everybody, and let’s make it short and straight to d top, they’re being strong armed by BLOOMBERG, Bloomberg is doing now d same thing Hikind did by d city council race (doesnt this picture remind u of something…)
We chassidishe voters will not vote how we are threatend to. we will vote for the one who is in the best interest for our community, the one our leaders would’ve endorsed if not for threats
It is clear that in d upcoming AG elections our best interest is to vote for the democratic candidate. New York is an overwehlmingly Democratic State and in order for a republican to be popular he will have to be more Spitzer than Spitzer and more Cuomo than Cuomo, which means that it will result in a lot of unnecessary investigations in order to make headlines, in which d main businesses of our community are the most likely to suffer. (this is basically in a nutshell what’s at stake, its really much broader and much deeper, besides that we need a better basic understanding on what d AG is all about and what d community needs from the AG,)
Re: The UPDATE.
Interesting update.
How come the Agudah made this commemt only after the major Chassidic and Yeshivah leaders have broken fron the Agudah’s directive and endorsed Donoven.
Lately, the Agudah has been the unlucky one, always backing the losing candidate.
Now, whoever wins, they will try to get the credit.
If Schneiderman wins, well the Agudah backed him, if in fact Donovan wins, well, the Agudah did retract its endorsement from Schneiderman.
The Agudah’s clout has been totaly diminished. Perhaps they are now a “has been” organization.
In reply commenter #5, you don’t make any sense. Yesterday there was a meeting in BP for Donovan, which is why the BP leaders supported him.
In regards to the community needs, Republicans have shown to be more for school vouchers then any democrat candidate. If Satmar can protest the Toevah Pride parade in front of the Israeli embassy, just imagine how they stand on that topic in NYS itself.
On a side note, not only is Soros anti-Israel, he is a self hating Jew himself. He can’t stand religious people of any type. If he is supporting a candidate for anything, we should run the other way.
Commenter #5, also seems to have a misunderstanding on what the AG position is. The AG’s job is to fight for the rights of the citizens. When AT&T decides to sneak fake charges into your bill, the AG gets involved. Now where do we come in? We need someone who will fight for the citizens rights, without violating the rights of other citizens.
A few years ago, a bill was introduced to make it illegal for religious institutions to discriminate in regards to hiring. It sounds very good, but what do you do when a qualified non-Jewish person wants a job in a religious Yeshivah? The bill had to be fought. This is an example of where you need a AG with his head on straight. As I stated in a post yesterday, Schniederman has stood with every radical liberal. From Soros, to Sharpton, PETA and back, Schniederman has the endorsements of them all.
Once again I dont know much about either candidates, but I have had enough radical Liberalism to last me for a long, long, time.
I’m not sure how my name appeared in the list of people whose endorsement Mr Donovan “personally pick[ed] up” in Boro Park yesterday, but I was not present at any of the gatherings or events referred to in the story.
This is not to imply anything negative at all about Mr Donovan; by all accounts he is an outstanding candidate. It is simply a question of setting the record straight, in the interests of accuracy.
Although I am one of those who question whether the frum community should take sides in election campaigns based on single-issue litmus tests, I personally draw a bright line when it comes to candidates who associate closely and warmly with anti-semites.
In the summer of 1991, Al Sharpton led a chanting crowd in Crown Heights, resulting in the murder of (my friend) Yankel Rosenbaum, Hy”d. Taking this into account, as well as all the hatred Sharpton has spewed out over the years, I am deeply troubled by the thought of the official recognition and imprimatur which Mr Schneiderman has promised to accord him, if he becomes Attorney-General.
At the same time, knowing something of the extent to which George Soros uses his vast fortune to fund organizations and individuals involved, on a daily basis, in imperiling the lives of acheinu bnei yisroel, in Eretz Yisroel and elsewhere, I am fearful of where his generous support of Mr Schneiderman could lead.
There are occasions when it is important not to remain silent, and the above factors lead me to believe that this is one of them.
(Prof) Moishe Zvi Reicher
How could one be so stupid to believe all these nonsense.. The Donovan endorsement has nothing to do with ideology/principals nor does it target the establishment (Heikind and Agudah).
As far as I know, a majority of all these congregations and school boards (Satmar in particular) were always pro Schneiderman (you should have seen their official endorsements for Schneiderman at the Primary campaign back in Sep. What a phenomenal AG Mr. Schneiderman would be..) and I firmly believe they still are.
What happened was, the well known and touchy issue of “Priority 7 Vouchers” came on board… Councilman Greenfiled brought a clear message from the mayor which is a huge Donovan supporter, that unless “all” the Brooklyn schools and congs come out with an official endorsement for Mr. Donovan, the vouchers will be suspended as of 01/’11 when the program is due for revisitation..
Not to disrespect our loyal councilman R’ Duvid Greenfeild but its a real shame being in a stage that the Mayor can simply “blackmail” us and thereby take away our freedom of choice concerning electing our officials..
That would be called Unethical and Political nasty blackmailing.. Yes we need these vouchers and yes the Mayor is the one who can suspend or extend it.. But taking advantage on this important program and thereby threatening the Hasidic community.. That’s unheard-of and outrageous.
I got this info from a NYT reporter that asked me Saturday night what exactly Priority 7 vouchers is all about and how important it is for the Hasidic community.. When I asked him what this about, he told me that he’s working on exposing a shocking Blackmailing story concerning Mayor Bloomberg.. According to him, the mayor has crossed the line..
Sorry for the long comment but I kinda felt telling the truth..
Remember, Nov 2 is the day to practice “Freedom Of Choice” and do not let anyone take that privilege away.. Do what you think is best for you, vote for the candidate you believe is right for you (whoever it is..) And not what Mayor Bloomberg believes is right for HIM!!
Hatzlacha!
Now Prof Reicher, Do you endorse Mr. Donavan or not ?
Zei Matzliach!
In reply to #7
Regarding my comment why Satmar in BP and why only in BP is well in place. Donovan was last week in Willi and it didn’t end up in an Endorsement, and why wasnt he visiting other jewish communities.
re/ all your other comments.
It seems that you do have an understanding what the AG office is about. and I share the same Understanding, but somehow we draw different conclusions, the AG’s Position is to be the peoples Lawyer, and that’s how we should determine who to endorse and who to vote, if you have a court case and you need a good lawyer, you would not look if gay groups support him or not, or if someone who is anti-Israel is good with him.
Lets make it short. and quote how the press is placing it in context and that’s basically how the candidates are saying
“Schneiderman has promised to be an “activist” attorney general on behalf of New Yorkers. Donovan said he would enforce the laws aggressively as attorney general.”
We the Jewish community need an “Activist” AG. for all the reasons you stated, and for all the reasons I stated.
Let me make it clear, I would take Donovan over Schneiderman for any other position Governor, State Senator, Assemblyman, e.t.c. But Donovan for AG is DANGEROUS.
Joe, I’ll elaborate on your previous post. With Donovan as AG you might get caught with defrauding the government to get government programs, with Schneiderman (being busy with activism…) you’ll get off the hook…
In Reply to satmarBP #9
You must be working for either Agudah or Dov Hikind to try to change the conversation. The fact is that Reb Dovid Greenfield has nothing to do with the Dan Donovan campaign. In fact, he has not endorsed Donovan nor has he encouraged anyone to endorse him either. I know this because I saw him on Shabbos and asked him this exact question and that was his response.
This has Nothing to do with Priority 7. Speaking as a Yeshiva administrator, I know that Priority 7 has been extended for 6 Months and that is only thank to Councilman Greenfields incredible Hishtadlus. We all know that because of the budget cuts, its not likely to be extended again.
This endorsement has to do with 2 issues.
First – Dan Donovan is a far better candidate for Attorney General than Eric Schneiderman – for all of the reasons mentioned in this article
Second – As a Yeshiva Administrator in Boro Park, we are all sick and tired with Agudas Yisroel and Dov Hikind pretending to represent us. Everybody knows that Agudah and Hikind don’t care about chasidim and have their own agenda that does not help our Chasidishe Mosdos.
THAT IS WHY WE ARE ENDORSING DAN DONOVAN.
Dave
Lets Say… isn’t that a good enough reason…
The main problem is with people who did NOT defraud the government, will also be under investigation just for the sake for being under investigation to make headlines, even though in the end they will not be charged with anything.
we have heard quite a few times in the last years about Heimishe Yidden being investigated and it made big headlines, but at the end they were not charged with anything it just costed them millions of dollars and destroyed their financial stability, all cuz the AG wanted to make headlines with an investigation.
This problem will increase and get much worse under Donovan, innocent companies will be investigated just to make headlines, and that means that Donovan is DANGEROUS.
In response to Chasidish leader #14,
I did not take the conversation off track and i DO NOT work for Hikind, Agudah or any other political establishment.
David Greenfield is a “Democrat” and God forbid it gets public that he’s involved in helping a “Republican” candidate… That’s political Suicide… he’ll lose all his entire influence at the Democratic NYC Council which would definitely harm his agenda… and that’s exactly why he’s denying it..
Back to reality world, R’ Duvid has devoted his entire office to PLEASE HIS SUPERIOR MAYOR BLOOMBERG…
Just read this Observer article posted last week after the misinterpreted Satmar Williamsburg endorsement for Mr. Donovan…
http://www.observer.com/2010/politics/heels-hasidic-meeting-donovan-make-major-push-jewish-vote?utm_medium=partial-text&utm_campaign=politics
{Quote} The campaign is relying on many political operatives who have done Jewish outreach for the Bloomberg administration AND WHO WORKED ON DAVID GREENFIELD’S CAMPAIGN FOR CITY COUNCIL LAST YEAR.
MARK BOTNICK, who now works for Ed Koch’s New York Uprising and who left the mayor’s community affairs unit to work on his re-election campaign, was with Donovan yesterday as he toured the Hasidic neighborhoods of Brooklyn. BOTNICK WAS GREENFIELD’S CAMPAIGN MANAGER. Also assisting is MICHAEL FRAGIN, a former Pataki aide WHO HELPED OUT GREENFIELD and who led Donovan through his home town on Long Island last Sunday. {Quote}
Now with Fragin and Botnick at his side.. Whom would try fooling that Greenfiled doesn’t work and support for the Donovan team..
What can be more proving than this one: Satmar KJ, Monsey and Williamsburg are unanimously endorsing Mr. Schneiderman for AG, isn’t that bizarre and bell-ringing..?? Well, the answer is, THEY DO NOT RELY ON PRIORITY 7… As a result, BLOOMBERG/GREENFIELD HAVE NO LEVERAGE THERE!
Thanks!
Joe, no that isn’t a good enough reason! We live in a land of law and order (that is in compliance with Sheva Mitzvos Bnei Noach) and it should be enforced. Dina DMalchusa Dina is a biblical law binding us with those of the government. No AG will investigate innocent people without merit, just for their record. Lack of evidence or prosecutorial misconduct means you are most probably guilty but wasn’t proven.
Is the one palling around with Sharpton your man? Do you want George Soros (with an agenda against religion. Period.) running the Justice Department? Now, I call THAT dangerous!
Plus, the AG post is made to fight crime. Do you want someone that will do the job he should do or one that will be in bed with all of his former colleagues? If you have a problem, whether it is an anti-Semitic issue or an incidence where you were a victim of fraud, do you want a person that will act or someone that will examine your position on Toeiva?
Schneiderman isn’t only a horrific candidate now, he was divisive and the worst in the primary as well. I wouldn’t elect him for anything. Besides that he is only running to set a stage for a gubernatorial run.