By Nathan Guttman September 21, 2010

Joe Sestak, the Democratic candidate for Pennsylvania’s Senate seat, wasn’t President Obama’s first choice for the job. The White House and Democratic leadership backed Arlen Specter for another term, in appreciation of his decision last year to cross party lines and join the Democratic side. But things didn’t work out that way. Sestak went on to win the Democratic nomination, and now he’s facing a tough race against Republican, Tea Party-endorsed Pat Toomey.

On Tuesday, President Obama demonstrated his full support for Specter’s usurper when he appeared at a Sestak fundraiser in Philadelphia that included a surprising dash of yiddishkeit.

Speaking to a hall that was, according to reports only a third-full, Sestak chose to introduce Obama by telling an ancient Jewish tale about two friends from the land of Israel who get in trouble in a foreign land and are saved thanks to their friendship. He then referred to Obama as a “warrior, who is truly a leader in that mission of Tikkun Olam,” using the Hebrew term meaning “repairing the world.” What was it that led the Catholic candidate to draw on Jewish traditions when introducing a Christian president to a mixed crowd?

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis of the crisis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

Maybe it was the High Holiday spirit, or perhaps it was all the time Sestak has been spending lately with the Pennsylvania Jewish community trying to fend off attacks against him from Jewish right-wing groups.

A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you move on, I wanted to ask you to support the Forward’s award-winning journalism during our High Holiday Monthly Donor Drive.

This year, we have stood together in strength and sorrow. Our Forward team has worked around the clock to help you find clarity amid the chaos.

If you’ve turned to the Forward in the past 12 months to better understand the world around you, we hope you will support us with a gift now. Your support has a direct impact, giving us the resources we need to report from Israel and around the U.S., across college campuses, and wherever there is news of importance to American Jews.

Make a monthly or one-time gift and support Jewish journalism throughout 5785. The first six months of your monthly gift will be matched for twice the investment in independent Jewish journalism. 

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.

$36 $500

$120 $180 Other amount