By Maxine Dovere/JNS.org
WASHINGTON—Rabbi Shmuley Boteach is no longer simply a responder to questions about faith or relationships raised by the rich and famous, or merely a recipient of national and international attention for his 27 books or his “Shalom in the Home” broadcasts.
These days, Boteach is a political contender in a serious race for federal office—and he can’t lose.
Regardless of the outcome of his bid to serve as congressman for New Jersey’s 9th District, the celebrity rabbi has raised his personal visibility to a level only he might have anticipated.
Soon after he received the Republican nomination in that race, Boteach attended the annual meeting of Christians United For Israel (CUFI). Chatting with reporters about his run for office, Boteach—once a registered Democrat—said his disappointment with President Barack Obama led to his decision to run as a Republican.
“My chances are very strong,” he told reporters. “My campaign has great momentum, it has compelling ideas, and it’s receiving regular national media exposure.
Boteach told JNS.org at CUFI, “When Israel is so unfairly maligned and subject to such unwarranted vitriol, it’s startling to see a vast group of millions who feel precisely the opposite—that Israel is the light, a beacon of human rights and freedom and a fulfillment of an ancient dream of Jewish destiny.”
Adelsons change the game
The rabbi—challenging a well-financed, 16-year incumbent, Bill Pascrell, in a generally Democratic district—seems to have the odds stacked against him. But since the earliest days of his campaign, Boteach has had the support of political game-changers, including Jewish casino magnate Sheldon Adelson and his wife Miriam.
On Aug. 18, the Adelsons changed the game dramatically. They added $500,000 to the coffers of the Patriot Prosperity PAC, an independent super PAC supporting Boteach’s campaign. Their contribution is almost double what is reported to be in Pascrell’s current campaign account.
Boteach calls himself the “values voice” for New Jersey’s 9th Congressional District. Since his June 6 Republican primary win, he has pledged to run “a serious ideas-based campaign” and has called for school vouchers and tax-deductible marriage counseling. He speaks about the evils of “hyper-consumerism and the loss of values.” (Though his gated, multi-million dollar home in Englewood, NJ, is no poor man’s abode.)
For more than a decade, Boteach has used TV shows, columns, lectures, and interviews—any media available—to promote his latest book or project. No matter the topic, he is likely to hold up one of his titles and announce that it is “available for sale at the rear” of the room, auditorium or synagogue at which he is speaking. His campaign literature is no exception: “Shmuley has authored 27 books and hosted television and radio programs including ‘Shalom in the Home’ on The Learning Channel, as well as The Rabbi Shmuley radio program on WABC and XM Satellite Radio. He is a regular contributor on Fox News, CNN, and other broadcast outlets, as well as a guest on programs such as The Dr. Phil Show, The Dr. Oz Show, The Oprah Winfrey Show, and many others,” notes his brochure.
A rabbi’s political rise
Boteach became involved in local politics in 2009, when Muammar Qaddafi wanted to “pitch his tent” on property owned by Libya—next door to the Rabbi’s home. Boteach led a successful protest, preventing the Libyan government from using its own property.
After switching his registration and entering the Republican primary, Boteach received the support of House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA). Cantor said Boteach would “create job growth and end runaway spending in Washington.” In the primary, the large turnout of the Bergen County Jewish community and the Bergen and Hudson Republican establishment enabled the rabbi to win the primary with 58 percent of the vote.
How did this unique race unfold? Redistricting based on the 2010 census figures forced two Democratic congressional colleagues, Pascrell and Steve Rothman, into a primary that Pascrell won. What had been a “Jewish, Democratic seat” since 1996 would no longer be so.
In the 9th District, with its radically diverse—Arab and Jewish—populations, Israel is an obvious issue. Rothman, who is strongly pro-Israel, lost. Pascrell supporters, including Dr. Aref Assaf, had attacked Rothman with a charge of “dual loyalty,” calling him “Israel’s man in District 9.” Assaf went on to denigrate Boteach’s association with the Adelsons, telling the Algemeiner that the Adelson money “has effectively sealed the capitulation of Mr. Boteach to the right wing and Islamophobes in the Republican Party, and their financiers.”
Boteach responded that bigotry and hatred should be eliminated. “Arabs are my brothers and I have deep reverence for Islam,” he said. “Islamic leaders should do the right thing and immediately distance themselves from the crude bigotry of Assaf.”
There is a definite religious element to Boteach’s economic platform. He says “Jewish values” are his base. He proposes giving tax credits to businesses that close for the Sabbath, credits that would apply to Christians (Sunday), Orthodox Jews (Saturday), and Muslims (Friday). He also supports tax breaks for marriage counseling.
Checkered past
Boteach does not come to the race without history—he has been involved in several questionable situations. The rabbi often refers to his days “at Oxford,” where he was not a student, but rather, the Chabad emissary who, as reported by Nathaniel Popper in a 2009 article in the Forward, was fired by Chabad. The British Charity Commission for England and Wales investigated the L’Chaim Society, which Boteach started, finding “possible misallocation of funds,” the Guardian has reported. London’s chief rabbi said Boteach “did not possess the appropriate United Synagogue rabbinical ‘practice certificate’ for presiding over services in Orthodox Ashkenazi synagogues in Britain,” according to the Guardian.
Then there’s his (failed) association with Michael Jackson. While Conrad Murray, the doctor who was eventually found guilty for involuntary manslaughter of Jackson, was being tried in Los Angeles, Boteach made the media rounds, describing himself as Jackson’s “friend”—the same “friend” who released audio tapes of what were supposed to be private conversations without Jackson’s permission and published a book of the conversations two years after the singer’s death, Fox News has reported.
What happened to “Time for Kids/Heal the World Foundation,” the infamous charity started in the fall of 2000 by Jackson and Boteach? The 2000 tax return of the parent organization, the New York L’Chaim Society, received $203,185 in donations and paid $240,164 for “administration” (a staff that included Boteach’s sister and mother), according to Guidestar, an information service specializing in reporting on U.S. nonprofits. Program services amounted to $0, Guidestar said.
Boteach did not respond to multiple requests for comment from JNS.org following the CUFI conference, including specific questions about his abovementioned episodes in London and his association with Jackson.
Projecting Boteach’s chances
So what lies ahead for November’s election? While ethnically varied, New Jersey’s 9th District is deeply Democratic. Cook Political Report rates the new district D+11 (it votes 11 percent more Democratic than the average district). The publication’s David Wasserman says, “Rabbi Boteach’s run in NJ-09 has even less of a prayer.”
Elections expert Stuart Rothenberg told the Wall Street Journal that, “We haven’t seen any evidence that the race will be close.” While stressing that the district’s fundamental characteristics suggest that Pascrell is safe, the congressman’s spokesman, Keith Furlong, said “Pascrell never takes any election for granted” and anticipates having “the resources necessary to run an effective campaign.” Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) spokesman Jesse Ferguson told the Journal, “If more money is needed for Bill Pascrell to win, the Democrats will be there.”
Boteach, naturally, is confident of his chances.
“I believe I will win,” he said plainly at the CUFI conference press table.
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Preceding provided by JNS.org and reprinted with permission