Romney Vetoed Kosher Food Funding for Jewish Nursing Homes
David Streeter — January 27, 2012 – 12:44 pm | Election 2012 | GOP Presidential Candidates 2012 | Republicans Comments (3) Add a commentThe New York Post reported that Republican presidential candidate former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney vetoed a bill that would have provided Jewish nursing homes in Massachusetts funding for kosher food. According to the Boston Jewish Community Relations Council, that funding would have respected Jewish seniors’ “special dignity.” The New York Post reported:
Mitt Romney is getting heat for a 2003 veto he cast as governor of Massachusetts to reject $600,000 in additional funds for poor Jewish nursing-home residents to get kosher meals.
At the time, Romney said he nixed the funding of about $5 per day because it ‘unnecessarily’ would lead to an ‘increased rate for nursing facilities’ - even as kosher nursing homes were complaining that state-funding-formula changes could force them to close their kitchens.
‘I was outraged,’ Jeffrey Goldshine, the retired CEO of a company that operated a kosher facility in Massachusetts, told The Post yesterday.
‘For the elderly Jewish residents of a nursing home that have always been kosher - they should be entitled to continue.’
The Massachusetts Legislature approved an amendment to restore the $600,000 to finance the kosher meals allowing a ‘most vulnerable segment of our population’ to ‘enjoy a special dignity,’ according to the Jewish Community Council.
Click here to read The Post’s story.
At the time of the veto, State Rep. Ruth Balser, a Democrat from Newton, Mass. told the Jewish Advocate that while Romney was advocating for saving money, he was ‘depriving people of essential services.’...
Eventually, the Massachusetts State Legislature approved an amendment to restore the funding for the Jewish nursing home facilities.
Click here for JTA’s story.
Comments
This story is about a non-issue. The nursing homes wanted to outsource the kosher meals to a caterer, which would have saved money for everyone involved with no loss of services to kashrut-observing Jews. The effort by Democrats in the legislature had nothing to do with protecting Jews, but was rather aimed at embarrassing Romney. For the record, I wouldn’t vote for Romney for dog catcher if he were the only one running. But not because of this phony issue. Be prepared to hear anti-Semitic backlash about special treatment for Jews arising out of this traif bologna.
PLEASE, I beg of you: please stop deliberately spreading false rumors. if the only way Obama can win is by lying, that’s a terrible indictment of our political system.
thinking people—which includes, I hope, American Jews—understand that it is the GOP that is strongly supportive of Israel, not the Obama regime.
Obama’s hemorrhaging Jewish support—votes and money—and I don’t see that changing, as long as he continues to be so clearly pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel.
-
March 27
Jewish Dems Thank Senate Minority Leader Reid for Decades… -
March 26
A fifth, and essential, question -
March 24
2016 GOP Candidate Ted Cruz: Out of Step with Jewish… -
March 24
No More Delays: Hold Loretta Lynch’s Confirmation… -
March 23
Burns: Will Congress torpedo Obama’s Iran deal? -
March 20
Jewish Democrats Slam Rep. King for Questioning their… -
March 17
Rep. Wasserman Schultz to Remain in Congress -
March 16
Weekly Roundup: Cotton’s Letter Panned Nationally -
March 13
Sheffey: Can we trust Obama on Iran? -
March 11
Iranian nukes, Cotton’s letter and Boteach
- March, 2015
- February, 2015
- January, 2015
- December, 2014
- November, 2014
- October, 2014
- September, 2014
- August, 2014
- July, 2014
- June, 2014
- May, 2014
- April, 2014
- March, 2014
- February, 2014
- January, 2014
- December, 2013
- November, 2013
- October, 2013
- September, 2013
- July, 2013
- June, 2013
- May, 2013
- April, 2013
- March, 2013
- February, 2013
- January, 2013
- December, 2012
- November, 2012
- October, 2012
- September, 2012
- August, 2012
- July, 2012
- June, 2012
- May, 2012
- April, 2012
- March, 2012
I’m actually as left-leaning as a Democrat can be. I’m also 100% secular. I’m in no way, shape or form going to vote Republican. Ever. But I’m curious about why the NJDC is making an issue about this particular Mitt-storm. Everybody knows that Romney is completely unfit to be President. And if they don’t know that yet, please, take them by the hand, sit them down in front of YouTube, and demonstrate to them exactly why.
Seeing that the NJDC is all about a strict separation of church and state (as well it should be), why would we want Jewish, non-Jewish or atheist American taxpayers financing kosher, halal, etc. anything? A separation of church and state is a separation of church and state, no? Surely in the US, there must be some way for the religiously observant to provide Kosher meals to elderly fellow-citizens keeping Kosher without imposing any burden on the taxpayer?