In part 3 of his lecture series on Jews and American Politics: From Outsiders to Insiders, Professor Jonathan D. Sarna discussed Teddy Roosevelt, Taft and Wilson: Jewish Politics Enters the Mainstream. The early twentieth century witnessed the rapid growth of America’s Jewish population and the emergence of political issues, such as immigration restriction and US policy toward Russia, that shaped Jewish voting patterns more than ever before. As ethnic politics became normative in America, politicians on both sides of the political spectrum came to court Jewish voters. The “Jewish vote” became a factor of growing importance in American politics, with implications both for Jews and for America.
This lecture was held for the inaugural Sidney and Miriam Brettler Memorial Series 5777, sponsored by their children.
Click here for the other parts in this series.
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Jonathan D. Sarna serves as University Professor and Professor of American Jewish History at Brandeis. This year he is a visiting fellow at the Israel Institute for Advanced Studies. He has written and edited more than thirty books on American Jewish history and life, including the award-winning American Judaism: A History.
