The “Dems need courage” letter by Cathy Mink (BDN, Sept. 2) clearly expressed her animus toward Israel and a not so subtle degree of anti-Semitism. Alex Grab’s letter (Aug. 22), which was the inspiration for Mink’s comments, was itself controversial.

I shall neither defend nor condemn Israel’s actions in the West Bank for that is a subject which, to be fully balanced, requires considerably more space than is appropriate in a letter to the editor. Suffice it to say that no Arab nation recognized the “Palestinians” prior to 1948 and that neither Jordan, which occupied the West Bank for 18 years, nor Egypt, which refused to absorb the Gaza Strip, ever made any effort to create a Palestinian state while the terrorists in question were in their control. United Nations resolution 242 has been interpreted, quite legally, at variance with Grab’s interpretation by no less a person than our current president so there is no universally accepted resolution to that issue.

And now to [U.S. Rep.] Cynthia] McKinney and her defeat. The infusion of private monies in politics is an American tradition and has been a component of this democratic election process since the founding of this nation. To state categorically that the Democratic Party has been bought and silenced by Zionist money is to impugn the integrity and legitimacy of the Democratic Party. All thinking Americans, regardless of party affiliation, should take umbrage at that reference. Arab-Americans, exercising their rights of participation, helped to fund McKinney’s campaign, as did outside African-Americans. McKinney was unable to garner much support from the Congressional Black Caucus.

If Mink had any understanding of the primary election process in Georgia it is difficult to understand how she reached her conclusion. Many people in McKinney’s district were embarrassed by many of her statements, not the least of which was her position that President Bush had advance knowledge of Sept. 11 and did nothing in order to advance his war efforts. Georgia has an open primary and Republicans voted in large numbers and, incidentally, the African-American turnout was relatively tepid. [Denise] Majette, the primary winner, is one of the first African-American women to graduate from Yale and has been a local judge for almost 20 years.

The final vote was 58 percent to 42 percent. It is difficult to conclude that a 16-point defeat was attributable to pro-Israel forces alone. McKinney was defeated by a strong candidate who convinced the voters of Georgia’s 4th District that she (Majette) was the candidate who could best serve the district.

Leonard E. Minsky

Bangor