Upon entering the hall at Chizik Amuno Synagogue last Monday for the debate involving surrogates Gov. Bob Ehrlich and Sen. Ben Cardin as stand-ins for presidential candidates John McCain and Barak Obama, I asked if there was separate seating.  Not for men and women but for Democrats and Republicans.  After scouting things out, the answer was no.  Myrna Cardin sat next to a gentleman proudly wearing a McCain sticker.

I sat next to Rob Frier and his son Ethan. Unfortunately for the Beth Tfiloh student, he won’t be 18 until shortly after the election, so he can’t vote yet. It says a lot about the young man who took the time to hear about the candidates.

When I tell people that I attended the Jewish community event, the first question they ask is who won?

After pondering that question for a quick second, I started to reply that the Jewish community won.

It was a great opportunity for two guys who know and respect each other to debate the issues that are crucial to Israel and to Jewish values in America.  There were no low blows. Gone were the lies and untruths about the candidates. 

Early on it appeared that Cardin’s position was winning over the 800-plus person audience. Than Ehrlich changed the discussion to focus on each specific issue and explained that it’s up to the Jewish community to decide which candidate’s platform would deliver results on Israel/Arab relations, healthcare, and church/state issues. 

I’m not sure any minds were changed during the process. But, as Baltimore Jewish Council president Jon Laria said in his opening remarks to the standing room only crowd of Jews, “It’s great to live in a democracy. I cant’ tell you how proud I am of the Baltimore Jewish community for the level of interest and involvement in this election.”

Democracy and Jewish Baltimore won the debate.