THE accident-prone campaign of star Labor recruit George Newhouse has hit another pothole, with a leaked email revealing his campaign manager has espoused anti-Zionism.
The revelation that Mr Newhouse's campaign manager, Rose Jackson, has spoken out against the Jewish state has the potential to hurt his chances in the marginal eastern Sydney seat of Wentworth, which has the largest number of Jewish voters of any electorate in Australia.
The Liberal Party also stepped up its attack on the legitimacy of Mr Newhouse's candidacy yesterday, naming him among 13 Labor candidates across the country it claims may not be able to run.
Labor dismissed the claims, raised by Liberal frontbencher Andrew Robb, as baseless and a sign of desperation by the Government.
But a cloud continues to hang over Mr Newhouse's candidacy -- with conflicting legal advice on whether he resigned from a paid position with the NSW Consumer, Trader and Tenancy Tribunal in time to nominate for the seat -- and Ms Jackson's comments could further damage his campaign.
In an email addressed "Dear activists", Ms Jackson wrote to an internet education discussion forum last year: "I oppose Zionism because it calls for the creation of a Jewish state, and I think all governments should be secular.
"No Jewish, Islamic, Christian states anywhere in the world, just good, robust, secular democracies," she said. "By speaking out on behalf of the Palestinians and Lebanese people, we can give voice to those that some governments and media would wish to silence."
Ms Jackson, 22, the daughter of ABC television journalist Liz Jackson, was president of the National Union of Students at the time she wrote the email.
She stressed yesterday her email was directed against rabid anti-Israel comments on the website which, she believed, shaded into racism. In it she chastises a forum member who accuses Jews of "a fetish for genocide".
Asked if her views sat uncomfortably next to those of Mr Newhouse -- who is a leading member of the Jewish community and whose father, Arnold, was president of the State Zionist Council of NSW -- Ms Jackson said, "I don't know George's position on Israel.
"I'm just opposed to theocracy. I certainly support the right of Israel to exist, but not as a Jewish state."
Later, Ms Jackson released a statement retracting her 2006 comments.
"Last year, when I wrote the email, I did not understand the definition of Zionism," she said in the statement.
"Since then, I have discovered that Zionism is about a homeland for the Jewish people.
"I support Israel. I support Israel's right to exist."
