I couldn't think of anything that isn't horrific about what is likely to happen on Tuesday until I saw this in the Forward. A GOP House might make it easier for President Obama to make progress toward his goal of peace and security for Israelis and Palestinians.
Citing the sanctions bill as an example, New York Democrat Gary Ackerman, argued that Israel's best bet for addressing any concerns about Obama's policy would be for Democrats to retain power. "I'm not saying that if the Republicans take the House it would be doomsday for Israel, but if they want positive influence on the White House, that's us," said Ackerman, who chairs the subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.
Ackerman and other Jewish Democrats point to the forceful criticisms they conveyed to the White House when they thought that Obama was leaning too hard on Israel."If you need the president, you need us as chairs of the committees," Ackerman said as he listed what he called the "first-class team" of Jewish pro-Israel Democrats who chair key House committees: Berman at Foreign Affairs, Barney Frank at Financial Services, Henry Waxman at the Energy and Commerce committee, Sander Levin at Ways and Means, and Ackerman himself in his role as head of the Middle East subcommittee. "We are all pro-Israel and we all have major, major, major influence in the executive branch."
Forget Ackerman's overwrought "doomsday for Israel" phrase. The fact is that liberal Democrats have been the most determined and effective supporters of the Israeli-Palestinian status quo for decades. The Republicans use more extreme rhetoric but the action (or forced inaction) comes from liberal Democrats.
With very few exceptions, Democratic liberals who are antiwar doves everywhere else in the world are the most zealous hawks on Israel, the most ardent defenders of atrocities in Gaza, the most enraged opponents of Judge Richard Goldstone. Some are hawks out of conviction. More do it for campaign dollars.
Regardless of why, it is Democrats not Republicans who rush to the floor every time a possible peace initiative raises its head and shoots it down. Republicans are godawful too but defending the occupation hardly ranks on their radar screens although Muslim-bashing does (along with gay and immigrant bashing). Also, Republicans understand that no matter what they do on Israel, there is far less money in it for them and even fewer votes.
The same applies to Iran. The most effective and tenacious Iran hawks are Democrats. The case for sanctions or war (not negotiation) will be weakened considerably when it is Ileana Ros Lehtinen and Dan Burton making the case, not Howard Berman and a host of other liberals).
Bottom line: the Republican surge could free Obama from the handcuffs that Gary Ackerman, Anthony Weiner, and the rest of the "Israel, right or wrong" crowd puts on him. The only question is: will he put them back on himself?
Follow MJ Rosenberg on Twitter: www.twitter.com/mjmediamatters
I don't know that that would apply specifically when it comes to Israel, given the Democratic Party's elected officials' behavior over the last two years, since those people will still be influential within the party and will still be on those committees even if they do not chair them, but it is an interesting point.
"If you need the president, you need us as chairs of the committees," Ackerman said as he listed what he called the "first-class team" of Jewish pro-Israel Democrats who chair key House committees: Berman at Foreign Affairs, Barney Frank at Financial Services, Henry Waxman at the Energy and Commerce committee, Sander Levin at Ways and Means, and Ackerman himself in his role as head of the Middle East subcommittee. "We are all pro-Israel and we all have major, major, major influence in the executive branch."
Does anyone really doubt that these Israel firsters run the country? They are proud of the fact that in all their work, Israel is paramount and America is second.
I am just trying to understand what AIPAC does so differently than other interest groups. It the complaint is how strong it is or how they spend their money, then perhaps the problem should be with the American system of government and about interest groups, in general, instead of AIPAC, specifically.
AIPAC is an easy target-- but it's a falacy that it dictates U.S. policy towards Israel. The reason that the U.S. (and by "U.S." i mean the SIGNIFICANT majority of both the government and population) supports Israel is because it is a liberal democracy that shares many of the ideals that we do, and who has many of the same enemies that we have.
"Israel bans Palestinian PM from East Jerusalem event
Public Security Minister Aharonovitch issues warrant forbidding the participation of Palestinian PM Fayyad in ceremony marking PA-sponsored school renovations.
By Nir Hasson and Avi Issacharoff
Tags: Israel news East Jerusalem Salam Fayyad
Israel is banning Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad from attending a Palestinian Authority-sponsored event in East Jerusalem, Haaretz learned on Monday."
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/israel-bans-palestinian-pm-from-east-jerusalem-event-1.322320
That's from a zionis, jewish perspective of course. I'll let others speak for their perspective.
Why do you ask.
The compromise made in 1947 - that Israel would not take a stance whether it was a secular state or not, can no longer stand. It must be a secular, liberal western democracy .... or i and many other diaspora jews (especialy in the US) will stop thinking ourselves as zionists. I view the compromize on the same level as the compromises over slavery in the US before the civil war. Moraly injustifiable and a cancer in the soul of the democracy.
We must break the power of the religious right, in America, in the Islamic world, AND IN ISRAEL. Republicans are the religious right in americam will enable the religious right in israel, and give power to the religious right in the islamic world.
They will be a disaster for ALL secularists.
Israel must choose its path, if it chosses to side with the religious right, i will support ending the alliance - and will no longer support the exsistance of the state of israel. I value secular liberal democracy above being jewish. I value the laws of Madison, John Locke, Russeou, and all the members of the enlightment, more than Moses, Solomon, David, etc. And i believe so do most jews not in israel.
A vandalised car, stolen ladders, irate police. It's all in a day's work for one unlikely hero. Donald Macintyre reports
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/a-rabbi-struggles-to-protect-his-palestinian-flock-2121858.html
I can guarantee that any similar rampaging by Palestinians against the settlers would be on a continuous loop on CNN, Fox, etc with politicians on both side tripping over each other to condemn it and use it as an excuse to stall on a fair peace deal.
"I get informed all the time, that even though "Obama isn’t so great", at least he hasn’t invaded Iran yet, and McCain surely would have been bombing Iran by now.
Okay so rhetoric towards Iran would be heigtened, but whether McCain would have waged another military campaign during the current political climate would be an assumption too far.
Gosh, if McCain were president right now, the defense budget might be the largest - $741.2bn - since World War II. He might have even asked for billions upon billions of supplemental funding for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Horrors!
Of course, a McCain education budget would only be about 1/10th of the defense budget at $78bn. And, a McCain education plan would probably contain lots of rigorous testing if the states were to want more desperately needed funds.
If McCain were president, there would be an active "anti-war" movement. However - as during the Bush years - the "movement" wouldn’t be so much antiwar, but anti-war waged by the Republicans. The anti-Republican movement wants no systemic change, it just wants Democrats in office."
http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/opinion/2010/10/2010103175555761506.html
Nice try though.
Sure it is. Long live US-Israel friendship
And that is what will handcuff the American government at all levels in this matter.
This generation of Americans is still pretty pleased with itself for shaking off the antisemitism of its parents. For most of them, Israel is still the Israel of 1967 that started and won its last, and best war. The attitude is still based in the notion that Palestinians are either wild-eyed or stupid.
But the next generation has overcome the shame and has a clue.
I mean, aren't we just comparing Winesaps with Fujis?