Israeli influence in America


03-23-06 - The protocols of Harvard and Chicago Israel's policy of occupation is not consonant with the basic values of American democracy. That is quite a pathetic argument: Israel held the values of democracy sacred at a time when several states in the United States were still prohibiting blacks, including the descendants of the slaves, from traveling in the same bus as whites Right, Israel just either out and out expelled the native population or killed them.

03-23-06 - Israel/Occupied Territories: Immediate action needed to avert humanitarian crisis in Gaza Amnesty International calls on the Israeli authorities: To ensure that whatever arrangement is made for passage of goods in and out of the Gaza Strip it should be one that respects the human rights of the Palestinian population

03-23-06 - So pro-Israel that it hurts In short, if Israel is indeed entering a new era of national sanity and de-occupation, then the role of the Lobby in U.S.-Israel relations will have to be rethought, and either reformed from within or challenged from without.

03-23-06 - ZOA: Harvard Pseudo-Academic 'Working Paper' Attacking Contrary to what was reported in that Forward article of today's news, pro-Israeli outfits have NOT remained silent in the wake of the Harvard study about the Israeli lobby. Rather, they have evidently instructed their cohorts in the mainstream American media to do so.

03-23-06 - Israeli Software Firm Drops U.S. Deal Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. in Ramat Gan, Israel, formally withdrew its proposal near the conclusion of a rare, full-blown investigation by a U.S. review panel over the company's plans to buy a smaller rival, Sourcefire Inc. Was the conclusion going to be a bad one? Is that why they pulled out of the deal?

03-23-06 - AIPAC and American Interests: The Pushback begins.

03-23-06 - Professor Says American Publisher Turned Him Down John Mearsheimer says that the pro-Israel lobby is so powerful that he and co-author Stephen Walt would never have been able to place their report in a American-based scientific publication.

03-23-06 - Scholars' Attack on Pro-Israel Lobby Met With Silence Officials with pro-Israel organizations say that given the limited public attention generated by the new study - as of Tuesday most major print outlets had ignored it What better proof is needed of the power of the Israeli lobby in America?

03-23-06 - Video: MSNBC's Joe Scarborough reports on Harvard study of the Israeli Lobby Note the tag line under the MSNBC video: 'Hate at Harvard'. They are referring to the study about the Israeli lobby. It's 'hate' only to those who seek to suppress the truth.

03-22-06 - New York lawmakers back Mideast policy The New York state Senate approved a resolution backing U.S. policy toward Israel and the Palestinian Authority. The resolution passed in Congress wasn't enough.

03-22-06 - Legal fund launched for ex-AIPAC staffer Lawyers representing an indicted former employee of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee established a legal defense fund.

03-22-06 - The War Party in Disarray Another good sign is the wellspring of hysteria that has arisen in the wake of the study's publication. Already Alan Dershowitz has smeared the distinguished authors as anti-Semites, and the Usual Suspects have launched a deafening chorus of caterwauling. Among the "arguments" raised by the study's detractors: David Duke has praised it, the Washington office of Fatah is handing out copies, and the Muslim Brotherhood likes it, too. None of which proves anything

03-22-06 - A warning from America The professors' article does not deserve condemnation; rather, it should serve as a warning sign.

03-22-06 - Harvard's Paper on Israel Called 'Trash' By Solon The NY Sun - the only other mainstream news medium in the US (besides pro-Israeli rags, and besides the Christian Science Monitor) - has offered up three or four articles since the study was put out days ago attempting to smear the authors, link them with David Duke, and otherwise try to 'discredit' this very damning report.

03-22-06 - 'AIPAC study is ignorant propaganda' Dershowitz, one of Israel's strongest defenders in the American public and academic arena, was mentioned personally in the study as an "apologist" for Israel, ....CAMERA concludes that "Harvard should remove the report from its website - and therefore remove from the report the Harvard imprimatur - until the authors fix its manifold deficiencies". Imagine, the Israeli lobby and its apologists come out AGAINST the study? Who would've guessed? The more shrill their cries, the more you know that that study hit a little too close to home for their tastes.

03-22-06 - Pro-Israeli media : Harvard removes its seal from study on Israeli Lobby This 'watchdog' - CAMERA - is PART of the Israeli lobby as mentioned in the study by the two professors. It's not a surprise to see that this lobby flexed their collective muscle and put the lean on Harvard to have their seal removed from the report.

03-22-06 - Two Jewish candidates figure in key races for mid-term votes Giffords' view on foreign affairs are noteworthy, especially since she is running to replace Kolbe, the current chairman of the foreign operations subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee, the body responsible for delivering foreign aid to Israel and around the world. It's unclear whether Giffords would replace Kolbe on that panel. "Obviously, Kolbe was an appropriations cardinal," she said. "I don't think he began as a strong supporter of Israel. It became clear to him the importance of it."

03-21-06 - Study alleges US sets aside own security interest for Israel's The Jerusalem Newswire called the paper a new example of "the centuries-old libel that the Jewish people have somehow taken control of the affairs of the most powerful nations on earth," dressed up in academic attire. Note that CAMERA - a pro-Israeli media 'watchdog' - alleges that the study is 'lies'. But CAMERA is a PART of the Israeli lobby and is mentioned in the report by the two professors. Well no kidding. Those that are a part of this lobby are going to try to downplay and discredit this study. It's just that damaging.

03-20-06 - Transcript of Q and A with President Bush to the City Club of Cleveland But now that I'm on Iran, the threat to Iran, of course -- (applause) -- the threat from Iran is, of course, their stated objective to destroy our strong ally Israel. That's a threat, a serious threat. It's a threat to world peace; it's a threat, in essence, to a strong alliance. I made it clear, I'll make it clear again, that we will use military might to protect our ally, Israel, Just remember this when Bush denies that Israel was a factor in any future ME wars, like he did with regard to the war on Iraq.

03-20-06 - The Lobby : Why is American policy in the Middle East

03-20-06 - Pro-Israel lobby in U.S. under attack. "The thrust of U.S. policy in the region derives almost entirely from domestic politics, and especially the activities of the 'Israel Lobby'. Other special-interest groups have managed to skew foreign policy, but no lobby has managed to divert it as far from what the national interest would suggest, while simultaneously convincing Americans that U.S. interests and those of the other country - in this case, Israel -- are essentially identical," they add. The American news wire UPI picks up the story about the study of the Israeli Lobby. Nobody else has, save for some of the rightwing pro-Israeli outfits who have embarked on the expected smear campaign in response thereof.



03-17-06 - Common Ground: Bush and Jewish community Mirroring the sentiments of the Israeli right wing, powerful groups like the American Israel Public Affairs Committee want that door slammed shut until Hamas recognizes Israel's right to exist and renounces violence. American Christian fundamentalist groups, meanwhile, which have been strong supporters of Israel of late, take much the same view as their more hawkish Jewish-American counterparts. Both these groups are vital constituencies for Bush, and have influence in the White House and in the House and Senate, particularly with congressional elections next November. Indeed, they could make the president's life almost as complicated as dealing with Hamas.

03-17-06 - As bills advance to cut off P.A., administration weighs aid approach In testimony Wednesday before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Gen. Keith Dayton, the U.S. security envoy to the Palestinians, pleaded with senators not to tie his hands. "The less restrictive that the legislature can be on our activities, the more flexibility it will give me as a military man to deal with situations that are inevitably very chaotic and unexpected," Dayton said. It was highly unusual for a military figure to explicitly oppose legislation. ......APN blitzed the Hill with a bulletin headlined "questions to ask AIPAC," the first time the dovish group has openly taken on the pro-Israel powerhouse during its policy conference. "Why should Congress change U.S. law, permanently, in a way that weakens and embarrasses our best hope for a future Palestinian partner (people like former Minister of Finance Salam Fayyad, who is now an elected member of the Palestinian Legislative Council), and strengthens extremists?" it asked.

03-17-06 - Study: U.S. Middle East policy motivated by pro-Israel lobby "No lobby has managed to divert U.S. foreign policy as far from what the American national interest would otherwise suggest, while simultaneously convincing Americans that U.S. and Israeli interests are essentially identical," write the authors of the study.

03-17-06 - The Israel Lobby * For the past several decades, and especially since the Six-Day War in 1967, the centrepiece of US Middle Eastern policy has been its relationship with Israel. The combination of unwavering support for Israel and the related effort to spread ?democracy? throughout the region has inflamed Arab and Islamic opinion and jeopardised not only US security but that of much of the rest of the world. This situation has no equal in American political history. Why has the US been willing to set aside its own security and that of many of its allies in order to advance the interests of another state? Sweet Jesus. Right on the money. You can read this paper in PDF format here. It is 83 pages long.



03-16-06 - U.S. bill would fund Israeli security research Israel is named as an ally in the war on terror in a U.S. congressional bill that would fund international cooperation for homeland security....The funding for international cooperation would be at least 2.5 percent of the total U.S. research and development budget. ???????????????????

03-16-06 - 'Gitmo' prisoners wrapped in Israeli flags U.S. military interrogators wrapped prisoners at Guantanamo in Israeli flags, according to the FBI.

03-16-06 - Hamas cited in White House strategy U.S. demands that Hamas abandon terrorism and recognize Israel are part of a new U.S. national security strategy. "The opportunity for peace and statehood - a consistent goal of this administration - is open if Hamas will abandon its terrorist roots and change its relationship with Israel," says the document, released Thursday by the White House

03-16-06 - Pro-Israel Activists Block Travel Reform Jewish organizations, in the lead of a loose coalition of nonprofit groups, moved to block the reforms on travel, arguing that one of their most effective lobbying tools has been privately sponsored trips to Israel for lawmakers. Israel is the number one foreign destination of privately funded congressional trips, and the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, Washington's powerful pro-Israel lobby, is the second largest underwriter of such overseas travel. It's all just a big conspiracy theory though - all of this talk about the Israeli lobby and it's control over the US government - nothing to see here...

03-16-06 - John Thomas: 'The IRS, the IRD, and Red State / Blue State Religion' If the IRD were merely a think tank on the nexus of religion and politics from a neo-conservative perspective, there would be little to complain about even from those who disagree sharply. But the agenda is far less benign....This past summer the IRD launched an advocacy effort aimed at undermining the mainline churches? long standing support of justice for Palestinians in the Middle East conflict. As church assemblies addressed the Occupation, the security barrier or wall, and in some cases the use of economic leverage - either divestment or positive investment - to advocate for an end to the occupation, the IRD and its related organizations joined with some Jewish organizations to vigorously challenge these resolutions....Since our Synod, the Wiesenthal Center, the David Project, and the Anti-Defamation League have been eager allies for IRD related organizations within the United Church of Christ in an on-going strategy of disinformation and disruption. The IRD agenda matches that of AIPAC, the powerful pro-Israel lobby that largely controls the Washington agenda on Middle East policy. What was striking in this instance, however, was that the debates were not among United Church of Christ members or Disciple of Christ members; the debates were between the church and others outside the church Those CHURCHES that don't toe the pro-Israeli line are now being targeted.

03-16-06 - US Homeland Security delegation in Israel next week The Export Institute said yesterday that a 120-strong delegation from the US Department of Homeland Security would visit Israel next week. The delegation, which will comprise experts in the fields of security, internal defense and homeland security will attend a conference in Jerusalem, where they will study Israeli technologies and solutions for homeland security issues. The conference will be attended by dozens of Israeli companies, which will exhibit products and technologies for explosives detection, surveillance and armor. There's a big irony. If you don't know what it is, then you haven't been paying attention.

03-16-06 - NY fund to sink $100m into local equity The New York State employees' pension fund will establish a new $100 million fund for investing in Israeli high-tech, said New York State comptroller Alan G. Hevesi yesterday during his visit here.

03-16-06 - When All That's Left is Aipac The defendants' former employer has denied any knowledge of or connection to "Aipac-gate." But it's very possible that once the media start focusing on Aipac's inner workings in federal court, the organization - and therefore the entire pro-Israel community - will be on trial in the court of public opinion. Critics of Israel and its overwhelming influence brought to bear over our government by its well-financed and powerful US lobby AIPAC are branded 'anti-Semitic', 'anti-Zionist' 'Jew-bashers' by the author of this article. Naturally.

03-15-06 - Suppression of witness names underlines battle in AIPAC case Condoleezza Rice, Stephen Hadley, Anthony Zinni: For a few hours, the list of subpoenaed witnesses on the docket in the classified information case against two former staffers of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee read like a Who's Who of U.S. foreign policy. And that probably was precisely the point for defendants eager to prove that trading inside information with the most senior government officials was par for the lobbyists' course. This will only serve to further prove that our government is beholden to AIPAC, a foreign lobby.

03-15-06 - U.S. Looks to Toughen Policy Toward Iran With Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (news, bio, voting record) serving as the chief architect, the Iran Freedom Support Act was introduced more than a year ago. Ros-Lehtinen is an Israel-firster.

03-15-06 - US court told Israel subjected American detainees to "traumas" In order to undermine Salah's claims, the prosecution called two agents of the Israeli Security Agency who took part in Salah's 1993 interrogations. The six and a half days of testimony were held behind closed doors, but a transcript edited of classified information will be made available to the public in a few weeks. Disguised agents of a foreign government are allowed to give testimony in private at a trial of a US citizen. I forget which country I am in for a minute. What happened to America?

03-15-06 - U.S. may veto bid for UN condemnation of jail siege the text would almost certainly face a veto from the United States, Israel's closest ally, if brought to a vote in its current form, the diplomats said.

03-14-06 - American donors to Israeli parties draw back with Sharon out of picture By contrast, Likud Party leader Benjamin Netanyahu was loudly applauded for pledging never to give up the Jordan Valley and to bring more West Bank settlements inside Israel's security barrier, essentially annexing more land. "Wherever your political career takes you, we will be your friend, and we know that you will always be a friend of the U.S.-Israel relationship," Michael Levin, an AIPAC board member, said after Netanyahu's address



03-14-06 - Senators press Bush on Saudis A bipartisan slate of U.S. senators led by Jews from each party asked President Bush to urge Saudi Arabia to cancel a meeting on an Israel boycott.

03-14-06 - US monitoring Israel's Iran options The sources pointed out that it is clear that Israel would have to coordinate with the US forces air control any attempt to fly over Iraq on the way to Iran, if Israel chooses to attack using the shortest route. Last week, former Israeli Chief of Staff Moshe Ya'alon said in Washington that the West does have a military option against Iran and that a joint US-NATO-Israeli air strike against dozens of nuclear facilities in Iran could set back Teheran's nuclear programs for several years. ...One of the questions Pentagon analysts are grappling with is how an Israeli attack - if launched - would affect the US and its forces in the region and whether it would force the US to follow with further strikes in order to complete the mission. The US is also discussing what could be the possible avenues of retaliation Iran would take against US's forces and interests in the region.

03-14-06 - Christian Radio Host Fired For Criticizing Israel The program was canceled by the WFAX management because supporters of Israel had complained to the radio station about Crowley's criticisms of Israel.

03-13-06 - Israeli, U.S. labor leaders sign pact The agreement ? the first between an Israeli and a U.S. city ? was signed by Rich Rogers, executive secretary-treasurer of the Greater Boston Labor Council, and Baruch Zalts, chairman of the Histadrut-Haifa Labor Council

03-13-06 - Rabbis call for Sudan action The program also featured a briefing on the topic by John Bolton, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, at the offices of the Anti-Defamation League. The neocon hero du jour, John Bolton, doing the bidding of pro-Israel organizations. It's doubtful that these orgs would give a rat's about Darfur if it weren't for the fact that it's Arabs that are doing the crimes therein.

03-13-06 - Bush plans sustained campaign against Iranian govt The administration of US President George W. Bush plans for a sustained campaign against the ayatollahs of Tehran that could include regime change, a newspaper reported. AIPAC has given the Bush admin their orders, and as with the orders to attack Iraq, this admin will not disappoint.

03-13-06 - Israeli Counter-Terrorism Expert Trains Police At Mall

03-13-06 - Hamas case testimony in U.S. continues out of eye of public, press Prosecutors say the measures are needed to protect the Israelis from possible retribution by Hamas terrorists. Mr. Salah's attorneys argue their client has a constitutional right to confront his accusers....What is rare about the Salah case, according to Northwestern University law professor Ron Allen, is Judge St. Eve's decision to block the agents' testimony from the public....Prosecutors will make transcripts of the testimony public -- minus material that the government deems classified under the federal Classified Information Procedures Act.

03-12-06 - The 48 Hour Media-blitz for War with Iran Bush, Cheney, Bolton, Rice, Rumsfeld, Burns, Congress, and Israel. Whoa! That?s quite a line-up. All in the last 48 hours! Was it spontaneous or a calculated public-relations campaign? ....The Iran bourse is a direct threat to the present economic system of extorting labor and resources from the developing world for worthless paper. The Bush administration will do everything in its power to defend that system. It's coming, people. Better get ready for it. AIPAC has given our government their marching orders. And they rarely if ever disobey them.

03-12-06 - Report Tracks L.A. Police Chief's Trips Bratton, who leaves Thursday for a nine-day business trip to Israel

03-12-06 - Rice Sought for Testimony in Spy Case Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and national security adviser Stephen J. Hadley are among the witnesses defense lawyers want to subpoena in the case of two pro- Israel lobbyists accused of receiving classified information

03-12-06 - Pro-Israel Activists Cheer Cheney In recent weeks Bush has seen his approval ratings drop to around 35%, leading some analysts to the conclusion that his poll numbers were putting him perilously close to a "failed presidency" - one unable to effectuate its policies because of a lack of popular support. But this week, at the annual policy conference of the main pro-Israel lobby, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, several of the most hard-line administration officials, including Vice President Dick Cheney and Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton, drew a resounding response. This was by no coincidence. For it is their policy that the Bush administration is fulfilling - to the detriment of the rest of America.

03-11-06 - REPORTER'S NOTEBOOK In past years, Aipac conferences celebrated Israel's military, economic, cultural and technological might, while underscoring its vulnerability in the face of regional threats. This year, there was very little celebrating. The focus was on the threats, on the dangers facing Israel and on Aipac's role as a bulwark to help fend them off. Such a focus works best to rally and consolidate member support, said a former Aipac lobbyist. "Nothing works better than gevalt," quipped the former Aipac staffer, using the Yiddish expression for alarm or dismay



03-10-06 - Bush: Hezbollah must disarm Hezbollah continues to attack Israel six years after Israel withdrew to U.N.-certified borders. Israel continues to violate the airspace of Lebanon.   See my note from similar story from 02-25 on this page.

03-10-06 - House committee votes to restrict P.A. aid The U.S. House of Representatives? Appropriations Committee added restrictions to Palestinian Authority aid before referring a bill to the full House.

03-10-06 - Israelis Want Aipac-Backed Bill Softened They argued that at this point the bill could end up limiting the diplomatic flexibility of the new Israeli government in dealings with the new P.A. regime. In addition, Israeli officials said, the bill may place the onus of providing for the wellbeing of the Palestinian population on Israel, the occupying power in the territories. The bill could also result in the cancellation of several internationally funded aid programs in which Israel has a vital interest, in fields such as public health, water and sewage. ..Israel does not want to see the U.N. agency dissolved out of fear that Jerusalem would end up inheriting the responsibility for the welfare of about 1.5 million refugees in the West Bank and Gaza. ...Israeli officials said that Israel has coordinated its positions on Hamas and the P.A. with Aipac..but could not say whether Israel had consulted regarding specific provisions of the bill. The measure, according to several congressional staffers who followed its development, was drafted with the active involvement of Aipac's staff. Israeli officials would not say whether they suggested to Aipac that the bill be softened. THis is why AIPAC needs to register as a foreign agent. They are acting on behalf of Israel, not America, in case you hadn't noticed.

03-10-06 - Remarks by President Bush at the National Newspaper Association Government Affairs Conference I'm concerned about -- I would say they're equal, Iran and North Korea, as for a security threat, because any time there's a non-transparent regime without a free press to hold people to account, it creates an unpredictability in the world. The Iranian President has stated his desire to destroy our ally, Israel. So when you start listening to what he has said, to their desire to develop a nuclear weapon, then you begin to see an issue of grave national security concern. Israel is our 'grave national security concern, straight from the Bushes mouth.

03-10-06 - From AIPAC to Check Point In May 2000, reports began appearing in the US media linking Amdocs Ltd. (NYSE: DOX) to the wiretapping of government communications. "Insight", a magazine of the right-wing "Washington Times" group, cited "scores" of sources, including intelligence sources, who claimed that the FBI was convinced that Amdocs, a contractor for upgrading the White House's telephony system, had listed to conversations in the president's residence...In another report, Cameron said Comverse Technology Inc. (Nasdaq: CMVT) subsidiary Comverse Infosys, a provider of surveillance equipment to US law enforcement agencies, was itself conducting secret wiretapping through a back door in the equipment it installed.

03-10-06 - Paul Findley: Seek Justice, Only Justice In Middle East policy, America ignores injustice, because religion-based passions here at home override even vital national interests. Our bias is not controlled by government officials but by two peculiar, politically powerful religious communities -- fundamentalist Christianity, on one hand, and on the other an extreme element of Judaism. Together, they burden our country year after year with an Israel-centric foreign policy that is disastrous to America's vital interests. Both groups have a deep-seated, passionate attachment to the State of Israel, no matter how outrageous its behavior becomes. Both are represented powerfully in Washington and exert a suffocating level of influence throughout America's political system, as well as in almost every other part of our society.

03-09-06 - Potter's Israel trip sparks debate, requests "It's a private vacation. He is doing no official duties," said John Doussard, the mayor's spokesman. "He is going as Tom Potter, who is very interested in archaeology." Riiight.

03-09-06 - BBC Partially Revises Biased Timeline on Web site CAMERA?s submission to the BBC Board of Governor?s Independent Panel demonstrated that throughout the timeline, Arab perspectives are amplified and endorsed, while Arab violence is downplayed and emphasis is given to supposed Zionist or Israeli culpability. Bingo. The BBC board did not self-criticize, the board came under pressure from CAMERA, a virulently pro-Israeli lobby in the US. This pro-Israeli media 'watchdog' succeeds in getting BBC to whitewash its coverage of Israel on the timeline of the I-P conflict on its website.

03-09-06 - Jewish studies program gets government money A U.S. university received a $500,000 matching grant from the U.S. government to support its Jewish studies program. Abe Foxman would scream bloody murder if this were about government funding of Christian studies. Allegations that there is 'anti-Semitism' on campus, are a prelude to a new Jewish studies program being implemented on said college campus.

03-09-06 - Bush reaches out to philanthropists A large number of Jewish groups oppose faith-based initiatives, because of concerns that using federal money for religious charitable organizations violates the separation of church and state. See this next short article from JTA for today as well.

03-09-06 - Jewish groups push for travel A Jewish leader urged Congress not to ban or limit privately funded congressional travel.

03-09-06 - Senate rejects travel ban Pro-Israel groups have been working to ensure that the original bill, which remains under debate, does not include a ban on non-profit travel, which would hamper their ability to send lawmakers to Israel. You didn't really think the AIPACers would allow Congress to ban all lobby-sponsored trips, including those to Israel, did you? Hahahaha. We are talking about the Israeli lobby here.

03-09-06 - Federal Hearing Incenses Civil Advocates Two Israeli intelligence agents are being called to testify about Salah's interrogation in an effort to determine whether the confession can be used at Salah's trial. Although experts say judges frequently take special precautions to protect witnesses, the judge's decision to keep the pretrial hearing secret to better safeguard the agents against reprisals has upset opponents of government secrecy. "I don't believe serving the interest of a foreign intelligence agency is high priority for the American people,"...Over defense objections, U.S. District Judge Amy St. Eve ruled in January that she would close the courtroom for the Israeli agents, offer heavy security and permit them the use of pseudonyms and "light disguises."

03-08-06 - Israel-Palestine conflict engulfs Rogers's $1.7bn New York project Under attack by local politicians and others who are calling for his sacking, Lord Rogers will arrive at the offices of the Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish Organisations with a daunting brief. He must negotiate his way through a row that combines Israeli-Palestinian politics with a major public building project - two topics virtually guaranteed to cause contention in New York, even if the Javits centre had not been built in honour of Jacob Javits, a New York senator who was a staunch campaigner for Israel...The furore is not the first time that the politics of the Israeli-Palestinian dispute have become charged in New York in recent weeks. Late last month a play about the activist Rachel Corrie, co-written by the Guardian journalist Katharine Viner, was cancelled by a theatre in the city. The political opinions of Israel in Britain are vastly different than those found here. Yet Britain is our number 1 ally.

03-08-06 - Jewish Congress-paid trip to Israel has national chief on defensive An open letter from 47 grassroots groups to Phil Fontaine, national chief of the Assembly of First Nations, says he was used by the Canadian Jewish Congress - which paid for the trip - as a cover for "Israeli atrocities committed against the Palestinian people.".."To oppose an educational, historical trip to Israel is to oppose Jews and Israel for their own sake," Trips to Israel sponsored by pro-Israeli lobbies taken by politicians in both the US and Canada, are now labelled 'educational'. This will be used by Congress to bypass the limits of trips provided to lawmakers by lobbyists.

03-08-06 - Abramoff says he worked with top Republicans Abramoff said he did not spend much time lobbying DeLay because he knew that the Texas Republican would support his issues, but they talked about other subjects..."We would sit and talk about the Bible. We would sit and talk about opera. We would sit and talk about golf. I mean, we talked about philosophy and politics," Delay and Abramoff are both Zionists - Christian and Jewish respectively.

03-08-06 - U.S. 'will always be by Israel's side,' Clinton says Clinton said he "sympathized" with the reason Palestinians voted for Hamas in recent parliamentary elections because the average Palestinian is worse off now than a decade ago. U.S. 'will always be by Israel's side,' Clinton says - maybe our Congress whom AIPAC has in their back pocket. Last I checked though, this government is still by the people of the people and for the people.

03-08-06 - For politicians and candidates, AIPAC event is a time to shine Participating at the AIPAC conference has, for years, given politicians close access to active donors from across the country who are willing to feed money into the campaigns of pro-Israel candidates. In addition to the formal program, AIPAC conferences include several small cocktail receptions for high donors, where business cards and alcohol flow freely.

"It's fund-raising, it's votes and it's leadership," Rep. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), who is running for Senate, said at a National Jewish Democratic Council reception on the sidelines of the conference. "It puts us together with people that are influential in the community." The whoring of American legislators and would-be legislators is repulsive.

03-08-06 - Researchers to Report That Arab Population Figures in West Bank and Gaza Are Dramatically Overestimated as House International Relations Subcommittee Reconsiders US Aid to Palestinian Authority The ADRG released, "Arab Population in the West Bank and Gaza: The Million Person Gap," a report authored by Bennett Zimmerman, Dr. Roberta Seid and Dr. Michael L. Wise at the American Enterprise Institute. Bingo. The American Enterprise Institute, AEI, is a neocon 'thinktank' - now there's a nonbiased source of information. Our legislators will nonetheless slurp up this neocon slop in their usual subordinate manner.

03-08-06 - Remarks by Vice President Cheney to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee 2006 Policy Conference

03-07-06 - Party leaders pledge support for Israel trips Leaders of both major U.S. parties are making sure that educational trips to Israel for legislators are not affected by lobbying reforms.

03-07-06 - Amid AIPAC's Big Show, Straight Talk With a Noticeable Silence Luncheon speeches by former House speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) and former Virginia governor Mark Warner (D) were declared off the record. At another speech yesterday by Republican National Committee Chairman Ken Mehlman, reporters were turned away at the door; an AIPAC spokeswoman went through the room making sure no journalists had infiltrated.

03-07-06 - THE MYSTERIOUS TRANSFORMATION OF THE AIPAC CASE Notice how, curiously, what started out as what would have been called an espionage case if the alleged parties had been working on behalf of, say, Iran or Palestine instead of Israel - in which secret information was transferred to an Israeli diplomat - has been mysteriously transformed into a freedom of the press cause celebre even though the indicted parties were not journalists at all

03-07-06 - Cheney Says U.S. Won't Let Iran Get Nukes "The Iranian regime needs to know that if it stays on its present course, the international community is prepared to impose meaningful consequences," Cheney said in a speech to the to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, an influential pro-Israel lobbying group. Cheney bows before his AIPAC masters.

03-07-06 - AIPAC taking Hamas, Iran to Congress Delegates of the AIPAC conference will depart Tuesday to Capitol Hill for more than 450 lobbying meetings with their members of Congress. The two main issues on the legislative agenda of the organization are Hamas and Iran.

03-07-06 - Debate over ports deal shows complex reality of Arab boycott What seems to politicians like a crystal-clear case - how can you entrust the nation's ports to a regime that harbored terrorist money? - gets murkier the closer you get to the realities of Israel's dealings in the Middle East.

03-06-06 - For AIPAC delegates, clear goal on Iran, but mixed messages on P.A. Stop Hamas and stop Iran.....Instead of just showing progress on key issues, for instance, the Palestinian Authority must now prove that it has crushed terrorism and incitement before it reenters the United States? good graces. It also must recognize Israel as a Jewish state, a step further than merely recognizing Israel?s existence. Just look at our legislators scurrying about after they were given their orders from AIPAC.

03-06-06 - US envoy hints at strike to stop Iran The US ambassador to the United Nations, John Bolton, has told British MPs that military action could bring Iran's nuclear programme to a halt if all diplomatic efforts fail....The CIA appears to be the most sceptical about a military solution And the world snickers at our obeisance to the Israeli lobby.

03-06-06 - Palestinian link could cost Rogers $1.7bn New York deal One of Britain's leading architects, Richard Rogers, is battling to save his $1.7bn (£971m) redesign of a New York convention centre, after his connections to a pro-Palestinian protest group outraged politicians and Jewish organisations.

03-06-06 - Thanking Israel's powerful friend Thus, a few years ago, an AIPAC lobbyist's activities developed ties to an anonymous candidate from a remote state, which has almost no Jews, until the latter reached one of the highest offices in the Senate, and was able to have a real influence in Israel's favor. Thus, last week, the adviser to a senator from a southern state, which also has few Jews, explained: "We have an excellent relationship with the Jewish community. We would never do anything related to Israel without first explaining to Israel what we are doing." Wow. This is the complete opposite of "taxation with representation". It's what revolutions are made of. Who are our officials representing?

03-06-06 - UAE urged to end its boycott of Israel Leading U.S. Jewish groups have long sought to end the boycott. The boycott "is an anachronistic practice that has been used by the Arab worlds to unfairly isolate and stigmatize Israel," said Josh Block, a spokesman for the influential American Israel Public Affairs Committee. "No company should be participating in the boycott."

03-05-06 - Bolton: World Must Confront Iran The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations on Sunday told an influential pro- Israel lobbying group there is an urgent need to confront Iran's "clear and unrelenting drive" for a nuclear weapons program. Bolton, a key speaker at the AIPAC conference once again, demonstrating that he is ISRAEL'S new ambassador to the UN.

03-05-06 - US warns Iran of consequences of nuclear ambitions U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton reaffirmed that the United States will use "all tools at our disposal" to thwart Iran's nuclear program and is already "beefing up defensive measures" to do so. "The Iran regime must be made aware that if it continues down the path of international isolation, there will be tangible and painful consequences," he told 4,500 delegates to the annual convention of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, the leading pro-Israel U.S. lobbying group.

03-05-06 - Pro-Israel credit card launched "We felt a need to devise a plan to have the 6 million Jews and millions of Evangelical Christians in the US affect Israel's economy on a daily basis," Good, now we can keep the billions in taxpayer aid to Israel for use here at home?..

03-05-06 - Architect for NY's Javits Center under fire American Jewish leaders welcomed the decision by British architect Richard Rogers to resign his membership in a professional organization that has called for the boycott of Israel's construction industry...Abraham H. Foxman, Anti-Defamation League national director, welcomed the statement but said it did not go far enough.

03-04-06 - Israeli leaders to address AIPAC The main issue on the agenda will be the call to isolate the Hamas-led Palestinian Authority. AIPAC is supporting tough legislation in Congress, intended to cut off direct financial aid to the PA and to limit the possibility of supplying humanitarian aid to the Palestinians. A non-binding resolution with similar language has already been approved overwhelmingly by both chambers of Congress. The binding bill is expected to be voted on in the next weeks. AIPAC is also working tirelessly to promote legislation against Iran and to make sure that the administration and Congress remain firm on their opposition to an Iranian nuclear program.

03-04-06 - Pro-Israel Lobbying Group Roiled by Prosecution of Two Ex-Officials But the question of dual loyalty, to the United States and to Israel, became touchy after the investigation was revealed. At last year's conference, the group broke with tradition and did not sing the Israeli national anthem. Dual loyalty? I don't see it. I see loyalty to one nation - and it ain't this one.

03-04-06 - Bipartisan pressure on Bush administration against dealing with Hamas The committee's top Democrat, Rep. Tom Lantos, said there must be "an end to humanitarian assistance" to the Palestinians with the exception of food, water and medicine....Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen said the election victory of Hamas poses "enormous threats" to U.S. security. Hilarious. It poses no such threat. Ros-Lehtinen and Lantos are Israel-firsters.

03-03-06 - Resolution calls for Israel in NATO The non-binding resolution, which aims for Israel?s full inclusion in NATO, was introduced this week by Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen By now it is abundantly clear judging from the amount of legislation submitted on behalf of a foreign nation, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen is the US Congress' representative of Israel.

03-03-06 - US lawyers attack Israeli security agent "It's embarrassing that this kind of argument would be going on in an American courtroom," Deutsch said, comparing the methods used by Israel in its occupied territories in 1993 with those once employed in South Africa and Chile. It violated not only international human rights but the U.S. Constitution's guarantees, he said. We will now allow confessions extracted by torture, and this is exactly where our (neocon) Pentagon got it from.

03-03-06 - 'War on terror' trials could allow evidence obtained through torture

03-02-06 - Dems target UAE for boycott The letter to President Bush, drafted this week by Reps. Alcee Hastings (D-Fla.), Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) and Rahm Emanuel (D-Ill.), warns that the United Arab Emirates pledged millions last month to help the Hamas-led Palestinian Authority and is enforcing an Arab League boycott of Israel

03-01-06 - First AIPAC Test In Years Looming In PA Aid Fight Ros-Lehtinen has indicated she will press ahead with her tougher bill that goes beyond even what the government of Israel is seeking in dealing with the PA. And AIPAC delegates will press right along with her, setting the stage for what could be the first real fight for the pro-Israel lobby group since the 1992 debacle over loan guarantees to Israel. Are you nauseous yet from the level of control a foreign nation has over our government? You should be. Our lawmakers fall over themselves to please their AIPAC masters.

03-01-06 - Vouchers for Jewish day schools? A gathering of Jewish leaders, academics and Israeli Knesset members discussed the possibility of pushing for U.S. government vouchers for private Jewish schools.

03-01-06 - America's Pro-Israel Lobby Holds Its Annual Policy Conference in Washington D.C. AIPAC - the real policymakers in Washington. They have Congress and the Executive Branch (among others) in their backpocket.

03-01-06 - Lawmaker presses USTR on Saudi treatment of Israel A U.S. lawmaker asked the Bush administration on Wednesday to explain what steps it is taking to ensure Saudi Arabia no longer participates in the Arab League boycott of Israel. Our lawmakers once again are doing the bidding of a foreign nation.

02-28-06 - ADL: Dubai's Support for Economic Boycott of Israel Should Torpedo Port Operations Deal The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today said that the Government of Dubai's ongoing support of the Arab economic boycott of Israel "should torpedo any deal with the United States on port operations." our security here on the Homeland does not factor in, at least according to the ADL. Israel comes first.

02-27-06 - Israeli Government Asks the US Supreme Court to cancel lawsuits Accusing Yaalon and Dichter of Committing War Crimes The Israeli government called on the US Supreme Court to call off the civil lawsuit filed by Palestinian and Lebanese residents against the former head of Shabak Major General Avi Dichter and the former Chief of Staff Moshe Yaalon accusing them of committing war crimes in Lebanon and the Palestinian territories.

02-27-06 - Columbia inaugurates Israel institute The establishment of the institute comes after a controversy that centered around claims that some professors made anti-Israel statements in their classrooms, creating an anti-Israel environment on campus. Witchhunts really DO work!

02-27-06 - ADL: Anti-Semitism at Core of Hamas Charter Philosemitism is at the core of the ADL charter, go figure.

02-26-06 - Hillary Clinton blasts Hamas, Iran Speaker after speaker at the event, including Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and several members of New York?s congressional delegation, also spoke about the need to contain Hamas and Iran.

02-26-06 - Jewish group to address Iran, Hamas

02-25-06 - Lebanon admits it okayed arms transfer to Hezbollah Watch how quickly this becomes our problem.

02-25-06 - Palestinian demographics challenged Bennett Zimmerman, Roberta Seid and Michael Wise presented their thesis at a meeting at the American Enterprise Institute, a conservative Washington think tank That's a NEOconservative thinktank. Imagine if there were studies in America being done by white groups of black demographics, the uproar? Yet pro-Israeli groups both here and in Israel continue to do such studies of Arab demographics without so much as a peep from any mainstream organization or media, least of all the Anti-Defamation League. Why is this not a surprise?

02-23-06 - US congressman sends protest note to Erdogan over Hamas visit The head of the Jewish lobby in the US Congress, Tom Lantos, has sent a letter of protest to Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan concerning the visit last week of a senior official of the Palestinian group Hamas to Ankara.

02-23-06 - Evangelical pro-Israel group to lobby A new evangelical group is planning a pro-Israel lobbying bid in Washington on July 18-19. American Christian Zionists (End Times Fundamentalists) believe that in order for the Second Coming of Christ, Jews must settle all of the land of biblical Israel. Tom Delay is a prominent Christian Zionist.

02-23-06 - Report: Palestinians overcounted The American-Israeli Demographic Research Group, presenting its findings at the American Enterprise Institute on Thursday, said the 3.8 million figure for 2004, published by the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, was off by 1.3 million. So desperate are pro-Israelis to prove that Israel must keep all of the land it has seized, that they've taken to forming groups devoted to the demographics of Palestinians - read, racism. And the AEI, is a neocon 'thinktank' (one of many).

Next


Back to list | Main page for Palestine | Site Map | Contact | Main Index