At TPM, Justin Elliott has tracked David Schenker, of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, doing some highlevel horsetrading, suggesting on Alhurra, the US-sponsored Arabic station, that Obama has to back down on his fight with Netanyahu because of his need for votes on the health-care bill:
I don’t really think this will last very long, primarily for political reasons. President Obama has mid-term elections coming up. He doesn’t want these congressmen to be seen as being allied with an anti-Israel president. He’s also asking these congressmen to back a very unpopular health care bill. This is not a winning political issue right now.
Steve Clemons saw the dual loyalty implications in the threat:
"Any US Congressperson or Senator who actually explicitly withdrew or withheld support for health care reform because of loyalty first to Israel and its needs would invite serious questions about his or her patriotism and oath to the US Constitution and American people."
Schenker is a former Bush Pentagon aide. Wonder if he knows something we don’t?
WTF – US Department of Justice Asked to Regulate AIPAC as a Foreign Agent of the Israeli Government…from Fox Business News
Yeah, like if the Kennedys couldn’t do it, somebody now can?
It would be very, very difficult, but the grounds for doing so are undeniable.
It is interesting that Thomas Dine, the former executive director of AIPAC who was also involved in the theft of government property/economic espionate investigated by the FBI in 1984, link to IRmep.org
went on to consult in a big way for Al Hurra:
link to propublica.org
How could that network ever achieve any credibility if all it does is function as a kind of JTA – Arab Market? What a waste of taxpayer money.
So who would dare expose such bribery at the expense of American health care, and in the interest of Israel? How many MSM pundits have even dared accuse Senator Lieberman of such antics? None. Have you seen the issue discussed at all? No. Yet, it’s happening now as I type in the halls of congress. Don’t expect to hear the issue raised between now and Sunday, when the Obamacare meets the final congressional vote.
In that sense, it does not seem to matter whether you are watching Beck, O Reilly,
Blitzer, Maddow, or Obermann, or the anemic PBS News. Most American get their news from TV.
Look what falls out of the shadows when two shitty policies collide. Too funny.
Phil, why didn’t you follow up on your sighting of Israeli lobbyists at the Tea Party/anti-Obamacare events last summer?
I’m not claiming that Pres. Obama’s healthcare proposal is worth anything or not. I doubt it but I really don’t know.
What I do know is that health care reform is vital to the future health of our economy. The price of American goods and services is higher because they pay for their employee’s healthcare (in addition to employee contributions of course). Our foreign competitors’ companies do not have this expense, mostly because they have government-run or managed healthcare systems.
While not strictly a military security issue, it is a national security issue because over the long term the efficacy of any nation’s defenses are fundamentally a function of (among other things) economic strength.
The Israel Lobby is essentially blackmailing American leadership: continue to diplomatically and financially subsidize a foreign government’s permanent military occupation, ethnic cleansing, and colonization against fundamental American national interests or we will hurt America. This constitutes IMO a national security threat.
argg… lack of editing
… because they pay for … should be … because American business’ pay for …
“While not strictly a military security issue, “
Oh, it very much is: you don’t want a lot of malnourished, chronically ill untreaded recruits with undiagnosed mental health issues, do you? In a national emergency, the military won’t have time to fix everybody’s teeth, sew up their hernias, and balance their medications. And then there’s obesity.
Americans must be fit and healthy, so they can defend their country. I mean, we’ve been fightiong off the Iraqis and Afghanis massed at our borders for eight years!
Obama’s professed his undying love for Israel many times – so many times in fact that I’m convinced he’d sacrifice his babies for the zionist state. How many more times must this adminisration say they love Israel to the point of cumming? I thought it was customary to roll over and sleep after sex. Obviously not. Israel is a bit like that b*tch that wants to talk all night but you just want to sleep.
“Any US Congressperson or Senator who actually explicitly withdrew or withheld support for health care reform because of loyalty first to Israel and its needs would invite serious questions about his or her patriotism and oath to the US Constitution and American people.” Ennit. Me wonders how many poor ordinary Americans that need this healthcare thing won’t get it coz Obama won’t suck Israeli dick to a suitable standard. That Schenker should be ashamed…corrupt Mo-Fo.
Pardon me French peeps.
Not to worry–no US rep or senator will ever EXPLICTLY say in public that their vote on Obamacare hinges on Obama being an Israel-Firster in terms of Iran and the settlements.
RE: “How many more times must this adminisration say they love Israel to the point of cumming?” – ihsan
MY COMMENT: Is it unreasonable to expect an infinite number of ‘multiple orgasms’?
This isn’t going to grow any more love for Israel amongst the Obamanik Democrats who view healthcare reform as a sacred cause.
Pingback: ADL or AIPAC In Full Propaganda Mode / Department of Justice asked to begin regulating
RE: “Israel lobbyist warns Obama, he’ll pay on health-care vote” – Philip Weiss
FROM PHILLIP WEISS, 02/10/10 :…I missed the debate at NYU last night over a Resolution to end the special relationship with Israel. Rashid Khalidi and Roger Cohen for, Stu Eizenstat and Israeli Itamar Rabinovich agin. Praise the lord, Tablet was there, and has a typically Israel-lobbyish report, which includes a great anecdote in which Cohen said that a Florida congressman was holding out his vote on health care till Obama took his foot off the gas on Israel/Palestine….
SOURCE – link to mondoweiss.net
TABLET ARTICLE – link to tabletmag.com
Alhurra, the US-sponsored Arabic station
That’s putting it mildly.
Al-Hurra started as a US psyop TV station, focused on disseminating propaganda throughout the Arab world. It is funded by Congress.
The same Congress that thinks healthcare for Americans costs too much, I assume.
One wonders why this “horsetrading” is being done on Alhurra of all places? We want to broadcast to the Arab world that our president is being forced to jump for Israel’s dog biscuits? What purpose will that serve? Fortunately, as is well known, no Arab actually watches Alhurra, so I guess the intended audience was Washington insiders after all.
””He doesn’t want these congressmen to be seen as being allied with an anti-Israel president.”
What a stgupid argument. Even if Obama backs down, he will never be considered pro Israeli by the Israeli lobby. They’ll know they’ve humiliated him, but they’ll know they havent won him over.
Obama might as well go for broke.
the trap is truly levantine.
In 2009 Israel exported nearly $4 billion worth of pharmaceuticals to the US (http www dot census dot gov/foreign-trade/statistics/product/enduse/imports/c5081.html )
On March 1, 2010, Marketwatch reported that “Israeli stocks surge” on strength of trade in (Israeli drugmaker) Teva Pharmaceuticals. The report continues,
caveat emptor: this IS Merrill Lynch speaking. In 2006, YNet reported link to ynetnews.com
that the Nations Brands Index ranked Israel as “the worst brand in the world.” That doesn’t mean Israelis aren’t among the uberwealthy; on Mar 8, 2010, Jonathan Cook reported that “Israel is set to join the ‘club of richest nations.’ http www dot jkcook.net/Articles3/0457.htm
Alan Greenspan helped inflate the housing bubble by simultaneously forcing interest rates to artifical, temporary, and ruinous lows while herding Americans to buy, buy, buy houses they couldn’t afford: “owning a home is an American right….” When that bubble burst, homeowners were left holding the bag, while bankers made off with the loot.
Health care is the next bubble being inflated: “every American’s gots ta have insurence; it’s your right… Insurance for all….” (pssst, for those who haven’t figured it out yet: health insurance does not equal health care. the same powers that inflated the housing bubble for their benefit are inflating the INSURANCE bubble, also for their benefit.)
The Merrill Lynch analysis cited in Marketwatch concludes:
in other words, Israel can stir up all manner of shit in the world and region, but Teva and the index for which it is flagship, will continue to thrive.
It will continue to thrive because Israel has its tentacles in the US legislature, its spies in US businesses, its operatives, such as Stuart Levey in Department of Treasury, functioning to cripple formidable competition — Iran.
You think that’s impressive? If only we could see how much profit is made on the methamphetamine traffic out of Israel.
One also notes those pharmaceuticals are only worth $4 billion as a result of our ludicrous health care system. The chair recognizes the Senator from Israel, Mr. Joe Lieberman.
Strong coffee is better than meth. And not as bad for you.
RE: Marketwatch reported that “Israeli stocks surge” on strength of trade in (Israeli drugmaker) Teva Pharmaceuticals… – Psychopathic god
FROM bilaterals.org -
Myth: The US-Israel Free Trade Agreement strengthens global rules based trade.
Fact: Israel has been on the USTR’s punitive “watch list” for the past four years. Top industry and government concerns include Internet music and software piracy, ongoing industrial espionage targeting the US for trade secrets and systematized misuse of patented US pharmaceutical innovations by Israeli generic drug exporters in collusion with the Israeli Ministry of Health.
SOURCE – link to bilaterals.org