Locke
The Washington Post has opened an interesting door in its coverage of Gary Locke, a “star” as US ambassador to China:
Ever since President Obama named Locke to replace Jon M. Huntsman Jr., who resigned as ambassador to run for president, questions have surfaced about whether the Chinese American’s background might lead to dual loyalties. (Ironically, Locke may look the part, but he does not speak Mandarin, whereas his predecessor in the job did.)
But Locke’s toughly worded challenges to China — on everything from its currency to intellectual property protection to leveling the playing field for U.S. businesses here — seem to have dispelled any notion that he is anything other than an envoy for American interests.
“He made it pretty clear from day one that he’s an American first of all,” said Hong Huang, the fashion magazine publisher. His public speeches, she said, “completely dashed any Chinese expectation that he would behave any differently from any other American ambassador because he is Han Chinese ethnically.”
What’s good for the goose…. so, what about Dan Shapiro in Israel?
Shapiro
From Politico’s coverage of the appointment of Shapiro, who spent a year in Israel when he was in college, to be our ambassador to Israel:
Jewish community leaders expressed strong support for the expected appointment.
“This makes so much sense from both a political and policy perspective,” said the National Jewish Democratic Council’s David A. Harris, who happens to have been Shapiro’s freshman year college roommate at Washington University, before Shapiro transferred to Brandeis. “Dan has the policy chops to do this job supremely well and the political know how and confidence of the entire Jewish community.”
“Dan Shapiro is an excellent choice to be the next US Ambassador to Israel,” said William Daroff, vice president and Washington director of the Jewish Federations of North America, stressing that he can’t confirm the appointment. “He is someone who knows Israel very well, has deep roots in the American Jewish community, and has developed a very close working relationship with the prinicpal players in the region. He also has literally been engaged in every aspect of the Obama Administration’s Middle East policy since before the President took the Oath of Office. His personal relationship with the President, the Secretary of State, Special Envoy George Mitchell, and Dennis Ross are such that he has great bonafides to represent the United States in Israel.”
“Beyond that, Dan is a real mensch, who will continue to serve America incredibly well,” Daroff added.
Here’s the Washington Post‘s coverage of Shapiro. No questions surfacing there. Though As’Ad Abu Khalil says that Shapiro is “a rabid Zionist.” As’ad is given to hyperbole, but he lighted on the fact that Shapiro gave his children Hebrew names; and I light on the fact that he is close to Dennis Ross and that he is approved by the AJC and the Federations, both Zionist organizations; I would guess that Shapiro is a Zionist. (PS. Rabbi Elmer Berger, Joe Klein, John Judis and Eric Alterman have all said that some American Zionists feel dual loyalty to Israel and the U.S.)
Thanks to Janet McMahon of the Washington Report for tip.
Good catch, Phil. I say the question of dual loyalty is legitimate. In general, the loyalties of any official must be probed. A official who won’t serve his fellow citizens is a traitor and must be dealt with accordingly, regardless of his ethnicity.
No one questioned Mike Chertoff, who was a dual citizen, about “dual loyalty” – not surprising Shapiro gets the same (lack) of treatment.
What is interesting here, is – on Locke’s college application(presumably) he checked off “asian/pacific islander” – because he is ethnically/racially asian.
Shapiro gets to just check off “white” – but yet we are told by the Zio’s that jews are a separate and distinct people, a “nation” beyond just a religious affiliation.
Shapiro isn’t Israeli, but yet he is – in the zionist way of thinking. This really kind of bothers me – guys like Shapiro get to be “just regular ol’ white guys” when it comes to questions on college app’s (just as an example) and ducking “dual loyalty” charges, something Locke for obvious reasons can’t do; at the same time, he can be a member of a group that undoubtedly considers themselves a race unto themselves , and also work to enact their policies with the “get out of jail free card” of ” judaism is just my religion” – what a racket!
Ha!!!!!!
Hypocrisy embodied.
Another Zionist.
When Martin Indyk became U.S. ambassador to Israel in 1995, it was all of two years after he adopted U.S. citizenship. Mind you, he had lived the previous 11 years or so in the U.S., but as deputy research director of AIPAC and founding Executive Director of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.
No grounds for suspecting dual loyalty there!
We have Obama’s word for it that Locke didn’t speak English until the age of five. So he presumably spoke Cantonese as a child, and no doubt still can speak that language. Locke‘s father’s family came from Taishan, Guangdong, and his mother is from Hong Kong. Cantonese is spoken in both those places, so presumably his parents spoke Cantonese to each other and to the child Gary. They could have spoken English to each other, but then it wouldn’t be true that he didn’t speak English until the age of five. They could have spoken Mandarin to each other, but then it wouldn’t be true that he doesn’t speak Mandarin.