Jeb Bush flipflops on brother George because he needs character reference for the Israel lobby

Watch Jeb Bush flipflop.

Washington Post, February 18: “Jeb Bush: ‘I love my father and my brother…but I am my own man’”

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, who is considering a 2016 presidential campaign, is seeking to distinguish his views on foreign policy from those of his father and brother, two former presidents.

CBS, February: “Jeb Bush: ‘I am not my brother'”

But of course 10 weeks is a lifetime in politics, and this is the headline in the Washington Post today: “One of Jeb Bush’s top advisers on Israel: George W. Bush”

After spending months distancing himself from his family’s political legacy, Jeb Bush surprised a group of Manhattan financiers this week by naming his brother, former president George W. Bush, as his most influential counselor on U.S.-Israel policy.

“If you want to know who I listen to for advice, it’s him,” Bush said Tuesday

The company at the luncheon included Paul Singer, the big Republican donor who is pro-Israel.

Why is Jeb flipflopping? Well back in March, his foreign policy adviser James Baker spoke at the liberal Zionist group J Street and was critical of Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu for opposing the two-state solution and building settlements.

At that moment, Bush lost the favors of Sheldon Adelson, the billionaire funder of George Bush and in the last presidential cycle, of Newt Gingrich and Mitt Romney:

Adelson sent word to Bush’s camp in Miami: Bush, he said, should tell Baker to cancel the speech. When Bush refused, a source describes Adelson as “rips***”; another says Adelson sent word that the move cost the Florida governor “a lot of money.”

Meanwhile, FL Sen. Marco Rubio, seen as Bush’s top competition, got the backing of Florida billionaire Norman Braman, an ardent Zionist whom Rubio describes as a father figure and Politico says could be the next Sheldon Adelson.

Way down in today’s Washington Post story on Jeb and George, the reporters clue us in on why George Bush is such an important signifier to neocons, but of course not to voters:

Jeb Bush’s comments were widely interpreted as an effort to dispel lingering concerns among Israel hawks that Baker’s comments were indicative of Bush’s own views. Singer, a billionaire hedge fund manager, is one of many top GOP money players who fund conservative pro-Israel groups and candidates who favor a hard-line stance against Iran.

A majority of registered voters still have unfavorable views of how George W. Bush handled his job as president, according to a Washington Post-ABC News poll in March. Nevertheless, there remains deep affection within the GOP for George W. Bush, with 87 percent approving of his presidential tenure.

“For all of the negatives in how George W. Bush is remembered in foreign policy, people who are supportive of Israel remember him as supportive of Israel,” said Danielle Pletka, who studies national security at the American Enterprise Institute. “For Bush, he has to find a way to deflect the festering question of his relationship with James Baker.”

George W. Bush drew enthusiastic reviews for his appearance last month before the Republican Jewish Coalition, where he answered questions about his time in the White House and his post-presidency.

Paul Singer is the Jewish billionaire behind a new Christian Zionist group, and a raft of neocons, including Pletka. Eli Clifton reports:

Singer, a director at the Republican Jewish Coalition, is a huge donor to various groups that promote a hawkish line on Iran policy. Between 2008 and 2011, he contributed $3.6 million to the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a hard-line neoconservative think tank whose scholars have variously advocated for “crippling sanctions,” “economic warfare,” and bombing Iran. The hedge fund mogul has also supported the American Enterprise Institute, a think tank whose scholars, including Richard Perle and Danielle Pletka, led the charge into Iraq and have been no less aggressive in regard to Iran. In addition, Singer has supported the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs—he was listed in the group’s “Chairman’s Circle” as recently as 2012.

In this crowd, the Iraq war is a resume builder. Colin Powell said that the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs got us into the Iraq war; the “JINSA crowd” influenced former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. Some crowd, huh? And they don’t get flushed from the system because they have so much money behind them.

So all these Republican candidates are staking rightwing positions on foreign policy in order to get the locomotive they need to drive the campaign; but none of these givers cares about immigration or abortion, issues of concern to the rightwing Republican base. And how popular is the Iraq war among American voters, or even Republican ones?

P.S. Digby’s on to this at Salon. “Jeb Bush’s terrifying W. strategy: How he’s sucking up to extremist billionaires—with the help of the worst president ever… it’s about winning the donor primary.” I don’t think Chris Matthews will be able to avoid this one. And the split in the lobby just grows wider, driven by party politics: between the neocon Iran hawks and the J Street anti-settlement folks.

Thanks to Adam Horowitz.

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Keep it all public, let Israel hang out in public. Good for the USA to see The Lobby (™) in action, to see the politicians bending to the oligarchs who own everything in the USA, and why shouldn’t they also own the republican (and other) candidate-hopefulls for president?

He lied when he said “I am my own man”.

They are all lining up to prostitute themselves to the casino boss and Israel. (apologies to prostitutes everywhere) The very thought of another Bush or Republican at the helm is preposterous to me but not to some.

In other Lobby news:

“A leading pro-Israel lobbyist in Brussels has made a series of racist comments about Muslims.

Alex Benjamin has been the director with both European Friends of Israel (EFI) and the newly-formed Europe Israel Public Affairs (EIPA) over the past six months. While speaking on behalf of each of those organizations, he has displayed an anti-Islam bias.

In December last year, Benjamin contended that one explanation for the willingess of some EU governments to recognize Palestine as a state was that “the demographics in Europe are changing.”

“There is huge populations of Muslims in France, in Germany, all over the place,” he says. “And politicians are finding, rightly or wrongly, that in order to get their votes they have to pander to certain stereotypes.”…

“Hornets’ nest”

In a discussion prompted by the killing of a Jewish security guard at a bar mitzvah in Copenhagen earlier that month, Benjamin implies that Muslims in general are to blame for anti-Semitic crimes.

“I see anti-Semitism and the rise of fundamental Islam and the changing demographics in Europe as inexticably linked. It’s a bit — if I could use a rather crude analogy — it’s a bit like having a hornets’ nest at the end of your garden.”

He argues that the rise in anti-Semitism he perceives “can’t just be because of Israeli actions.” Then he says: “There’s something more fundamental behind it. And it’s not a very pleasant thing to do but sometimes you need to lift up the carpet and look at the horrible things underneath it.”

Referring to new security measures taken in EU buildings following the January attacks on the French satiricial magazine Charlie Hebdo and a kosher supermarket in Paris, he says:

I use the analogy deliberately about the hornets’ nest at the end of the garden and I would say that either you protect your house and you stop the hornets from flying in — like we have outside the [European] Commission; like we have outside the [European] Parliament. That is a short-term solution. The hornets are still going to be there. So do you go down to the end of the garden and you try to deal with the nest? Pr do you just try and protect yourself in the house and say “well listen, I’m too scared to go down there, I might get stung; I don’t know what’s going to happen; all I can do is stop them from getting in the house?”…

Before he became a full-time Israel lobbyist, Benjamin worked as a press officer for British Conservative members of the European Parliament. His résumé includes, too, a stint as communications director with the Ulster Unionist Party in Belfast.

EIPA is one of several lobby groups trying to promote a positive image of Israel. In an attempt to distract from the crimes committed against the Palestinians, it has been using Facebook to highlight the aid which Israel provided to Nepal’s earthquake victims and to celebrate innovations by Israeli scientists.

EIPA is an offshoot of the similarly-named Europe Israel Press Association. Among the propaganda events that association has hosted was a talk given last year by Mordechai Kedar, an Israeli academic who has advocated that Israeli soldiers should rape Palestinian women.

Benjamin seems to be settling in nicely to his job. His racist remarks are perfectly in sync with the Israel lobby’s toxic worldview.”

http://electronicintifada.net/blogs/david-cronin/head-new-pro-israel-group-makes-series-racist-comments

17 of Jeb Bush’s consultant team are former members of George Jr’s team–including Paul Wolfowitz! Discussion on MSNBC now. Jeb said Bro George is his top adviser on Middle East & Israel. Guess he was desperate for a team with experience he can count on as loyal to him for the primary race? Problem: Many Americans, even GOP peeps, look on Iraq War as a major mistake in US foreign policy. Chris Matthews: He’s “just signing on to past mistakes.” Jeb said his Bro was his policy adviser for ME & israel to a group of rich Jewish donors, not to public at large, so he can say to public “I’m my own man.” Kudos to Matthews for bringing this to public light.

Remember during last POTUS campaign, the Mormon candidate’s wooing of rich Jewish donors? A waiter spilled the beans & suddenly the public knew of that notorious 47%

Looks like this run for POTUS will be putting Israel and the outrage of US campaign finance & rich one note Jewish donors in the lime light?

Zio-supremacists using (the promise of) money and power to manipulate American politicians into supporting their oppressive, colonialist, expansionist, belligerent and supremacist “Jewish State” project is shameful.

American politicians allowing themselves to be manipulated – tripping over themselves in their rush to sell their souls to an unjust and immoral cause – is thoroughly disgusting.

RE: Adelson sent word to Bush’s camp in Miami: Bush, he said, should tell Baker to cancel the speech. When Bush refused, a source describes Adelson as “rips***”; another says Adelson sent word that the move cost the Florida governor “a lot of money.”

SPOKEN BY MISTER ROGERS: “Kids, can you say “despotic control”? Sure you can!*

* DESPOTIC CONTROL – http://mondoweiss.net/2015/04/shields-adelson-foreign#comment-763336