The other day I noted that Grant Smith, a smart guy, likened Rahm Emanuel's appointment in Obama's White House to the appointment of Myer Feldman in the JFK White House. Basically Feldman was the price of Kennedy's dependence on the Israel lobby for campaign contributions. While I remain optimistic about Emanuel's effect on Obama–Obama has the capacity to play anybody–Nim Chimpsky, who is not so optimistic, below supplies Seymour Hersh's take on Feldman's role in the Kennedy White House. At a time when Israel was developing nukes in defiance of Kennedy–
From Hersh's "Samson Option":
complicated feelings about Jewish political power and the Israeli issue
were summarized in his appointment of former campaign aide Myer (Mike)
Feldman as the presidential point man for Jewish and Israeli affairs.
– p. 98
The President viewed Feldman, whose strong support for Israel was widely known, as a necessary evil whose highly visible White House position was a political debt that had to be paid. – p. 98
'Mr. President, I come with a strong bias toward Israel.' – p. 99
"Mac Bundy had a standing rule. He sent nothing to Feldman, because
Feldman was getting involved in issues in which he had no business. It
was hard to tell the difference between what Feldman said and what the
Israeli ambassador said." – p. 99
An equally cynical view of Feldman was publicly expressed by Robert Kennedy in an interview published in 1988 by the John F. Kennedy Library.
Speaking of Feldman, Kennedy noted that his older brother, the
President, had valued Feldman's work but added: "His major interest was
Israel rather than the United States." – pp. 99-100
