Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer has declined to back state Attorney General Dana Nessel, in her prosecution of student protestors.
Earlier this month Nessel (who is a Democrat) announced that she was filing charges against 11 people connected to Palestine protests at the University of Michigan. Most are being charged with trespassing because they allegedly refused to vacate the encampment they set up in solidarity with Gaza.
On Sunday the Jewish Insider published a piece by Josh Kraushaar on the Whitmer news titled, “Gov. Whitmer declines to back Michigan attorney general for prosecuting anti-Israel protesters.”
The story contains an intriguing subtitle: “In a CNN interview, the Michigan governor doesn’t speak out against Rashida Tlaib’s insinuation that the AG charged campus demonstrators because she’s Jewish.”
Kraushaar casually makes reference to this amazing claim in the piece but offers no proof that it ever happened. He links to an interview with Tlaib in the Detroit Metro Times in which Tlaib points out that Nessel seems to be singling out Palestine activists because she hasn’t hit other protesters with such charges.
“It seems that the attorney general decided if the issue was Palestine, she was going to treat it differently, and that alone speaks volumes about possible biases within the agency she runs,” Tlaib told the paper.
“This is a move that’s going to set a precedent, and it’s unfortunate that a Democrat made that move,” she continued. “You would expect that from a Republican, but not a Democrat, and it’s really unfortunate.”
Tlaib doesn’t mention Nessel’s religion or Judaism at all, but the Metro Times points out that she’s the first Jewish person to be elected Attorney General in Michigan. This is presumably why pro-Israel outlets like Jewish Insider and pro-Israel lawmakers like State Senator Jeremy Moss have latched onto the smear.
At the time I am typing this, Jewish Insider has not released a correction or an apology for its lie. However, Anti-Defamation League (ADL) CEO Jonathan Greenblatt has predictably tweeted out the article with his own fictional version of events.
“When a congresswoman accuses the attorney general of prosecuting protestors simply because she’s Jewish, it’s bias,” wrote Greenblatt. “Saying you want to ‘make sure that students are safe on our campuses’ is just words if you are not willing to use your bully pulpit to speak out unequivocally on antisemitism and support holding people accountable for violating the law when it affects Jews.”
CNN Jake Tapper shared Greenblatt’s tweet with his 3 million followers and simply pointed out that it was the ADL’s response to Whitmer’s interview. He didn’t inform readers that Greenblatt was responding to a completely made-up story.
Since then, CNN has doubled down on the lie. Dana Bash and and David Chalian repeated it to viewers, while Tapper has continued to tweet about it.
Whitmer was seemingly spooked by the fabrications and elected to throw Tlaib under the bush.
“The suggestion that Attorney General Nessel would make charging decisions based on her religion as opposed to the rule of law is antisemitic,” Whitmer wrote in a statement to CNN. “Attorney General Nessel has always conducted her work with integrity and followed the rule of law. We must all use our platform and voices to call out hateful rhetoric and racist tropes.”
Greenblatt responded to the Whitmer about-face on Twitter. “Since I posted the below, Gov. Whitmer has made clear such suggestions of bias are wrong and we thank her for her comments,” he wrote. “Additionally, I learned that initial news reports contained an error in the specifics of the congresswoman’s remarks.”
In other words: I lied, but I’m glad people have decided to join the smear campaign.
Nessel has embraced the fabrication, accusing the congresswoman of antisemitism and comparing her to right-wing homophobes.
“Look for (Tlaib) to say that I could handle a litany of other cases, and that was fine, but when it comes to anything involving pro-Palestinian protesters, I could not be fair, I could not be objective. And I don’t think you have to be Angela Lansbury to figure this out, right?” she told (who else?) CNN “Clearly, she’s referencing my religion as to why she thinks I can’t be fair.”
“In 2022 when my opponent accused me of being a groomer and a pedophile, everyone understood that those were homophobic remarks because I happen to be gay, right?” she continued. “I didn’t have to explain it to people.”
Steve Neavling, the reporter who interviewed Tlaib for the Metro Times, has repeatedly tweeted at Tapper, Bash, and Greenblatt insisting that Tlaib’s comments weren’t antisemitic, but doesn’t seem to have gotten any response.
“I’m the reporter who interviewed Rashida Tlaib,” reads one such tweet. “She never said Nessel did this because she’s Jewish. Never. You’re spreading lies.”
Earlier this month, the The Detroit News was criticized for publishing a cartoon that depicted Tlaib looking at a smoking device, and saying “Odd, my pager exploded.” This was an obvious reference to Israel’s recent attacks on Lebanon, which have killed more than 620 people so far.
Bernie Bill
This week Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) officially introduced a Joint Resolutions of Disapproval to block the sale of more than $20 billion in U.S. weapons to Israel.
“Sending more weapons is not only immoral, it is also illegal. The Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 and the Arms Export Control Act lay out clear requirements for the use of American weaponry – Israel has egregiously violated those rules,” reads a statement put out by Sanders. “American weapons have been used indiscriminately, and several of the systems included in these sales are responsible for a large number of civilian casualties. There is a mountain of documentary evidence demonstrating that these weapons are being used in violation of U.S. and international law. It is also clear that Israel has blocked U.S. humanitarian aid, making it ineligible for U.S. security assistance under Section 620I of the Foreign Assistance Act.”
“There are also clear policy reasons not to proceed with these arms sales. For months, the Biden Administration has been trying to reach a ceasefire deal that would secure the release of the hostages and allow more aid to flow into Gaza. Every time an agreement appears close, Netanyahu introduces new demands and sinks the deal,” it continues. “It is clear that Netanyahu is prolonging the war to cling to power and avoid prosecution for corruption. Meanwhile, his government has also overseen record illegal settlement expansion in the West Bank and unleashed a wave of violence there that has killed nearly 700 Palestinians, including 150 children, and several Americans over the last 11 months.”
Sanders was joined by Democratic Senators Jeffrey Merkley (OR) and Peter Welch (VT) on the resolution, but it’s doubtful that the effort will gain much traction in the conservative, largely pro-Israel Senate.
Recent polls show vast support for an arms embargo on Israel among Democratic voters.
A March 2024 Center for Economic and Policy Research survey found that 52% of Americans wanted the U.S. to stop weapons shipments. That included 62% of Democratic voters.
A June survey then from CBS News/YouGov found that more than 60% of voters should not send weapons or supplies to Israel. Almost 80% of Democrats said the the U.S. shouldn’t send weapons.
ProPublica Report
A blockbuster story from ProPublica reveals that U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken ignored agency assessments revealing that Israel had blocked humanitarian aid to Gaza, and told Congress that the Israeli government was allowing such aid in.
“The U.S. Agency for International Development delivered its assessment to Secretary of State Antony Blinken and the State Department’s refugees bureau made its stance known to top diplomats in late April,” writes ProPublica reporter Brett Murphy. “Their conclusion was explosive because U.S. law requires the government to cut off weapons shipments to countries that prevent the delivery of U.S.-backed humanitarian aid. Israel has been largely dependent on American bombs and other weapons in Gaza since Hamas’ Oct. 7 attacks.”
However, the Biden administration refused to accept these findings. Just days later Blinken told Congress that, “We do not currently assess that the Israeli government is prohibiting or otherwise restricting the transport or delivery of U.S. humanitarian assistance.”
“Prior to his report, USAID had sent Blinken a detailed 17-page memo on Israel’s conduct,” explains Murphy. “The memo described instances of Israeli interference with aid efforts, including killing aid workers, razing agricultural structures, bombing ambulances and hospitals, sitting on supply depots and routinely turning away trucks full of food and medicine.”
Former State Department official Stacy Gilbert resigned over the Biden team’s final report to Congress.
“There is consensus among the humanitarian community on that,” said Gilbert in a statement at the time. “It is absolutely the opinion of the humanitarian subject matter experts in the State Department, and not just in my bureau—people who look at this from the intelligence community and from other bureaus.”
“When the history of the Israeli war on Gaza is written, there will be no shortage of words dedicated to American villains in this story, and Secretary of State Antony Blinken will be near the top of this list,” writes Yousef Munayyer at The New Republic. “Blinken, we learned this week, had an opportunity to alter the course of this war, save countless lives, and do so merely by following U.S. law. But he chose to skirt the law and to deceive Congress and the American public, all to ensure bombs continued to flow to Israel as massacre after massacre was being committed in Gaza.”
“This isn’t just a political scandal, it’s a collapse of all morality,” tweeted James Zogby. “When we say that the US has enabled Israel’s Palestinian genocide, this is what we mean.”
Odds & Ends
😟 The Uncommitted Movement failed because it refused to punish Democrats
📺 CNN’s Dishonest Duo, Jake Tapper and Dana Bash, strike again
✊ Merrimack 4 defeat felony charges
🇺🇸 Biden team admits they won’t get ceasefire done
🏫 Zionist organizations’ latest strategy to criminalize Palestine advocacy: weaponizing civil rights
🕎 The Washington Post: A rabbi protested the war in Gaza. Her activism came at a high price.
🕵️♂️ The New Republic: How Antony Blinken Said No to Saving Countless Lives in Gaza
☘️ WBUR: Massachusetts colleges move to curtail protests, pivot to school-led ‘civil discourse’ events
🚫 The Intercept: Meet the First Tenured Professor to be Fired for Pro-Palestine Speech
🗣️ Truthout: Advocates Demand Blinken Resign After Report Reveals “Egregiously Illegal” Acts
🪖 Counterpunch: Biden Can Halt Wider War: Stop Sending Arms
🫏 Responsible Statecraft: When odious foreign policy elites rally around Harris
📣 Zeteo: Anatomy of a Smear Campaign Against Rashida Tlaib
📰 In These Times: New York Times Repeats U.S. Government’s Evidence-Free Claim That Gaza Protests Are Part of Iranian Plot
✉️ Rep. Adam Smith: “Today, I sent a letter, cosigned by 102 of my colleagues, to urge the U.S. to investigate the fatal shooting of Aysenur Ezgi Eygi. Given the evidence, we believe the United States must independently investigate whether this was a homicide. To walk away without asking further questions gives Israeli forces unacceptable license to act with impunity. There must be accountability for Ms. Eygi’s death. We extend our deepest condolences to Ms. Eygi’s family during this moment of tragedy and call for a thorough inquiry into the shooting of one of Washington’s own.”
🇮🇷 Common Dreams: Trump Condemned for ‘Genocidal’ Threat to Destroy Iran
🇮🇱 NBC New York: NYC protests expected ahead of Netanyahu’s UN address
🎓 Haaretz: Brandeis University President Resigns After No-confidence Vote That Cited Gaza Protests
🌆 Los Angeles Times: ArcLight and Academy Museum lighted up with Gaza protest projections
🌴 Jewish Currents: Searching for the Jewish Future in South Florida
📚 The recently published book Understanding Hamas And Why That Matters, was apparently removed from the shelves of Diesel Bookstore in Brentwood, CA. Just in time for Banned Books week!
Stay safe out there,
The Zionist smears have become legendary for their absurdity. Their targets are illuminated by a light of nobility.
Re: Tlaib
It is this kind of smear campaign against anyone advocating for Palestinian human rights that stokes antisemitism. Of course, the AG is being biased. She took no such action against environmental or Black Lives protesters. There is a concerted effort, well-funded by the foreign country of Israel and their shills, to provide cover for the ongoing genocide. A recent reported mentioned that 17,000 Palestinian children were not only orphaned from losing their parents to Israel’s savagery, but their entire family lineage had been eliminated: sibling, cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents.
Tlaib:
“It seems that the attorney general decided if the issue was Palestine, she was going to treat it differently, and that alone speaks volumes about possible biases within the agency she runs,”