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To put the speech in it’s proper perspective, Bibi awards Obama a ‘badge of honor’ for it…
Now, as Ma’an reported…
Israeli press wary over Obama’s ‘Zionist’ UN speech
Israeli newspapers were unanimous Thursday in characterizing US President Barack Obama’s UN speech as hugely supportive of Israel, but some argued it was perhaps too much of a good thing.
“The American embrace” was the front-page headline of the Maariv daily, while the top-selling Yedioth Aharonoth took a similar line, summing up the impact of Obama’s remarks for Israel and the Palestinians as “The hug and the snub.”
“Obama not only adopted all of the Israeli arguments against recognising a Palestinian state by means of the UN, he adopted the basic Israeli narrative,” Yedioth said.
“It is no wonder that Abu Mazen, who sat in the auditorium during the speech, hung his head in his hands in disbelief and despair,” it said, using the nom-de-guerre of President Mahmoud Abbas.
Most papers made veiled reference to next year’s US presidential elections as a major factor in determining the tone and content of Obama’s address.
The right-leaning Jerusalem Post reprinted large chunks of his speech and, in a commentary entitled “Obama tells Israelis what they’ve been waiting to hear,” said it contained “a dose of empathy and understanding” which had been missing from his previous addresses.
“That is not an insignificant message,” the paper said.
Haaretz reported…
U.S. Jews give Obama mixed reviews for ‘pro-Israel’ UN speech
AIPAC lauds U.S. President for seeing Israelis deserve ‘normal relations with their neighbors’; Americans for Peace Now: U.S. position as defender of rights cannot stand as Israeli-Palestinians conflict ‘left to fester’.
I think Laura Rozen best summed it up in a single tweet:
Worst month in US since Katrina? Feels like Obama has basically abdicated any moral authority on anything.
Truly a sad day for American Foreign Policy…
57 Comments
Palestinians, welcome to under the Bus. We have many groups of people here, and you will be welcome to spend time with them all.
horrible
just when i think obama can’t get any worse he surprises me again
he is a cypher who selects the worst approach to every problem, both politically and policy-wise, with uncanny precision
Iw was even worse than his sellout at the December 2009 Copenhagen environmental conference, which was a hard act to follow.
Worse than Cairo II too, ET…!
Why is anyone here surprised? Obama , 90% of the US Congress and the Corporate Media all have been “captured” by AIPAC. Consider how Rachel Maddow, Jon Steward and MSNBC, FOX, CNN…. all treat the subject of basic fairness when applied to Israel. No group that is 2% of this countries population should be allowed to bully the majority in this way!
2% of the population.
50%-70% of the money, perhaps?
http://www.truthdig.com/images/eartothegrounduploads/lk092311dAPR-363.jpg
*heh* A pup had suggested the Dakotas earlier…! ;-)
got anything to base that on?
“Obama tells Israelis what they’ve been waiting to hear,”
…What they want to hear, but B.O. is very very very very truth-challenged…
http://www.acjna.org/acjna/articles_detail.aspx?id=323
from “Candidates Vie for Jewish Support by Embracing Israeli Government Policies,” May-June 2004:
“In a front-page story, The Hill, a Capitol Hill weekly, in its March 30 issue discussed a private meeting held by Democratic lawmakers to discuss ways to counter defections by some major Jewish donors to the Republicans by stressing their party’s pro-Israel stance.
“According to The Hill, “The lawmakers met privately … with nearly 80 Jewish interest groups to make their case. Although Jews make up slightly more than 2 percent of all Americans, they have played a wider political role for both demographic and financial reasons. Jews are concentrated in such battleground states as Florida and Ohio. In the era of soft money, an estimated 50 to 70 percent of large contributions to the Democratic Party and allied political units came from Jewish donors. While President Bush won only 19 percent of the Jewish vote in 2000, Republican candidates garnered 35 percent of the Jewish vote in 2002.”
Tho, that is a bit dated, I’d be willing to wager that those $ amounts still track true with the demographics…! 8-(
I jeered it, too. Feels strange to be in the majority for a change.
Doesn’t it tho, PI…? ;-)
I actually left my first comment ever on a YouTube clip… It was on the official WH’s youtube of the UN speech…! I had asked if AIPAC had wrote that blather…!
The UN itself is widely jeered, as it should be.
It certainly fails in some areas – peacekeeping forces often fail at important moments, such as Srebrenica and in Rwanda. And UN peacekeeping forces are sometimes involved in awful events where they are based.
Other aspects are also jeerable, but what might one replace it with, Randall?
Too bad for Palestinians as they have long deserved the NFZ,R2P and political/militarism forces directed towards regime change in TelAviv that Tripoli was given on much less cause/valid premise.
Why this is so once again brought to the fore and center by one more conjured and hollowed out of integrity Obama UN speech which was much more about domestic USA AIPAC dominated politics and kowtow to TelAviv than any R2P and basic human dignity of Palestinins. Much less about long put off Palestinian crys/needs for basic rights to true nation status/idenity and complete political/governance/self ruled independence from TelAviv/Israel.
Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton have been abetting TelAviv and thwarting Palestinians/Gazans since Jan.20,2009. The record is there to see plainly enough. All done by POTUS Obama and SoS Clinton for TelAviv and the wantonly politically blinded/blind Americans in domestic American politics who embrace AIPAC,TelAviv and Israel. All done by WashingtonDC while doing full and integrity free flip flops to advance WashingtonDC sanctioned attacks/overrule on Afghanistan,Iraq,Pakistan,Libya and Iran.
So where are those voices heard here at FDL during the prequel to Libya and Libyan people being given by France,Great Britain and the NATO Ringmaster itself — the USA — R2P dogmatics,a NATO enforced/expanded NFZ and lots of “NATO powers humanitarianism”?
There is no integrity in the politics over what Bahrain or Libya just got from France,Great Britain and USA while Palestine does not. To defend/promote Obama and ignore/overlook this? Wantonly dishonest on the politics,ethics and morals. Willfully blind? Yes.
The Palestinians in fact got a fully powered opposition from WashingtonDC that Barack Obama just dedicated one of his “speeches” to make clear that Palestine is not going to get anything from USA other than more pro TelAviv/AIPAC abetting and approval.
The last five,ten,fifteen and thirty years plainly show why.
The mockery of what WashingtonDC just did to put in place regime change in Libya or did in Iraq in 2003 or likely will try to inflict on Iran given a flimsy premise/excuse now fully exposed here again for all to see. The rot of it is in plain view.
What TelAviv is doing to West Bank,Gaza and Jerusalem or intends to keep doing unless forcibly stopped is not humanitarian and should provoke a full imposed NFZ and R2P regime on TelAviv regarding West Bank,Gaza and East Jerusalem. That it does not the full reveal of the rot at play in WashingtonDC politics and policy making/acting.
Barack Obama hopefully will not win another four years in the WH.
Barack Obama of 2012 could not win against the Obama of 2008.
We just saw some very raw power politics over the worst of AIPAC pandering and TelAviv kowtow by Obama WH. Barack Obama is a coward.
Any Profiles in Courage from Barack Obama? Not going to happen.
Vote Betrayer and Fraud Barack Obama(DINO) out of the WH in 2012.
So where are those voices heard here at FDL during the prequel to Libya…
Right here, shootthatarrow… ‘Intervention – Disaster For Libyans’
I see from an article at Salon, http://www.salon.com/news/politics/feature/2011/09/23/palestineprotest,
that Israel is planning an escalation of violence against Palestinian protesters following the bid for Palestinian statehood at the UN.
You might think that they’d have learned something about overreach, after their behavior with the flotillas. Surely their violence against peaceful groups from all over the world bringing humanitarian aid, and their sabotage of boats in Greece, etc., have brought the anger of the world down on Israel and conributed to making the time right for this recent move by Abbas?
And as CTuttle notes here, Obama’s speech at the UN has been widely jeered. There seem to be signs all over that the ability of the US to strongarm other countries into doing its bidding is on the wane. As the US goes, so goes Israel. The US, I believe, has cut off funding to Palestine, but one of the Arab states (Saudi Arabia?–have to check) has stepped up to fill the void. It seems we are not as necessary to the survival of other states as we think.
I think the time has come for a rude awakening for both Israel and the US.
The US, I believe, has cut off funding to Palestine, but one of the Arab states (Saudi Arabia?–have to check) has stepped up to fill the void.
We haven’t cut the PA’s funding… yet! Yes, it was the House of Saud stepping up to the tune of $200 Million…! With the House of Saud also telling Obummer, point blank, not to veto the PA statehood bid…!
Hypocrite is too mild of a word to apply to mr. hopey-changey; wholly owned subsidiary of aipac and the likudniks.
Ironically, Bibi himself told Congress not to cut the PA funds…!
Yes! And then we have France going against US interests, and Brazil poking us in the eye by calling for a sovereign state of Palestine . . . I am sure there are many others I haven’t read about. Go world!
Wow! You think Krauthammer will now write an anti-Bibi screed? HA HA!
I wonder if polling was done before this fiasco, and will it change anything?
Even though Abu Mazen doesn’t hold a mandate from his people to negotiate for them, what he did was good for demonstrating to low information voting Americans and the rest of the world the double game the US plays, and not only how morally bankrupt our leaders are but how enthralled they are to the power of lobbies. Maybe this will pique their interest and they’ll learn a thing or two.
The reason that they don’t want the funds cut to Abbas or even Hamas is that Israel and the US lose leverage. If funds stop flowing to the PA, Abbas will lose power.
It’s why I approve of cutting funds. Israel should be forced to fund the occupation. if they were, it would stop.
oh, now.. everyone knows that prostitues don’t stay bought. it’s a time limited contract and at any time someone can offer a better price.
One can only hope so, Shek…! Basically, the only reason I’m cheering Abu Mazen on, is to attain the legal stature necessary to take Israel and Bibi to The Hague…! I do think the bid will disenfranchise the refugees and Gazans, en toto…! It’s more an attempt to enable Abbas and his Cleptocracy than to empower the Palestinians…! 8-(
Israel should be forced to fund the occupation. if they were, it would stop.
Exactly, and Abu Mazen’s strongest trump card with Bibi is the dissolution of the PA…! Force Bibi to rule the whole roost…! ;-)
I will make a confession. My 50%-70% was part a question, part snark, and not based on a facts, other than the vague knowledge the America Jews are large contributors to the Democratic party.
I am amazed at the accuracy of my SWAG.
Kris, I thank you for the supporting facts, and for saving me from making a complete idiot of myself (at which I am expert).
A bit over the top – Bibi sucks -0 but PA politics have prevented any open acceptance of the Taba approach – indeed at FDL there are those that feel Taba is a sellout, in contrast to myself and most others that feel Taba/Geneva approach is the only way forward since peace requires a fair two state solution with at most an extremely limited “right of return” that involves anything other than cash – no country will negotiate itself out of existence – and Israel will not negotiate a move from a Jewish State to just another Muslim state where Jews may, or may not, have equal rights (Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in the past year spoke of a Palestine with no Jews – a rather 1930′s sound that must be removed via those negotiations).
The secret acceptance of Taba by the PA – the sellout as some at FDL have called it – is in the end the best news we 2 state’ers have had and Sec Clinton is to be congratulated on moving the PA to that point. Now if only the GOP – and Obama – would join with her in getting Bibi back to agreeing to Taba – as Israel did in Jan 2001 – we might actually get to peace and a 2 state solution.
CTuttle — your ongoing coverage and contouring of a informed overview of Palestine Conflict here at FDL are very creditworthy.
Thank you for this being so CTuttle.
Over the past years I have followed Siun’s FDL coverage/analysis of Palestine Conflict and made more than one or two comments on Siun’s FDL comment threads. I did not arrive at the above stated views and takes just last week or last month. :-)
The FDL voices I refer to above had to do with R2P/NFZ/Humanitarian Mission backers and supporters here at FDL who were adamant about Libya being subjected to a imposed NFZ by NATO. The FDL archives from those pre NATO NFZ imposition days still show who these FDL voices for NFZ Over Libya Now! were. Since then Libya has unreeled in predictable ways to support the held skepticism of any so called NATO humanitarianism. Where are these FDL voices now for and about R2P/humanitarianism/NFZ efforts for Palestinians in West Bank and Gaza?
To see WashingtonDC now put a full court press on UN members to sabotage sought Palestinian nationhood and improved Palestinian ability to push back against TelAviv more effectively puts the lie to whatever Libya just got sacked and regime changed over by USA/France/Britain using NATO as a mask to conceal who did what.
I respect your work here at FDL CTuttle — stay with it.
1. I understood the original comment to mean something other than percentage of political contributions. The comment was just thrown out there, who knows what the person meant.
2. Are there better sources for this information than an article in “the Hill” ?
I think so.
3. using a the two numbers “50 to 70 % ” is so vague, as to make this estimate seem a little foolish. where did they get these numbers?
4. perhaps in Florida, it reaches a percentage that high. There is an obvious reason for that isn’t there?
probably in Utah, 95 % donations come from Mormons. so what.
By the way, I don’t like Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands, I want the settlers out, and Palestinian statehood.
Wow–I hadn’t been to this site in awhile–can’t stomach the dem orthodoxy at dkos so figured I’d check in here. In my opinion, this site goes too far in the other direction. That said, at least you’re trying to influence events, not ignoring weakness and whoredom.
Oldsters will remember this–”What a revolting development this is.” I am depressed and kinda glad most of my life is mostly passed–I fear for my kids.
“Obama not only adopted all of the Israeli arguments against recognising a Palestinian state by means of the UN, he adopted the basic Israeli narrative,”
I imagine it’s still not enough for some.
all dkos refugees are welcome here
someday i hope to see kos himself abandon dkos as an ineffectual churning of a failed political party that must be deconstructed, reconstructed and reborn
i’m not holding my breath however
Just a passing comment on the subject. I am reading a book called “The world as it is” by Chris hedges. He has a section on the Palestinian suppression. What I find most horrifying is that he describes the suppression in very descriptive terms. He actually lived with some of the Palestinian families. He wrote about their experiences and feelings. I think he describes in accurate detail what the bottom of the bus looks like. :) Recommended reading for all.
There was never an agreement at Taba that both sides accepted. Both Israel and the PA left the negotiations with serious differences.
The negotiations began on Jan. 21st, 2001 and ended on Jan 28th, 2001 at the behest of PM Barak who was scheduling Israeli elections.
I believe Abbas presented the membership application in the name of the PLO–of which he is the executive–rather than the PA. The PLO is still recognized by the UN as the sole representative of the Palestinians, not the PA.
That may be a distinction without much difference, but it does cut out the argument that Abbas lacks legitimacy because his term as president of the PA expired two years ago.
Markos himself offers little in the way of any sort of astute political analysis as a diarist. His only brand is DKos, not himself personally.
If FDL fell apart, Jane Hamshear could start another blog and people would hear her out. If Markos left Kos, no one would follow.
Actually, if Markos abandoned his Dem orthodoxy, he could be very influential. Cheerleaders rarely get to call plays–they are just sex objects to be used, or to be dreamt about.
Synoia:
Gosh golly Batman, sounds like you lifted that directly from the ‘The Protocols of the Learned Elders of Zion’.
One should avoid using discredited hate propaganda for anything other than spewing hate.
But of course, that was your purpose now, wasn’t it?
No, Jews do not control half the money in the States. Most of those who do are good ol’ fashioned White Anglo-Saxon Protestants with names like Ford and Smith and Gates and Buffett. Or perhaps you meant 2% of the population controls over half the wealth, which IS true.
However, whether you realize it or not, you APPEAR to be parroting a neo-Nazi talking point. I have read your posts, and do not believe that for an instant. Please be careful in future.
In WHICH other direction have we gone too far, in your opinion? There are several, you know. Not just D v R.
Obama is not to be blamed for everything–the House is now bat shit crazy and the media is on the take. He’s not the villain–and he’s not the savior.
So, can we revoke that Peace Prize now?
That Nobel peace prize needs to be made a thing of scorn in itself. They gave it to Henry Kissinger for gods sake. It’s Orwellian.
Well we just lost any ability to claim moral authority in the Middle East and any new Arab Spring revolts will be anti American.
No, my purpose was sarcasm, and a point that money controls our political leaders more than voters.
Money is used, by AIPAC for example, very effectively to further AIPAC’s objectives.
I am of the generation that was pro-Isreal for its efforts in greening the deserts in Isreal after the holocaust in Europe, and uncertain about the treatment of the Palestinians. I’m at a disadvantage here, as my Father spent WW II in Palestine and he was pro-Palestinian to the core, having suffered at the hands of the Ergun, Haganar, and Stern Gang.
Currently I’m appalled and disgusted at the Isreali Government’s behavior where they appear to have learnt the worst from the holocaust and are applying that to the non-jewish inhabitants of the land.
The Palestinians, trapped in Bantustans, are worse off than the blacks in Apartheid South Africa, where I lived for some period. The violence used to control the Palestinians appears orders of magnitude worse than the Afrikaans used on the Blacks in South Africa. In my time in South Africa the Afrikaans built houses for the Blacks, employed the in their businesses, and hardly enforced the pass laws. Equality there was not.
The Afrikaans were realistic, and knew they could not cleanse South Africa of the Blacks (Dingan had tried, and nearly succeeded in the 1800s), and eventually would have to come to some political accommodation, however uneasy, with their follow countrymen.
The Isreali Government appears intent on continued ethnic cleansing, that is, removing the Palestinians who have lived on that land for thousands of years.
Hate you write? Yes, there is hatred, but not mine — my feelings are those of disgust. Hate appears to be the provenance of the Israeli Government for the Palestinians.
In casting your reflexive aspersions, look first to those who suppress, shoot, invade and blockade. None of those are my sins.
“You might think that they’d have learned something about overreach, after their behavior with the flotillas.”
What they’ve learned about overreach is that, no matter how far they stretch, they can’t exceed what the US government will permit and support and the US Congress demand. Whatever Israel does, the message they get seems to be, “More”.
And gained how many new Muslim enemies?
Oh, I feel so more secure after O’s speech.
The Oily Bomber has done nothing but extend all of the Shrub/Darth Cheney’s misbegotten wars, and then some with the Drones…! He needs to return that Peace Prize back to Oslo, most rickety-tick…! 8-(
*heh* And here I am in the heart of Oceania…! ;-)
Tuttle! How is the wee one?
Well–health care got marginally better–armed forces are now not asking or being told. The wars are foolish–but getting out is not very easy–Pakistan is damaged goods–our fault–our fear–not easily erased. The congress has been uniquely bad–and the media never trusted the “African.”
He needs pressure from us–not accolades, and not hatred. Both extremes are useless and childish–so Republicanish!!
Aloha, Ellie…! I got to see him today after my looong week on the mtn, and, he’s growing like a weed…! Extremely alert, and, followed my every move for the longest time…! He knows his Papa…! It’s amazing how much control he has for being 3+ wks/old…! *g*