Israel is in Import/Export Business of Organized Hate

Muhammad Barakei, Palestinian-Israeli Knesset Member from Hadash, regarding the upcoming event in Occupied Jerusalem this next Wednesday featuring racist leader Glenn Beck:

There are enough racists in Israel without importing them from the US.

(h/t to Mondoweiss for the quote)

The reverse is also true. The US has way too much internal support for its racist kooks to need any additional support for such from Israel. Tragically, Israel works through its US subsidiary, AIPAC, and effectively supports racism in the US. Witness, for example, AIPAC's strong support for Christians United For Israel (CUFI) event in Washington DC on July 19th, featuring Beck and John Hagee.

The event featured at least two executives from aipac, standing side by side by racist extremists. One was Jonathan Kessler, aipac's Leadership Development Director, responsible for the strategic development and oversight of AIPAC's campus efforts (for fascinating video on those efforts, see this!) Jeff Mendelsohn, who serves as AIPAC's National Outreach Director was also in attendance cheering on this wanton display of extremist jingoistic nationalism. Joining AIPAC leaders were Israeli leaders such as Netanyahu and Michael Oren, Israel’s ambassador to the US. Having seen this event via the web, my first impression was that if Upton Sinclair were alive today, he might modify his famous prediction to something like:

“When fascism comes to America, it will come wrapped in US and Israeli flags and waving a cross.”

CUFI is based on the premise that a vengeful deity is solidly supporting Israel as an ethnic-based state. Individuals and even nations that have other ideas, such as supporting human rights for all that live there and opposing ethnic cleansing of Palestinians from their homeland, will be punished by this deity, and more importantly, opposed politically (or even militarily) by adherents to this cult. Absent in this organization are Jewish/Christian traditional beliefs in universal justice, support for the oppressed, treating the neighbor as you yourself would be treated.

What we have here is the worst of traditional American xenophobia, imperialist ideology and exceptionalism mixed with Zionist extremism. It is a lethal brew that aipac and Israel are supporting in the US.

While Glenn Beck, a far-right conspiracy theorist who was fired from Fox News after his advertisers dropped him in droves, he has won the ardent support of the Israeli establishment and AIPAC. In early July, Glenn Beck was invited to address members of the Knesset, and he was supported not only by the far-right parties, but the traditional parties.

MK Danny Danon (Likud), the committe chairman, warned the audience not to clap in the Knesset. Yet to no avail. Dannon went on to introduce Beck as “a friend of Israel. If there wasn’t a Glenn Beck, Israel would have had to invent one.” +972

It may not be surprising that Beck with his virulent anti-Muslim/anti-Arab messaging would be welcomed by the Israeli establishment. You'd think that Beck's anti-Jewish conspiracy theories and ties to the far, lunatic right in the US would give them pause.

Political and religious leaders from “around the world” will be enjoying U.S. taxpayer subsidized — through non-taxable charitable contributions — travel to the rally. The travel will be paid for by WallBuilders, an organization founded by David Barton, a pseudo-historian and frequent Glenn Beck guest. Barton has a history of anti-gay and anti-Muslim rhetoric, has spoken at events sponsored by anti-Semitic organizations, and promotes a revisionist history of the U.S. claiming that the “Church-state separation is a liberal myth.” Think Progress

Nothing that Glenn Beck has said, or does say, seems to spark even the slightest protest among mainstream Jewish political parties in Israel. When Norwegian terrorist Anders Behring Breivik killed dozens of young people in Norway, Beck responded that the young victims, who were mostly supportive of peace and justice for all, were "Hitler Youth". Yet Beck will still be welcomed in Israel. Even more recently, Beck has condemned hundreds of thousands of mostly Jewish Israelis who are protesting economic injustice as "Communists" and suspects they have ties to Islamist groups. Israel, a state that recently did everything in its power from denying people even the right to visit Palestinians, is importing with unrestrained enthusiasm this racist Beck for the supposed good of the Israeli state, and with support from aipac.

Truly a sign of desperation from a dying system of oppression.

20% of House members in Israel last week, courtesy of AIPAC

In apparent violation of House Ethic rules, 81 members of the House of Representatives are flying First Class and enjoying lavish dinners as their constituents are told they have to cut back. They get this lavish vacation given to them by AIPAC, or to be more precise, an entity created (and sustained) by aipac to skirt around House ethic rules. One of the perks of being a member of Congress.

Among the congressional members subjecting themselves to aipac indoctrination is John Garamendi of California. Garamendi's district includes many areas that are struggling as the US economy falters under the weight of supporting multiple wars in the Middle East. But none of those areas were visited, instead promises were made to Israel that it alone will escape any budget cuts in Washington (unlike any city in the US). This push for continued massive aid to Israel is very expensive for US taxpayers.

Here's a list of those known congresspeople supporting the aipac-orientation to Israel.

They will not learn about the real problem in the Middle East, they will not talk to average Palestinians in the Occupied West Bank who are subject to Israeli oppression. They will not see Israel bulldozers, sponsored by the US taxpayers, destroy home after home of Palestinian civilians.

Yali Amit, an Israeli-American constituent of Rep. Jackson, Jr. (another vacationer) called his office to oppose his participation in the trip to Israel. He was told that Rep. Jackson, Jr. wants to learn what is happening there because of his position on the appropriations subcommittee that approves military aid to Israel. Amit retorted that “you can't learn what goes on there on a paid trip of a propaganda arm of the Israeli government.” And you certainly can’t learn about the devastating impact that these U.S. weapons have on unarmed Palestinian civilians, nearly 3,000 of whom were killed by the Israeli military over the last decade.

Is this even legal under rules adopted by the House of Representatives? Probably not...

Craig Holman, a government affairs lobbyist at Public Citizen who helped draft the new post-Abramoff federal lobbying and ethics reform legislation signed into law in 2007, agrees that something is rotten in state of AIPAC. According to Holman, “The House ethics rules do not provide an exemption for 501(c)(3)s that are controlled and directed by a lobbying entity to pay for travel junkets for members of Congress.

See much more in this article by Josh Ruebner of the US Campaign to end the Israeli Occupation.

Obama Gets AIPAC Cash, Okays attack on US Boats

It seems so sad at times, Obama sometimes is like a boy with unrequited love with the most desirable girl in high school, but with a few misinterpreted words he doesn’t get anything but scorn from her and her friends.

We know well the famous “misunderstandings” that have hurt this relationship. AIPAC pushed back hard on settlement freeze talk and won in Congress. It wasn’t like Obama was going to do anything to confront Israeli intransigence anyway. Same with the overblown flap with the ’67 borders.

Obama loves AIPAC. He had already done so much to prove his love. He made it clear that he would oppose any Palestinian effort to gain recognition as an independent state in the United Nations, and is working hard to get allies to go along (or else!), even threatening to withdraw its share of funding for the United Nations. Obama has even gone beyond what the W. Bush administration promised in aid for the next ten years, and added to that additional military aid that is sure to cost taxpayers dearly.

Still Obama gets no love? Well, that’s not true, actually.

President Obama is a stalwart friend of Israel.

That’s the message some top Democratic Jewish figures are promoting to push back against the notion that Obama is out of step with the pro-Israel and Jewish communities.

Within the next two weeks, two figures associated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee -- past AIPAC president Amy Friedkin and board member Howard Green -- will be among the hosts for a major fundraising event for the president, charging $25,000 per couple. The target of 40 couples -- bringing in $1 million -- is close to being met, insiders say. Notably, the organizers have received a nod from the AIPAC board's inner circle to solicit donations. JTA

On the night of June 20^th, AIPAC, metaphorically-speaking, (AIPAC by law as a non-profit cannot actually give donations to any political candidate but wink-wink, they do help arrange events like this) opened up its blouse and shared with President Obama the mother’s milk of US politics to the tune of $1.5 million in campaign donations. He was truly grateful. So much so that he cuddled afterwards. “After the speech, the president stayed for a closed-door session in which he answered questions about his policy on Israel for another hour.” Forward tell us. He knows he will be able to come for more, too.

Ain’t love grand?

Left gaping at this spectacle are thousands of human rights and peace activists, unable to organize $25,000 plate dinners (and with the economy in tatters from wars that AIPAC promoted, many are barely able to afford any dinner), who mistakenly thought that Obama’s flirtations and flattering comments he sent their way were to be taken seriously. There will be no pronouncement from the White House that Obama is a stalwart friend of human rights.

AIPAC still plays hard to get. Later this month several of AIPAC’s head honchos (including Jonathan Kessler) will be standing alongside Rev. Hagee and Glenn Beck at the Christians United for Israel event. It is likely to be a weekend of demonizing Obama for his imagined lack of support for Israel. But Obama still will not give up, and will try to outdo his rivals in supporting the most extreme Israeli policies to win back AIPAC’s love (even if it’s just another one night stand). This Obama will do no matter the cost to US taxpayers, to Palestinian families, to even the slightest bit of common sense.

*cross-posted at Fire Dog Lake*

Gaggle of RightWingers at AIPAC Policy Conference

While hundreds of progressives set to gather to support a new US foreign policy based on peace and justice at the historic “Move Over AIPAC” summit on May 21st, let’s take a look at who and what is being promoted at the AIPAC Policy conference itself.

Prime Minister Netanyahu. Need we say more? He’s the big speaker and his right-wing credentials are well-known. He has boasted in the past that he stopped the Oslo Accords even while pretending to support them. When he has said that “America is something that can easily be moved”; he was referring no doubt to US politicians that routinely pander to AIPAC. Despite Obama’s early insistence that Israel stop building settlements that prevent any chance for any kind of peace, the Netanyahu regime has pressed ahead with massive building of illegal settlements in the West Bank. President Obama, who wishes to raise a billion dollars for his re-election campaign, has said that Netanyahu is a “man of peace”. Netanyahu is expected to continue his deception at the AIPAC conference and a speech before the US Congress that same week.

Dan Senor, extreme neo-conservative is also a headliner. A White House advisor during the George W. Bush administration and served as Chief Spokesperson for the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) in Iraq under Paul Bremer. The CPA was so disastrously mismanaged and caused so much suffering for the people of Iraq the end result was a massive insurgency that resulted in thousands of US military deaths, and hundreds of thousands of Iraqi casualties. Senor’s reputation is so bad, that when AIPAC had him headlining an event in Louisville, Kentucky at Jewish Hospital in 2007, it was forced to move that event due to strong protests of the doctors.

Ralph Reed, another headliner who will speak to the full gathering, is the “Christian Coalition” founder that worked to promote extreme-right politicians. He now heads “Faith and Freedom Coalition”. FFC has a big event coming up in June, with headliner Donald Trump. Reed is known as someone who follows the money, being a former close associate of convicted felon Jack Abramoff, (Abramoff was also a paid promoter of the now-defunct South Africa apartheid regime).

“Breakout sessions” during the conference include three different leaders from an outfit called “Foundation for Defense of Democracies”, a neo-conservative “Think Tank” that has been at the forefront of efforts to pressure the United States into aggressive military intervention in the Middle East. Iran, in particular, has long been a key focus of such efforts. Another such outfit well-represented at the conference is the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, or WINEP as it is popularly known. WINEP is actually a spin-off of AIPAC itself, and was founded by AIPAC staffer Martin Indyk in 1985. It is also known for its support of military action against Iran, and in 2008 distributed a paper called “The Last Resort”, supporting “preventative war” with Iran as a feasible option. More recently, a WINEP board member, Martin Kramer, got in a little hot water when he seemed to be advocating genocide of the Palestinian people in Gaza.

AIPAC’s role in promoting anti-Muslim activism is seen in its welcoming of several key figures in the movement to target Muslims, both in America and abroad, as “threats to Civilization”. One that stands out is British author Douglas Murray known for his far-right anti-Muslim views, and heads the misnamed Centre for Social Cohesion. He will be co-leading a panel “Confronting Radical Islam” at the AIPAC event. It is Murray’s support for English Defence League, (EDL), an organization that is known for violent street protests and affinity for the fascist British National Party that is most disturbing. Murray welcomes the EDL as a “grassroots response from non-Muslims to Islamism ”.

That’s a brief survey of some of the people AIPAC will be working with to promote US support for the Israeli apartheid regime. It’s not surprising that an organization that is dedicated to promoting a system of racism and oppression by military force would by necessity be a haven of reactionary individuals and groups. What else could we expect?

It is up to us then to expose AIPAC for what it is, it is not merely supporting “good relations with Israel”, but it is supporting a deeply unjust system that makes peace impossible, and the only way to preserve such a system is by military force and brutal repression. That is why the “Move Over AIPAC” Summit and protests of the AIPAC Policy Conference is such an important development. This is our opportunity to demand an end to politicians pandering to this extremist group and instead support a US foreign policy where people and human rights matter. The organizers and endorsers Move Over AIPAC dare to believe it is possible for the US to have a foreign policy that is not the end result of a cold calculus of potential political contributions from the few, but to believe that someday it will be the fruit of rooting our policies that values a peaceful and just world for all of us.

Also at Mondoweiss.

Move Over AIPAC... Coming to Washington DC in May

We at Stop AIPAC are supporting this important event. This may be one of the greatest direct challenges to AIPAC yet. You can help by planning to attend this event and by making a donation to Stop AIPAC, so that we can attend and be supportive of this important event. Timed to coincide with AIPAC's "policy conference" an event that attracts more congresspeople than any other event (except the State of the Union). I hope we can make it a new tradition, presenting an alternative vision of the future, free from militarism and occupation, and instead demanding that US foreign policy be based on human rights and support for democracy for all.

“No lobby has managed to divert U.S. foreign policy as far from the American national interest… while simultaneously convincing Americans that U.S. and Israeli interests are essentially identical.”

– John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt, authors of The Israel Lobby, keynote speakers at
Move Over AIPAC gathering May 21-24

More info can be found here.

Group that advises Israeli govt requests meeting with Stop AIPAC

Imagine our surprise. A quasi-Israeli government agency makes a surprise visit to our Inbox.

From: Calev Ben-Dor [mailto:calev@reut-institute.org]
Sent: Wednesday, February 09, 2011 7:49 AM
To: 'people@stopaipac.org'
Cc: 'Daniel Scott'
Subject: Meeting in the SF Bay Area

To Whom it May Concern,

My name is Calev Ben Dor and I am a senior analyst at the Reut Institute, a strategic policy group based in Tel Aviv, Israel. I am writing to ask whether you would be willing to meet with us while we are in the San Francisco Bay Area, February 24^th - March 2^nd.

My team's focus for the past two years has been on the erosion of Israel's international status, with a focus on a growing trend to negate Israel's right to exist or the right of the Jewish people to self-determination. We very clearly separate this from criticism of Israeli policy, even when that criticism can be considered harsh or biased.

We are planning a study visit to the Bay Area to better understand Israel-related dynamics there and would appreciate the opportunity to get your perspective.

Please let me know if this would be possible and when would be convenient. Our coordinator, Daniel, is cc'd and can follow up on scheduling, and I am happy to answer any questions.

All the best,

Calev Ben Dor

Calev Ben Dor Analyst Office: +972-(0)3-6950090 Cell: +972-(0)52-551-4640 calev@reut-institute.org www.reut-institute.org www.reut-blog.org

We were by no means alone, this same outfit sent out invites to many organizations in the Bay Area that are involved in questioning US policy in regards to Israel. To our knowledge, all declined. Stop AIPAC did send a reply that we would be happy to meet with them once certain conditions were met, including Israel's full compliance with international law and human rights standards. They did not respond back, and it seems unlikely that Israel will meet those modest demands before Reut leaves town again, which is unfortunate.

What it the Reut Institute?

Background article from the Electronic Intifada:

An extraordinary series of articles, reports and presentations by Israel's influential Reut Institute has identified the global movement for justice, equality and peace as an "existential threat" to Israel and called on the Israeli government to direct substantial resources to "attack" and possibly engage in criminal "sabotage" of this movement in what Reut believes are its various international "hubs" in London, Madrid, Toronto, the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond.

The Reut Institute's analyses hold that Israel's traditional strategic doctrine -- which views threats to the state's existence in primarily military terms, to be met with a military response -- is badly out of date. Rather, what Israel faces today is a combined threat from a "Resistance Network" and a "Delegitimization Network."

The Resistance Network is comprised of political and armed groups such as Hamas and Hizballah....

The "Delegitimization Network" -- which Reut Institute president and former Israeli government advisor Gidi Grinstein provocatively claims is in an "unholy alliance" with the Resistance Network -- is made up of the broad, decentralized and informal movement of peace and justice, human rights, and BDS (boycott, divestment and sanctions) activists all over the world. [Read the whole thing]

Notice that Reut considers the San Francisco Bay Area a "hub of delegitimization". So it is no wonder they wanted to make a special visit here.

Stop AIPAC will continue to work to delegitimize Israel's human rights violations, its systematic oppression of Palestinians. We will continue to support the Palestinian call for Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions against the apartheid regime. We are very happy to be able to work with so many sister organizations, especially in the Bay Area, that share the goal of a decent and just future for all in the Middle East.

AIPAC goes Far Right for Speakers in Bay Area

AIPAC held 3 events this past week in the San Francisco Bay Area, and surprisingly, it gave us two speakers whose views in regard to Israel are quite extreme, even just relative to AIPAC as a whole. The events were held in San Jose, Oakland, then San Francisco. With the exception of the San Francisco event, the speaker is Rep. Shelley Berkley of Las Vegas.

Here is aerHerHhhkjdkj brief look at Berkley’s record. Back in March of 2009, Berkley called for an end to all US aid to Gaza, as it was trying to rebuild from the brutal Israeli attack of just a few months earlier. That attack left thousands of homes and factories destroyed. Haaretz reports:

Berkley, a Jewish politician well-known in Congress for her support of Israel, backed the Israeli operation in Gaza during December and January, and even told Haaretz that maybe Israel had been too tolerant.

Too tolerant? Does that mean that Israel dropped too few Cluster Bombs, that “only” a few hundred Palestinian children were killed in the onslaught? That it is too much that still 5% of the water in Gaza is actually fit for human consumption?

Then there is Rep. Berkley’s attack on Obama’s mild and ultimately ineffective policy of pressuring Israel to stop settlement expansion. Berkley said in June of 2009:

“I think it would serve America’s interest better if we were pressuring the Iranians to eliminate the potential of a nuclear threat from Iran, and less time pressuring our allies and the only democracy in the Middle East to stop the natural growth of their settlements.”

In AIPAC’s original write-up of Berkley’s bio, (viewable here), she was described as a “strong proponent of the natural growth of settlements”. That sentence was deleted, for whatever reason, but it was an honest statement. Berkley does not believe in making way for a future Palestinian state.

Finally, there is the speaker chosen to keynote the San Francisco AIPAC event, Dr. DeeDee Coleman. An articulate and politically astute African-American Baptist preacher who also serves on the AIPAC National Council, she knows how to say the right things to the right audience. She is not always afraid to share her fundamentalist beliefs however, and she tells us that simply stated Israel, all of it, belongs to the Jews, and there is nothing anyone, including Jews, can do about that. In an interview that can be seen here, she throws out these bits:

“I do believe that you cannot give away what god has given to you. It cannot happen.” “If god has given you the land, you cannot give the land away.”

For Dr. Coleman, the deity has already apportioned the land based on ethnicity. Case closed.

Despite the extremism of AIPAC, we can expect that some “liberal” (we could not find any, however, more about that in my next post) Bay Area politicians will show up to pander to this lobby for war and occupation. They will be greeted in Oakland by a coalition braving the elements outside supporting peace and human rights, and demanding better uses of our resources, like funding for building homes in West Oakland, not demolishing homes in the West Bank. Some AIPAC attendees will also see ads calling for an end to military aid to Israel, if they use BART to get to the event. Now that’s sweet.