Biden and Pelosi silent on Jew-hatred in Democratic Party

 

The failure of President Biden and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to rebuke the ten Democratic Party members of the House of Representatives who abstained or voted against America providing $1 billion in aid to help Israel replenish its Iron Dome missile defence system is very concerning.

Iron Dome had become depleted after successfully being used during:

• May: to destroy over 90 percent of more than 4,000 rockets launched indiscriminately by Hamas from Gaza into civilian-occupied areas of Israel and
• August: to bring down 10 rockets similarly fired by Hezbollah from Lebanon into Israel

Following overwhelming approval of the funding by 420 votes to 9 - with 2 abstentions - House Committee Chair Rosa DeLauro declared:

“This bill demonstrates that Congress’ commitment to our friend and ally Israel is bipartisan and ironclad. It fulfills our moral imperative to protect the lives of innocent civilians and helps build the foundations for peace.”

That moral imperative was however sadly lacking in 9 Members’ decisions to not approve the funding:

• 1 Republican – Rep. Massie and
• 8 Democrats - Reps. Tlaib, Omar, Pressley, Bush, Carson, Newman, Garcia and Grijalva

Two further Democrats - Reps. Ocasio-Cortez and Johnson – abstained. Ocasio-Cortez clarified in a subsequent statement that she also opposed the funding.

Grijalva occupies a leadership position as chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee. Ocasio-Cortez, Tlaib, Omar and Pressley – dubbed the “Squad” – are part of a growing group of Democrats in Congress critical of Israel and its policies. Bush and Newman both defeated more moderate Democrats in primaries last year.

Tlaib’s opposition to granting Israel the Iron Dome funding reeked of Jew-hatred:

"We cannot be talking only about Israelis’ need for safety at a time when Palestinians are living under a violent apartheid system…”

The indiscriminate targeting of any civilian population – Israeli or otherwise - should be called out whenever or wherever it occurs. There simply is no justification whatsoever to condone or excuse such heinous conduct.

Pelosi had the opportunity to call out these 10 errant House Democrats during her Floor Speech after the funding was passed - but chose instead to gloss over this growing scandal within the Democratic Party:

“Passage of this bill reflects the great unity in Congress on a bipartisan and bicameral basis for Israel’s security.”

Strong admonition of these 10 Democrat House Members by Pelosi for voting as they did was certainly warranted.

Biden’s silence is breathtaking.

These 10 House Democrats had joined 15 more House Democrats in signing a letter in May calling on US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to condemn the possible legal evictions of Arabs from four homes in Jerusalem’s Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood – whose ownership was being claimed by Jews.

The other 15 Democrat signatories to that letter - Reps. Pocan, Jayapal, McCollum, Chu, Rush, Connolly, Huffman, Johnson, Welch, Lowenthal, Escobar, Speier, Eshoo, Pingree and Dingell – nevertheless voted to fund Israel’s Iron Dome system despite their concerns expressed to Blinken.

These 15 Democrats could distinguish between criticising Israel whilst voting to financially support Israel in defending its civilian population from being deliberately targeted by Hamas and Hezbollah.

Ocasio-Cortez declared:

“I hope we can take this moment and opportunity to more deeply engage in and grow a true, substantive movement of community support for human rights around the world - which includes cherishing and respecting the human rights of Palestinian people.”

Ocasio-Cortez’s first imperative in building this international movement should have seen her voting with her 15 colleagues to help protect Israel’s civilian population being threatened by rockets indiscriminately fired from Gaza and Lebanon.

Jew-hatred within the Democratic Party exposed by those 10 House Democrats’ votes needs to be rooted out before it becomes endemic.


Author’s note: The cartoon — commissioned exclusively for this article — is by Yaakov Kirschen aka “Dry Bones”- one of Israel’s foremost political and social commentators — whose cartoons have graced the columns of Israeli and international media publications for decades

Trump seems set to see Netanyahu as Israel’s next Prime Minister

[Published 11 September 2019]

President Trump seems set to see Bibi Netanyahu re-elected as Israel’s next Prime Minister in the upcoming elections to be held on 17 September — the second this year following an indecisive vote in April that left no-one able to form Government.

Early voting by eligible Israeli diplomats and emissaries around the world has seen a drop in their turnout from 76% in April to 69% in September.

If general voters follow the diplomats’ lead next week:

1. The voter turnout of 67.97% in April 2019 will be further reduced.

2. Netanyahu’s Likud party will increase its proportion of the vote — 26.46% in April 2019 — up from 23.4% in 2015 — to an even higher figure.

Likud increased its numbers from 985408 in 2015 to 1140370 in April 2019 — whilst Yisrael Beiteinu’s numbers decreased from 214906 in 2015 to 173004 in April 2019. Blue and White contested the April elections for the first time.

Likud voters, buoyed by the post-April statements detailed in 1, 2 and 3 below, will most likely vote again, whilst Blue and White and Yisrael Beiteinu voters, unhappy with their leaders’ post-April statements detailed in 4 and 5 below, are more likely to stay home.

Any increase in general voter turnout this time beyond 67.97% would defy the diplomatic downturn, but should still see parties on the Right securing more of those new votes than parties on the Left.

Statements made since April by Trump’s Ambassador to Israel David Friedman, President Trump himself, Likud’s Netanyahu, Yisrael Beiteinu’s Lieberman and Blue and White’s Gantz support this conclusion.

1. Ambassador Friedman indicated that some degree of annexation of the West Bank would be legitimate.

“Under certain circumstances, I think Israel has the right to retain some, but unlikely all, of the West Bank,”

2. More new voters — conscious of their own families’ personal safety — would vote Right — than those opposing any annexation — who would vote Left.

3. Trump endorsed Netanyahu as a ”a great guy”

4. Netanyahu, speaking in Elkana, located in Samaria, pledged:

“With God’s help we will extend Jewish sovereignty to all the settlements as part of the (biblical) Land of Israel, as part of the State of Israel. “This is our land…“We will build another Elkana and another Elkana and another Elkana. We will not uproot anyone here,”

In a first-ever public address from Hebron by a sitting Israeli prime minister - Netanyahu vowed:

”To cite the late Menachem Begin and the late Yigal Allon: ‘Hebron will not be devoid of Jews.’ It will not be Judenrein [ed: Jew free]. And I say on the 90th anniversary of the disturbances [ed: when 67 Jews were murdered] — we are not foreigners in Hebron, we will stay here forever.”

These patriotic declarations should attract more Right-supportive than Left-opposing new voters.

5. Lieberman promised to amend the law to make ultra-orthodox youths do compulsory military training.

United Torah Judaism MK Yakov Asher has declared this the best possible get-out-the-vote campaign the ultra-Orthodox parties could wish for.

New ultra-orthodox voters turning out to spare children in their ultra-orthodox community undertaking this military obligation would likely exceed new secular voters who think this is a reform long overdue.

6. Trump’s judgment has been challenged by Gantz stating he would have admitted US Congresswomen Omar and Tlaib into Israel.

Gantz’s decision would not resonate with a majority of new voters — who would consider any disagreement with Trump could jeopardize Trump’s amazing support of Israel during his Presidency.

Trump and Netanyahu appear destined to continue their very special relationship after the votes have been counted.

Author’s note: The cartoon — commissioned exclusively for this article — is by Yaakov Kirschen aka “Dry Bones” - one of Israel’s foremost political and social commentators — whose cartoons have graced the columns of Israeli and international media publications for decades. His cartoons can be viewed at Drybonesblog