AIPAC’s Man in the Obama Camp

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Philip Giraldi

Barack Obama’s first appointment, that of Chicago Congressman http://www.wvwnews.net/story.php?id=356 might disqualify one for high office in the United States.

Emanuel, far from serving as a neutral gateway to the president, has some very strong views on foreign policy, particularly regarding the Middle East, views that are closer to those of George W. Bush and Dick Cheney than they are to the millions of voters who thought that Obama would put an end to “wars of choice.” And Obama appears to share at least some of those views, though he might be driven primarily by unwillingness to antagonize Israel’s numerous cheerleaders in the Democratic Party. During the presidential campaign Obama refused to meet with American Muslims, and on a fact-finding trip to the Middle East last summer he spent several days in Israel but only 45 minutes with Palestinian leaders.More recently, Obama did not respond to a congratulatory letter from Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the only world leader to be snubbed in that fashion. In his first press conference on Nov. 7, Obama, who has promised to do “everything in his power” to denuclearize Iran, reiterated that Iran’s development of a nuclear weapon would be unacceptable, a position adhering closely to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) line. There are also reports that Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni has already called Vice President-elect Joe Biden to tell him that even talking to Iran would be a sign of weakness, a signal that Israel might be willing to unleash its all-powerful lobby against the Obama administration if it is perceived as going too far.

The extremely partisan and foul-mouthed Emanuel, who has the reputation of a junkyard dog, served the Clinton White House in two senior advisory positions after demonstrating his expertise in fundraising during the 1992 presidential campaign. Though born in Chicago, he was an Israeli citizen through his father until he, according to his own account, renounced his dual citizenship when he turned 18. When the United States went to war with Iraq in 1991 the 31-year-old Emanuel rushed off to join the colors, though the colors in this case were the blue and white flag of Israel. He claims that he was a civilian volunteer in the Israeli army who was assigned the task of “rust-proofing brakes” on military vehicles, an assertion that has been questioned because his father’s background suggests that he would likely have been offered something much more important.

Emanuel’s father, an Israeli physician, was a member of the terrorist group Irgun. Irgun was responsible for blowing up the King David Hotel and ethnically cleansing much of Palestine through selective massacres of Arab civilians. In an interview in the Jerusalem Post, Dr. Benjamin Emanuel said he was convinced that his son’s appointment as White House chief of staff would be good for Israel. “Obviously he will influence the president to be pro-Israel,” he was quoted as saying. “Why wouldn’t he be? What is he, an Arab? He’s not going to clean the floors of the White House.”

http://www.antiwar.com/orig/giraldi.php?articleid=13773

2008-11-18