Now that America has a new president, let's take a glimpse at what we lost and what we might have gained. I run three pieces today summarized in last night's Mid-East Realities:
ISRAEL'S PRESIDENT DEPARTS
MID-EAST REALITIES © - www.MiddleEast.Org - Washington - 1/21:
The most pro-Israeli President ever has now left town -- not to be replaced by Gore/Lieberman who may well have outdone even him when it comes to doing Israel's bidding. That era is over -- at least for four years when Mrs Clinton will clearly use her springboard as Senator from New York, and the chorus of wealthy American Jews who back her both in New York and California, to attempt the Oval Office for herself.
On these matters, there are many past MER articles published during the Clinton years detailing everything from how the Clinton Little Rock headquarters was "infiltrated" by the Israeli/Jewish lobby right from the start, to the White House "Kosher Kitchen", to the use of Arab-American political hack Jim Zogby to help "legitimize" the nearly all-Jewish all-Zionist "negotiating team", with much money and many rewards provided to Zogby, family, and friends along the way.
Now all this hardly means that the incoming Bush Administration is going to change the basic American partnership with Israel -- "the lobby" is much too strong and well-connected, and the Arabs even collectively are much too weak and co-opted for that to even be contemplated at this point. Moreover, the U.S. strategic alliance with Israel is something that actually came out of the Reagan-Bush years, and something that has now expanded into a de facto U.S.-Israeli-Turkish military pact, coupled with U.S. military control of the Gulf region and a de facto military occupation of Arabia. In short, both political conditions in the U.S. and geo-strategic conditions in the region will continue to be twisted in ways likely to still further reinforce and bolster the basic U.S.-Israel alliance in the years ahead, regardless of the different personalities and party now taking executive power in Washington.
On these matters, make sure you and your friends read and ponder upcoming MER articles; and if you are in Washington watch the weekly cable MER-TV program.
As he leaves, Clinton signed various statements and memos that the Israelis wanted outlining a rising amount of more money and arms for the Jewish State in the years ahead. But there will not be the Clinton "Kosher Kitchen" in the White House; and there will not be the extraordinary group of Israeli/Lobby Jewish personalities heading up Middle East affairs at the highest levels of the American government. Even so, the Israeli ability to manipulate the U.S. is so refined, so sophisticated, and so multi-tentacled at this point in history -- while the Arab ability to do so is still both primative and marginal -- that the basic policies, if not tone, are likely to continue into the indefinite future.
The following farewell article was published in Israel's largest circulation newspaper a few days ago; and the following article about Clinton's parting promises to the Israelis comes from the Associated Press and long-time Zionist reporter Barry Schweid.
THANKS, FRIEND by Eitan Haber
(Yedioth Ahronoth - 1/18) - The curtain is coming down. In another 48 hours, Bill Clinton will leave the White House for the last time, and will not return. The eight years of his term as President of the United States have reached their end.
There has never been, and there probably never will be, a president who had such fantastic relations with the State of Israel. It's unbelievable. The president of the Free World invested his blood and sweat in the Middle East conflict more than in any other issue, including pressing and important American problems.
America, under Clinton's leadership, contributed to the rise of Israel's status in the world as never before. America stood at Israel's side, even when deep inside it thought Israel was wrong. There was no limit to America's loyalty, and there was no replacement for the warm treatment of the president.
ISRAEL PROMISED NEW U.S. AIRCRAFT
By BARRY SCHWEID, AP Diplomatic Writer
[WASHINGTON (AP - January 19)] -
(T)he United States and Israel signed a formal agreement that will phase out U.S. economic aid to Israel by 2008. Israel is the largest aid recipient.
Half of the assistance will be recovered by Israel as military aid. Israel is also the largest recipient of U.S. military aid.
Thought for the Day:
"No matter how fair the sun shines, still it must set."
(Ferdinand Raymund)