AIPAC's Dangerous Grip on Washington

[Mr_Jefferson_24]

By Ari Berman
The Nation

http://alternet.org/story/39679/

<snip>

In early March, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) held its forty-seventh annual conference in Washington. AIPAC's executive director spent twenty-seven minutes reading the "roll call" of dignitaries present at the gala dinner, which included a majority of the Senate and a quarter of the House, along with dozens of Administration officials.

As this event illustrates, it's impossible to talk about Congress's relationship to Israel without highlighting AIPAC, the American Jewish community's most important voice on the Hill. The Congressional reaction to Hezbollah's attack on Israel and Israel's retaliatory bombing of Lebanon provide the latest example of why.

On July 18, the Senate unanimously approved a nonbinding resolution "condemning Hamas and Hezbollah and their state sponsors and supporting Israel's exercise of its right to self-defense." After House majority leader John Boehner removed language from the bill urging "all sides to protect innocent civilian life and infrastructure," the House version passed by a landslide, 410 to 8.

AIPAC not only lobbied for the resolution; it had written it. "They were given a resolution by AIPAC," said former Carter Administration National Security Adviser Zbigniew Brzezinski, who addressed the House Democratic Caucus on July 19. "They didn't prepare one."...

[Tom Joad]

1. We must stop AIPAC. Go to www.stopaipac.org

Organize for a decent, fair, just foreign policy, not the extremism of AIPAC.
http://www.stopaipac.org

[Nothing Without Hope]

2. Read thiis Senate resolution - it's disgusting. Didn't know it was

actually written by AIPAC, but could easily believe it.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=364&topic_id=1674185&mesg_id=1674453

You'll note that they call for sanctions on Syria and Iran and are clearly laying the groundwork for more. Israel has absolute open season to do anything it wants with the US arms our taxes have paid for:

Here is the PDF file at CSPAN from which I took these image files for easier viewing:
http://www.c-span.org/pdf/06071_%20Israel_Lebanon_Resolution.pdf



------------------------------------------------------------------------

[bvar22]

3. And the Senate "RubberStamped" it (Democrats & Republicans)

and the House too with the exception of 8.
Who are these 8 brave souls?

[Tom Joad]

4. 800,000 uprooted from their homes? No one who supported this

massacre, this massive war crime, deserves an ounce of our respect. Not one.

[bvar22]

5. I agree.

and I am very worried about the state of our so called Democratic Party.
It seems that when their Money Masters call, they all assume the boot licking position (with the exception of a handful in the House).

[chill_wind]

6. 8 Nays

The eight who voted their convictions despite all potential fury.


Nays (8)--

Abercrombie
Conyers
Dingell
Kilpatrick (MI)
McDermott
Paul
Rahall
Stark

*************************************

Answered “Present” (4)--

Kaptur
Kucinich
Lee
Waters



Not Voting (10)--
Davis (FL)
Davis, Jo Ann
Duncan
Evans
Fortenberry
McKinney
Northup
Nussle
Sanchez, Loretta
Westmoreland


http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2006/roll391.xml

[bvar22]

7. Thanks.

The above are the last TRUE Patriots in our government.
I salute them, and will save this list.

I have another list, thankfully longer, of those Democrats with integrity who voted NO on the IWR.

[chill_wind]

9. Thanks to you and Breeze54

I have that list in my journal somewhere too. Thanks again for it.
It adds a lot of useful perspective, in my mind at least.

[Clark2008]

12. Jimmy Duncan is a Republican and is my House rep.

He also voted against the IWR.

Wow! I'm pretty proud of that Republican and happy that, if I can't have a Democrat in the US House around here, at least I have a sensible Republican!

[leesa]

8. And isn't the AIPAC spying trial coming up soon? Will that be called off?

AIPAC needs to be shut down now.

[chill_wind]

10. WoW.

From the piece:

Ironically, during the 2004 campaign Dean called on the United States to be an "evenhanded" broker in the Middle East. That position enraged party leaders such as House minority leader Nancy Pelosi, who signed a letter attacking his remarks. "It was designed to send a message: No one ever does this again," says M.J. Rosenberg of the center-left Israel Policy Forum. "And no one has. The only safe thing to say is: I support Israel." In April a representative from AIPAC called Congresswoman Betty McCollum's vote against a draconian bill severely curtailing aid to the Palestinian Authority "support for terrorists."

Not surprisingly, most in Congress see far more harm than reward in getting in the Israeli lobby's way. "There remains a perception of power and fear that AIPAC can undo you," says James Zogby, president of the Arab American Institute. He points to the defeats of Representative Paul Findley and Senator Charles Percy in the 1980s and Representatives Cynthia McKinney and Earl Hilliard in 2002, when AIPAC steered large donors to their opponents. Even if AIPAC's make-you-or-break-you reputation is largely a myth, in an election year that perception is potent. Thirty-six pro-Israel PACs gave $3.14 million to candidates in the 2004 election cycle. Rahall said his opponent for re-election issued his first press release of the campaign after Rahall voted against the House resolution. "Everybody knew what would happen if they didn't vote yes," he says.

I've posted the opensecrets.org data on the Top Twenty Congress recipients of AIPAC $$ before, and Nancy Pelosi was not on that list, at least not in any of the last election cycles that I looked at.

But this site claims she is one of the past top career recipients of Pro-Israel monies from somewhere:

2004 Top Ten Career Recipients of Pro-Israel PAC Funds

Compiled by Hugh Galford


House: Current Cycle
Hoyer, Steny (D-MD) $37,500
Ros-Lehtinen, Ileana (R-FL) 36,000
Berkley, Shelley (D-NV) 35,100
Lantos, Tom (D-CA) 31,600
Frost, Martin (D-TX) 31,300
Cantor, Eric (R-VA) 23,750
Crowley, Joseph (D-NY) 23,000
DeLay, Tom (R-TX) 23,000
Lowey, Nita (D-NY) 20,650
Pelosi, Nancy (D-CA) 20,650



House: Career
Berkley, Shelley (D-NV) $201,455
Frost, Martin (D-TX) 165,414
Engel, Eliot (D-NY) 137,918
Levin, Sander (D-MI) 113,727
Lowey, Nita (D-NY) 109,738
Lantos, Tom (D-CA) 107,250
Hoyer, Steny (D-MD) 92,275
Evans, Lane (D-IL) 87,379
Harman, Jane (D-CA) 86,271
DeLay, Tom (R-TX) 81,050



Senate: Current Cycle
Specter, Arlen (R-PA) $80,350
Boxer, Barbara (D-CA) 73,000
Murray, Patty (D-WA) 72,495
Daschle, Tom (D-SD) 70,500
Reid, Harry (D-NV) 64,999
Bayh, Evan (D-IN) 56,500
Bennett, Robert (R-UT) 55,750
Wyden, Ronald (D-OR) 55,000
Brownback, Samuel (R-KS) 50,850
Shelby, Richard (R-AL) 38,500


Senate: Career
Daschle, Tom (D-SD) $533,635
Specter, Arlen (R-PA) 461,973
Lautenberg, Frank (D-NJ) 433,806
Durbin, Richard (D-IL) 326,671
Reid, Harry (D-NV) 318,801
Wyden, Ronald (D-OR) 255,562
Lieberman, Joseph (D-CT) 227,758
Boxer, Barbara (D-CA) 223,794
Dodd, Christopher (D-CT) 221,178
Conrad, Kent (D-ND) 201,939

http://www.wrmea.com/archives/July_Aug_2004/0407027.html

About WRMEA: http://www.wrmea.com/aboutwrmea/index.htm

bold emphasis mine

[CabalPowered]

13. I'm disappointed to see Wyden's name on that list.

:thumbsdown:

[reprehensor]

11. Whoa.

Thanks for posting the link.

[chill_wind]

14. Congress Pro-Israel Monies: Top 20 Recipients

Pro-Israel: Top 20 Recipients

Election cycle: 2006

1 Clinton, Hillary Rodham (D-NY) Senate $83,818

2 Kyl, Jon (R-AZ) Senate $79,750

3 Stabenow, Debbie (D-MI) Senate $77,406

4 Kirk, Mark (R-IL) House $72,164

5 Conrad, Kent (D-ND) Senate $68,600

6 Lieberman, Joe (D-CT) Senate $67,000

7 Nelson, Ben (D-NE) Senate $65,500

8 Santorum, Rick (R-PA) Senate $62,000

9 Talent, James M (R-MO) Senate $61,010

10 Nelson, Bill (D-FL) Senate $60,861

11 Menendez, Robert (D-NJ) Senate $47,611

12 Berkley, Shelley (D-NV) House $44,000

13 Lugar, Richard G (R-IN) Senate $39,710

14 Hoyer, Steny H (D-MD) House $37,250

15 Engel, Eliot L (D-NY) House $34,000

15 DeWine, Mike (R-OH) Senate $34,000

17 Burns, Conrad (R-MT) Senate $33,500

17 Feinstein, Dianne (D-CA) Senate $33,500

19 Ros-Lehtinen, Ileana (R-FL) House $30,500

20 Cardin, Ben (D-MD) Senate $30,192


http://www.opensecrets.org/industries/recips.asp?Ind=Q05&cycle=2006

Top Twenty Contributing Pro-Israel orgs:

http://www.opensecrets.org/industries/contrib.asp?Ind=Q05&cycle=2006

background: http://www.opensecrets.org/industries/background.asp?Ind=Q05&cycle=2006

Long-term trends since 1990. Dems get more:

http://www.opensecrets.org/industries/indus.asp?Ind=Q05&cycle=2006

Huge spike in 2002. 75% to Dems. 25% to Pubs.

Here's that list:

http://www.opensecrets.org/industries/recips.asp?Ind=Q05&Cycle=2002&recipdetail=A&Mem=N&sortorder=U

The 2004 cycle: Candidate George Bush tops the list.
Arlen Specter is #3.
http://www.opensecrets.org/industries/recips.asp?Ind=Q05&Cycle=2004&recipdetail=A&Mem=N&sortorder=U

And here's 2000:
http://www.opensecrets.org/industries/recips.asp?Ind=Q05&Cycle=2000&recipdetail=A&Mem=N&sortorder=U

[SupplyConcerns]

15. I agree, but comparing AIPAC to a snake is a bit tasteless

Hitler compared Jews to the "vermin" of snakes. I'm just saying, it's an unfortunate image you're using there.

[jonnyblitz]

17. sometimes the truth is "unfortunate". nt

[Mr_Jefferson_24]

18. Are you posting on behalf of snakes...

...or AIPAC? And secondly, are you comparing me to Hitler?

[Hoping4Change]

16. Another article adds a chilling dimension to this.

The article posted Zonkers in another thread is truly applicable here. Especially chilling is the observation that "The Israeli military apparatus is for all matter of purposes fully integrated within the US military-industrial complex."

So ostensibly Israel is a homeland for the Jews but in reality it is simply a facet in a joint military-industrial complex.


Collective Suicide
The American-Israeli New Middle East.....http://www.swans.com/library/art12/ga213.html

by Gilles d'Aymery

"The American project of a new Middle East is leading the world toward a global conflagration that will extend far beyond the old Middle East. It is based on the conflation of the most reactionary interests in the world, corporate and ideological alike.

The Israeli military apparatus is for all matter of purposes fully integrated within the US military-industrial complex.

The current devastation of Lebanon was fully coordinated with the Bush administration, a part of the master plan to reshape the Middle East within the parameters of the Project for a New American Century with the ultimate objective of full spectrum dominance over the world.

This reality is happening right in front of our eyes, like a slow motion horror film. The temptation for many liberal and moderate Americans it to wishfully think that if the Democrats come back to power in Washington D.C. this reckless strategy will be abandoned; that Mr. Bush and the neocons are the progenitors of these policies. Nothing could be farther from the facts on the ground. These are bipartisan policies equally conceived and fully supported by the Democratic leadership and the corporate interests they represent in the US Congress."



http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.ph...