Stati Uniti: a seguito di un articolo sulle lobby israeliane (pubblicato su un settimanale di cultura ebraica), l'AIPAC risponde [dalla newsletter di Tikkun Magazine]
An important message!
PLEASE STAND UP FOR CONGRESSMAN JIM MORAN. The Israel Lobby Mobilizes Against Tikkun and Congressman Jim Moran. Rabbi Lerner asks Congressman Steny Hoyer and Congressman Eric Cantor to apologize not only to Congressman Moran but also to all American Jews who support peace and reconciliation in the Middle East.
READ THIS ARTICLE AND THEN GO TO THE INTERVIEW (part of the Israel Lobby article which is now posted at www.Tikkun.org. ) We ask you to contact Congressman Hoyer and Congressman Cantor to let them know your feelings about the issues below (call 1 202 224 3121 and ask for their offices, and then call Congressman Jim Moran to indicate your support for his stance in Tikkun). Your call to these people will actually make an impact!
It took tremendous courage for Congressman Jim Moran to tell Tikkun magazine of the power and influence of AIPAC and other sections of the Israel Lobby. AIPAC is often described in the media as the most powerful lobby in Washngton, D.C., so it is no surprise that its friends and supporters are now mobilizing to vilify Congressman Moran's comments in the Sept/Oct issue of Tikkun.
In the last few days major media have been publishing attacks on Moran, distorting what he said. Now that attack has been joined by a leader of the Republican party and a leader of the Democrats in Congress, and their distortions are even more incredible. House Republican Chief Deputy Whip Eric Cantor likened Congressman Moran to Adoph Hitler on September 18th. "Unfortunately, Jim Moran has made it a habit now to lash out to the American Jewish commty. I think his remarks are reprehensible, I think his remarks are anachronistic, and hearken back to the day of Adolph Hitler, of the others, Mein Kamp, of the protocols of the elders of zion, other sources that have become reference to now, I'm sorry to say, a resurgent anti-semitic sentiment world wide."And House Democratic Majority Leader Steny Hoyer issued a statement which seemed to add to the witch hunt by stating that Moran had claimed that " the Jewish community controls the press, the media, the Congress, and other institutions" and that therefore Moran "certainly oughtta retract remarks, and indicate he believes that he was inaccurate on the facts."
Congressman Moran said no such thing.
You can read what he did say at www.tikkun.org as part of the article by Rabbi Lerner on The Israel Lobby in the Sept/Oct issue of Tikkun magazine. Congressman Moran never made any statement about "the Jewish community," but only accurately described the power of one section of the Jewish community which has immense influence in the media and in Congress--AIPAC. And we can watch now as that influence is mobilized to isolate and demean the one Congressperson with the courage to say publicly what many have consistently said to all the Jews who support the Israeli peace movement are told: "We don't dare criticize these policies publicly, lest PACs and other forces aligned with the Israel Lobby attack us and make us politically vulnerable."
Steny Hoyer, who defeated anti-war Congressman John Murtha for the Democratic leadership post he now holds, and who is reportedly one of the major forces inside the Democratic leadership rejecting any serious attempt to withhold funds for the war in Iraq and limiting what Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi might otherwise try to do to challenge Bush's war, is a perfect example of the power of the Israel Lobby to shape public discourse. It is incredible that this is the one thing that Democrats and Republicans can unite on in Congress: blind allegiance to the Israel Lobby.
Or, actually not that incredible, because they demonstrate exactly what anyone who speaks out against Israeli policy toward Palestinians has faced for years. Jews who support the peace camp are described as "self-hating" Jews, and non-Jews are told that they are anti-Semites.
What's new is that now that same McCarthyism (which labeled as "anti-American" anyone who criticized U.S. policies around the world, tactics actually first developed by the Stalinists all around the world who called "anti-socialist" anyone who criticized the brutal dictatorship of the Soviet Union), is now being used not on someone criticizing Israel, but on someone who dares criticize an American organization (AIPAC) that has played a leading role in defending the most right-wing policies of the State of Israel. As former Israel Minister of Justice Yossi Beilin points out in an interview in Tikkun magazine, AIPAC does not defend and support the Israeli government's policies when Israel tried to move toward peace under Yitzhak Rabin—in fact, he reports, they actually sought to undermine Rabin's peace efforts.
In his interview in Tikkun, Congressman Moran goes out of his way to assert that his criticisms of the role played by AIPAC and other conservative voices in the organized community is not representative of the vast majority of American Jews. Moran affirmed what polls of American Jews have consistently revealed since 1991—that the leadership of Jewish organizations is far more conservative than the majority of its members, and the members of the organized Jewish community is far more conservative than most American Jews.
And in a detailed study released in early September by Steven M. Cohen and Ari Kelman, the authors reveal that there ahs been a decline attachment to Israel itself fron one generation to the next, a consistent increase in alienation in each younger generation of American Jews. Rabbi Michael Lerner, editor of Tikkun magazine, predicted in his 1994 best-seller Jewish Renewal, predicted that the insistence in the Jewish world that one give blind loyalty to the policies of the State of Israel toward Palestinians would lead to alienation from younger Jews, and that is now being confirmed. Now, in the Sept/Oct issue Lerner warns against "Jewish political correctness" forcing many non-Jews into silence about Israeli policies that they know to be both immoral and destructive to the best interests of Israel itself. Lerner warns that this will eventually lead to deep resentments that will explode in (unjustifiable but nevertheless pervasive) anti-Semitism.
If ever there was proof of the Israel Lobby's immense power, it has been the response to Congressman Moran. Within days of Tikkun being on the newsstands (and quickly sold out of many places where it normally sells), the attack began, with media sources from the Washington Post to CNN making this into a significant news item. Needless to say, when other Jewish journals or newspapers attack the progressive voices in the Jewish peace movement, there is no similar media attention. The media attends to AIPAC because it is so deeply aligned with AIPAC and is quick to publish false and defamatory statements about those who dare criticize AIPAC. This same process has faced Tikkun Magazine ever since we began criticizing Israel's response to the Intifada. Despite the fact that Tikkun was one of the very few Jewish magazines that is explicitly pro-Judaism (and now, also, explicitly pro-Chrisitianity, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism etc as it has morphed into an interfaith voice) and often runs supplements advising readers on how to make the Jewish holidays more spiritually alive (most recently its "Repentance in Time of War" supplement for the 2007 Jewish High Holidays), the Israel Lobby and its friends described it as "radical" or "self-hating Jews" or "marginal" (though it had more readers than most Jewish magazines in the U.S.).
And this same defamatory process is now facing Professors Mearsheimer and Walt in response to the publication of their book The Israel Lobby (the thesis of which Tikkun has both praised and also criticized in part).
Rabbi Michael Lerner issued the following statement: "I call upon both Congressman Eric Cantor and Congressman Steny Hoyer to use this period between the Jewish Holiday of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, the traditional days of Repentance, to engage in their own public repentance by apologizing not only to Congressman Moran, but to the majority of American Jews who agree with Moran's criticisms of the way that the Israel Lobby has attempted to silence public debate. In attempting to label all those who oppose the tactics and policies of the Israel Lobby as somehow contributing to anti-Semitism and even making comparisons to Hitler, they only disgrace themselves and misuse the memory of those who have died to keep alive a Jewish tradition of open debate and discussion of the most complicated and controversial issues. I pray that they will offer this apology before Yom Kippur begins this Friday night, when I and millions of other JEws around the world will be praying for peace and reconciliation, not for militarism and domination."
Cantor Condemns Moran's Statements On the American Jewish Community
WASHINGTON, DC -House Republican Chief Deputy Whip Eric Cantor (R-VA-07), Chairman of the House Taskforce on Terrorism and Unconventional Warfare, released the following statement today addressing the recent comments made by Congressman Jim Moran (D-VA-08) about the American Jewish community:
"I flatly reject the accusations levied by Congressman Moran against American Jews, their intentions and their purported influence.
"For Mr. Moran to again suggest that Jews are responsible for the war in Iraq and that they somehow strangle American foreign policy is as senseless as it is bigoted. His comments provide fuel to the timeless and wildly anti-Semitic conspiracy theories that are currently gaining popularity around the world. Indeed, the arguments smack of 'The Protocols of the Elders of Zion', the anti-Semitic tool long used to fan anti-Semitism and justify repression of Jews.
"Mr. Moran's comments are baseless, incorrect and an irresponsible contribution to the public discourse. I am appalled that a Member of Congress would appeal to fear in his public statements against the American Jewish community," concluded Cantor.
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CANTOR), "Unfortunately, Jim Moran has made it a habit now to lash out to the American Jewish commty. I think his remarks are reprehensible, I think his remarks are anachronistic, and hearken back to the day of Adolph Hitler, of the others, Mein Kamp, of the protocols of the elders of zion, other sources that have become reference to now, I'm sorry to say, a resurgent anti-semitic sentiment world wide. And I just think it is inappropriate for a member of congress in today's world to be making such remarks."
Congressman Stenny Hoyer, Majority Leader of Democrats in the House of Representatives, the 2nd highest position in the Congress.
Here is his statement:
13:23:20 I am familiar with his comments on AIPAC, which I think he was wrong factually on, and I was very disappointed with the assertion that he made about AIPAC's influence, or the influence of others who might be members of AIPAC. on the policy. Clearly, the policy on Iraq is dictated by Cheney/Rumsfeld. and i think that is our focus, that oughtta be our focus. I think that to the extent to Mr. Moran and others assert otherwise is in inaccurate.
I think the remarks i heard or reported I think were factually incorrect. I think they did adopt a canard that is not absolutely is not true, that somehow the Jewish community controls the press, the media, the Congress, and other institutions has been used by those who are anti-semitic for a very long period of time. They are inaccurate, wrong and unfortunate.
13:24:45 I think he certainly oughtta retract remarks, and indicate he believes that he was inaccurate on the facts.
Here is the most controversial aspect of what Congressman Moran actually said in Tikkun, in the midst of a discussion with Rabbi Lerner about Tikkun's rejection of military violence and attempts by the current Administration to use domination as the best path to homeland security, as opposed to Tikkun's path for a new strategy of generosity and a Global Marshall Plan.
Congessman Moran in Tikkun (see www.tikkun.org for full interview)
"Jewish Americans, as a voting bloc and as an influence on American foreign policy, are overwhelmingly opposed to the war. There is no ethnic group as opposed to the war as much as Jewish Americans. But, AIPAC is the most powerful lobby and has pushed this war from the beginning. I don't think they represent the mainstream of American Jewish thinking at all, but because they are so well organized, and their members are extraordinarily powerful—most of them are quite wealthy—they have been able to exert power.
"The reason I don't hesitate to speak out about AIPAC's influence—notwithstanding the fact that I'll be accused of being anti-Semitic every time I suggest it—is that I don't think AIPAC represents the mainstream of American Jewish thinking. I think that, in fact, if you were to sit down with Jewish families in the United States, far more would agree with your philosophy of reconciliation, in acting in a manner consistent with Torah, and they believe in tikkun. AIPAC doesn't believe in tikkun, judging from their policy proposals, but nevertheless, they have the Congress pretty… well [pause] "controlled" may be too strong a word, but their influence is dominant in the Congress—and their attitude is the opposite of Tikkun's and the NSP's. They support domination: not healing. They feel that you acquire security through military force, through intimidation, even through occupation, when necessary, and that if you have people who are hostile toward you, it's OK to kill them, rather than talk with them, negotiate with them, try to understand them, and ultimately try to love them. That's what Tikkun and the NSP is all about: healing, mending, reconciling, understanding, and love, which is why I think you are on the right path."
Some of the media:
Jim Moran's Tiresome Attack/Apology Routine by Marc Fisher
The endless cycle of Jim Moran's outbursts and apologies long ago became tiresome. Yet the congressman from Alexandria remains popular in his district, reasonably effective in the House, and pretty much unbeatable in his reelection bids.
Moran is up to his old tricks once again <http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/14/AR.html> , railing against the supposedly dominating power of the Jewish lobby in this country, even as he argues that most American Jews basically ignore their own lobby's unparalleled sway. Moran's comments to the radical Jewish magazine Tikkun <http://www.tikkun.org/magazine/tik0709/frontpage/israellobby> are as strangely illogical as they are wrongheaded and inflammatory.
Read Moran's interview in Tikkun (the interview is at the bottom of the article I link to above) and you'll see that the congressman ascribes enormous and frightening power to AIPAC, the American-Israeli Public Affairs Committee <http://www.aipac.org/> . "If you cross AIPAC," Moran says, "AIPAC is unforgiving and will destroy you politically. Their means of communications, their ties to certain newspapers and magazines, and individuals in the media are substantial and intimidating."
Ah, it's the Jewish-controlled media again. That would be the same media that is routinely assumed by much of Jewish America to be wholly in the tank for the Palestinians and the academics who rail against Israel.
But Moran is much too smart to fall for simple conspiracy theories. He recognizes and states forthrightly that indeed, most American Jews reject AIPAC's consistent support for military solutions and tough measures against Palestinian attacks. "Jewish Americans, as a voting bloc and as an influence on American foreign policy, are overwhelmingly opposed to the war," Moran says. "There is no ethnic group as opposed to the war as much as Jewish Americans."
Somehow, though, the fact that most Jews don't agree with AIPAC's view of the Middle East conflict, and the fact that most Jews--both voters and the Jews who are elected officials in Washington--oppose the war doesn't move Moran from his bedrock belief in the power of the Jewish lobby: "...because they are so well organized, and their members are extraordinarily powerful--most of them are quite wealthy--they have been able to exert power," he tells Tikkun.
As a Jewish Democratic group points out <http://njdc.typepad.com/njdcs_blog/2007/09/njdc-to-jim-mor.html> , if the Israeli lobby in Washington were as powerful as Moran makes it out to be, and if that lobby somehow is to blame for the United States going to war in Iraq, then how is it that a) Jews are more opposed to the war than any other religious group <http://www.galluppoll.com/content/?ci=26677> in this country, and b) many of the Jews in Congress voted against the war? Moran never explains this. He prefers instead to take his reasonable critique of AIPAC's political and military positions and apply it to Jews writ large.
AIPAC, the congressman explains, supports "domination, not healing. They feel that you acquire security through military force, through intimidation, even through occupation, when necessary, and that if you have people who are hostile toward you, it's OK to kill them, rather than talk with them, negotiate with them, try to understand them, and ultimately try to love them."
Jim Moran seems to have a deep need to blame Jews for the war in Iraq. In 2003, he said this: "If it were not for the strong support of the Jewish community for this war with Iraq, we would not be doing this. The leaders of the Jewish community are influential enough that they could change the direction of where this is going, and I think they should." Funny, but I thought the folks who decided on and planned this war were named Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Rice and their various staffers. But Moran, despite repeated apologies for the tone and simplistic approach of his 2003 remarks, continues to peddle his bizarre notions about Jewish power.
But perhaps Moran is right. Perhaps the Jewish leaders he believes to be so influential are the same ones who, following the firestorm over Moran's 2003 remarks, summoned their wealthy donors and their puppets in the press and rose up and defeated Jim Moran.
Oh, wait, Moran destroyed his Republican opponent by 172,000 votes to her 106,000? And before that, Moran prevailed easily in the Democratic primary, winning 59 percent of the vote to beat challenger Andrew Rosenberg? Hmm, better check that Jewish lobby's omnipotence.
Once again, Moran is both defending his statements and apologizing for them <http://www.washingtonjewishweek.com/main.asp?SectionID=4&SubSectionID=4&ArticleID=7688&TM=157.963> . Moran's spokesman, Austin Durrer, told a Washington Jewish newspaper that Moran "understands that the tone of some of his comments ... may have been unnecessarily harsh." Yet Moran wasn't backing off his statement at all to the Post's Amy Gardner: "I would like to have a reasonable, objective discussion about AIPAC's foreign policy agenda. But it's difficult to do that because any time you question their motives, you are accused of being anti-Semitic."
Attack, apologize, reiterate the attack--that's the Moran method. Which is a tried and true rhetorical style. The problem here is bigger: A congressman who repeatedly chooses to make wild generalizations based on some of the ugliest stereotypes in history.
(Why does he do it? I think it's because this is what he genuinely believes. But for those who believe money is the driving force in politics, there's this: Iin the 2004 election cycle, according to opensecrets.org, all--every penny--of the money the Jim Moran campaign received from foreign policy and defense-oriented PACs came from Arab and Muslim groups. < http://www.opensecrets.org/pacs/memberprofile.asp?cid=N&cycle=2004&expand=Q04> )
Moran Upsets Jewish Groups Again
U.S. House Democrat Said Pro-Israel Lobby Promoted War
By Amy Gardner
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, September 15, 2007; B05
Rep. James P. Moran Jr. (D-Va.) <http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/Jim+Moran?tid=informline> has again come under fire from local Jewish organizations for remarking in a magazine interview that the "extraordinarily powerful" pro-Israel <http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/Israel?tid=informline> lobby played a strong role promoting the war in Iraq <http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/Iraq?tid=informline> .
In an interview with Tikkun, a California <http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/California?tid=informline> -based Jewish magazine, Moran said the American Israel Public Affairs Committee <http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/American +Israel+Public+Affairs+Committee?tid=informline> (AIPAC) is "the most powerful lobby and has pushed this war from the beginning. I don't think they represent the mainstream of American Jewish thinking at all, but because they are so well organized, and their members are extraordinarily powerful -- most of them are quite wealthy -- they have been able to exert power."
Moran's remarks were criticized by the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington and the National Jewish Democratic Council. Ronald Halber, executive director of the first group, said Moran's remarks are anti-Semitic and draw on ugly stereotypes about Jewish wealth, power and influence.
"He uses several age-old canards that have been used throughout history that have brought violence upon Jews," Halber said this week. "He uses clearly anti-Semitic images such as Jewish control of the media and wealthy Jews using their wealth to control policy."
Ira N. Forman, executive director of the National Jewish Democratic Council, said in a published statement that there is nothing wrong with criticizing the pro-Israel lobby but that Moran's statements go beyond that to defamation by making a "phony" connection between AIPAC and the Iraq war.
"Rep. Moran's comments are not only incorrect and irresponsible," Forman said. "They are downright dangerous."
In an interview last night, Moran said he was dismayed at the reaction to his remarks, which he stands by. The pro-Israel lobby has not represented mainstream U.S. Jewish opinion in recent years, he said -- most notably with its Middle East <http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/Middle+East?tid=informline> policies, which he characterized as directly aligned with those of the Bush administration.
"The problem with addressing the groups who have argued strongly in favor of a long-term American military <http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/U.S.+Armed+Forces?tid=informline> presence in the Middle East is that they raise arguments that are not related to the point," Moran said. "I would like to have a reasonable, objective discussion about AIPAC's foreign policy agenda. But it's difficult to do that because any time you question their motives, you are accused of being anti-Semitic."
Rabbi Michael Lerner, editor of Tikkun also defended Moran's position in the article, which appear in the magazine's September-October issue http://www.tikkun.org/magazine/tik0709/frontpage/israellobby.
"It's the kind of statement I would have made to any religious community, or to any labor movement audience, citing their own failures to act as a critical factor in why we had gotten involved," Lerner wrote in the article.
Halber said he welcomes criticism of AIPAC's policies, but he said Moran is wrong that the advocacy group supports the war in Iraq. Most American Jews oppose U.S. involvement in Iraq, he said, and AIPAC has remained neutral.
According to the organization's Web site, AIPEC supports U.S. military aid to Israel but does not openly support U.S. intervention in the Middle East.
"I think Mr. Halber's being disingenuous in suggesting that the AIPAC board has not been strongly supportive of military involvement in Iraq and now in Iran < http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/Iran?tid=informline> ," Moran said yesterday.
Although hailed for forging ties with the region's Muslim community, Moran has gotten into trouble with the local Jewish community before. In 2001, he angered groups by saying in an appearance before the American Muslim Council that then-Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon was coming to Washington "probably seeking a warrant from President Bush <http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/George+W.+Bush?tid=informline> to kill at will with weapons we have paid for."
The next year, Moran returned $2,000 in political contributions from a Muslim activist with ties to the anti-Israeli groups Hamas <http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/Hamas?tid=informline> and Hezbollah <http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/Hezbollah?tid=informline> .
And in 2003, at an antiwar forum in Reston <http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/Reston?tid=informline> , Moran said: "If it were not for the strong support of the Jewish community for this war with Iraq, we would not be doing this. The leaders of the Jewish community are influential enough that they could change the direction of where this is going, and I think they should."
Said Halber this week: "There are only so many mistakes he can make before it's fair to call him an anti-Semite."
Jim Moran's Mouth, Again
By Colbert I. King
Saturday, September 15, 2007; A17
What is it with Jim Moran <http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/members/m/> ? The nine-term Democratic congressman from Northern Virginia <http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/Northern+Virginia?tid=informline> can't seem to keep his head on straight when it comes to talking about Iraq <http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/Iraq?tid=informline> and the reasons we have ended up over there.
In the run-up to the March 2003 invasion, during an event at a Reston <http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/Reston?tid=informline> church sponsored by a peace coalition, Moran said: "If it were not for the strong support of the Jewish community for this war with Iraq, we would not be doing this." Not stopping there, he added, "The leaders of the Jewish community are influential enough that they could change the direction of where this is going, and I think they should."
Those remarks earned Moran swift condemnation by his congressional colleagues, political leaders in Northern Virginia, Jewish organizations and several prominent local rabbis. I wrote a column that criticized the parish priest and the audience of about 120 people for not speaking up after hearing Moran's offensive comments [" Uncomfortable Silence < http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/opinions/articles/uncomfortable_silence.html> ," March 15, 2003]. Issuing mea culpas like mad, Moran weathered that storm.
Now he's at it again.
In an interview published in the September-October issue of Tikkun magazine <http://www.tikkun.org> , Moran said that the American Israel Public Affairs Committee <http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/American+Israel+Public+Affairs+Committee?tid=informline> (AIPAC) "has pushed this war from the beginning . . . They are so well organized, and their members are extraordinarily powerful -- most of them are quite wealthy -- they have been able to exert power."
That drew a sharp retort from the National Jewish Democratic Council <http://www.njdc.org> , which called on Moran to retract his comments.
Ira Forman, the council's executive director, said in a Sept. 7 news release: "It is never easy nor pleasant to criticize a fellow Democrat, but sometimes it is necessary. While there is nothing wrong with criticizing AIPAC -- or for that matter any organization with which you disagree -- spreading false statements is clearly irresponsible."
Forman said the connection between the pro-Israel <http://www.washingtonpost.com /ac2/related/topic/Israel?tid=informline> lobby and the Iraq war is phony. He said that "Rep. Moran's comments are not only incorrect and irresponsible -- they are downright dangerous."
Backtracking a little, Moran's office issued the following statement: "The Congressman understands that the tone of some of his comments in the interview with Tikkun, an interfaith, progressive Jewish magazine, may have been unnecessarily harsh. However, he stands by his message -- namely that for the last few years AIPAC has not represented mainstream American Jewish opinion and that the organization's Middle East <http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/Middle+East?tid=informline> policies, while in direct alignment with the Bush Administration, have been counterproductive to Israel's long-term security."
Moran, the statement went on, "recognizes the progressive nature of the Jewish community as a whole, and notes that if the rest of America voted the way Jews vote, the U.S. would not be in the war in Iraq today, and would have health care for all, and would not be involved in discriminatory treatment of gays or of immigrants."
Perhaps so.
Where AIPAC stands vis-?-vis the Jewish community is not a question that keeps me awake at night. As far as taking America to war goes, I think top honors belong to George W. Bush <http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/George+W.+Bush?tid=informline> , Dick Cheney <http://www.washingtonpost.com /ac2/related/topic/Dick+Cheney?tid=informline> , Don Rumsfeld <http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/Donald+H.+Rumsfeld?tid=informline> , Colin Powell <http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/Colin+Powell?tid=informline> and Condoleezza Rice <http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/Condoleezza+Rice?tid=informline> -- Gentiles all -- with a lot of help from Congress.
They aren't the reason Jim Moran returns to this column.
In his Tikkun interview, Moran indicated that AIPAC's influence extends far beyond Capitol Hill <http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/Capitol+Hill?tid=informline> . To hear him tell it, AIPAC is behind what America reads and hears about Israel.
Moran's own words: AIPAC "members are willing to be very generous with their personal wealth. But it's a two-edged sword. If you cross AIPAC, AIPAC is unforgiving and will destroy you politically. Their means of communications, their ties to certain newspapers and magazines, and to individuals in the media are substantial and intimidating."
The "ties to . . . the media" bit caught my attention.
It suggests an alignment between AIPAC and journalists that conspires to influence news and opinions about Israel. And that AIPAC, through its newsroom and editorial board alliances, can bring hell to bear on wayward politicians.
Having made those charges, Moran is obligated to provide evidence supporting them. He should start by naming names.
Which "newspapers and magazines" are tied to AIPAC, and how? Who are the "individuals in the media" with AIPAC ties? What does that mean, anyway?
The canard that a powerful Jewish lobby controls the media is a well-known anti-Semitic staple.
Two days ago, I directed my questions to Moran through his communications director, Austin J. Durrer.
Durrer responded by e-mail with an excerpt from Rabbi Michael Lerner's article " The Israel Lobby <http://www.tikkun.org/magazine/tik0709/frontpage/israellobby> ," which also appears in the September-October issue of Tikkun. The excerpt contained Lerner's thoughts on "why the liberal media is illiberal on Israel." Nice to know.
And Moran's answers? I'm still waiting for him to put up or . . . you know the rest.
kingc@washpost.com
Moran now blames only some Jews
Tuesday, Sep 18, 2007 - 12:08 AM Updated: 01:02 AM
By RAY MCALLISTER
TIMES-DISPATCH COLUMNIST
A recent book, "The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy," claims the pro-Israel lobby played a strong role promoting the war in Iraq.
So contentious do some find the claim that Barack Obama's campaign pulled an Internet ad when it wound up on the book's page at Amazon.com.
Now U.S. Rep James P. Moran, D-8th, has come under fire for saying much the same thing.
Again.
You may remember in 2003 when Moran said at an anti-war forum: "If it were not for the strong support of the Jewish community for this war with Iraq, we would not be doing this."
Moran, a Roman Catholic whose heavily Democratic district includes Alexandria, Arlington County, Falls Church and parts of Fairfax County, apologized twice. He said he "made some insensitive remarks that I deeply regret. . . . I have only myself to blame."
Now Moran is quoted in Tikkun, a California-based Jewish magazine, as saying the Jewish lobby is pushing the war.
The focus is narrower this time. The American Israel Public Affairs Committee is "the most powerful lobby and has pushed this war from the beginning," Moran is quoted as saying.
"I don't think they represent the mainstream of American Jewish thinking at all, but because they are so well-organized, and their members are extraordinarily powerful -- most of them are quite wealthy -- they have been able to exert power."
Sounds like stereotyping again.
But Moran has no intention of apologizing.
He should, says Jack Spiro, director of Virginia Commonwealth University's Center for Judaic Studies.
Spiro questioned whether Moran is anti-Semitic or pursuing anti-Semitic voters.
"There's always been this myth of Jewish power" bent on world domination, Spiro said.
But Moran is wrong on the issue, too, Spiro said.
"The United States makes its decisions on foreign policy based on its own best interests. . . . The [Bush] administration may be off the mark with what it's decided," but it's not because of other groups, he said.
"Even if it were true, [the war] certainly is not in the best interest of Israel, with this kind of instability through the Mideast."
Spokesman Austin Durrer said yesterday that Moran was responding to media inquiries only with a written statement: "The congressman understands that the tone of some of his comments in the interview with Tikkun, an interfaith, progressive Jewish magazine, may have been unnecessarily harsh.
"However, he stands by his message -- namely that for the last few years AIPAC has not represented mainstream American Jewish opinion and that the organization's Middle East policies, while in direct alignment with the Bush administration, have been counterproductive to Israel's long-term security."
