Chuck Hagel’s nomination shows AIPAC’s limits
Over the course of his career, Hagel has shown hostility toward the state of Israel in general, and toward AIPAC specifically. One of the main activities of AIPAC is to get members of Congress to sign letters taking stands on issues related to Israel. In a 2006 interview with Aaron David Miller, Hagel boasted about his courage in being one of a handful of senators who routinely refused to sign such letters, which he called “stupid.” He complained that “the Jewish Lobby intimidates a lot of people up here.” …
Choosing Hagel as secretary of defense is the equivalent of Obama extending his arm and pointing his middle finger at AIPAC. But AIPAC has not taken a position on the appointment, not even to express concern. Marshall Wittmann, an AIPAC spokesman, responded in an email that “AIPAC does not take positions on presidential nominations.”
There’s also no evidence of the group twisting arms behind the scenes. “There is zero activity on the Hill from AIPAC,” a Senate aide who is following the nomination closely told me.
Blowback
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There are no limits to Obama’s power, AIPAC or otherwise. Any other president and AIPAC would have been able to stop this. But a new bar has been set by Obama. Sky’s the limit.
SuperBunny on January 10, 2013 at 7:53 AM
So, as I understand it the US Jewish community supported Obama in 2008 and in 2012. What the hell did they think was going to happen?
MikeA on January 10, 2013 at 8:04 AM
A lobby group representing a foreign government has historically had power to control cabinet nominations? The things you people are forced to say to imagine Obama as some kind of despot, instead of just a President are stunning. Admit it, you don’t even think Obama has the right to select any cabinet appointments do you. HE’S THE PRESIDENT. He can appoint his own cabinet without AIPACs approval.
libfreeordie on January 10, 2013 at 8:07 AM
You’re missing the point. Supposed Bush had wanted to appoint as Secretary of Education someone like David Duke. According to you, HE’S THE PRESIDENT, he can appoint his own cabinet without the approval of the NAACP.
However, you know full well that if he had done something like that, the wailing and gnashing of teeth would be deafeningly cacophonous. The hew and cry would make your ears bleed. While Hagel is not as extreme an example as Duke, the fact that Øbama can nominate someone with questionable credentials to a collective “Meh” from the chattering classes says there is definitely something different going on with this man.
Is he the dictator some on this board paint him to be? Probably not. Are the chattering classes afraid to oppose anything he does for fear of being called a racist? More likely. Since when in this country do we not speak out against a president’s policies or actions? Do you think that shutting down disagreement using charges of racism is good for this country?
Odysseus on January 10, 2013 at 8:27 AM
Jewish voters get what they voted for.
It is quite amusing that Hagel, who would have been Borked had Bush nominated him, gets in there because of a Liberal Democrat.
LMAO.
Daemonocracy on January 10, 2013 at 8:36 AM
We know. You’ve made this clear numerous times.
Daemonocracy on January 10, 2013 at 8:43 AM
What exactly has Hagel done to show hostility towards Israel? Has he threaten to bomb or invade Israel? Has he worked to impose economic sanctions on Israel? Has he threatened to assassinate any of Israel’s heads of state? Or, is showing insufficient fealty towards Israel now qualify as hostility?
antifederalist on January 10, 2013 at 9:15 AM
Hagel also does not believe abortion should be legal in cases of rape or incest, but he’s got a D after his name, so it’s cool.
JohnBrown on January 10, 2013 at 9:27 AM
Obama could order a pogrom and he’d still have 80% Jewish support.
ddrintn on January 10, 2013 at 9:47 AM
American Democrat liberal Jews first allegiance is applied to leftwing causes and dogma. For many, Israel is not a high priority.
Anyone Jewish who supported Obama is unconcerned with the positive outcome of Israeli prevailing and living. I consider Obama Jews the Hellenists who the Maccabees vanquished.
Obama will undermine Israel, erode US finances and eventually remind these Lefty Jews what it means to be persecuted. When times get tough the knive goes in the back.
PeaceAtAllCosts on January 10, 2013 at 9:51 AM
No, I’m beginning to think that the first allegiance for liberal Jews is to hate white evangelical Christians. Gotta call it like I see it.
ddrintn on January 10, 2013 at 9:53 AM
Dhimmitude. Oh wait, worry, that’s what’s going to happen.
Fenris on January 10, 2013 at 10:05 AM
AIPAC by its nature attempts to minimize or mitigate tension between the US and Israel, not to stoke controversy. There are other Zionist groups which do relish the latter, or pursue a partisan agenda in both American and Israeli terms, but AIPAC is not one. There’s something faintly absurd when a politician who rolls over most of the time on key votes blusters self-righteously about an organization so much of whose power and influence is achieved by temporizing.
Seth Halpern on January 10, 2013 at 10:18 AM
No, I’m beginning to think that the first allegiance for liberal Jews is to hate white evangelical Christians. Gotta call it like I see it.
PeaceAtAllCosts on January 10, 2013 at 10:28 AM
Then Jews should hate Catholics especially. The Catholic church persecuted Jews, not Protestant churches.
ddrintn on January 10, 2013 at 10:38 AM