Santa Claus and the Israel Lobby

[aris2chat]

as the fear mongers slowly deflate

Santa Claus and the Israel Lobby
frontpagemag.com/2014/dgreenfield/santa-claus-and-the-israel-lobby
Daniel Greenfield

Like Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy, the Israel Lobby is a myth. AIPAC, like jolly bearded men sitting in shopping malls, exists. And like the men with fake beards and pillows under their red coats, it goes through the motions. Its activists lobby, its events attract politicians and the one thing that it and its enemies agree on is its vast sphere of political influence that, like Santa, is absolutely everywhere.

If you believe AIPAC, it’s an incredibly effective organization. If you believe its enemies, AIPAC runs America and parts of Canada. It’s not an accusation that AIPAC denies too hard. Mall Santas don’t deny that they have flying reindeer waiting for them on the roof. AIPAC is a fat man in a rented red suit and fake beard trying to pretend that it can do anything. But AIPAC would have better luck making reindeer fly than countering the dominant power of the anti-Israel left and the Saudi lobby in Washington D.C.................

 

[Pennywise]

Gee, I could read the claim from one Jew, or I could read a thoroughly researched and footnoted volume of facts- [ame=http://www.amazon.com/Israel-Lobby-U-S-Foreign-Policy/dp/0374531501]The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy: John J. Mearsheimer, Stephen M. Walt: 9780374531508: Amazon.com: Books[/ame]

Why the fuck are we constantly at war in the ME?

 

[Coyote]

"dominant power of the anti-Israel left and the Saudi lobby in Washington D.C"....has this writer even taken a look at American politics?

Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Claus.

 

[Snouter]

Like Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy, the Israel Lobby is a myth.

The Lobby has been running the US government for longer than most people think.

 

[Coyote]

Like Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy, the Israel Lobby is a myth.

The Lobby has been running the US government for longer than most people think.

Israel has a powerful special interest lobby - a number of countries do. It's not unusual.

It doesn't "run" the US government but it certainly influences our politicians.

 

[Coyote]

Gee, I could read the claim from one Jew, or I could read a thoroughly researched and footnoted volume of facts- The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy: John J. Mearsheimer, Stephen M. Walt: 9780374531508: Amazon.com: Books

Why the fuck are we constantly at war in the ME?

It's not Israel.

It's oil.

 

[Coyote]

I wouldn't take this article seriously - look at the source. The author has been caught out fabricating stories.

 

[aris2chat]

So much competition in DC and you think somehow AIPAC controls the country? Not even close.

Top Lobbyist

Cory Alexander, UnitedHealth Group Inc.
A former lobbyist for Fannie Mae, Alexander is steering UnitedHealth’s advocacy team through the new terrain of the Affordable Care Act.

Bryan Anderson, Southern Co.
Anderson has a jampacked agenda as the power company deals with the looming carbon rules and works to build nuclear reactors in the United States.

Sid Ashworth, Northrop Grumman Corp.
For the second year in a row, Ashworth’s expert team at Northrop Grumman persuaded the Pentagon to keep one of the company’s Global Hawk drone variants in service.

Meredith Baker and Melissa Maxfield, Comcast/NBCUniversal.
As a former FCC commissioner, Baker is fluent in the regulatory process; Maxfield learned how to fight in the political trenches as a Senate aide.

Bill Barloon, Sprint Corp.
Sprint’s versatile lobbying team won regulatory approval for a deal with Japan’s Softbank this year; now it’s battling AT&T and Verizon over the rules for an auction of airwave licenses.

Wayne Berman, Blackstone Group LP
A power player in Republican Party politics, Berman is one of the most sought-after fundraisers on K Street.

Abigail Blunt, Kraft Foods Group Inc.
Blunt is keeping Kraft ahead of the curve by talking with lawmakers and members of the administration about food safety and marketing to kids.

Stephen Brown, Tesoro Corp.
Brown draws on a deep well of policy knowledge when representing the independent refining company in battles over ethanol, emissions rules and more.

Jim Cicconi, Tim McKone, and Peter Jacoby, AT&T Inc.
The company’s ace lobbying team is seeking access to more airwaves to improve the quality of AT&T’s network.

Maria Cino, Hewlett-Packard Co.
Cino, a former Republican National Convention CEO, deputy Transportation secretary and Pfizer lobbyist, deals with federal, state and local government relations for the tech company.

Peter Cleveland, Intel Corp.
A former chief of staff to California Sen. Dianne Feinstein, Cleveland is the chief lobbyist for the computer chip giant and a man to know on the tech scene.

Ken Cole, Pfizer Inc.
The former General Motors lobbyist brings a wealth of experience to the drug giant’s lobby team as it grapples with the rollout of ObamaCare.

Colin Crowell, Twitter Inc.
Crowell, a former FCC aide and congressional staffer, blazed a trail as the first public policy hire for Twitter.

Greg Dahlberg, Lockheed Martin Corp.
The former Army undersecretary and House defense panel staffer has helped keep Lockheed’s flagship F-35 Joint Strike Fighter from falling victim to budget cuts.

Peter Davidson, Verizon Communications Inc.
The nation’s largest wireless carrier holds its own in the lobbying game with advocates like Davidson, a former general counsel to the U.S. Trade Representative.

Nancy Dorn, General Electric Co.
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Theresa Fariello, Exxon Mobil Corp.
Fariello, a former Energy Department official, has kept Exxon in the win column with an expert blend of lobbying power and public advocacy.

Bob Filippone, Merck & Co. Inc.
Filippone left the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America this fall to take the reins of the drug company’s Washington office.

Tucker Foote, MasterCard Inc.
Foote and his team are showing their versatility as the industry deals with tech-centric issues such as Internet gambling, mobile payment systems and cybersecurity.

Nate Gatten, JPMorgan Chase and Co.
The former Fannie Mae lobbyist is at the pinnacle of his profession as head of federal government relations for the nation’s largest bank.

Matt Gelman and Fred Humphries, Microsoft Corp.
Gelman and Humphries bring decades of experience to the company’s well-oiled lobbying machine.

Rich Glick, Iberdrola
Business has never been better for the wind industry, but there’s no time to celebrate as a popular industry tax credit is in danger of lapsing.

Rick Graber, Honeywell International Inc.
A former ambassador to the Czech Republic, Graber knows international affairs. But his power base is in Washington, where he’s chairman of Honeywell’s political action committee, HIPAC.

Bob Helm, General Dynamics Corp.
Helm is leveraging the company’s many successes to gain a foothold in the expanding unmanned warfare and cybersecurity markets.

Guy Hicks, EADS North America
Since taking over as the company’s top defense lobbyist last January, Hicks has expanded its military aviation holdings while securing new business in logistics and support operations for foreign militaries.

Ed Hill, Bank of America Corp.
A steady hand at Bank of America for more than a decade, Hill knows how to makes the bank’s views known during debates on major financial issues.

Joel Kaplan, Facebook Inc.
Kaplan, a former policy aide in the George W. Bush White House, deals with online privacy regulations and immigration reform for the social media company’s up-and-coming D.C. team.

Tim Keating, Boeing Co.
Keating spearheaded the company’s successful effort to reauthorize the U.S. Export-Import Bank and faces a mounting challenge in the defense cuts under sequestration.

Kent Knutson, Home Depot Inc.
A genuine K Street powerbroker, Knutson sits on the board of the Home Depot Foundation, which donated $1 million to relief organizations in the wake of Hurricane Sandy.

Bill Lane, Caterpillar Inc.
Lane, an in-house lobbyist for the construction equipment giant, is one of Washington’s most prominent voices for free trade.

Melissa Lavinson, PG&E Corp.
Lavinson is a seasoned lobbyist for the utilities giant, tasked with keeping tabs on the administration’s new greenhouse gas regulations.

Susan Molinari and Pablo Chavez, Google Inc.
Molinari, a former congresswoman, and Chavez, a former counsel to Arizona Sen. John McCain, have helped Google become a lobbying powerhouse.

Emmett O’Keefe, Amazon.com Inc.
A former staffer to the House and Senate commerce committees, O’Keefe is putting Amazon’s muscle behind Internet sales tax legislation.

Ziad Ojakli, Ford Motor Co.
Ford’s high-octane lobbying operation has touted its work to increase driver safety, which is a big focus of new Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx.

Michael Paese, Goldman Sachs Group Inc.
Paese served on the House Financial Services Committee when Dodd-Frank was put to paper, and he has been out front for one of Wall Street’s biggest names since 2009.

Dean Pappas, The Allstate Corp.
The insurance giant is keeping close watch over the implementation of the transportation reauthorization bill and the debate over tax reform.

Joe Seidel, Credit Suisse Group AG
Seidel is in charge of the U.S. lobbying operations for Switzerland’s second-largest bank, which has been active on both the tax and derivatives fronts.

Matthew Stanton, Beam Inc.
As the lobbyist for iconic brands like Jim Beam, Makers Mark and Courvoisier, Stanton is well-versed in everything from patent law to energy efficiency.

Sarah Thorn, Wal-Mart Stores Inc.
The world’s largest retailer has a nimble advocacy team to cut through a thicket of international regulations and trade rules.

Jonathan Weisgall, MidAmerican Energy Holdings Co.
Weisgall can multi-task with the best of them, boasting a resume that runs from lobbyist to author to film producer.

 

[aris2chat]

Top Lobby Spenders

Lobbying Spending Database | OpenSecrets

There are over 1000 lobby groups many with deep pockets

Pro Israeli lobby spend less than $1 million but you really think with so much competition that AIPAC could possibly control the country?

 

[Coyote]

Top Lobby Spenders

Lobbying Spending Database | OpenSecrets

There are over 1000 lobby groups many with deep pockets

Pro Israeli lobby spend less than $1 million but you really think with so much competition that AIPAC could possibly control the country?

Control? No. That's just another conspiracy theory. Like conflating CAIR with terrorists.

But the Pro Israeli lobby does have influence. As does the Saudi lobby. And others.

Whomever denies it, ignores the realities of American politics.

 

[aris2chat]

Top Lobby Spenders

Lobbying Spending Database | OpenSecrets

There are over 1000 lobby groups many with deep pockets

Pro Israeli lobby spend less than $1 million but you really think with so much competition that AIPAC could possibly control the country?

Control? No. That's just another conspiracy theory. Like conflating CAIR with terrorists.

But the Pro Israeli lobby does have influence. As does the Saudi lobby. And others.

Whomever denies it, ignores the realities of American politics.

http://www.tabletmag.com/scroll/173157/israel-spent-1250-to-lobby-america-in-2013

Big difference, but you still believe in a powerful Israel lobby pulling the US by the nose?

 

[Coyote]

Top Lobby Spenders

Lobbying Spending Database | OpenSecrets

There are over 1000 lobby groups many with deep pockets

Pro Israeli lobby spend less than $1 million but you really think with so much competition that AIPAC could possibly control the country?

Control? No. That's just another conspiracy theory. Like conflating CAIR with terrorists.

But the Pro Israeli lobby does have influence. As does the Saudi lobby. And others.

Whomever denies it, ignores the realities of American politics.

http://www.tabletmag.com/scroll/173157/israel-spent-1250-to-lobby-america-in-2013

Big difference, but you still believe in a powerful Israel lobby pulling the US by the nose?

That's a bit disengenius.

Israel doesn't have to spend a lot of money on it's behalf when it's got a substantial portion of the American populace supporting it.

And, again - look at American policy and politics relative to Israel, and tell me that your author is "accurate" in claiming the "anti-Israel left" and "Saudi" lobbies are more influential

Edited to add: Aris2chat, do you consider your sources here? Where is the info from your table coming from? The source states http://beforeitsnews.com/home/featuredlist/featured.html - which, frankly, has some bizzare items.

 

[aris2chat]

Control? No. That's just another conspiracy theory. Like conflating CAIR with terrorists.

But the Pro Israeli lobby does have influence. As does the Saudi lobby. And others.

Whomever denies it, ignores the realities of American politics.

http://www.tabletmag.com/scroll/173157/israel-spent-1250-to-lobby-america-in-2013

Big difference, but you still believe in a powerful Israel lobby pulling the US by the nose?

That's a bit disengenius.

Israel doesn't have to spend a lot of money on it's behalf when it's got a substantial portion of the American populace supporting it.

then you are not talking about an Israeli lobby but an american lobby.
Gee, a lobby of americans influencing american government, go figure

So where is this Israel lobby controlling the US?

 

[Coyote]

hmm...another interesting article, that offers food for thought: it's not the dollars but rather, who controls the narratives.

The Pro-Israel Lobby: Narratives, Not Money - The Daily Beast

The Pro-Israel Lobby: Narratives, Not Money

The nature of the pro-Israel lobby’s influence on the American political system has been raised again this year by senatorial confirmation hearings, policy conferences, sequestration, and White House initiatives. This influence is typically attributed to campaign contributions, but this view is unsophisticated. The power of the pro-Israel lobby is, in fact, defined by the dominance of various pro-Israel narratives in American culture.

The standard line that pro-Israel sentiment is defined by dollar signs is easily refuted. The two largest pro-Israel contributors—the America Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) and J-Street—together approximated $3.25 million in lobbying in 2012. While this sounds substantial, it’s a meager .09 percent of the total $3.28 billion spent on overall political lobbying that year.

America’s most tangible contribution to Israel is the annual $3 billion dollars in military aid that Israel subsequently spends, largely in the American defense sector. The biggest vested interests in these expenditures are well-known, and their lobbying contributions many times over exceed that of pro-Israel organizations. Boeing and Lockheed Martin spent $15 million each on lobbying in 2012.

Israel receives more aid per capita than any other country, but this cannot be accounted for by the relatively small amount of money its advocates inject into the American political system. The power of the various pro-Israel narratives in the American political discourse is a far more compelling explanation.

The “pro-Israel lobby” isn’t a monolith; various groups have very different views and interact with widely divergent constituencies.

Beginning with the extreme right wing of the Jewish political spectrum, the president of the right-wing Zionist Organization of America (ZOA), Morton Klein, categorically opposes a two-state solution and maintains that Israel is not occupying any territory. Klein implicitly questions the existence of Palestinians by insisting on reducing their identity to Arabs only and suggesting they relocate to “Arab States.” Because of their extreme views, the ZOA’s influence is very limited with respect to the White House and the Senate; however they do have friends in the House of Representatives.

Another narrative propelling right-wing American support for Israel is promoted by some evangelical Christian groups. Commonly referred to as “Christian Zionism,” this perspective emphasizes a prophetic role attributed to Israel. This might seem friendly on the surface, but it derives from evangelical eschatology best demonstrated by the wildly popular Left Behind novels. As the Anti-Defamation League notes, this narrative entails “the annihilation of Jews…who refuse to convert at Armageddon.” Evangelicals use Israel to promote their yearning for Armageddon rather than for a safe and prosperous Jewish state. Many Israelis and Jewish-American groups prefer to overlook these problematic beliefs as these Evangelicals have huge constituencies in the American electorate.

Mainstream Jewish proponents of Israel such as AIPAC tend to stress alliance and solidarity with the United States. First, these groups argue that Israel is the only democracy in an autocratic Middle East, despite Israel’s decades-long military occupation and the regional developments of the Arab Spring. Second, they argue Israel has shared values with the United States in terms of women’s rights, gay rights, and minority rights, without acknowledging discrimination against Palestinians. While they admit Israel must make concessions to achieve peace, they argue that Israel has already made many concessions and Palestinian intransigence is the main obstacle to peace. Moreover these groups are typically uncritical of Israeli policies, and generally support Israel’s leadership.

Further to the left are the self-defined “pro-Israel, pro-peace” groups like Americans for Peace Now and J-Street. These groups argue on Israel’s behalf, but assert that given the history and current state of the conflict, being pro-Israel also inherently means being pro-Palestinian and supporting the creation of a Palestinian state. While these groups have certainly experienced growth in recent years, their efforts to transform American conceptions of the conflict remain a work in progress.

Most importantly, there are deeply ingrained aspects of mainstream American culture into which pro-Israel narratives can, and do, tap. Consider AIPAC's presentation of Israel’s "Quest for Statehood": A religious minority facing European persecution believing “that they would only escape discrimination… in a state of their own” resolves to take up an arduous journey to a faraway, allegedly “sparsely populated” land. For many Americans this account of Israel’s national mythology is deeply reminiscent of their own. There is an unmistakable kinship between the Israeli and American national narratives that combine pioneer spirit with spiritual redemption of sanctified land.

Remainder of article at link.

 

[Coyote]

http://www.tabletmag.com/scroll/173157/israel-spent-1250-to-lobby-america-in-2013

Big difference, but you still believe in a powerful Israel lobby pulling the US by the nose?

That's a bit disengenius.

Israel doesn't have to spend a lot of money on it's behalf when it's got a substantial portion of the American populace supporting it.

then you are not talking about an Israeli lobby but an american lobby.
Gee, a lobby of americans influencing american government, go figure

Can you seperate them?

So where is this Israel lobby controlling the US?

I have not made that claim.

 

[aris2chat]

You mean words speak louder than dollars to the american people who believe Israel has a right to exist? With such a large amount of money and presence of arab lobbies, why have americans felt more akin to Israel? Do they have a more logical and effective case to present than the arabs? Do christian americans find more understanding of jews and their ties to Israel? Is there more a common basis in laws between Israel and America, that with most of the arab world? Could it be they both share an aversion to the idea of suicide bombing and terrorism? Could it be they are both victims of radical islamic groups? Could it be the rhetoric used by such groups insulting and defaming both Israel and America?
A natural alliance that forms between nations with common interests is somehow wrong? Why should America not be sympathetic with Israel?
What positives have the side offered?

 

[MJB12741]

Long live AIPAC. As long as there is AIPAC, there will be no Sharia law in the USA.

 

[Phoenall]

Like Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy, the Israel Lobby is a myth.

The Lobby has been running the US government for longer than most people think.

Israel has a powerful special interest lobby - a number of countries do. It's not unusual.

It doesn't "run" the US government but it certainly influences our politicians.

The evidence says that you are wrong, just look at the number of US politicians that are against Israel and put US laws in place to halt them

 

[Phoenall]

Top Lobby Spenders

Lobbying Spending Database | OpenSecrets

There are over 1000 lobby groups many with deep pockets

Pro Israeli lobby spend less than $1 million but you really think with so much competition that AIPAC could possibly control the country?

Control? No. That's just another conspiracy theory. Like conflating CAIR with terrorists.

But the Pro Israeli lobby does have influence. As does the Saudi lobby. And others.

Whomever denies it, ignores the realities of American politics.

Well CAIR has been shown to have terrorist links.


In 2007 the organization was named, along with 245 others, by U.S. Federal prosecutors in a list of unindicted co-conspirators and/or joint venturers in a Hamas funding case involving the Holy Land Foundation,[3] which in 2009 caused the FBI to cease working with CAIR outside of criminal investigations due to its designation

CAIR has been criticized numerous times by various officials and organizations. The organization was criticized as pursuing an extremist Islamist agenda,[2] and putting out propaganda.

Council on American?Islamic Relations - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


And if the Jews had the alleged influence they are accused of there would be no Islamic nations in the UN and the whole M.E. would be Jewish controlled, including all the Saudi oil and mecca

 

[Phoenall]

Control? No. That's just another conspiracy theory. Like conflating CAIR with terrorists.

But the Pro Israeli lobby does have influence. As does the Saudi lobby. And others.

Whomever denies it, ignores the realities of American politics.

http://www.tabletmag.com/scroll/173157/israel-spent-1250-to-lobby-america-in-2013

Big difference, but you still believe in a powerful Israel lobby pulling the US by the nose?

That's a bit disengenius.

Israel doesn't have to spend a lot of money on it's behalf when it's got a substantial portion of the American populace supporting it.

And, again - look at American policy and politics relative to Israel, and tell me that your author is "accurate" in claiming the "anti-Israel left" and "Saudi" lobbies are more influential

Edited to add: Aris2chat, do you consider your sources here? Where is the info from your table coming from? The source states NEWS | Featured List - which, frankly, has some bizzare items.

The difference is the populace don't sit in government and make the rules, the politicians do. So they are the ones that have to be led along the right path