Another Chapter in the Tale of the Tail that Wags the Dog
Note: Two distinguished U.S. academicians, John Mearsheimer (University of Chicago) and Stephan Walt (Harvard U.), stirred up quite a storm when they published a detailed, in-depth report on the role and the workings of the pro-Israeli lobby in the United States (London Review of Books, March 23, 2006). The report, while admirable in many respects and thoroughly convincing in the documentation of a whole slew of unsavory practices by the lobby, is based on a highly questionable thesis to the effect that the lobby has succeeded in effectively taking over control of U.S. foreign policy. As a result, the professors conclude, current U.S. policy subverts and sacrifices the U.S.’s real interests in the Middle East. This conclusion is simply unacceptable for many knowledgeable and experienced observers who refuse to ‘buy’ the unsupportable thesis that the tail, in short, is wagging the dog.
The following would be a faithful rendition of some recent events if the Mearsheimer-Walt thesis were accurate…
Further Evidence of the Israeli Lobby’s Clout in D.C.
Rumsfield Goes, But Not Because of Iraq
Bye, bye, Rummy. It is terrible what they did to Rummy. Rummy who is usually a pretty savvy guy, made the mistake of his life in approving an arms deal with the Saudis and the Emirates. Well, of course, the Israelis got wind of the deviant behavior and called in the United States ambassador and made it clear, in no uncertain terms that Rummy will have to go. Some say that Rummy was the best Defense Secretary the United States ever had, and George Bush showered effusive praise on Rummy, but he had to go, and he went. When Israel and the United States get into an argument, Israel is right even if it is wrong.(1)
Jonathan Pollard: “It was Worth the Inconvience.”
Jonathan Pollard, pleasantly ensconced in the higher echelons of the Israeli security establishment for almost two decades met with the Israeli press this week to mark the 20th anniversary of his arrest for spying against the United States. It will be recalled that the Pollard incident seemed momentarily to cloud U.S. – Israeli relations back then. Pollard was released from jail after 18 months by presidential pardon. Sources close to the White House revealed that Washington was clearly embarrassed by his arrest and had to take action at the last minute before law enforcement officials were about to wreck havoc with the special status of the United States in Israel. Pollards early release restored Israeli confidence in Washington’s deep and abiding commitment to their enduring partnership.
These days, Pollard acts as some sort of master-spy adviser here in the Israeli Mosad, and enjoys excellent relations with his CIA counterparts. Pollard, officially still a persona- non-gratis in the United States, has requested to visit Washington to participate in the special ceremony honoring the AIPAC leaders and their special Defense Department liason, Larry Franklin. (2)
Bush to Present Distinguished Service Medal to AIPAC Leaders
Pollard hopes to participate in the coming Presidential Reception where AIPAC dignitaries, Steve Rosen and Keith Weismann are to receive the Distinguished Service Medal for their role in fortifying U.S.-Israeli friendship. At the ceremony, Larry Franklin recently promoted to the number two job in the Pentagon, will receive a special award from the Israeli Government, called the Tsa’Lash, which has never before been awarded to a non-Israeli.(3)
(1) At the insistence of the U.S. government, Amos Yaron was sacked (September 1, 2005) from his job as Director-General of the Israeli Ministry of Defense. Pentagon officials had previously demanded that Shaul Mofaz, the Minister of Defense, sign an official apology after it was learned that Israel had agreed to upgrade a consignment of drones that it (Israel) had previously sold to China. Sharon thanked the deposed official at a special ceremony, citing Yaron as the best Director-General in Israel’s history. Sharon knows Yaron from way back as both figures were cited by the Kahan Commission for their responsibility in the mass-killings in Sabra and Shatilla during the Lebanon war.
Eytan Haber, Yitshak Rabin’s aide de camp and intimate adviser, claims to have been witness to the following interchange: Rabin corrected former U.S. Secretary of State, James Baker. All Baker did was to bend over the table and lean towards Rabin and say: America, even when it’s wrong, it’s right.” (YNet.news.com, August 5, 2005).
(2) Pollard has been serving time for more than twenty-one years in a maximum security prison. Countless requests by prominent Israeli politicians to free him have been to no avail.
(3) Larry Franklin, a former Pentagon official, has already confessed and been convicted of breaching security regulations by passing highly classified information to the Israelis. Franklin confessed in return for a ‘lightened’ twelve-year sentence. His two couriers, Steven Rosen and Keith Weismann, both top level AIPAC directors, are expected to go on trial any day.
And more seriously: Eytan Haber, described the real nature of the Israeli-U.S. partnership in the above quoted op-ed, mourning the demise of Amos Yaron.
“The difference between an all encompassing empire and a dragged along country is much like the difference between an all powerful master and a broken down slave. One can discover this the moment an Israeli foot steps on U.S. soil at Kennedy… Israelis who were happy, cheerful…turn silent and shocked when they stand in line, to get their passports checked. No one talks…one unnecessary gesture and the clerk will show you the way home…because he, the clerk is the master of the world. He is America.”
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