Wednesday
Sep152004
Articles on the AIPAC spy affair
Issandr El Amrani
I've been doing a bunch of reading on the FBI-AIPAC spy affair that broke about two weeks ago now, and while I don't have any particular insight to add, there are some tremendously good articles on the subject around. If there is anything to be gained from this episode, it is that it will shed more light on some of the practices of the increasingly Likudnik AIPAC and its neocon friends.
AIPAC's power, or America's cowardice? by Charley Reese on AntiWar.com looks at the genesis of the Israel-neocon connection and laments the cowardice of
American politicians and media in denouncing the infiltration of US government by people whose priorities are with another country.
White House Draws Fire From Congress, Officials Over Leak of FBI Probe by Ori Nir in The Forward reports at anger by AIPAC and Congress that the White House probably has known about this and demands for an investigation into the leaks. He also interviews some Jewish activists who aren't happy about the accusations of anti-Semitism leveled at the FBI.
Also in The Forward, Marc Perelman writes in Neocons Blast Bush's Inaction On 'Spy' Affair that neocons are furious with the Bush administration for not protecting them, at least according to a memo penned by eminent pro-Israel propagandist Michael Rubin.
In Serving Two Flags, an old CounterPunch article by Stephen Green, the expert on Israel-US relations hired by the FBI as a consultant on the spy case, the history of the neocons Israeli ties are explored, and bios of key current neocon players in the Bush administration are provided. The article is considered to be an early classic on the topic.
U.S.-Israel, all in the family by UPI editor-at-large Arnaud de Borchgrave, talks about Likudniks and neocons, which may not always be the same thing, and notes that passing on classified information to Israeli officials is a hallowed Washington tradition.
In Spy-scandal lobby blitz Hans Nichols of The Hill looks at the fearsome lobbying machine AIPAC launched onto Congress to defend itself.
Finally, academic Juan Cole has been all over this affair since the beginning, and there are multiple posts starting here (scroll down to the post that starts with "CBS is reporting...") Also make sure to read what he wrote in response to his readers who worried he would be smeared by AIPAC activists for his courageous writing. I agree with his basic idea: there is something wrong with a system that allows foreign-policy making to become the hostage of a single lobby group, even if they represent a close ally. And it will take courage to set things right.
AIPAC's power, or America's cowardice? by Charley Reese on AntiWar.com looks at the genesis of the Israel-neocon connection and laments the cowardice of
American politicians and media in denouncing the infiltration of US government by people whose priorities are with another country.
White House Draws Fire From Congress, Officials Over Leak of FBI Probe by Ori Nir in The Forward reports at anger by AIPAC and Congress that the White House probably has known about this and demands for an investigation into the leaks. He also interviews some Jewish activists who aren't happy about the accusations of anti-Semitism leveled at the FBI.
Also in The Forward, Marc Perelman writes in Neocons Blast Bush's Inaction On 'Spy' Affair that neocons are furious with the Bush administration for not protecting them, at least according to a memo penned by eminent pro-Israel propagandist Michael Rubin.
In Serving Two Flags, an old CounterPunch article by Stephen Green, the expert on Israel-US relations hired by the FBI as a consultant on the spy case, the history of the neocons Israeli ties are explored, and bios of key current neocon players in the Bush administration are provided. The article is considered to be an early classic on the topic.
U.S.-Israel, all in the family by UPI editor-at-large Arnaud de Borchgrave, talks about Likudniks and neocons, which may not always be the same thing, and notes that passing on classified information to Israeli officials is a hallowed Washington tradition.
In Spy-scandal lobby blitz Hans Nichols of The Hill looks at the fearsome lobbying machine AIPAC launched onto Congress to defend itself.
Finally, academic Juan Cole has been all over this affair since the beginning, and there are multiple posts starting here (scroll down to the post that starts with "CBS is reporting...") Also make sure to read what he wrote in response to his readers who worried he would be smeared by AIPAC activists for his courageous writing. I agree with his basic idea: there is something wrong with a system that allows foreign-policy making to become the hostage of a single lobby group, even if they represent a close ally. And it will take courage to set things right.
Reader Comments