Go Bernie! (re: Israel)

[ttt]

Point for Bernie. I appreciate that he's speaking honestly and openly about this and not toeing the tired old yay-Israel line like all the other candidates.

ETA: I also think it's ridiculous that any of these statements are at all controversial. 

[NewOrleans]

God bless.

[elleblue]

Thinking on this a little longer, I am really glad he is speaking out on this issue. I do think he's in a uniquely privileged place to do so however, most politicians tread carefully so as not to be thought anti-Semitic. For obvious reasons he doesn't have those same concerns, so it's doubly important imho that he speaks out publicly.

[ringstrue]

Yet again another thing that I agree with him I completely, but that will most likely be a barrier to getting him elected.

[picksthemusic]

Good on you, Bernie.

[WanderingWinoZ]

Trump spoke at aipac yesterday

www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/03/21/donald-trump-s-aipac-2016-speech-watch-the-live-stream-online.html

1. He didn’t speak off the cuff. He read from a Teleprompter, a device he has mocked other politicians for using, even saying that one who runs for President shouldn’t be allowed to use them. The prompter served him well, however. As a result of that and some preparation, his address had far more content than previous talks. He spoke cogently about Hamas and Hezbollah, about the threat of Iran and the Israel-America relationship. The speech did not approach the level of foreign policy sophistication of Hillary Clinton’s talk in the morning, but certainly surprised those who believed it would be a trail of smoke and bluster. That he is able to absorb and communicate policy particulars is clear.

2. When he did improvise, he wandered into the thicket of self-reverence. His claim to have studied the Iran deal “in more detail than anyone else” was met with a smattering of derisive laughter. He doubled down, insisting that he had, thereby shocking experts in Israel, America and elsewhere, as well as academics and others sitting in the hall, a number of whom have devoted their lives to nuclear studies or Iranian studies or both. His boast about being the Grand Marshal for an Israeli Day parade did not strike the people I spoke with as a serious credential. The election isn’t for prom king.

3. He didn’t address many important issues. Trump’s speech did not address anything beyond the confines of the Israel-American relationship. The larger questions of the Middle East, or immigration in the U.S. or Europe, were left mostly untouched. In that sense this was a careful speech. The Jewish philosopher Hermann Cohen said that in the idea of the stranger Judaism was born. Indeed before he spoke there was a presentation of what Israel has done to help Syrian refugees. Trump was speaking to a crowd sensitive to the idea of the stranger, the dispossessed, those desperate for hope. Evading the issue was a wise strategy. A retread of xenophobia would have ruined the effect.

[Deleted]

Mar 21, 2016 21:04:31 GMT -5 @littlemoxie said:

"If elected president, I will work tirelessly to advance the cause of peace as a partner and as a friend to Israel. But to be successful, we have to be a friend not only to Israel, but to the Palestinian people," he said.

Shit. I may be feeling the Bern now.

[andwhat]

I really don't know who I am going to vote for in the primary. This definitely puts a check in the Sanders column though.