UN: Israel #1 Violator of Women's Rights

Here read the Rush Limbaugh transcript....
Before you read this you will need tissues .... not to cry.... but to laugh your head off!

BEGIN TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: From Anne Bayefsky at Fox News:  "Guess who is the number one violator of women’s rights in the world today?"

  I posed the question right before the end of the previous hour, and the staff on the other side of the glass, they're all guessing, 

"Ah, it's gotta be Saudi Arabia. It's gotta be Iran. It's gotta be, it's gotta be, it's gotta be, it's gotta be some Muslim country for crying out loud."  

No, no, no.  

According to the UN, who is the number one violator of women's rights in the world today?  

The answer is -- dadelut dadelut dadelut dadelut -- 

Israel!  (laughing) They're violating the rights of Palestinian women.

It's just absurd.  Look, if you want to understand, Israel is the Tea Party.  That's all you have to know.  Israel is the Tea Party and Benjamin Netanyahu is Todd Akin, as far as the American left, the worldwide left, as far as the Democrat Party is concerned. Israel is the Tea Party, Benjamin Netanyahu may as well be Todd Akin, or what was her name, Christine O'Donnell.  I mean, that's the only way you can possibly understand this. Iran is the Service Employees International Union.  The Palestinians are the NAALCP. 

I mean, if you want to understand how this works, if you want to have this make the slightest bit of sense to you from the leftist perspective, it's what you must understand.  

Iran is the Service Employees International Union, big donors to the Democrats, they're on same side of issues.  The Palestinians, Hamas, Fatah, they are the NAALCP and the Congressional Black Caucasians.  

Let's see, who else?  

Western Europeans would be the equivalent of the feminazis, actually in more ways than one there.  And the enemy, the enemy of this coalition, the coalition of the American Democrat Party, Iran, Palestinians, Fatah, Hezbollah, and Western European, that's the equivalent, that's the Democrat Party.  Everybody else may as well be the Tea Party, and that's how you understand this. 

Now, here you have Boko Haram, which is bragging about the number of women they have kidnapped and killed. You have Islamic Sharia law, which is the most discriminatory against women philosophy you can probably find on earth.  

There may be some weirder ones in obscure places.  Iran is still stoning women.  They just stoned Soraya.  And they're beheading people.  You are absolutely right.  Saudi Arabia is beheading people.  In Saudi Arabia women can't drive.  Nowhere can they drive.  They have to cover their heads and so forth. 

Even the American journalists go over there and fall for it, Christiane Amanpour covers up, probably doesn't drive.  She probably doesn't drive anyway.  Chauffeur.  Andrea Mitchell, NBC News, Washington, she goes over there, she covers up, she dresses the part and then all the while ripping the shreds out of Netanyahu. (laughing)  Sometimes all you can do is laugh.

So the number one violator of women's rights in the world today is Israel, violating the rights of Palestinian women.  

"That's the view of the UN’s top women’s rights body, the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW).  CSW ends its annual meeting on Friday, March 20 by condemning only one of the 193 UN member states for violating women’s rights -- Israel."

"Not Syria. Where government forces routinely employ rape and other sexual violence and torture against women as a tactic of war. ... Not Saudi Arabia. Where women are physically punished if not wearing compulsory clothing, are almost entirely excluded from political life, cannot drive, cannot travel without a male relative, receive half the inheritance of their brothers, and where their testimony counts for half that of a man’s."

Although the Saudis just did give women the right to vote for the first time in this year's upcoming elections.  They didn't promise to count them. (laughing) Well, it said they could vote, but they haven't promised yet to count them. 

"Not Sudan.  Where domestic violence is not prohibited.  There is no minimum age for 'consensual' sex.  The legal age of marriage for girls is ten. 88% of women under 50 have undergone female genital mutilation. And women are denied equal rights in marriage, inheritance and divorce.  Not Iran. Where every woman who registered as a presidential candidate in the last election was disqualified."

Here's Obama on TV talking to the people of Iran, trying to develop a rapport and create an accord.  Adultery in Iran, if a woman is caught committing adultery, "punishable by death by stoning.  Women who fight back against rapists and kill their attackers are executed." Did you not know this? "The constitution bars female judges. And women must obtain the consent of their husbands to work outside the home."

There's no possibility that the UN Commission on the Status of Women will criticize Iran because Iran is an elected member of the Commission on the Status of Women.  Sudan is currently the vice-chair position of the Commission on the Status of Women.  Now, I'm gonna trying to get serious for a moment, but it's a waste of time.  This is the place, folks, where every half-baked, cockamamie theory about global warming is coming from.  I honestly, I cannot relate to any of this that comes out of the UN.  This is beyond parody and beyond description. 

I mean, they're very serious here.  In all of these countries I just listed, the offenses and the rules and the prohibitions against women, they're all true.  In Iran if a woman is raped and she fights back and kills her attacker, they kill her.  And Iran is a member in good standing of the UN commission on the rights of women or whatever it is.  Israel, officially announced as the top violator of women's rights in the world.  Israel. 

This organization, United Nations, is just an abject joke.  It's a bad joke.  The fact that there are so many in the American diplomatic corps that take this organization seriously --  this organization is due serious condemnation.  I mean, this goes beyond offensive. This goes beyond absurd.  This is the stuff of nightmares, but the reality is what it is.  And of course when you say that Israel, an ally of the United States and of course Jewish, the number one location, by the way, the most focused anti-Semitism on this planet is at the United Nations.  And here's Barack Obama sidling up to it.  The American Democrat Party, the American left, the United Nations is the end all, the United Nations source authority, the United Nations inviolate. 

This goes beyond argument.  We need to get out of the UN.  This is seriously corrupt.  But it's even beyond that.  'Cause these people are serious.  And the nations we're talking about literally have the tyrannical, dictatorial power to implement all of this.  There are people in the world being forced to live this way, and it is a shame that the United States of America in any way sidles up to any of these nations and offers tantamount support.  And then while that's happening, to have to sit around and listen to the same people call American conservatives and Israeli Jews the modern focus of evil in the world, as the big problem facing the world?  This is seriously wrong, it is seriously corrupt, and it is an absolute outrage that the United States of America gives any of it the time of day.  

END TRANSCRIPT

Obama ignites a backlash

By Jennifer Rubin

On Thursday, the White House, despite clarification about election comments from the reelected Israeli prime minister, kept up its war of words on the Jewish state. In a read-out of the president’s belated call with the prime minister the White House said Benjamin Netanyahu had won only a “plurality,” which might suggest there is ever a majority winner in Israel’s parliamentary system. There is not; this was another dig at Netanyahu, one more sign the president has essentially lost it, allowing his personal animus to govern his actions. Even after Netanyahu clarified in an interview that he had never retracted his embrace of a two-state solution, although current circumstances did not allow it (would any reasonable observer differ?), the administration refused to be mollified.

The president’s behavior seems to have induced a backlash.

I spoke by phone with Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who seemed incredulous that the president would behave this way. But he suggested the president is alienating Democrats and convincing Congress he is irrational and untrustworthy when it comes to Israel and Iran. “It’s been unnerving seeing the president show his open hostility,” Graham said. “It’s immature and over the top and has made people suspicious.” He observed, “He makes it hard for Democrats to trust him.” The timing could not be more inopportune for the president who faces votes in Congress to require an up-or-down vote on the Iran deal and potentially to impose more sanctions. The Corker-Graham-Menendez bill will be marked up in April (with new Democratic co-sponsors, according to a Senate source) and Graham says, partly due to the president, Congress will have enough votes to override a veto. With the White House now suggesting it might not make the deal public, Graham says, the entire endeavor has become “absurd.”

Moreover, Graham hinted at another avenue to stop the president from going to the United Nations in lieu of the Senate. In deliberate fashion he added, “As for using the U.N. to avoid coming to the Congress, well that will create a real crisis between Congress and the U.N.” He notes that the United States pays for 22 percent of the U.N. budget and that the subcommittee he controls oversees State Department funding. Without directly threatening to cut off U.N. funding he says, “I am not going to ask American taxpayers to spend money on the U.N. that would [confirm a deal and undercut the Congress].” He added, “If the U.N. is used to going around Congress it would create a tremendous backlash.”

In addition, in a highly unusual statement AIPAC (whose members are overwhelmingly Democratic) chastised the president:

Today, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu strongly and clearly reaffirmed his commitment to a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In addition, he sought to reassure that his government will be dedicated to serving and representing all the people of Israel – both Jewish and non-Jewish citizens. Unfortunately, administration spokespersons rebuffed the prime minister’s efforts to improve the understandings between Israel and the U.S. In contrast to their comments, we urge the administration to further strengthen ties with America’s most reliable and only truly democratic ally in the Middle East. A solid and unwavering relationship between the U.S. and Israel is in the national security interests of both countries and reflects the values that we both cherish.

Former AIPAC spokesman Josh Block told Right Turn, “It is quite rare for AIPAC to directly and publicly criticize the White House, and clearly there is a feeling that the president’s staff is acting in an irresponsible way that undermines America’s interests and vital relationship with our only reliable democratic ally in the region.” He explained, “That would be bad White House policy at any time, but especially as the president has so badly alienated our Arab allies as well, and is, despite repeated promises to the contrary, in the midst of giving Iran a nuclear deal that provides the Islamic Republic with the capabilities to develop nuclear weapons at any time of its choosing.”

By the afternoon in eloquent fashion from the Senate floor, Sens. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) blasted Obama’s hostile reaction to our closest Middle East ally. Rubio declared, “This is a historic and tragic mistake. Israel is not a Republican or Democratic issue. If this was a Republican president doing these things, I would give the exact same speech. In fact, I would be even angrier. This is outrageous. It is irresponsible. It is dangerous, and it betrays the commitment this nation has made to the right of a Jewish state to exist in peace.”

Obama was expert in inspiring Israelis to rally around their prime minister. Now he is helping to consolidate bipartisan opposition to his policies, his unilateralism and his approach to Iran and Israel – and potentially to precipitate a bipartisan attack on the U.N. There really is no community organizer on the right who could have produced such results.

UPDATED: 

In addition, 363 House members, a huge bipartisan show of solidarity, are reportedly signed onto a letter to be sent to the president demanding Congress have a role and that any deal “foreclose any pathway to a bomb.” If nothing else, the president’s behavior has caused Democrats to lose faith in his “trust me” approach to negotiations. And to make matters worse for the president, his new year’s greeting to Iran in fawning tones drew a comparison between “hardliners” in both countries who seek to nix a deal. This gross moral equivalence and the assumption that the Iranian people have a say in their affairs should be enough for even the most loyal Democrats to question whether the president can be trusted to make a deal, and frankly whether he is totally out to lunch.

Israel: Beware of Obama

by Michael Goodwin

First he comes for the banks and health care, uses the IRS to go after critics, politicizes the Justice Department, spies on journalists, tries to curb religious freedom, slashes the military, throws open the borders, doubles the debt and nationalizes the Internet.

He lies to the public, ignores the Constitution, inflames race relations and urges Latinos to punish Republican “enemies.” He abandons our ­allies, appeases tyrants, coddles ­adversaries and uses the Crusades as an excuse for inaction as Islamist terrorists slaughter their way across the Mideast.

Now he’s coming for Israel.

Barack Obama’s promise to transform America was too modest. He is transforming the whole world before our eyes. Do you see it yet?

Against the backdrop of the tsunami of trouble he has unleashed, Obama’s pledge to “reassess” America’s relationship with Israel cannot be taken lightly. Already paving the way for an Iranian nuke, he is hinting he’ll also let the other anti-Semites at Turtle Bay have their way. That could mean American support for punitive Security Council resolutions or for Palestinian statehood initiatives. It could mean both, or something worse.

Whatever form the punishment takes, it will aim to teach Bibi Netanyahu never again to upstage him. And to teach Israeli voters never again to elect somebody Obama doesn’t like.

Apologists and wishful thinkers, including some Jews, insist Obama real­izes that the special relationship between Israel and the United States must prevail and that allowing too much daylight between friends will encourage enemies.

Those people are slow learners, or, more dangerously, deny-ists.

If Obama’s six years in office teach us anything, it is that he is impervious to appeals to good sense. Quite the contrary. Even respectful suggestions from supporters that he behave in the traditions of American presidents fill him with angry determination to do it his way.

For Israel, the consequences will be intended. Those who make excuses for Obama’s policy failures — naive, bad advice, bad luck — have not come to grips with his dark impulses and deep-seated rage.

His visceral dislike for Netanyahu is genuine, but also serves as a convenient fig leaf for his visceral dislike of Israel. The fact that it’s personal with Netanyahu doesn’t explain six years of trying to bully Israelis into signing a suicide pact with Muslims bent on destroying them. Netanyahu’s only sin is that he puts his nation’s security first and refuses to knuckle ­under to Obama’s endless demands for unilateral concessions.

That refusal is now the excuse to act against Israel. Consider that, for all the upheaval around the world, the president rarely has a cross word for, let alone an open dispute with, any other foreign leader. He calls Great Britain’s David Cameron “bro” and praised Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood president, Mohammed Morsi, who had called Zionists, “the descendants of apes and pigs.”

Obama asked Vladimir Putin for patience, promising “more flexibility” after the 2012 election, a genuflection that earned him Russian aggression. His Asian pivot was a head fake, and China is exploiting the vacuum. None of those leaders has gotten the Netanyahu treatment, which included his being forced to use the White House back door on one trip, and the cold shoulder on another.

It is a clear and glaring double standard.

Most troubling is Obama’s bended-knee deference to Iran’s Supreme Leader, which has been repaid with “Death to America” and “Death to Israel” demonstrations in Tehran and expanded Iranian military action in other countries.

The courtship reached the height of absurdity last week, when Obama wished Iranians a happy Persian new year by equating Republican critics of his nuclear deal with the resistance of theocratic hard-liners, saying both “oppose a diplomatic solution.” That is a damnable slur given that a top American military official estimates that Iranian weapons, proxies and trainers killed 1,500 US soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan. Who in their right mind would trust such an evil regime with a nuke?

Yet Netanyahu, the leader of our only reliable ally in the region, is ­repeatedly singled out for abuse. He alone is the target of an orchestrated attempt to defeat him at the polls, with Obama political operatives, funded in part by American taxpayers, working to elect his opponent.

They failed and Netanyahu prevailed because Israelis see him as their best bet to protect them. Their choice was wise, but they better buckle up because it’s Israel’s turn to face the wrath of Obama.

Ribnitzer Rebbetzin Dies!

Ribnitzer Rebbetzin, Frayda Milka Milka Abramowitz A”H, the wife of the Ribnitzer Rebbe ZATZAL, passed away on Shabbos after an illness.

The Levayah will take place on Sunday morning at 10:15AM, in front of the Ribnitz Cheder at 50 South Main Street, Spring Valley, NY. The Kevura will be in Monsey.

Boruch Dayan HaEmmes

Sassoon Family Funeral at 3:00 PM at Shmrei Hadas in Boro Park

Eleven-year-old Rivkah (l.) and 16-year-old Eliane (c.) Sassoon died in the devastating Brooklyn fire early Saturday. Siporah (r.), 15, is fighting for her life.

A spokesperson for Misaskim tellsaid that the Levaya for the seven children of the Sassoon family will be held at 3:00PM today in afternoon in Shomrei Hadas Chapels in Boro Park.

The Chapel is located at 39th Street and 14th Avenue.

A large NYPD detail has been arranged to assist the expected large crowd, but being that it is a large shopping day before Pesach, with major stores nearby, people should expect heavy traffic in the area.

Police have asked to announce that people attending the Levaya should try and come together in cars to alleviate as much congestion as possible to ensure that the funeral proceed smoothly.

The Levaya will proceed to the airport following the Levaya.

The Kevura (burials) will be at Har HaMenuchos in Yerushalayim.

Sassoon Family losses 7 children in Friday Night Fire

Seven siblings from a Syrian Orthodox Jewish family were killed early Saturday when a fire tore through their two-story Brooklyn home after they had gone to bed, a tragedy that authorities believe was caused by a malfunctioning hot plate left on during the Sabbath.

The blaze took the lives of three girls and four boys - ages 5 to 16 - and left their mother and another child in critical condition. Fire officials said the flames would have prevented the mother, who escaped out a window, from trying to rescue her children.

“This is an unbelievable tragedy,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said after touring the charred residence. “Every New Yorker is feeling this pain right now.”

Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro called it the city’s worst fatal fire in recent memory.

“It’s a tragedy for this family, it’s a tragedy for this community, it’s a tragedy for the city,” he said.

Fire investigators believe a hot plate on a kitchen counter ignited flames that raced up the stairs, Nigro said.

Many religious Jews do not use electricity on the Sabbath, along with refraining from work and observing other prohibitions meant to keep the day holy. As a result, some families may leave them on so they are usable without violating any religious laws or traditions.

The fire broke out shortly after midnight while the children were asleep inside the home in Midwood, a leafy section of Brooklyn known for its low crime and large Orthodox Jewish population.

Firefighters arrived less than four minutes after receiving the call to find the mother, badly burned and distraught, outside and pleading for help. When they broke the door, they encountered a hopeless situation - a raging fire that had already spread through the kitchen, dining room, common hall, stairway leading upstairs and the rear bedrooms.

“Unfortunately, the outcome may have been determined before they arrived,” Nigro said.

After making their way through intense smoke and heat, firefighters found the young victims motionless in three of the four bedrooms in the home, officials said.

“It’s difficult to find one child in a room during a search,” Nigro said. “To find a houseful of seven children that can’t be revived ...”

New York Police Department officials identified the victims as members of the Sassoon family: three girls - 16-year-old Eliane, 11-year-old Rivkah and 6-year-old Sara - and four boys - 12-year-old David, 10-year-old Yeshua, 8-year-old Moshe and 5-year-old Yaakob. All victims are from a nice Syrian Jewish family.

Nigro said authorities believe the father was away at a conference at the time of the fire. Neither his name nor those of the survivors were released.

Fire investigators found a smoke detector in the basement of the home. But none were found elsewhere in the house, Nigro said, adding, “To hear a smoke detector two floors below is asking a lot.”

By Saturday afternoon, the fire department had set up a table on the corner of the block and distributed pamphlets reminding residents they should have smoke detectors.

Karen Rosenblatt said she called 911 early Saturday morning after seeing the flames. Her husband Andrew said he heard a girl’s voice screaming, “Help me!”

Many other neighbors who spoke to reporters declined to give their names, but expressed great sadness over the fire.

The last residential blaze with a similar death toll happened in 2007, when eight children and an adult were killed in a fire in a 100-year-old building in the Bronx where several African immigrant families lived. Fire officials said an overheated space heater cord sparked that blaze.‎‎

overheated space heater cord sparked that blaze.‎‎

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio (C) speaks to community members after arriving to the site of a home fire in the Midwood neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York March 21, 2015. In one of New York City’s deadliest fires in years, seven children from the same Orthodox Jewish family died early on Saturday when flames ripped through their Brooklyn home, officials said. The blaze, which erupted just before 12:30 a.m. (0430 GMT), appeared to have been started accidentally by a hot plate, which are used by many Orthodox families to warm food on the Sabbath, said Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro.  (Credit: REUTERS)

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio surveys the aftermath of home fire in the Midwood neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York March 21, 2015. In one of New York City’s deadliest fires in years, seven children from the same Orthodox Jewish family died early on Saturday when flames ripped through their Brooklyn home, officials said. The blaze, which erupted just before 12:30 a.m. (0430 GMT), appeared to have been started accidentally by a hot plate, which are used by many Orthodox families to warm food on the Sabbath, said Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro.  (Credit: REUTERS)

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio (R) embraces New York City Fire Department ( FDNY) Commissioner Daniel Nigro after arriving to the site of a home fire in the Midwood neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York March 21, 2015. In one of New York City’s deadliest fires in years, seven children from the same Orthodox Jewish family died early on Saturday when flames ripped through their Brooklyn home, officials said. The blaze, which erupted just before 12:30 a.m. (0430 GMT), appeared to have been started accidentally by a hot plate, which are used by many Orthodox families to warm food on the Sabbath, said Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro.  (Credit: REUTERS)

A firefighter surveys the aftermath of a home fire in the Midwood neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York March 21, 2015. Seven children died as flames ripped through a house in New York’s Brooklyn borough early on Saturday, an emergency official said. More than 100 firefighters turned out to battle the blaze in Brooklyn’s Midwood neighborhood just before 12:30 a.m. local time and brought it under control within an hour, he added.  (Credit: REUTERS)

New York’s Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro speaks to reporters during a news conference in front of the scene of a fatal fire in the Brooklyn borough of New York, Saturday, March 21, 2015. The fire raged through a residence early Saturday, killing seven children and leaving two other people in critical condition, authorities said.  (Credit: AP)

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, right, speaks to firefighters who responded to a fatal fire in the Brooklyn borough of New York, Saturday, March 21, 2015. The fire raged through the residence early Saturday, killing seven children and leaving two other people in critical condition, authorities said. (Credit: AP)

Debris lay scattered behind the house at the scene of a fire in the Brooklyn borough of New York Saturday, March 21, 2015.  The fire raged through the residence early Saturday, killing seven children and leaving two other people in critical condition, authorities said. (Credit: AP)

Community affairs police officers speak to women who say they are close friends of the family near the scene of an overnight fire in the Brooklyn borough of New York, Saturday, March 21, 2015. The fire raged through a residence early Saturday, killing seven children and leaving two other people in critical condition, authorities said. (Credit: AP)

Community members stand at the site of a home fire in the Midwood neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York March 21, 2015. Seven children from an Orthodox Jewish family died early on Saturday when flames ripped through their Brooklyn home in one of New York City’s deadliest fires in years, officials said. The blaze erupted in the single-family dwelling around 12:30 a.m. (0430 GMT). It apparently was started accidentally by a hot plate, used by many Orthodox families to warm food on the Sabbath, said Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro.  (Credit: REUTERS)

Community members stand outside a home which caught fire in the Midwood neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York March 21, 2015. In one of New York City’s deadliest fires in years, seven children from the same Orthodox Jewish family died early on Saturday when flames ripped through their Brooklyn home, officials said. The blaze, which erupted just before 12:30 a.m. (0430 GMT), appeared to have been started accidentally by a hot plate, which are used by many Orthodox families to warm food on the Sabbath, said Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro.  (Credit: REUTERS)

New York City firefighters enter the house where a fire hours earlier ripped through the home leaving seven children dead and two other people in critical condition in Brooklyn in New York , USA, 21 March 2015. It is believed the fire was caused by a malfunctioning hot plate left on for the Sabbath. New York City Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro said the deceased children range in ages from 5 to 15 years old. (Credit: EPA)

New York City firefighters enter the house where a fire hours earlier ripped through the home leaving seven children dead and two other people in critical condition in Brooklyn in New York , USA, 21 March 2015. It is believed the fire was caused by a malfunctioning hot plate left on for the Sabbath. New York City Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro said the deceased children range in ages from 5 to 15 years old. (Credit: EPA)

A New York City firefighter (L) inspects the debris at the rear of the house where a fire hours earlier ripped through the home leaving seven children dead and two other people in critical condition in Brooklyn in New York , USA, 21 March 2015. It is believed the fire was caused by a malfunctioning hot plate left on for the Sabbath. New York City Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro said the deceased children range in ages from 5 to 15 years old. (Credit: EPA)

Firefighters leave the scene of an overnight fire in the Brooklyn borough of New York, Saturday, March 21, 2015. The fire raged through a residence early Saturday, killing seven children and leaving two other people in critical condition, authorities said. (Credit: AP)

Firefighters walk near the scene of a fire, center left, in which seven children died in the Brooklyn borough of New York Saturday, March 21, 2015. (Credit: AP)

JAMES BAKER ADVISING JEB BUSH, KEYNOTING J STREET CONFERENCE

Oh Oh ... tzuris! 

Arafat, buddy of James Bake

Former Secretary of State James A. Baker III is to deliver the keynote at this weekend’s J Street conference, a gathering of left-wing, self-hating Jewish activists opposed to the Israeli government and to recently re-elected Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Baker, who served under President George H.W. Bush, is also advising Gov. Jeb Bush on foreign policy in his presidential effort–at Bush’s invitation. Baker is considered hostile to Israel and is controversial among Jewish voters.

As the Algemeiner notes:

Baker is of course infamous for reportedly saying in private conversation, while George HW Bush’s secretary of state, “F**k the Jews, they didn’t vote for us anyway.”

But his antipathy towards Israel is well documented. He wanted the US to punish Israel for destroying Iraq’s Osirak nuclear reactor. He hated Netanyahu as early as 1990, barring him from entering the State Department’s building. And last but not least, he co-wrote the Iraq Study Group’s 2006 paper that recommended (among other things) that the US tilt its foreign policy away from Israel and towards Syria and Iran, advice that President Obama seems to have taken to heart.

The J Street conference will also feature Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erekat, a firebrand who propagated the lie that Israel committed a “massacre” during counter-terror operations in Jenin in 2002. The Obama administration is sending White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough to headline the conference. J Street actively opposes Benjamin Netanyahu and the conference is expected to provide an opportunity for his American critics to vent.

Baker told Larry King earlier this week on that he is on “Team Jeb”: “Frankly, I have talked to Governor Bush a little bit about foreign policy, and he talked to me about listing me as one of his advisors, and I said I’d be honored to be listed.”

He also criticized the Republican Senators who had signed a letter to the leaders of Iran warning them that any nuclear deal would have to be ratified by the U.S. Senate to have lasting effect. “I’m a creature of the executive branch,” Baker said.

Obama forcing Israel to 67' borders thru UN Security Council

After years of blocking U.N. efforts to pressure Israelis and Palestinians into accepting a lasting two-state solution, the United States is edging closer toward supporting a U.N. Security Council resolution that would call for the resumption of political talks to conclude a final peace settlement, according to Western diplomats.

The move follows Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s decisive re-election Tuesday after the incumbent publicly abandoned his commitment to negotiate a Palestinian state — the basis of more than 20 years of U.S. diplomatic efforts — and promised to continue the construction of settlements on occupied territory. The development also reflects deepening pessimism over the prospect of U.S.-brokered negotiations delivering peace between Israelis and Palestinians.

Shortly before this week’s election, the United States informed its diplomatic partners that it would hold off any moves in the U.N. Security Council designed to put Israel on the spot at the United Nations in the event that Netanyahu’s challenger, Isaac Herzog, won the election. But U.S. officials signaled a willingness to consider a U.N. resolution in the event that Netanyahu was re-elected and formed a coalition government opposed to peace talks. The United States has not yet circulated a draft, but diplomats say Washington has set some red lines and is unwilling to agree to set a fixed deadline for political talks to conclude.

“The more the new government veers to the right the more likely you will see something in New York,” said a Western diplomat.

Netanyahu’s government will likely be made up of right-wing and Orthodox parties adamantly opposed to making concessions to Palestinians. According to a statement from Netanyahu’s office, the Israeli leader has already consulted with party leaders he plans to add to his coalition, including Naftali Bennett of the pro-settlement Jewish Home party, Avigdor Lieberman of the far-right nationalist Yisrael Beitenu party, and leaders of the ultra-Orthodox Shas and United Torah Judaism parties.

On Wednesday, State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki did not rule out the possibility of the United States supporting a U.N. resolution on Israel-Palestine.

“We’re currently evaluating our approach. We’re not going to prejudge what we would do if there was a U.N. action,” she told reporters.

For decades, Democratic and Republican administrations have resisted a role for the U.N. Security Council in dealing with the Middle East crisis. They have argued consistently that an enduring peace can only be achieved through direct negotiations between the parties. Israeli leaders have also strongly opposed giving the world body a greater role in bringing about a deal.

However, the prospect of direct negotiations appeared to evaporate with Netanyahu’s pre-election declaration that he would never allow the creation of a Palestinian state. The comment completely reversed the Israeli leader’s previous support for an independent Palestine as part of a permanent peace deal between the two sides.

The deliberations over the future of the U.S. diplomatic efforts are playing out just weeks before the Palestinians are scheduled to join the International Criminal Court, a move that is certain to heighten diplomatic tensions between Israel and the Palestinians. On Wednesday, the Palestine Liberation Organization’s top diplomat in the United States told Foreign Policy the Palestinians would move forward with plans to use the ICC to try to hold Israel accountable for alleged war crimes during last summer’s war in Gaza. (Israel says it worked hard to avoid civilian casualties, of which there were many, and blames Hamas militants for taking shelter in populated areas.)

“The fact that we have a government in Israel publicly opposing a two-state solution just reinforces our position that this conflict must be handled by the international community,” Maen Rashid Areikat said.

Ilan Goldenberg, a former member of the Obama administration’s Mideast peace team, told FP that Washington might be inclined to support a Security Council resolution backing a two-state solution as an alternative to the Palestinian effort to hold Israel accountable at the ICC.

“If it was done, it could protect Israel from a worse outcome,” he said.

Under this scenario, the United States would seek guarantees from the international community to hold off on ICC activity in exchange for a Security Council resolution outlining international standards for a final peace agreement between the Israelis and Palestinians.

“The Israelis will probably resist and say this is a bad idea, but they could also be convinced that this is better than the alternative,” said Goldenberg.

The window for this type of U.N. initiative is small. U.S. officials are unlikely to act during the contentious Iran negotiations, which are set to end in late June, Goldenberg said. But the administration will not want to wait until the 2016 presidential race kicks into high gear, as any Democratic nominee would likely advise the White House against upsetting the party’s influential pro-Israel supporters.

“Don’t expect anything to move until the summer,” said Goldenberg.

European and Arab governments, including France and the Palestinians, will likely want to move more quickly at the United Nations.

The Palestinians had been pressing the U.N. Security Council for months last year to adopt a resolution demanding that Israel end its occupation of Palestinian lands within three years. The United States threatened to veto the Palestinian initiative. U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Samantha Power called it “unbalanced” because it failed to take into consideration Israel’s security concerns. But in the end, the Palestinians were unable to muster the nine votes needed for passage in the 15-nation Security Council, sparing the United States the need to veto.

But France, which is seeking a broader diplomatic role in the Middle East, had also been pushing for a separate resolution, which calls for the resumption of political talks between Israelis and Palestinians in order to conclude a comprehensive peace settlement. In December, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry warned Paris and other European governments that the United States would block the resolution if it were put to a vote before the Israeli election.

But one European diplomat said that there was “a broad understanding” at the time “that this was something that could be revisited post-election.” So far, U.S. talks with European allies have taken place in Washington and other capitals. There have been no substantive talks in New York among Security Council members.

France, however, recently renewed its appeal to the United States to consider taking up the issue before the council, according to diplomats familiar with the matter.

The United States, according to the diplomats, gave no firm commitment. But the administration indicated that it was willing to consider action in the council once a coalition government is put into place.

“I think they probably just want to see how it pans out,” said one U.N.-based diplomat. “But certainly the message we got back in December was that they might be able to show more flexibility after the election.”

Security Council diplomats say there remain significant differences between the U.S. approach and that of France. “There are discrepancies between the U.S. and European positions but I think they will bridge them soon,” said an Arab diplomat. “The key elements are the same: a framework for a peaceful solution that leads to the establishment of a Palestinian state … plus guarantees for Israel’s long-term security.” The United States is unlikely to hit Israel or the Palestinians with punitive measures if they fail to comply.

During a recent meeting of U.S. and European officials in Washington, a senior State Department official said the United States was considering a draft resolution at the Security Council but that no decision had been made.

Of course, two other options lie before the Obama administration with regard to the Israel-Palestine issue: continuing to reflexively back Israel at the United Nations, and simply enduring the widespread criticism of the international community, or raising the pressure on Jerusalem by abstaining from a U.N. resolution condemning Israeli settlements.

In 2011, the United States vetoed a resolution demanding that Israel’s settlement activity cease immediately — even though it was in line with U.S. policy. The measure was sponsored by nearly two-thirds of the U.N.’s membership and received a 14-1 vote on the Security Council.

“If there was a settlement resolution, would the U.S. abstain? I could see that as a possibility,” said Goldenberg.

In the wake of Israel’s election, U.N. and Israeli officials exchanged sharp words after U.N. spokesman Farhan Haq called on the new Israeli government to halt “illegal settlement-building in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.”

In response to the statement, Ron Prosor, Israel’s ambassador to the U.N., snapped back: “If the U.N. is so concerned about the future of the Palestinian people, it should be asking … why Hamas uses the Palestinian people as human shields.”

CNN has lots of eggs on its face!

by Breitbart

All day long yesterday, CNN was relentlessly beating the drum and practically celebrating the forgone conclusion that sitting Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu was about to lose the elections. Every move Netanyahu made over the past few weeks that outraged Obama and his media allies was framed by CNN today as a blunder - from the speech he made before Congress to sounding the alarm today about Israeli Leftists busing Arabs to the polls.

CNN was quite obviously setting up a Narrative to explain and gloat over what polls said was almost certain to be a Netanyahu defeat.

A funny thing happened at 4 pm ET when the exit polls from Israel came in. Netanyahu was tied or slightly ahead. An hour later news reports suggested Netanyahu had already cobbled together enough allies from other parties to form a governing coalition. This means he will remain Prime Minister. This is why he took to Twitter to declare victory.

By 6pm, the biggest story in the world, and one of the biggest electoral upsets in recent memory, was no longer the biggest story on CNN. Despite all the domestic and international ramifications of Netanyahu’s almost certain victory, despite all the backfilling CNN had done all day to “explain” Netanyahu’s defeat, Netanyahu’s upset did not lead CNN’s 6 pm hour with Wolf Blitzer. Netanyahu giving his victory speech did not lead the 7 pm hour with Erin Burnett.

At 6 pm and 7pm, CNN decided that the story of the night was … a single Air Force veteran trying to join ISIS.

At around 7:10 pm, Burnett finally decided it was time to talk about the Israeli elections, and when she did she read a chyron that read, “Is Netanyahu About to Lose?” Not “Too Close to Call.” Not “Bibi Upset Victory?” Nope. Despite all the evidence to the contrary, CNN stuck to its “about to lose” narrative.-

Things got much worse.

An obviously rattled Burnett came back from commercial and then went on to prove she knows absolutely nothing about how the Israeli government works. For some ignorant reason she is under the impression that a tie or something close to it means Netanyahu is weakened and will - this is a direct quote - “have to share a significant amount of power with Isaac Herzog.”

Apparently you can become a primetime CNN anchor without knowing anything about Israel’s coalition government system.

Does anyone have any more questions about why Fox News is now the most trusted name in news?

CNN isn’t alone. But CNN was the news outlet that had gone further out on a limb than any other in gambling big on a Netanyahu loss.

As far as the rest of our unbiased, objective media, let me put it this way: All the planned and hotly anticipated “Did Bibi’s Speech to Congress Backfire?” narratives and thought pieces will not be replaced with “Did Obama’s Meddling In the Israeli Elections Backfire?” narratives and thought pieces.

The media likely lost this one, which can only mean one thing: the world will be a better and safer place.

Now read:

read Commentary’s Jonathan Tobin:

Within moments of the announcement of the exit polls, some of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s critics were claiming his likely win in today’s Knesset election was the result of a crude, racist appeal to voters. 

The justification for this charge was a speech made by Netanyahu and released only on social media because of restrictions on campaign appeals in the media, telling the country that left-wing groups funded by foreign money were busing Arab voters to the polls in order to elect a left-wing government led by his Zionist Union rival Isaac Herzog. Netanyahu’s opponents interpreted this as an appeal to racism. The statement was unfortunate because it made it seem as if the prime minister viewed Arab voters as somehow illegitimate. But the voters likely saw it in a different light. The prospect of a left-wing government that depended on the Joint Arab List was always unlikely. But a critical mass of voters viewed the prospect with alarm not because they’re racists but because a government that relied on the votes of anti-Zionists that favor Israel’s dissolution was something they considered a danger to the future of their country…Though Western journalists mocked Netanyahu’s comments about wanting to prevent a “Hamasistan” in the West Bank, the voters in Israel largely agreed. That doesn’t make them racist or extreme. It means they are, like most Americans, realists. They may not like Netanyahu but today’s results demonstrates that there is little support for a government that would make the sort of concessions to the Palestinians that President Obama would like. They rightly believe that even if Israel did make more concessions it would only lead to more violence, not peace. Israel’s foreign critics and friends need to understand that in the end, it was those convictions have, for all intents and purposes, re-elected Netanyahu.