A NEWSLETTER FROM DAVID CORN |
A NEWSLETTER FROM DAVID CORN |
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Biden and Netanyahu’s Delicate Dance |
By David Corn October 21, 2023 |
President Joe Biden is greeted by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv on October 18, 2023. Evan Vucci/AP |
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A few days ago in this newsletter, I wrote that it could be a mistake for President Joe Biden to travel to Israel and embrace Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has done so much to weaken and undermine the Jewish state and its standing in the world. Netanyahu has elevated racist ultra-nationalists to his right-wing cabinet. Rather than pursue a resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, he has exacerbated it, especially by permitting the expansion of settlements in the occupied West Bank. While facing various criminal charges of corruption, he has bitterly divided the country with a heavy-handed attempt to subvert the judiciary and consolidate power in his own hands. He failed to protect the nation from Hamas’ horrific attack. He lacks the vision, values, and integrity to lead Israel in this time of challenge and war. And the counterstrikes he has launched have already killed thousands of Palestinian civilians, generating outrage around the world.
So how closely, I wondered, should Biden identify with Netanyahu?
Biden is clearly following a big hug strategy. In public, he is wrapping his arms around Netanyahu and professing his love of Israel—but doing so in order to send a message to Netanyahu: Don’t go too far. Biden is not publicly urging a ceasefire or advising any particular course of action for Israel as it responds to Hamas’ heinous attack on Israeli civilians. But in Israel on Wednesday and during a White House speech on Thursday night, he warned Netanyahu not to be driven by rage. He pointed out that after 9/11 an angry America “made mistakes”—a poignant and frank reference to the disastrous Iraq war. As Israel contemplates a ground assault into Gaza, Biden was telling Netanyahu not to follow the path taken by George W. Bush and Dick Cheney. And he has repeatedly referred to the “critical need” for Israel to abide by the laws of war and protect Palestinian civilians.
These are nice words. The question is whether Biden is placing any direct pressure on Netanyahu during their private conversations. Biden sure has leverage. The United States sends Israel $3.8 billion in aid a year. (Israel uses that assistance to buy made-in-the-USA weapons—a good deal for American military contractors—in what is essentially a mini-stimulus or jobs program for the United States.) And Biden has announced he will ask Congress for an additional $14 billion. It’s not obvious that Israel needs this much extra help to fend off Hamas. As Alon Pinkas, a columnist for Haaretz asked, “How is it even conceivable that some 10 days into a war against Hamas, limited to Gaza, Israel is asking the Americans for $10 billion in military aid and replenishments? For what?” But can Biden use this money to sway Netanyahu from an all-out assault that could well kill additional thousands of civilians, inflame the conflict further, and increase regional tensions?
American presidents have often engaged in a delicate dance with Netanyahu. He needs their support, but he also knows they need to be seen in the United States as stalwart defenders of Israel for their own political interests. Thus, a move by a POTUS to muscle Netanyahu could cause political blowback in the United States if it is regarded—or portrayed by the pro-Israel lobby in the US—as anti-Israel. On the other side, Israelis realize their dependence on the United States; consequently, if Netanyahu screws up that special relationship, he could pay a political price at home at a time when he’s already highly unpopular.
What I’ve just described is a bit of a generalization. Still, Biden has a stick to use with Netanyahu—$3.8 billion with perhaps another $14 billion—but Netanyahu is aware that Biden has to be careful how he deploys it. And...Biden knows that. After all, he has been watching this pas-a-deux between Netanyahu and US presidents for nearly three decades. (When Biden, as vice president, visited Israel in 2010 and vowed unyielding support for the nation, hours later he was embarrassed when Netanyahu’s government unveiled a plan for a large new settlement of Jews in East Jerusalem.) Has Biden figured out how to deftly navigate these dynamics, especially in a tense and dangerous moment?
Biden has not publicly stated what he thinks Israel’s response to the Hamas raid ought to be. But he clearly does not believe a full Israeli assault of Gaza is the wise move. (And he must keep in mind the efforts to save American hostages being held with Israeli hostages by Hamas in Gaza.) Last time Israel invaded Gaza—in 2014—it mounted a limited action that lasted 50 days and did not penetrate into the heart of Gaza City. Israeli forces demolished about three dozen tunnels used by Hamas. It ended with 74 Israelis, almost all soldiers, and 2,200 or so Palestinian civilians dead. It did not eliminate Hamas or address the underlying causes of the conflict.
What’s being contemplated now—and by the time you read this, perhaps what’s already begun—is far more extensive. Given the fury generated by the Israeli airstrikes, what would be the reaction in Arab states and around the world to a months-long (or longer) invasion that racks up maybe tens of thousands of dead civilians? As awful as the current humanitarian crisis in Gaza is, what horrors will a massive and lengthy war yield? How could the 2.2 million Palestinians—half of whom are 18 or younger—survive that, even if the promise of aid from the United States is kept? Imagine the difficulties of tending to the needs of millions of civilians during an active war.
Moreover, what would be the endgame? What would count as success? Will the Israeli military wipe out Hamas? Will it eradicate the hatred that fuels Hamas? Will it resolve the fundamental issue of the decades-long Palestinian-Israeli conflict and establish a path to resolution and peace?
Biden doesn’t want that war. He is showering Netanyahu with support and money to be in the position to press him to not make a rage-driven “mistake.” Is this sophisticated and nuanced diplomacy that will prevent a wider and even more devastating conflict? Or is it magical thinking? I understand the argument that Biden should demand a cease-fire and threaten Netanyahu with the suspension of aid to Israel. Talk of future restraint can seem absurd when the ongoing shelling is already killing thousands and placing hundreds of thousands of civilians in danger. That position—you can’t kill civilians with American dollars—has a moral soundness. Biden might well be alienating progressive voters and some supporters in the United States by going along with Israel’s current attacks.
There is indeed something dismaying about having to focus on Biden’s fancy diplomatic footwork, as the bodies of dead children are being pulled out of rubble, when an appropriate response is to scream, “Enough…Stop!” But he is operating within the conventional geostrategic and political realms. As a man of those worlds, Biden has decided to mount up with Netanyahu in the hope he can steer him away from a greater catastrophe. The risk is that it will be Biden who is taken for a ride.
Got anything to say about this item—or anything else? Email me at ourland@motherjones.com. |
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Dumbass Comment of the Week |
The judges were really put to the test this week. As the House GOP Chaospalooza continued, there were too many idiotic remarks to track. A constant refrain from Republicans was that the Democrats were the ones responsible for this mess. Why? Because they keep voting as a bloc with a small slice of rebellious Republicans against the speaker candidate nominated by the GOP. As if Democrats—in either the case of Kevin McCarthy or Jim Jordan—should vote for an election denier who has supported Donald Trump’s Big Lie and who now pursues a baseless impeachment crusade against the Democratic president. (And Jordan was an active co-conspirator in Trump’s scheme to overturn the 2020 election.) It’s the responsibility of the majority to pick a House speaker. It’s not the job of the Democrats to save the GOP from its dysfunction.
As for specific comments, it was amusing (or shocking) when Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), while nominating the soon-to-be-defeated Jordan for speaker, referenced his skill “on the wrestling mat.” |
Democrats reacted with exclamations of disbelief. Here Stefanik was providing a reminder that Jordan has been credibly accused of having ignored allegations that members of the Ohio State University wrestling squad were sexually abused by the team doctor when he was an assistant coach—a matter of little concern to most of the House GOP caucus.
It was laughable when former Vice President Mike Pence, now a 2024 Republican contender, said on CNN, “Jim Jordan would be an outstanding speaker of the House. He is a principled conservative.” |
As host Kaitlan Collins noted, “It's interesting to me to hear you say that Jim Jordan would be a great speaker given he was someone who sent a text to [Donald Trump’s] chief of staff on January 5 that outlined for you to violate the constitution and block the certification of the election. Do you really believe that’s someone who should be third in line for the presidency?” Collins was right. As a candidate, Pence has broken with Trump and slammed him for trying to overturn the election by subverting the US Constitution. Jordan was a key comrade in Trump’s plot. What’s so principled about him?
Pence couldn’t handle all this truth. Responding to Collins, he uttered, “I have immense respect for Jim Jordan. He’s a man of integrity...He will lead with integrity.” Another absurd moment.
As some of you might have seen on social media, a Trump supporter at a rally in Washington, Michigan, displayed an advanced case of Trump Derangement Syndrome when she explained that the Trump-created Space Force is on the verge of revealing evidence that the 2020 election was stolen from Trump and arresting 500,000 or so people who participated in that diabolical plot:
Space Force is a military branch, just like the army…They literally the night of the election, they literally watched the election be stolen. They watermarked the ballot. They know exactly what happened with every ballot. They know what fake ballots. They knew the election switches. They knew what countries were involved. They followed the money. They know every politician that’s been paid off. They know there was 260,000, 269,000 sealed indictments. But I think it might even be up to 500,000 sealed indictments. I believe that we’re going to have an emergency broadcast and the military is going to come in with martial law. And we are going be shown eight hours on and eight hours off of video for seven days, the world. They will be showing us taped tribunals, taped confessions. And the world is going be awaken to what’s really going on with the Deep State.
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There is no convincing a Trump cultist that she is living in crazyland. But the important part of this video is the RSBN host who is listening respectfully as this loon spews nonsense. She never challenges the BS. Which would run counter to the network’s business model. RSBN—which stands for Right Side Broadcasting Network—began by livestreaming Trump rallies during the 2016 campaign. It now features studio programming in addition to Trump events, and one of its big stars is Lara Trump, wife of Eric Trump. This bonkers Trump backer represents the network’s demo.
A different sort of right-wing crazy was displayed this week by Mike Davis, the founder of the Article III Project, a conservative outfit that focuses on the judiciary. He revealed his fantasy to-do list, should Trump win the 2024 election and appoint Davis to a top Justice Department post (perhaps even attorney general). His self-described “reign of terror” would include firing a lot of people in the executive branch; indicting Joe Biden, Hunter Biden, and “every other scumball, sleazeball Biden”; detaining “a lot of people in the DC gulag and Gitmo”; and pardoning every January 6 rioter. Here’s another item: “We're gonna deport a lot of people, 10 million people and growing —anchor babies, their parents, their grandparents. We're gonna put kids in cages. It's gonna be glorious.”
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It’s gonna be glorious. Putting kids in cages? What’s wrong with these people? The cruelty is the point. By the way, Davis was once a top aide for Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and oversaw judicial nominations. He has been a “contributor” to the Federalist Society. He was also a clerk for Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch.
On to our winner: Ari Fleischer, the former George W. Bush press secretary who helped pitch the Bush-Cheney administration’s phony case for the Iraq war. He was upset this week with Biden, who, during his trip to Israel, said, “You can’t look at what has happened here...and not scream out for justice. But I caution this: While you feel that rage, don’t be consumed by it. After 9/11, we were enraged in the United States. And while we sought justice and got justice, we also made mistakes.” Fleischer exclaimed: “When [Biden] said that Israelis should not be consumed by rage—who the hell does he think he is? I sat in on every single summit meeting with foreign leaders when they came to the United States after September 11 and met with Pres. Bush… Not one said to Pres. Bush the Americans shouldn't be consumed with rage.” |
Maybe they should have. Bush and Cheney exploited this rage to win public support for the invasion of Iraq. And thousands of American soldiers and 200,000 or so Iraqi civilians died in a misguided and mismanaged war that destabilized the region. Fleischer, who was hired last year as a PR man by the Saudi-backed LIV golf tour, bears culpability for all that. His retort to Biden—dripping with unself-awareness—proves Biden’s point. For that, he prevails this week. |
After a New York judge ruled that Trump had engaged in massive fraud by overvaluing his properties, I wrote that this was a tremendous blow for Trump in his decades-long war on reality.
Ann Berdeen responded: A perfect explanation, though once Trump's unreality enters the minds of his believers, and there are many who say he's the most honest person they know, it's stuck there forever. But this is a magnificent try. I just hope it will sway some.
Tom Galvin emailed:
This morning I was delighted to read your well-written article that Trump lost his fight with reality! Since 2016, I realized that Trump was trying to doublespeak Americans out of our reality and into his reality—fraud. At first, I deduced Trump was a sociopath. Now I see Trump as a psychopath (killer). As a result of his criminal behavior, honorable and innocent people died, committed suicide, had heart attacks, or their lives were ruined. Not to mention hundreds of billions of dollars lost from the Treasury, and the loss of U.S. prestige, power, and world leadership. Thank you for naming the monstrous conflict between reality and Trump. Few truly see or understand this at their own peril.
In that same issue, I noted that abolishing the Electoral College is a heavy lift. Jack Zelver says it’s not:
While I read and follow your work closely, I rarely write and comment because most of what I think is usually uttered first by someone else more eloquent than I am. But I'm motivated today by the discussion on the Electoral College. It turns out that abolishing the Electoral College and moving to majority-win presidential elections isn't the heavy lift you said it is. The organization National Popular Vote shows us we are closer than most people think to actually implementing majority-win presidential elections. We need to spread the word to make it so, however, and I'm hoping you might do just that.
My state, California, has already passed the National Popular Vote bill, as has 15 other states and DC. We now have 205 electoral votes pledged to the majority candidate and need just 65 more. We're 76 percent of the way there! Let's hope the remaining 24 percent join us before the 2024 election. If you're not familiar with NPV, please go to its website and check it out. I think you'll find it worth at least a mention and maybe a link in a future newsletter.
Carol Joffe sent in this constructive criticism:
I heard you speak in Truro, Massachusetts, in August and bought American Psychosis and just subscribed to Our Land. I study reproductive health politics and reproductive health services and found American Psychosis very useful as a portrait of the history of the Right more broadly. However, fwiw, I do not think you gave readers a sufficient picture of the centrality of the abortion issue, and related issues, such as contraception, sex education, and teen pregnancy, in the rise of the movement, and in George W. Bush years, in particular. Obviously, you mention some things, but so much is left out. The abortion litmus tests for every federal position, including those having nothing to do remotely with public health—remember those applying for positions in the Green Zone in Iraq being asked their position on Roe? The wacko abstinence-only sex-ed programs of that era (you can get HIV by kissing, etc) the PEPFAR program—arguably the one good thing W. ever did—being compromised by hysteria over condoms. The heads of the federal family program who did not believe in contraception, etc.
In other words, I think your excellent book would be even better if you had recognized the profound impact of sexual conservatives on the rest of the conservative movement. And not just the issues they brought to the fore—but their role in normalizing lying. Yes, as you say in this recent Our Land issue, it was a Bush flack who said that thing about "creating our reality”—-but for some time, antiabortion and anti-birth control types had already been lying non-stop (as they still do)—about when and how abortions take place, about HIV transmission, about the health effects of birth control and on and on.
I realize I am making this comment to you after the paperback already appeared, so even if you agreed with me, not much to be done. But I did want to share these thoughts with you. Thanks, Carol. A fair point. My focus in the book was on the historic relationship between the GOP establishment and far-right extremism. It was not a history of the right. But you’re correct to highlight the profound influence of dishonest sexual conservatives within the right-wing movement. In another recent issue, I examined how mainstream media framing often aids Trump. Mark Heinicke replied:
I believe the folks at the New York Times who are abetting the Republican propaganda machine are not so much falling for it as they are continuing to bend over backward in the practice of bothsidesism to avoid being charged with leftist bias by conservatives, not to mention know-nothing Trumpists. I agree. It’s not because they want to help Trump or because they are doing the bidding of advertisers or corporate overlords. There is a powerful impulse to be seen as objective and even-handed. This affords liars and disinformationalists a benefit, for too often their BS is reported straight. That’s a disservice to the public.
Sharon August Jones emailed:
I am just now getting close to finishing American Psychosis and am so grateful for your work that I just subscribed. I feel so much better grounded in my understanding of our present turn to fascism having read it. I recommend it to all I speak with. Very important read. Still have a little hope left for our future.
Thanks, Sharon. I’ve said this before and I will repeat it here: As upsetting and depressing as the current political moment is, if we understand the history of how we reached this point, we can better evaluate the problem. Then we will have a better shot at devising responses and solutions. And that does provide hope. |
“First a haircut, then this.” “Moxie, you had a non-cancerous tumor on your foot. It had to be removed.”
“Can I run?” “No.” “Can I jump?” “No.” “Can I play?” “No.” “Okay, Netflix it is.” |
Read Recent Issues of Our Land |
October 18, 2023: No blank check for Bibi; the strange trip of Asteroid City; Devon Gilfillian gives us a closer with “Love You Anyway”; and more.
October 14, 2023: Jim Jordan’s threat to democracy; from George Santos scoop to indictment; the day the GOP died; Dumbass Comment of the Week (Nancy Mace); the Mailbag: MoxieCam™; and more. October 11, 2023: The Hamas-Israel war—what can be discussed?; The Bear makes you care; Native Americans at the National Gallery of Art; and more.
October 7, 2023: How our George Santos scoop ended up in the criminal case; Dumbass Comment of the Week (Elon Musk); the Mailbag; MoxieCam™; and more.
October 4, 2023: How media framing aids Trump’s assault on democracy; why do GOP and Trump donors like Robert F. Kennedy Jr.?; am I a redbaiter?; Crooked chronicles an actual weaponization of the Justice Department; a classic Willie Nelson tune; and more.
September 30, 2023: Trump loses a battle in his long war on reality; GOP donors look to Gov. Glenn Youngkin; comedians make a serious gun-safety video; Dumbass Comment of the Week (Marjorie Taylor Greene); the Mailbag; MoxieCam™; and more.
September 27, 2023: Donald Trump, stochastic terrorist; Joan Osborne’s regrets; Invasion’s slow pace; and more.
September 23, 2023: Joe Biden and Saudi Arabia: what the heck?; a killer attack ad for abortion rights; an apology for Chile; Dumbass Comment of the Week (Rep. Victoria Spartz); the Mailbag; MoxieCam™; and more.
September 19, 2023: The threat of Cornel West; Nils Lofgren sings about truth; Gus Russo deconstructs the latest JFK assassination revelation (or is it?); and more. September 16, 2023: Can the media meet the challenge of the GOP’s bogus impeachment?; why Mitt Romney should read American Psychosis; Dumbass Comment of the Week (Tim Gurner); the Mailbag: MoxieCam™; and more. |
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Got suggestions, comments, complaints, tips related to any of the above, or anything else? Email me at ourland@motherjones.com. |
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