[THS] Dr. Sama Adnan: Where is the American Freedom Flotilla?

[The Harder Stuff in news and commentary]

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article25665.htm


Where is the American Freedom Flotilla?

By Dr. Sama Adnan
Dr. Sama Adnan is Executive Director of NewPolicy.org, an American lobby for Middle
East peace.

June 09, 2010 "Information Clearing House" -- While world leaders condemned
Israel’s attack on the Freedom Flotilla and eight European governments summoned
their Israeli ambassadors, the response of the Obama administration was painfully
muted and embarrassingly awkward, regretting the loss of life without assigning
neither blame nor responsibility. Increasingly, the United States’ government looks
lost at sea when it comes to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, unsuccessfully pressuring
Israel on freezing settlements or lifting the Gaza siege, even as it concedes that a
swift end to the conflict is in America’s national interests. General Petraeus goes
further by coupling troop safety to progress in the Middle East.

However, Israel’s continued defiance in the face of American pressure is even more
worrying than American inaction. Given that Israel obtains billions of aid dollars,
military technology, and diplomatic cover at the UN from the United States, how can
Israel display blatant contempt for American security needs and foreign policy
priorities with such impunity. Does the Israeli government have a dirty secret on
every American official, blackmailing them into silence?

Of course, this is not the case. But the reality is, unfortunately, not much different.
AIPAC (American Israel Public Affairs Committee), the hard-line pro-Israel lobby and
its affiliates, has been able to threaten every elected government official with an
electoral loss if he or she criticizes Israel. Although AIPAC has been ranked a distant
number 40 in the amount of money that it contributes according to OpenSecrets.org,
it is thought to be one of the most powerful lobbies in Congress.

The discrepancy stems from the fact that AIPAC is unopposed. A paltry $3 million per
election affords the hard-line pro-Israel lobby almost complete control over American
foreign policy in as vital a region as the Middle East. In 2007, former President Jimmy
Carter wrote in the Los Angeles Times that the reluctance of lawmakers “to criticize
any policies of the Israeli government is because of the extraordinary lobbying efforts
of AIPAC and the absence of any significant contrary voices.” This hijacking of
American foreign policy has cost the nation dearly in young lives lost in combat as
well as squandered treasure, paralyzing our economy and dampening our
competitive potential with rising global powers.

It is fair to ask at this juncture where is the American pro-peace lobby? Where is
America’s own Freedom Flotilla? There are today three hundred or more
organizations working on the Israeli-Palestinian issue in the United States, almost all
of which are educational organizations. Only a few are lobbies funding campaigns of
members of Congress. With the exception of the newly formed NewPolicy.org, all are
self-described pro-Israel. The work done by pro-peace educational organizations is
immensely valuable but by ceding the lobbying ground to the hard-line pro-Israel
lobbies, the pro-peace camp has hindered its efforts considerably.

There has been a lack of understanding of the determinants of America’s foreign
policy in the Middle East. Simply put: Congressional support for Israel plays more to
domestic concerns such as desperately needed campaign funds for tight races,
rather than American security requisites in the Middle East. Congressional silence
about Israel’s excesses guarantees campaign contributions from AIPAC.

The absence of the pro-peace movement from the halls of Congress has done great
damage to the cause of peace in the Middle East, to America’s national interests, and
to America’s security. Not only has it deprived the American peace movement of
Congressional support, the lack of engagement in the American political system as it
exists has also relegated the pro-peace movement to the fringes of almost all the
policy-making American institutions.

Having forfeited Congress without putting up a fight, the American peace movement
also lost the State and Defense Departments, two key administration departments for
setting and implementing American foreign policy in the Middle East. This is due to
the simple fact that the United States Senate, through confirmation hearings for the
president’s appointees, can confirm or deny the job to candidates deemed
“unsympathetic” to Israel by AIPAC. This fact was made painfully clear when
President Obama’s pick for Chair of the National Intelligence Council, Chas Freeman,
was forced to withdraw his nomination for the position upon objections from key
hard-line pro- Israel Senate Democrats. Against this backdrop, it is no wonder that
the executive and legislative branches are paralyzed by internal politics, yielding to
AIPAC to decide America’s vital interests.

Congressman Jim Moran of Virginia stated that a bill requiring the United States “to
share all its missile defense technology with Israel
 prevailed 400 to 30.” He dubbed
it an “AIPAC vote”. Reacting to the complicity of their governments, the European
Freedom Flotilla took the initiative to shed light on Israel’s policies in the occupied
territories. The American peace movement should emulate their success by setting its
Freedom Flotilla a-sail.

Dr. Sama Adnan is Executive Director of NewPolicy.org, an American lobby for Middle
East peace.