|
October 15, 2023
Key takeaways from another longer-than-usual newsletter:
- President Biden, Democratic leadership, and nearly all Democrats in Congress have unequivocally supported Israel's right to self-defense following Hamas's barbaric murder of 1,200 people and its kidnapping of 150 more. As of Friday, 421 members of Congress have co-sponsored H.Res.771 in support of Israel against Hamas.
- There is no excuse or justification for Hamas's terror, nor is there any excuse or justification for glorifying Hamas or misrepresenting its actions as "resistance" or fighting for freedom.
- All Palestinians are not collectively responsible for Hamas terrorism. Palestinians in Gaza will suffer terribly not because they deserve it--they don't--but because Hamas started a war with Israel and deliberately operates from densely populated areas. I support Israel's actions in Gaza not because I want innocent Palestinians to die but because Israel must defeat Hamas.
- Hamas left Israel no choice but to proceed with operations in Gaza. No government would tolerate an organization worse than ISIS on its borders and every government would put the safety and security of its citizens above the safety and security of people governed by its enemies. Israel faces horrible choices. Ask yourself what you would do--what you would really do.
- We should work with Israel and other countries to alleviate Palestinian suffering in Gaza as much as possible while recognizing that Israel must defeat Hamas and that Hamas, not Israel, is responsible for starting this war.
- The Republican Party continues to impair our efforts to help Israel--by spreading falsehoods about the Biden administration, by blocking hundreds of key Pentagon appointments, by its inability to choose a Speaker of the House, which prevents the House from appropriating aid to Israel and from adopting pro-Israel resolutions, and by the anti-Israel statements of its leader, Donald Trump, which few Republicans condemned.
Read to the end for corrections, what you may have missed last week, fun stuff, and upcoming events.
You're welcome to read for free, but if you want to chip in to help defray the cost of the newsletter, click here to pay by credit card or PayPal. Just fill in the amount of your choice. If you see something that says "Save your info and create a PayPal account," click the button to the right and it will go away. You don't need a PayPal account. Or you can Venmo @Steven-Sheffey (last four phone digits are 9479). You can send a check too. But no crypto or gold bars.
Hi Steve,
Last weekend's attack by Hamas was the worst terrorist attack in Israel's history. More Jews--1,200 and counting--were murdered than on any day since the Holocaust. At least 150 were kidnapped. Hamas is threatening to execute them on TV. Babies were killed. Children, the elderly, and women were tortured, murdered, raped, burned alive, and taken hostage. Anyone who glorifies Hamas, justifies Hamas, or cannot bring themselves to condemn Hamas has no moral compass and does not deserve our respect. This is not "resistance." This is terrorism. The cruelty is the point. We should fully support Israel in its time of need against terrorists worse than ISIS.
Biden Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said on Tuesday that statements equating Hamas terror with previous actions taken by Israel are wrong, repugnant, and disgraceful, and that "our condemnation belongs squarely with terrorists who have brutally murdered, raped, kidnapped hundreds of Israelis. There can be no equivocation about that. There are not two sides here. There are not two sides."
President Biden has demonstrated unwavering and unprecedented support for Israel throughout his presidency and throughout this crisis. In the past week, Biden has participated in more than three dozen meetings, calls, and briefings about the situation in Israel.
Biden said on Tuesday that “there are moments in this life — and I mean this literally — when the pure, unadulterated evil is unleashed on this world. The people of Israel lived through one such moment this weekend. The bloody hands of the terrorist organization Hamas — a group whose stated purpose for being is to kill Jews. This was an act of sheer evil. More than 1,000 civilians slaughtered — not just killed, slaughtered — in Israel. Among them, at least 14 American citizens killed...And let there be no doubt: The United States has Israel’s back. We will make sure the Jewish and democratic State of Israel can defend itself today, tomorrow, as we always have."
Former Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Michael Oren called Biden's speech "the most passionately pro-Israel in history." But that was Tuesday.
JDCA CEO Halie Soifer attended President Biden's briefing for leaders of major Jewish organizations on Wednesday. If you read just one of Biden's speeches, read this one, and read Halie's reflections on his remarks.
When Secretary of State Antony Blinken landed in Israel on Thursday, he said "I come before you not only as the United States Secretary of State, but also as a Jew. My grandfather, Maurice Blinken, fled pogroms in Russia. My stepfather, Samuel Pisar, survived concentration camps – Auschwitz, Dachau, Majdanek... Hamas’s countless acts of terror...brings to mind the worst of ISIS. Babies slaughtered. Bodies desecrated. Young people burned alive. Women raped. Parents executed in front of their children, children in front of their parents."
After describing the aid the Biden administration is rushing to Israel, Blinken said "too often in the past, leaders have equivocated in the face of terrorist attacks against Israel and its people. That’s why we’ve been adamant with all countries in the wake of these attacks: There is no excuse, there is no justification for these atrocities."
I support Israel's actions in Gaza not because I want innocent Palestinians to die but because Israel must defeat Hamas. Israel's blockade cuts off fuel, food, and electricity to Gaza. An invasion is imminent and may have occurred by the time you read this. Anyone who says innocent Palestinians deserve to suffer, that children deserve to suffer, or treats the deaths of any innocent Palestinians as anything other than a tragedy has lost their moral compass. We can support Israel and be concerned about innocent Palestinians, who are not collectively responsible for Hamas terrorism.
The blame for the unfolding tragedy lies with Hamas. Hamas started a war with Israel and like any government that starts a war, Hamas is responsible for considering the consequences to its civilian population. The world of John Lennon's "Imagine" or of Alenu does not exist yet. Every country must put the safety of its citizens first.
Israel is encouraging Gazans to evacuate and is working with other countries to set up humanitarian corridors. That's the opposite of ethnic cleansing or genocide. Would you prefer that Gazans stay and be killed? Unfortunately, because Hamas is preventing Gazans from leaving and because surrounding Arab governments are not welcoming evacuees, the Palestinian death toll will be higher than it otherwise might have been.
To those criticizing Israel's methods, I ask the same question that those who opposed the Iran Deal, whether for its real or imagined flaws, could not answer: What is your better alternative?
Rabbi Shai Held asks, "is there a way to fight a war with people who have cynically embedded themselves among civilians (hospitals, schools, apartment buildings, etc.) and still conform to the demands of international law? And if there isn't a way, whose fault is that, and what is supposed to happen? And what is a responsible government that needs to protect its citizens to do?"
Those might be dinner-table conversations for us. They are real-time life-and-death decisions for Israel. Israel faces horrible choices. Israel must take into account the millions of innocent civilians in Gaza. The question is how to do that and achieve Israel's legitimate military objectives--how to strike the right balance. Fifty-five Democrats unequivocally condemned "Hamas' shocking and horrifying attack on Israel" while urging Israel to respond in compliance with international law, which is what Israel appears to be doing. The question is how international law applies in these situations--it's not as simple as some critics of Israel in the media are telling us.
At least 421 members of Congress have cosponsored of H.Res.771, a resolution in support of Israel against Hamas, including many of the 55 Democrats urging compliance with international law.
Israel, unlike Hamas, does not have as its goal the murder (and worse) of innocent civilians. Yes, Israel could prevent innocent Palestinians from dying by not bombing Gaza and unilaterally implementing a cease-fire with 150 captives still held hostage and putting its citizens at perpetual risk of murder, burning, rape, and torture at the hands of Hamas. But then how should Israel stop Hamas from terrorizing its citizens? Hamas's goal is to murder Jews, not two states. Would you let your child die so that someone else's child could live? That's the choice Hamas has forced Israel to make.
Secretary Blinken said on Thursday, "on the humanitarian situation in Gaza, I think it’s, first, important to remember a fundamental issue that makes this complicated. Hamas continues to use civilians as human shields – something that’s not new, something that they’ve always done – intentionally putting civilians in harm’s way to try to protect themselves, or protect their infrastructure, or protect their weapons. So that’s one of the basic facts that Israel has to deal with. And of course, civilians should not be used in any way as the targets of military operations. They are not the target of Israel’s operations."
This blockade is not about revenge. It is about defeating Hamas. Accusing Israel of genocide or ethnic cleansing is irresponsible at best and antisemitic at worst. No country can be expected to provide terrorists with fuel, electricity, and food. Israel's goal is not to kill all Palestinians or drive all Palestinians out of Gaza. Its goal is to eliminate Hamas, and Hamas is not all Palestinians.
The blockade, limited in duration, is designed to hinder Hamas communications, prevent Hamas from smuggling in arms and other supplies along with food and fuel, and weaken Hamas. Israel will soon begin a ground invasion, which is more precise than air strikes. The ground invasion will risk Israeli lives to minimize Palestinian casualties--if Israel's goal was "ethnic cleansing" it would level Gaza with airstrikes. Comparing Israel's tactical blockade necessitated by Hamas's activities in Gaza to Hamas's deliberate murder, torture, and abduction of innocent civilians is obscene.
In 2021, Dara Horn wrote "People Love Dead Jews" to explain why there "might be so much fascination with Jewish deaths, as emblematic of the worst of evils the world has to offer, and so little respect for Jewish lives, as they continue to unfold in the present." Last week, we saw an outpouring of support for Israel. Not from everyone, but from many. Let's see who understands that the Israelis who are alive would rather stay alive than receive sympathy in death.
Let's talk politics. After every gun massacre, the NRA says that now is not the time for politics and that we should stick to thoughts and prayers. My response is that after every gun massacre is exactly the time to talk politics. Republicans are running the same playbook now to distract us from the damage they are doing to the U.S.-Israel relationship. Bipartisan support for Israel does not mean pretending the support you wish existed does exist. If we want bipartisan support for Israel, one party, the Republican Party, has to start walking the walk:
- At a time when more money might be needed to help Israel, and since spending bills must originate in the House, Republicans should end their dysfunction, elect a Speaker, and get back to work. No Speaker means no supplemental funding for Israel and no votes on pro-Israel resolutions.
- At a time when U.S. support for Israel is essential, Republicans should stop playing political games with Israel, as they did last month when they drafted, introduced, and voted for a bill that would have cut aid to Israel by 30%.
- At a time when unity is important, Republicans should stop leveling false charges about Iran against President Biden, unite behind his leadership in this time of crisis, and denounce Donald Trump for attacking Israel and praising Hezbollah last week instead of calling out a handful of Democrats with no influence on this issue for expressing sympathy for Palestinians (none have glorified or praised Hamas). Trump has a commanding lead among Republican voters for a third nomination as their candidate for president. Illinois Governor JB Pritzker said this about Trump's remarks: "No true friend of Israel, the Jewish people, or of peace would praise Hezbollah just days after what President Biden and Jewish leaders have called the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust. Right now is the time to stand with Israel as they confront unimaginable loss and the ongoing threat from terrorists seeking to harm their people. Donald Trump’s comments are disgusting, dangerous, and underscore a simple fact: he is unfit to lead our country and would make the United States and our allies around the world less safe." If Israeli Likud ministers can attack Trump for his shameful comments, maybe more Republicans can too. The contrast between Biden and Trump could not be starker.
Does this sound partisan? Well, I have news for you: We have two political parties, and they are different. Pretending otherwise is not the path to unity. Unity must be based on reality. Our Republican friends might disagree with all of those bullet points. Maybe they are sincere, maybe they are misinformed, maybe they are playing games.
It doesn't matter. They are wrong. We must not be afraid to say so. Might we be wrong? Of course--we should always be willing to revise our opinions when we are presented with facts or analyses that we did not previously consider. But that doesn't mean we don't call out what is wrong when we see it. If you don't believe in distinguishing right from wrong, if you think that considering "both sides" prevents you from taking one side or the other, then I can only imagine how you felt about the rest of today's newsletter.
Corrections. I'm entitled to my own opinions but not to my own facts, so I appreciate it when readers bring errors to my attention. In last week's newsletter, I left out the word "reason" after "only" when I wrote "antisemitism is not the only for us to be concerned about Gaetz" and in error, I included the word "not" when I wrote, "AIPAC has yet to rescind its endorsements of the Republicans who voted not to slash aid to Israel."
In Case You Missed It:
- Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs on Thursday announced his office will invest an additional $10 million in Israel as a direct response to the unprovoked, murderous attack by the Hamas terrorist organization.
- Joint statement from the leaders of France, Germany, Italy, the U.K, and the U.S. on Hamas terrorism against Israel.
Tweets of the Week. Barack Obama, Michael Oren, and Rep. Shri Thanedar (D-MI).
Facebook Post of the Week. Rabbi Shai Held.
Nikki Haley Mockery of the Week. Paul Rudnick.
Video Clips of the Week. Please watch this seven-minute interview with former Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus. The CBS interviewer asks the hard questions about Israel's actions that you're probably asking, and you owe it to yourself to hear his answers and judge them for yourself.
And to end on a more uplifting note, watch as U2's Bono adds lyrics about the Israelis slain by Hamas at the music festival to "In the Name of Love."
This is the newsletter even Republicans have to read and the original home of the viral and beloved 2022 and 2023 Top Ten Signs You're At a Republican Seder. If someone forwarded this to you, why not subscribe and get it in your inbox every Sunday? Just click here--it's free.
My most popular Times of Israel posts are How Not To Define Antisemitism and Pro-Israel Or Pro-Bibi? I periodically update my Medium posts on why Democrats are better than Republicans on Israel and antisemitism. You can read my most recent effort to define "pro-Israel" here (it's a work in progress, as am I).
I hope you enjoyed today's newsletter. Donations are welcome (this takes time to write and costs money to send). If you'd like to chip in, click here and fill in the amount of your choice. If you see something that says "Save your info and create a PayPal account," click the button to the right and it will go away. You don't need a PayPal account. Or you can Venmo @Steven-Sheffey (last four phone digits are 9479). You can send a check too. But no crypto or gold bars.
I accept advertisements. Let me know if you're interested.
|
