Schmidt Wrote: The satirical Onion posted an article:The Onion, March 18, 2015: U.S. Worried About Living Up To Netanyahu Campaign PromisesWASHINGTON—Saying the Likud Party leader had set Israeli citizens’ expectations extremely high in the run up to his reelection Tuesday, top-level sources expressed their worry Wednesday about whether the United States would actually be able to live up to Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s campaign promises. “Given the ambitious list of security and spending initiatives that Netanyahu guaranteed Israeli voters on the campaign trail, I think it could be very difficult for the U.S. to come through on all of them; the pressure’s really going to be on America not to disappoint his constituents,” said U.S. State Department spokesman Eric PatelWe can laugh at the humor in it, but much of it is painfully true. According to this Bloomberg article,Bloomberg, Israel Lobbies for More Missile Defense Funds Than Obama Sought (Bloomberg) -- For the second consecutive year, Israeli officials have asked the U.S. Congress to add more than $300 million to President Barack Obama’s budget request for their nation’s missile-defense programs.The $317 million wish list that Israeli’s missile defense chief gave lawmakers this month is in addition to the $158 million the Pentagon proposed for the fiscal year that starts Oct. 1. The Israeli request would provide first-time production funds for two programs -- David’s Sling and Arrow-3.For the current fiscal year, Congress added about $347 million for missile defense programs, including Iron Dome, bringing the total to $620 million. Lawmakers also approved an extra $225 million in emergency fiscal 2014 funds for Iron Dome. The White House and the Defense Department raised no objections to the added money.Since 2011, Congress has appropriated more than $1.2 billion for Iron Dome, which is designed to intercept and destroy rockets capable of flying as far as 70 kilometers (44 miles).Note that this is on top of the $3.1 billion that we give each year in aid to Israel and another $3.8 billion in loan guarantees. And now with Netanyahu stating that he will oppose any two state solution to the Palestinian problem (which goes against both Democrat and Republican stated positions), it looks like our Congress is going to have to do a flip flop and get in line with Netanyuhu's campaign promises. After all AIPEC would expect nothing less.You can count on Republicans to lead the way on this. What Israel wants...Israel gets. I'm sure we can cut some Food Stamp or Education programs here in the USA to come up with the offset to pay for it.
Schmidt Wrote: Since 2011, Congress has appropriated more than $1.2 billion for Iron Dome, which is designed to intercept and destroy rockets capable of flying as far as 70 kilometers (44 miles).Note that this is on top of the $3.1 billion that we give each year in aid to Israel and another $3.8 billion in loan guarantees. And now with Netanyahu stating that he will oppose any two state solution to the Palestinian problem (which goes against both Democrat and Republican stated positions), it looks like our Congress is going to have to do a flip flop and get in line with Netanyuhu's campaign promises. After all AIPEC would expect nothing less.
Schmidt Wrote: You can count on Republicans to lead the way on this. What Israel wants...Israel gets. I'm sure we can cut some Food Stamp or Education programs here in the USA to come up with the offset to pay for it.
johnnycee Wrote: Perhaps if we didn't meddle or so they say, in their elective process maybe BeBe would not have won, but at any rate the voters of Israel have spoken , and we should respect that ,irrespective of how we feel about the man, is it racist,I don't know, Jews don't like Arabs and Arabs don't like Jews, are they both racists? Israel doesn't want them to have a country of their own and the Arabs want to wipe away the country of Israel, What to do,? Their mutual distrust is way off the charts, both claim religious prerogative and biblical history to be where they are, both are of different cultures spawned from the same roots. yet both claim superiority , this is a train wreck waiting to happen and there are no diplomats or statesman smart enough or wise enough to figure this out, so they attempt to take sides and one or the other tries to bully the other into accepting a truce that neither side wants or will abide by..
TJ Wrote: Problem with your scenario is that before Israel was given all of the damned land, the country was called Palestine. Now they don't want to give them their own country. Hey dumb asses it's like telling the American Indians that they shouldn't have their own country. That's Bull$h!T
johnnycee Wrote: Israel has stated they would accept a State as long as Hamas was not part of the governing body or sanctioned by the government, I have not heard of a counter offer from them which addresses this issue , so we will have to maintain a wait and see posture.
[url=https://www.democratichub.com/user/78196.aspx">johnnycee[/url] Wrote: This land was inhabited by the Hebrew people before there were Muslims, before them there was a variety of different peoples with different cultures who lived there, the country's borders has changed about as often as they were conquered by a host of conquerors, including the Mongols, so who was here first seems to be irrelevant. The clash between these cultures has been going on for thousands of years and it doesn't seem to be ending anytime soon, Israel has stated they would accept a State as long as Hamas was not part of the governing body or sanctioned by the government, I have not heard of a counter offer from them which addresses this issue , so we will have to maintain a wait and see posture.
Schmidt Wrote: Haaertz, March 20, 2015: Republican U.S. Speaker John Boehner to visit Israel 10 days after Netanyahu’s victorySpeaker of the United States House of Representatives John Boehner is expected to visit Israel in about a week. Boehner, a member of the Republican Party, is U.S. President Barack Obama’s arch rival and the man who invited Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to make his controversial speech in Congress. Senior Israeli officials who asked to remain anonymous said Boehner will begin his visit, which has not yet been announced publicly, on March 31, heading a delegation of Republican Congress members. The officials said the final agreement for the visit was given during Netanyahu’s trip to the United States some two weeks ago.... it will be a sort of “victory celebration” for Netanyahu and he is expected to be received with great honor.So John Boehner and his contingent of Israel Firsters is going to Israel to receive the accolades of the Israeli people and the Likud Party. Maybe they'll extend an invitation to him to address the Israeli Knesset.