“Retired Amb. Chas Freeman, who said today that he no longer accepts an offer to chair the National Intelligence Council, has just sent this message:
You will by now have seen the statement by Director of National Intelligence Dennis Blair reporting that I have withdrawn my previous acceptance of his invitation to chair the National Intelligence Council. . . . I do not believe the National Intelligence Council could function effectively while its chair was under constant attack by unscrupulous people with a passionate attachment to the views of a political faction in a foreign country. . . .
I am saddened by what the controversy and the manner in which the public vitriol of those who devoted themselves to sustaining it have revealed about the state of our civil society. It is apparent that we Americans cannot any longer conduct a serious public discussion or exercise independent judgment about matters of great importance to our country . . . The libels on me and their easily traceable email trails show conclusively that there is a powerful lobby determined to prevent any view other than its own from being aired. . . .
The tactics of the Israel Lobby plumb the depths of dishonor and indecency and include character assassination, selective misquotation, the willful distortion of the record, the fabrication of falsehoods, and an utter disregard for the truth. The aim of this Lobby is control of the policy process through the exercise of a veto over the appointment of people who dispute the wisdom of its views, the substitution of political correctness for analysis, and the exclusion of any and all options for decision by Americans and our government other than those that it favors. . . . it is doing widening damage to the national security of the United States.
” (Read more from thecable.foreignpolicy.com)
“Charles (Chas) Freeman, who was slated to be picked as the new chairman of the National Intelligence Council, withdrew his candidacy for the post on Tuesday.
The move was announced in Washington by Dennis Blair, the director of National Intelligence. Since news of Freeman’s nomination, Jewish organizations have leveled criticism at the pick due to his history of opposition to Israel’s policies in the Palestinian territories.” (Read more from haaretz.com)
This is dangerous. If the Israel Lobby can influence who joins the National Intelligence Council, they can further influence our perception of Iran. Here lies the road to (more) war.
I’ll believe it when the Palestinians get their land back. I’ll believe it when we stop giving them billions a year in taxpayer money. Nevertheless, here are two headlines which caught my eye. I suspect the first one is just lip service.
Clinton: U.S. firm on commitment to two-state solution
(Read more from Haaretz.com)
Israel lobby fails to block key Obama intelligence appointment
“On Friday, Muckety reported: ‘Despite intense, behind-the-scenes lobbying by some Jewish groups, the Obama administration yesterday tapped veteran diplomat Chas W Freeman Jr to head the National Intelligence Council in what may be its most controversial appointment yet. As chairman of the National Intelligence Council, Freeman will be responsible for producing the National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) – the classified document given to the president and senior intelligence officials that analyses threats to US security.’
In The National, Tony Karon observed: ‘If Israel and its backers are to persuade the Obama administration to accept their views on Iran, it is a less than helpful for the NIE be the province of a sceptical, independent thinker who believes that Israel’s interests are not necessarily those of the US. Renowned as a brilliant diplomat and analyst, even-handed in his assessments of the Middle East and not bound by the Israel-first consensus that the Israel lobby has fought so hard to establish in US Middle East policy, Mr Freeman was denounced by Steve Rosen, a former top American Israel Public Affairs Committee (Aipac) official, as ‘a profoundly disturbing appointment’.” (Read more from thenational.ae)