The Saudis Take a Stroll on J Street
Little was heard of the Saudi peace plan after the Alliance of Peace episode. Until recently, that is.
Abdullah’s peace plan, also called the “Arab Peace Initiative” and the “Arab League Plan,” was presented on an “all or nothing basis ” in 2002. It insisted on the Arab interpretation of UN Security Council Resolution 242, which demands a return to the 1949 armistice lines, a position at odds with the American and British drafters’ intentions. The plan also demands a solution to the Palestinian refugee issue “in accordance with UN General Assembly Resolution 194.” That resolution is understood by the Arabs to include the Palestinian “right of return” to areas they fled between 1947 and 1949, areas and even major cities in today’s Israel. Israel rejects “the right of return” as a mortal threat to its existence.
Today, the Saudi plan is a major tenet in J Street’s platform.
J Street’s website position papers state, “U.S. leadership can be deployed … to normalize relations between Israel and the Arab world, utilizing the Arab Peace Initiative and helping to create institutional frameworks for regional cooperation.”
When asked about the plan in a Ha’aretz interview in June 2009, J Street director Jeremy Ben-Ami responded, “Yes, we support the idea behind the Arab Peace Initiative — which is that resolution of the conflict needs to be regional and comprehensive.”
In a November CNN interview with Christine Amanpour, Ben-Ami referred to the Arab plan repeatedly, including: “The Arab League has put on the table not simply an Israeli-Palestinian deal, but an Israeli-Arab comprehensive peace with the entirety of the Arab world.”
Why does J Street push the Saudi initiative? Perhaps the answer lies in the new “alliance” that has been formed — the very close ties between Saudi Arabia, the Arab American Institute, and J Street.
In September 2009, J Street joined some 30 ethnic and religious groups to support Obama’s Middle East diplomatic efforts. One of the groups was the Arab American Institute, which posted on its Internet site the coalition’s statement. Included was this clause: “We support the idea of a comprehensive regional peace that builds on the Arab Peace Initiative.”
A member of J Street’s advisory board, Judith Barnett, worked on aspects of the Saudi account for Qorvis in 2004. She was also one of the first contributors to J Street’s PAC and was later joined in the PAC by Nancy Dutton, the Saudi Embassy’s Washington attorney; Lewis Elbinger, a U.S. State Department official who was based in Saudi Arabia; and Ray Close, the CIA’s station chief in Saudi Arabia for 22 years who later went to work for Saudi intelligence bosses. Close’s son Kenneth registered at the Justice Department as a foreign agent, working for Saudi Prince Turki al-Faisal, the author of the Saudi peace plan.
Beyond sharing support for the Saudi plan, the J Street-AAI financial and ideological ties also appear to be very tight. Richard Abdoo is a member of J Street’s finance committee with its minimum contribution of $10,000 to J Street’s PAC. James Zogby recently wrote in the Bahrain Gulf Daily, “On October 25, [2009] the Arab American Institute and J Street convened a joint meeting that brought leaders and activists from both communities together as an expression of our shared commitment to advance a just and comprehensive Middle East peace.”
J Street’s embrace of the Saudi initiative is not a surprise, considering the strong endorsement the plan received from George Soros, J Street’s purported godfather and sugar daddy.
“The 2002 Arab Peace Initiative,” Soros wrote in a 2007 manifesto, “[is] a settlement to be guaranteed by Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries, based on the 1967 borders and full recognition of Israel. The offer was meant to be elaborated by Saudi King Abdullah at the Arab League meeting to be hosted by Saudi Arabia at the end of March. But no progress is possible as long as the Bush administration and the Ehud Olmert government persist in their current position of refusing to recognize a unity government that includes Hamas.”
Incredibly, the billionaire blames AIPAC for the initiative’s failure, a factor that may explain Soros’ burning desire to create a left-wing alternative to AIPAC. “Both for the sake of Israel and the United States, it is highly desirable that the Saudi peace initiative should succeed; but AIPAC stands in the way. It continues to oppose dealing with a Palestinian government that includes Hamas.”
Despite its recent national conference, J Street still defies definition. Beyond Ben-Ami, its ubiquitous and loquacious director, the decision-makers and major funders of J Street remain anonymous. The Saudi-Arab-American Institute-J Street nexus begins to provide some definition to the self-proclaimed “pro-Israel” organization. But more disclosure is needed.
The Saudis have always been a duplicitous bunch of liars and religious fanatics. They fund the radical madrassas or religious “schools” in Pakistan that produce some of the world’s worst Muslim terrorists. They don’t hide their desire to see the Middle East dominated by their brand of religious fanaticism and, in the grand scheme of things, are probably more dangerous than al Qaeda. Remember, Osama bin Laden is a Saudi. They are all scum of the worst order, religious fundamentalists who pose a clear and present danger to not only the West but to this country in particular. We should STOP BOWING TO THEM, as our “fearless” leader did, and start standing up to them. But, you say, they have the oil we need to survive? So what? We’re also their best and most reliable customer. And there are so very many things we could do overtly and covertly to wreck their day if they refused to sell oil to us. Remember, you can’t hide an oil terminal or an oil well. You would think that, after 9/11, we would stop supporting people who, in turn, support terrorists and terrorism. But that is exactly what we are doing with Saudi Arabia. We should stop doing this now, but I doubt we will do much of anything with our current president, who actually bowed to that turd who runs Saudi Arabia.
I think we need closer ties between the ‘Arab Street’, and the end of a barrel. Before it’s too late.
I saw one of our politicians kissing a Saudi! Holding hands as they strolled! What has come of this country? Traitors! Treasonous wretches! self-serving opportunists! Familial fascists!
So f^%^ing what?
It’s too bad that many high level politicians including former US Presidents,secretaries of State etc. have high level business dealings with these jerks.
Lenny-Ben-David: Look here sonny and the rest of high school drop outs…it is ok to critisize Israel. this whole site is filled with anti global warming people yet this same people defend thoses who created the global warming BS. The Jews. Jews made all this up to make money…
6. mr
I agree, It’s the jews. It’s aaaaallllways the Jews.
At the risk of being a vulgar Marxist, follow the oil. Gee, considering all the congressional health care shenanigans–entire states exempted from federally mandated medicare costs at the expense of other states–maybe the vulgar Marxists were right. It must be fun to be George Soros, a capitalist with a socialist face. I wonder if he got burned by bankrupt Dubai and needs a bail out?
Just to be clear, the US buys very little oil from either Saudi or the other Mid East countries. Most of our imported crude comes from Canada, Mexico, Venezuela and West Africa.
We need to tell the Saudis to go fix Palestine themselves; we should be doing every thing we can to hand the Middle East over to the people who rely on them for oil. That would be Europe, China/Far East and India.
We are blowing a precious amount of our country’s wealth protecting a region that has no love for us, while we simply subsidize the energy security of those truly dependent on Mid East oil.
#9 Steeple I am subsidizing your health care
#10 Have no idea how you transitioned the discussion from Saudi Arabia to health care, but I’m very doubtful that you are. But thanks for judging someone you don’t know. I’m a conservative who has been supportive of our efforts in the Mid East, but I’m tired of subsidizing the energy security of others who really don’t appreciate the cost or the personal sacrifice that our military makes in this region. There is plenty of sand for the Saudis to go pound as far as I’m concerned.
Even during Second Temple times, there were Jews who were willing to embrace elements and ideas antithetical to Judaism from the Greek culture. Then it was the Sadducess who were Greek sympathizers. Now it is J Street who are Arab Sympathizers.
There have been many groups in between. They play with words and ignore the essence of the Jewish tradition.
So what. Just imagine what would happen if we got the donor list to AIPAC…..that would be a sight to see. America first, not Israel, not Iraq, not Iran, etc etc etc. Some of you forget what country you are supposed to be loyal to.
6. mr:
Lenny-Ben-David: Look here sonny and the rest of high school drop outs…[sic]it is ok to critisize[sic] Israel. this whole site is filled with anti global warming people yet this same people defend thoses[sic] who created the global warming BS. The Jews. Jews made all this up to make money…[sic]
——————————————————————–
It’s funny how so many “high school drop outs’ have a better grasp for reality, spelling and punctuation then you do. But when you don’t really have a solid argument it’s easy to spew out ad-hom attacks, strawmen and blame those dastardly Jews.
How ironic that pernicious saudi lobbyists and registered foreign agents in America speak so often about the supposedly omnipotent Israel lobby and accuse Israel’s supporters of the dual citizenship charge even as these same saudi lobbyists work against American interests.
Lets see, a President who bows to the Saudis, or a president that actually does Multi billion dollar business directly with them and flew them out of the USA circumventing US flight restrictions after 9/11 so they can avoid being interviewed by the FBI..
The Hypocrisy on this site is amazing
Never ceases to amaze me that we put a country like Saudi Arabia on the map, when it doesn’t even have a tenth of the oil that we right have in the United States…..
This “news” is older than dirt. What’s the point of re-hashing 9-year-old lobbying filings?
I think that there’s something fishy about Jstreet (it reeks of Soros) but in theory the S’audi Peace plan is much the same as the “Israeli Peace plan” of Barak, Olmert and now Netenyahu. Obviously Israel won’t budge on the refugee issue (the whole point of a “Palestine” is for Palestinian refugees, like Israel is for Jewish ones) but otherwise it really should be carefully considered. I think that the Iranian threat (to both Sunni’s and Israel) has caused the most pragmatic elements in S’audi Arabia to come up with the plan. I don’t think we need to be totally suspicious of the S’audi’s in this instance. I actually think they realise that a “peaceful” settlement is best for everyone.
#steeple: I was just kidding about the health care..
However what do you exactly meanby”I am a conservetive supporing our efforts in Mid East”? I think there plenty od Middle Easterners who appreciate what the US armed forces are doing to help. my self included. I am from Iran and my own son is in the US Marins and I am very proud of him. Look here Phranc: I love the Jews.
i work for them.
My daughter in law is jewish.
And I have been dating a Jewish woman for the last 5 years and her last name is Kaplan!!
Now listen sonny: that being said simply because I am from Iran that does not mean I should support what ever the Iranian government does.. In fact I hate the governmet.
and sonny: since I love jews that does not mean I have to support the nazi and murderous Israeli government who is on rampage with the help of our tax$$.
Also Phranc: in the past couple weeks the vatican accepted the resignation of some bishop or archbishop in the state of CT for child molestation.. just in case if you didn’t know..
20. mr – it is clear what you are; your shallow attempts to justify your Jew-hatred are pointless.
The only thing worse than someone who blindly hates Jews is someone like you, who blindly hates Jews but is too cowardly to just say so. You are contemptible.
#21 Aaron: why do you say I hate jews? you don’t know me,,in fact I admire them. I do hate the israeli government just as I do saudi, and iranian government. so do you get it? Happy holidays!!
Look closer at Qorvis and Petruzzello
Radiant Technologies to design and deliver different types of elements like Silicon Carbide heating element, Silicon Carbide heaters manufacturers and Heating elements manufacturers across in India.for more details visit http://www.radianttechnologies.net/