UPDATE 1/04/09: In addition to the blatantly one-sided letter that Obama wrote to Khalilzad (below), Obama has revealed his true colors through his silence on the current Israeli onslaught. He may be correct when he states that there is only one President at a time, yet that slight technicality didn't prevent him from making his statement of condemnation on the Mumbai attacks. Nor has it prevented him from holding regular press conferences to address the nation's economy. So why now has he decided to take the stance that America can have only one President at a time??
UPDATE 1/29/08: It seems that the infamous letter is authentic. Here is a picture of the letter and the related news story. (Thanks to Amy for providing the links). Now if someone could please explain to me the eerie silence by the mass media on this issue. Media coverage of the leading candidates has kicked into high gear, so whenever Obama scratches his ass, its headline news. How come this letter didn't receive any airtime by the MSM?
I just ran across this letter 'written' by Obama to the US Ambassador to the UN:
Dear Ambassador Khalilzad,
I understand that today the UN Security Council met regarding the situation in Gaza, and that a resolution or statement could be forthcoming from the Council in short order.
I urge you to ensure that the Security Council issue no statement and pass no resolution on this matter that does not fully condenm the rocket assault Hamas has been conducting on civilians in southern Israel...
All of us are concerned about the impact of closed border crossings on Palestinian families. However, we have to understand why Israel is forced to do this... Israel has the right to respond while seeking to minimize any impact on civilians.
The Security Council should clearly and unequivocally condemn the rocket attacks... If it cannot bring itself to make these common sense points, I urge you to ensure that it does not speak at all.
Sincerely,
Barack Obama
United States Senator
Now I'm no fan of Obama, and his unwavering support for Israel is no different than any other US politician's, but the authenticity of this letter is in serious doubt.
First of all, the only place I could find this letter was on some message board, a few blogs, and a second-rate news outlet.
Secondly, is it normal practice for Senators to include a bunch of '...' in their official correspondences?
Finally, one of the sources often cited is this Haaretz link. Its a blog of their Chief US Correspondent, Shmuel Rosner. He doesn't source the letter, so I remain in doubt.
Anyone have a concrete, reliable source for this letter?
If not, I'm guessing that it was 'leaked' by the Obama camp to shore up support from the pro-Israel voting bloc, where he's taking a beating.
WAW
2 days ago
32 comments:
Salaam Naeem,
The '...' was silly :) It looks fake to me but I'd like to know if I'm wrong.
Asalaamu alaikum.
It has been mentioned on this site, http://www.jta.org/cgi-bin/iowa/home/index.html
You can view their actual story at http://www.jta.org/cgi-bin/iowa/breaking/106563.html
It is entirely possible that the complete letter isn't being circulated and that is why there is the use of "...".
I am more concerned that he hasn't said anything to refute the letter or claim it is fake. If it were, I think he would be quick to say so considering all the discussion about it.
Hi,
Thanks for the clarification Naeem, I would also like to know if this letter is fake or not. My vote on Super Tuesday depends on it.
Thanks
AA -
I think it's fake, but I don't know if that's just because I WANT it to be fake.
AA- Aaminah,
Thanks for the links, however, the website is of a organization called JTA, who I referred to in my post as a second-rate news outlet.
Not sure how credible they are...have you ever heard of them before?
And about the dots in the letter, every instance that I've seen online has the dots. Haven't seen any full version, if it exists...
Just makes you second-guess its authenticity...and of course, your point on Obama's lack of refutation is also noteworthy.
Salaam Naeem, thanks for stopping by. Like you, I haven't found any other references to the Obama letter although Ali Abunimah did mention it on Democracy Now.
I don't think it's a surprising statement from Obama, he's been very pro-Israel and generally pro-war throughout his presidential campaign. For eg, check out the transcript of his interview at AIPAC (the main Zionist lobby in Washington): http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7208252.stm.
While he's black, has a Muslim dad, and is a great orator, one has to remember that American elections tend only to be personality driven. So I don't think we can expect much of a divergence on Israel under an Obama presidency.
So yes, nothing to suggest it is a fake. Don't get fooled by the media spin on Obama, he's an imperialist like all of them.
Asalaamu alaikum Naeem,
Yes, I have heard of JTA before. Most of the Jews I know are very familiar with it and don't consider it second-rate, though somewhat biased towards Israel. But I could be wrong.
I don't personally think the letter is fake. Even if it is fake, the lack of refutation says to me that he isn't going to disagree with it. Which tells me all I need to know.
As Iqbal says, he is pretty supportive of Israel. I don't think we are going to see a change in U.S. policy on Israel no matter who ends up in office, and we shouldn't expect any of these non-Muslim candidates to pander to us or be the savior we wish for. We need to stop thinking that a corrupt system is somehow going to come out to our benefit; it simply isn't possible.
Salaam! No offense, but you can't make changes until you get in office and you can't get in office unless you "talk the talk". Before the campaigning started, he had a strong sense of justice on the issue, which is what had made me pro-Obama in the first place.
I think he may surprise all you nay-sayers so stay tuned. Besides, whatever occurs is the will of Allah. What Obama does or does not do will not change that an iota.
I personally think we should be talking about why Arabs are so chicken they can't even come together to help their brethren! Look what the Egyptians are doing to the Palestinians in Gaza! It makes me sick!
~Sahra
Asalaamu alaikum.
"I personally think we should be talking about why Arabs are so chicken..."
Could we perhaps qualify that as "Arab nations' governments"? Because plenty of Arabs are on the side of the Palestinians, it's their gov'ts that are behaving badly. And just as I don't want to be held personally responsible for the bad policies of this nation, I don't hold all Arabs personally responsible for the bad policies of their nations. :)
AA- Aaminah and Iqbal,
Thank you both for your comments. I think you may have misread my motivations for this post. By alleging that the letter is a fake, I'm not implying that Obama's policy are in contrast to the spirit of that letter - in fact, I firmly believe that he is fully capable of writing such a letter.
I was simply pointing out that the origins of the letter are dubious, especially considering its lack of coverage in the mass media. That's all.
But I appreciate you both re-emphasizing the point of pragmatic politics - Obama is staunchly pro-Israel and pro-war and is no agent for change, especially when it comes to America's foreign policy.
Check this out, Naeem, an image of the letter on the Jewish Standard website.
http://jewishstandard.net//content_images/ObamaLetterbig.jpg
It shows the rest of the text for those wondering about the ellipses, and adds another level of authenticity, I'm sorry to say.
Corresponding article here: http://www.jstandard.com/articles/3790/1/Obama-supporters-speak-out;-he-writes-to-U.N.-on-Israel
Aaminah, sorry, that is EXACTLY what I meant!!! I certainly should not have said Arabs, I meant governments that happen to be Arab! I know for a fact that if it was up to the people, this nonsense of not supporting the Palestinians would not be an issue! ~Sahra
I have a photocopy of the full Obama letter - sans the ellipses, here:
http://i109.photobucket.com/albums/n77/PJD123/ObamaLetterbig.jpg
Try again:
http://i109.photobucket.com/albums/n77/PJD123/
ObamaLetterbig.jpg
One line, no spaces.
I personally don't believe Obama is as pro-Israel as he's been sounding as of late. Keep in mind this is the same guy who once said that no one is more oppressed than Palestinians, and notoriously did not mention Israel when listing several of America's allies.
It may just be that what he is saying is for campaign purposes, but you can still see that Israel supporters are wary of giving him full endorsement. What gives me hope is his Middle East foreign policy advisor is Simon Malley, who is AWESOME. Check out these link, written by a Zionist to access his politics:
http://www.americanthinker.com/2008/01/barack_obamas_middle_east_expe.html
http://www.americanthinker.com/2008/01/barack_obama_and_israel.html
I'll try the links again...
http://www.americanthinker.com/
2008/01/barack_obamas_middle_east_
expe.html
http://www.americanthinker.com/2008/01/
barack_obama_and_israel.html
Interesting reading, thanks!
y r arabs separated??
((chicken as someone said))
arabs aren't separated,, but their leaders are jerks..following america's policy,afraid to lose their "chairs"
now what can ppl do.. ??
nd we arabs.. we r not expecting anything from obama... nth good... he might make a real change INSIDE america.. but no one.. no one can become the president of USA unless he keeps his mouth shut when smthn is abt israel..
so.. everyone nedds to know we r not expecting enything good from him or from our leaders
and god be with hamas and our ppl in gaza
Hello. Searching about what Obama said I found your blog. I didn't know. From the begging I had my doubts with Obama because of his position about the wall between Mexico and US...and even if He was the less warmful choice for the world, unafortunely it doesn't means that he is going to change all the policies in the US. He needs the wink of the jews in that point of the world.
That is sad.
We would like to know that is a fake letter :(
It seems that Palestine is going to be free when the US become communist! :S
greetings
Its certainly not fake and it is also not important.
Policy and rhetoric are two different things.
The gaza war was preventable. But in order to prevent it you need leverage and control over both sides. There is no need and no useful purpose in condemning the israelis. They need to be controlled. There is no need and no usefulness in condemning hamas. They need to be controlled. And never through military means: thats stupidity. But through bribery or development call it whatever you want.
Have any of you ever considered that perhaps you should 1) recognize Israel as a legitimate state, 2) sincerely try to live alongside and cooperate with it?
This means looking past all the gory photos for a moment, the unsourced claims and accusations, the excuses for the rabid politics of Hamas, and generally looking at the picture in a fresh light. Until you do choose to recognize it, the violence will continue. Remember, the Gazans voted for Hamas whose politics were clear: destroy Israel, effectively declaring war, and within weeks acting on this declaration.
Of course Obama supports Israel's actions, the alternative is to support total chaos. Lets not overlook the simple fact that all this terrible violence can end instantly if Hamas would surrender.
Anon,
"Have any of you ever considered that perhaps you should 1) recognize Israel as a legitimate state, 2) sincerely try to live alongside and cooperate with it?"
1. The lack of peace in that area is NOT due to the Hamas' stance on the state of Israel. While I myself don't agree with their refusal to recognize the reality of Israel's existence, I am convinced that it would make no difference whether they changed their stance or not.
2. It takes two hands to clap, my friend. Can you honestly say that Israel has tried to live peacefully with their neighbors? Last I checked, blockading medical supplies and other essentials does not constitute a good neighbor.
"Remember, the Gazans voted for Hamas whose politics were clear:"
So what?! That logic is so tiring. Based on your premise, all actions Al-Qaeda takes against American civilians are justified because they voted Bush into office. That's just outright stupid.
You may counter that Hamas are terrorists and Bush isn't. Try telling that to the Afghani family whose wedding was bombed or Iraqi father whose wife and children were killed...all by US forces under Bush's command.
I honestly wish you could be a bit more objective in your outlook on this very heated issue.
Hamas drew first blood. Your comment about people voting in Bush is irrelevant. We are talking about the voted one being the aggressor. Bush did not attack Al Quida first. NIce try. People who think it is ok for them to hurt others but do not understand when someone hurts them back are called sociopaths.
Anon,
"Hamas drew first blood."
So what? Does that ever justify the killing of civilians who democratically voted for Hamas? So if India attacks Pakistan, Pakistanis are justified to hunt down any Indian civilian and kill them, since after all those civilians voted in the Indian government?
"Bush did not attack Al Quida first. NIce try."
Fine. Valid point. But he did attack Iraq first. So according to your logic, Iraqis are justified in attacking any American they find walking the street?
Oh wait, that was a preemptive war, so different rules apply. My bad.
check it out:
http://www.ifamericansknew.org/history/ref-nakba.html
Er hamas was nt even in existence wen 1st blood was drawn,1st blood ws drawn in the 1940s wen the mass flight of jews frm eastern europe 2 the original palestine took place Flattening palestinian city aft city wit their bulldozers n slaughterin em 1 by 1
this is evidently the real letter, with Obama's signature.
Obama will be on the Muslims side inshallah, just be optimistic people and don't listen to everything or talk anything thats not good at all.
nice post
Well according to me as noticed the letter and the peoples comment over this issue. This Gaza letter to Khalilzad by Obama looks more than a fake then it is to appear as real.
As every one know America has always been a close alley of the Israel and with issuing of such statements is simply out of question.
Magento Themes
@ Halla, nice pont, ...lol.. Aaminah you are great!..
@Magneto Themes
Will certainly agree with you, a great blog post without doubt and the reviews posted by Aaminah are just too good...
Magento Themes
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