James Zogby: Rahm Emanuel and Arab Perceptions

James Zogby: Rahm Emanuel and Arab Perceptions: "Some charged that Emanuel was an Israeli citizen or a dual U.S.-Israeli national (he is neither, he was born in Chicago in 1959); or, they alleged that he served in the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), losing his finger confronting a Syrian tank during the 1982 Israeli invasion of Lebanon (he did not serve in the IDF, and lost his finger in a freak accident while working as a teenager in an Arby's restaurant). A few accused Emanuel of skipping U.S. military service to join the IDF in 1991 (also not true -- in the midst of the 1991 Gulf War, while U.S. forces were manning Patriot missile batteries in Israel and the Arab Gulf, Emanuel volunteered for a few weeks, as a civilian, doing maintenance on Israeli vehicles). The most recent story alleges that Rahm Emanuel was fired from the White House in 1998 after being implicated by the FBI, together with Monica Lewinsky, in a Mossad plot to spy on then-President Clinton (a total fabrication, compliments of a shady character who claims to have been a U.S. intelligence official and is a purveyor of many bizarre tales)."

Zogby is correct in warning of conspiracy theories and slander but I wonder if he had to take an educated guess, would he conclude that Emanuel is a Zionist supporter or not? While I can sympathize with Zogby's situation - after all, his ability to generate an income is dependent on access to these people - and understand why he would have to write an article dismissing claims of Emanuel's allegience to Israel before even hinting in the last quarter of the article that maybe Emanuel could possibly be perceived by the Arabs (American or otherwise) as an obstacle to Arab-American relations; I have to point out that Zogby admits his ignorance of the American political system in the article's opening paragraph when he congratulates Obama's victory as a representing a historic transformation.

Not once did I assume Obama would solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Only because I believe there is no solution. Israel wants the land. The Palestinians are in the way and are, in the meantime, represented by one of the most corrupt leaderships. Therefore, the Palestinians lose regardless of who is in the White House.

But now, nine months into his presidency, it doesn't look like anything else will change either. Iraq? Don't listen to anyone who says we are leaving anytime soon. Again, I don't have to be invited to high level security meetings or even rub elbows with policy-makers to know we are not leaving a country where we are building the largest foreign embassy in the world. You simply do not dump over one billion dollars into a piece of real estate and then walk out after five, 10, 20 or even 40 years.

Afghanistan? More troops on the way thanks to Obama.

Torture, extraordinary rendition (kidnapping)? Still on the menu.

GITMO? The day he signed the order to close within a year, he raised the budget for Baghram prison.

The economy? We continued Bush's policy of corporate welfare while leaving families to fend for themselves.

Health care? Do I even need to describe the state of the legislative process on this?