June 01, 2005

The Problem Of AIPAC

I am generally warm in my attitude towards Jews. I have similar warm feelings for Israel. That is why I share some concerns with Rachel Neuwirth regarding the recent indictment of Larry Franklin on charges related to mishandling of classified documents, and the likely indictment of certain officials of AIPAC, the principle pro-Israel lobbying group in Washington. I don't want to see our relationship with Israel upset, and I would hate to see the stereotype that Jews are more loyal to Israel than the US reinforced.

But I think Neuwirth goes too far with this concern.

Why is any of this important to the American Jewish community? Polls taken by the Anti-Defamation League have shown that the prejudice held most widely by their fellow Americans against American Jews is the belief that they are more loyal to the state of Israel than to the United States. According to the ADL polls, fully half of the American public suspects their Jewish compatriots of “dual loyalty.” One striking example of the practical consequences of this prejudice is the almost incredibly harsh sentence of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole that was imposed on Jonathan Pollard for spying for Israel in 1985. Pollard has already served twenty years of his sentence, with no end to it except his death in sight. By contrast, all individuals convicted of spying for other countries allied to, or even on reasonably cordial terms with, the United States have received sentences of less than ten years.

The investigation of AIPAC, if it leads to the conviction of AIPAC executives, is certain to greatly increase this prejudice and give it new respectability among America’s elite classes—government officials, journalists, academics, think-tankers and all other decision-makers and opinion-makers. AIPAC is widely perceived in the Washington “beltway” as a representative of the American Jewish community as a whole.

AIPAC is sponsored and supported in one way or another by nearly all of the organizations represented on the board of the Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish Organizations, the umbrella group that speaks for the American Jewish community to the U.S. government. It is not a marginal group that has been denounced by all mainstream American Jewish organizations and leaders, like the Jewish Defense League, whose leader, Irving Rubin, was arrested for alleged conspiracy two years ago, and who then died under suspicious circumstances in prison. Nor are AIPACÂ’s leaders like Jonathan Pollard, a low-ranking government employee without connections to the rich and powerful, who acted entirely on his own to provide Israel with intelligence about terrorist organizations and hostile Arab regimes.

By contrast, AIPAC and its executives are perceived to be at the center of the American Jewish “establishment,” the “organized American Jewish community.” If AIPAC is discredited in the eyes of the American public as a nest of spies, then the loyalty of every single American Jew will be put in question.

I'm sorry, but I think this concern is overblown. Most Americans are not going to believe that their Jewish neighbors are a potential fifth column, undermining American national security, because of the AIPAC case. But we will recognize that SOME are -- because we have seen that play out repeatedly. And if Israel is, in fact, a knowing and active part of Franklin's betrayal of American secrets to AIPAC executives, then American policymakers -- and Americans in general -- have every reason to question the "special relationship" that exists between the US and Israel.

Prime Minister Ariel Sharon claims that there has been no Israeli spying on the US in 20 years. The coming days and weeks will show whether or not this is true. And in the end, there will be a loyalty question out there, one which I believe most American Jews will pass with flying colors. I believe that most American Jews will loudly and firmly condemn any Israeli betrayal of American interests. And I believe that most American Gentiles will also pass the the test that we will face -- not allowing the sins of a few to color our perception of the many.

Posted by: Greg at 02:03 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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1 This is a good post.

Where do the bride's loyalties lie, with her husband and his family, or with her own? In a similar way, we expect Americans to be loyal to the USA because we are "family." Other nations are NOT our friends; they may be allies, but "friend" seems to be a word best left on the play ground at elementary school.

We should expect foreign governments to "spy" on us, just like (I hope) we are ferreting out information from other countries. Information is power, right?

So we do it, they do it, and everyone knows that everyone is doing it. I do not have a problem with "spying," but I do have a problem with Americans selling information (etc) to foreign governments. That is treason and it should be dealt with accordingly.

Posted by: Mustang at Wed Jun 1 16:24:42 2005 (nP7cz)

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