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As yet I haven't confirmed what is said in the video of Obama at a going away party for Rashid Khalidi. Rumor is he said...
“Israel has no God-given right to occupy Palestine” plus there’s been “genocide against the Palestinian people by Israelis.
Digg - Obama said Israel has no God-given right to occupy Palestine (http://digg.com/2008_us_elections/Obama_said_Israel_has_no_God_given_right_to_occupy _Palestine - broken link)
Kinda lets you know (assuming it's true) what sort of friend he'll be to Isreal.
As for the alleged connection to McCain...
For Immediate Release
October 29, 2008
Washington, DC – “Questions have arisen regarding the International Republican Institute’s (IRI) work with Palestinians in the 1990s.
“In the 1990s, IRI gave grants to the Center for Palestinian Research and Studies (CPRS) for polling in the West Bank/Gaza. The polls measured support for the peace process, for various Palestinian political groups, and for efforts to enhance governance in the West Bank/Gaza. At that time no other organization could credibly conduct polling in the West Bank/Gaza.
“We understand that Rashid Khalidi was one of the many founders of CPRS, and we understand that he was for some (unclear) amount of time a board member. IRI did not in the 1990s conduct background checks of grantees’ founders or board members. IRI did on a number of occasions vet CPRS as an organization, including, as was our custom, with the Israeli government, and we were given no cause for concern.
“We do not recall any contact between Mr. Khalidi and IRI, and there is no evidence that Mr. Khalidi benefited in any way from IRI's grants.
“Other organizations that reportedly gave funding to CPRS include the National Endowment for Democracy, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Center for International Private Enterprise, the Ford and Rockefeller Foundations, the Japanese Embassy, and Germany’s Friedrich Naumann Stiftung. “IRI’s relationship with CPRS ended in 2000, and we understand that it no longer exists.”
IRI did on a number of occasions vet CPRS as an organization, including, as was our custom, with the Israeli government, and we were given no cause for concern.
So glad that's cleared up. No worries about a dinner party.
I wonder what Obama's doing in the video? Blasting Israel? Laughing, looking very comfortable with Ayers, Khalidi,etc.? It must be pretty bad. Even if it isn't, people are going to naturally think the worst! The LA Times is hurting him more by not releasing it.
I wonder what Obama's doing in the video? Blasting Israel? Laughing, looking very comfortable with Ayers, Khalidi,etc.? It must be pretty bad. Even if it isn't, people are going to naturally think the worst! The LA Times is hurting him more by not releasing it.
It's always the cover up that does the real damage.
As yet I haven't confirmed what is said in the video of Obama at a going away party for Rashid Khalidi. Rumor is he said...
“Israel has no God-given right to occupy Palestine” plus there’s been “genocide against the Palestinian people by Israelis.
Digg - Obama said Israel has no God-given right to occupy Palestine (http://digg.com/2008_us_elections/Obama_said_Israel_has_no_God_given_right_to_occupy _Palestine - broken link)
Kinda lets you know (assuming it's true) what sort of friend he'll be to Isreal.
As for the alleged connection to McCain...
For Immediate Release
October 29, 2008
Washington, DC – “Questions have arisen regarding the International Republican Institute’s (IRI) work with Palestinians in the 1990s.
“In the 1990s, IRI gave grants to the Center for Palestinian Research and Studies (CPRS) for polling in the West Bank/Gaza. The polls measured support for the peace process, for various Palestinian political groups, and for efforts to enhance governance in the West Bank/Gaza. At that time no other organization could credibly conduct polling in the West Bank/Gaza.
“We understand that Rashid Khalidi was one of the many founders of CPRS, and we understand that he was for some (unclear) amount of time a board member. IRI did not in the 1990s conduct background checks of grantees’ founders or board members. IRI did on a number of occasions vet CPRS as an organization, including, as was our custom, with the Israeli government, and we were given no cause for concern.
“We do not recall any contact between Mr. Khalidi and IRI, and there is no evidence that Mr. Khalidi benefited in any way from IRI's grants.
“Other organizations that reportedly gave funding to CPRS include the National Endowment for Democracy, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Center for International Private Enterprise, the Ford and Rockefeller Foundations, the Japanese Embassy, and Germany’s Friedrich Naumann Stiftung. “IRI’s relationship with CPRS ended in 2000, and we understand that it no longer exists.”
I watched Rick Sanchez on CNN today when he was talking to a campaign advisor/manager for McCain. He asked him if McCain had given $488,000 to this guy and he said he did. Rick Sanchez drilled him over McCain's latest smear tactic against Obama about "death to Israel" if Obama got elected. Rick Sanchez nailed this guy to where he couldn't even give Rick an answer. It was embarrassing.
In regards to Khalidi, however, the guilt-by-association game burns John McCain as well. During the 1990s, while he served as chairman (http://www.iri.org/newsarchive/2007/2007-10-22-News-AP-McCain.asp - broken link) of the International Republican Institute (IRI), McCain distributed several grants to the Palestinian research center co-founded by Khalidi, including one worth half a million dollars.
A 1998 tax filing for the McCain-led group shows a $448,873 grant to Khalidi's Center for Palestine Research and Studies for work in the West Bank. (See grant number 5180, "West Bank: CPRS" on page 14 of this PDF.)
The relationship extends back as far as 1993, when John McCain joined IRI as chairman in January. Foreign Affairs noted in September of that year that IRI had helped fund several extensive studies in Palestine run by Khalidi's group, including over 30 public opinion polls and a study of "sociopolitical attitudes."
Of course, there's seemingly nothing objectionable with McCain's organization helping a Palestinian group conduct research in the West Bank or Gaza. But it does suggest that McCain could have some of his own explaining to do as he tries to make hay out of Khalidi's ties to Obama.
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