Cain's Palestine Blunder
The Daily Beast
By Dan Ephron
Mon, Oct 31, 2011
To Palestinian ears, Republican contenders for the presidency can sound a lot like far-right Israeli politicians when discussing the Middle East. Most oppose concessions by Israel and advocate the expansion of Jewish settlements in the West Bank. But now Herman Cain has managed to outdo even the most hawkish Israelis by referring to residents of the West Bank and Gaza as the “so-called Palestinian people.” The formulation appears to cast doubt on not just the Palestinians’ right to statehood but on their very existence as a nation.
Cain, the frontrunner among GOP candidates, invoked the phrase in an interview over the weekend with Israel Hayom, a mass-circulation Israeli tabloid owned by an American backer of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Asked about President Barack Obama’s Middle East policy, Cain referred to the Palestinian bid for U.N. membership: “I think that the so-called Palestinian people have this urge for unilateral recognition because they see this president as weak.”
He also said Obama’s failure to firmly support Netanyahu “emboldened Israel’s enemies.”
Cain’s remark raises further questions about Cain’s inexperience on foreign policy and his qualifications for the presidency. If elected president he will almost inevitably have to act as peacemaker between Israel and the Palestinians, as have all recent presidents. A businessman and former Washington lobbyist who has never been elected to any office, Cain has made a series of gaffes in debates and interviews on international issues, at one point last month dismissing “Ubeki-beki-beki-beki-stan-stan” as a small and insignificant state.
(More here.)
By Dan Ephron
Mon, Oct 31, 2011
To Palestinian ears, Republican contenders for the presidency can sound a lot like far-right Israeli politicians when discussing the Middle East. Most oppose concessions by Israel and advocate the expansion of Jewish settlements in the West Bank. But now Herman Cain has managed to outdo even the most hawkish Israelis by referring to residents of the West Bank and Gaza as the “so-called Palestinian people.” The formulation appears to cast doubt on not just the Palestinians’ right to statehood but on their very existence as a nation.
Cain, the frontrunner among GOP candidates, invoked the phrase in an interview over the weekend with Israel Hayom, a mass-circulation Israeli tabloid owned by an American backer of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Asked about President Barack Obama’s Middle East policy, Cain referred to the Palestinian bid for U.N. membership: “I think that the so-called Palestinian people have this urge for unilateral recognition because they see this president as weak.”
He also said Obama’s failure to firmly support Netanyahu “emboldened Israel’s enemies.”
Cain’s remark raises further questions about Cain’s inexperience on foreign policy and his qualifications for the presidency. If elected president he will almost inevitably have to act as peacemaker between Israel and the Palestinians, as have all recent presidents. A businessman and former Washington lobbyist who has never been elected to any office, Cain has made a series of gaffes in debates and interviews on international issues, at one point last month dismissing “Ubeki-beki-beki-beki-stan-stan” as a small and insignificant state.
(More here.)
Powered by Blogger
1 Comments:
There is a lot of interest in Herman Cain and rightfully so. My question - when a conservative questioned anything regarding candidate Obama they were immediately labeled a racist by many on the left. Perhaps I have missed it but, is anyone on the left suggesting that those who question Cain are motivated by race? Hmmmmmm.
Post a Comment
<< Home