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Wednesday, November 08, 2006
Some headlines and summaries from JTA
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Bush nominates ‘realist’ to Defense
Robert Gates, President Bush’s nominee for secretary of defense, is in the “realist” camp that advised against war in Iraq.
Gates served as CIA director under Bush’s father and was close then to the elder Bush’s secretary of state, James Baker, and national security adviser, Brent Scowcroft.
Both men are known for their opposition to the broad Bush administration goals of democratizing Iraq and the region.
Jewish insiders close to the Bush administration said that Gates was chosen because of his contrast with Donald Rumsfeld, the neoconservative whose six years as defense secretary are coming to an end in the wake of the repudiation of Bush’s Iraq policy in the midterm congressional election.
Bush emphasized Gates’ moderation in announcing the nomination on Wednesday, a day after the election.
Gates “knows that the challenge of protecting our country is larger than any political party, and he has a record of working with leaders of both sides of the aisle to strengthen our national security,” he said.
Rumsfeld and Israel
U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, who cited Israeli security as one of the main aims of U.S. policy in the Middle East, stepped down.
President Bush announced the resignation Wednesday, a day after Democrats won control of at least one house of Congress.
He nominated as a replacement Robert Gates, a former CIA director who served under Bush’s father.
Rumsfeld, like other members of the Bush administration, cited threats to Israel among other reasons for pursuing the Iraq war and containing Iran.
But he cut off the U.S. strategic dialogue with Israel for three years until December 2005 because of Israel’s sale of military equipment to China.
Pelosi slated for speaker
Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), who is close to national Jewish leaders, is set to become speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives.
Democrats won the House in Tuesday’s midterm congressional elections, which would make House party leader Pelosi the first woman to assume the mantle of speaker, second in line to the presidency.
Pelosi has strong ties to a number of Jewish groups, including the American Israel Public Affairs Committee; she is a close friend of Amy Friedkin, a past AIPAC president.
Santorum concedes defeat
U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.), who had strong backing among some pro-Israel activists, lost most of the Jewish vote in Pennsylvania, according to exit polls.
Santorum conceded his seat to Bob Casey, who challenged Santorum’s support for the Iraq war and his conservative social policies.
Santorum was one of the biggest beneficiaries of pro-Israel money in this election cycle, getting $2 million in support, more than any candidate except for U.S. Sen. Joseph Lieberman (I-Conn.).
However, Casey drew even greater Jewish backing, and one exit poll suggested he garnered more than 80 percent of the Jewish vote.
http://jta.org
posted by Somebody @ 10:52 PM Permanent Link
 
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