State Dept. Denies Visa to Knesset Memeber

March 14, 2012, - 7:25 pm

OUTRAGE! State Department Denies Visa to Israel Parliament Member; Israeli Legislative Trip to US Canceled

By Debbie Schlussel
Michael Ben-Ari is an elected Member of the Knesset, Israel’s parliament.  But the Obama adminstration is denying him a visa to the United States.  Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, and their minions are calling this man a “terrorist,” even though he’s never been a member of a terrorist group and never participated in a terrorist attack.  Instead, he’s a respected elected official in Israel, who commands the respect of members of all parties along the ideological divide.  And, yet, this is the second time (2009 was the first) that Dr. Ben-Ari has been denied entry here.

Yet, admitted Jew-killers and terrorists like Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas a/k/a “Abu Mazen,” who was the paymaster of the Munich Olympic terrorists, are welcome guests not only in the U.S. but at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.  Unlike Ben-Ari, Abbas has not faced a democratic election in some time, and if he were to face one today, he’d lose to HAMAS.
So, what is Ben-Ari’s “crime”?  What has he done that is so offensive and noxious to the Obama border police who will let all of the scum of the earth into the U.S. but not this man who grew up in liberal Tel Aviv, has a Ph.D., and served in the Israeli Army with honor?
Well, nothing, actually.  Ben-Ari, however, is a follower of the late Rabbi Meir Kahane, the American citizen who was the first American victim of Al-Qaeda.  Kahane believed that Jews and Arabs could not live together in peace, so the Muslims should be deported, just like Muslims deported a million Jews from their countries.  While he felt that Muslims should not live in Gaza and the so-called West Bank–based on their track record of terror, the Obama Administration only welcomes those who believe that Jews should not live in Gaza and the so-called West Bank, based on their track record of repeatedly trying to live in peace.   And now Rabbi Kahane’s ideas have been adopted by even the far-left of Israel, with the fence they had to construct to keep the Muslims and their death wishes out of Israel.  His ideas were adopted (in the reverse) by the same far-left in Israel that also realized Jews and perpetually angry Muslims could not live together in peace and forced Jews out of their homes in Gaza to abandon it to the HAMAS jungle it has now become. The Palestinians themselves–including PLO Ambassador to the U.S. Maen Areikat, who is allowed to travel here and all around the U.S. freely–say that the “Palestinian State” will be Judenrein a/k/a “No Jews Allowed.”
So, Michael Ben-Ari and the whole Israeli legislative delegation have been forced to cancel their upcoming trip because they are the victims of the Arabist thought police in America.  The double standard thought police–the same thought police at the Hillary Clinton State Department who will allow Tariq Ramadan, grandson of the Muslim Brotherhood founder and defender of homicide bombings of Israeli kids, a visa into the U.S. to teach American college students indefinitely.  The same thought police who didn’t give a second thought to giving a visa to Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab to study at an Islamic conference in Texas, after his father had already warned the U.S. government that he was dangerous and going to perpetrate a terrorist attack.  The same thought police who then gave him a second visa to travel to the U.S. when he tried to blow up a plane with his underwear.
Yet despite allowing entry to these terrorists, the State Department denied Ben-Ari “based on the State Department’s prerogative to ban terrorists from entering the country.” That language should tell you everything. A prerogative means, “We’ll welcome Islamic terrorists in. But Israeli elected officials who’ve never harmed a fly–well, they are the real terrorists. No entry for them.”
Reuven Rivlin, Speaker of the Israeli Knesset, said the Obama move is “an assault on the Knesset as a whole. The United States’ allegation that an MK is a terrorist is unacceptable.”
No, it isn’t acceptable. Sadly, plenty of Jews will continue to support Obama’s clearly anti-Semitic, double-standard laden visa policies. They will donate to his campaign and vote for him. And so he has no reason to reverse course and correct outrageous decisions like this.
Hey, there were Jews who supported the Nazi party, too. But they were sent to the ovens along with all the other Jews.
Oh, and by the way, I know of a certain American elected official who is an acolyte of convicted terrorist Bill Ayres. Maybe he should be deemed a “terrorist,” too, and denied visas to places like Israel, where they don’t allow people who believe in blowing up Capitol Buildings and Pentagons and shouldn’t allow their followers in, either.

 

Daryl Issa, Simpleton or Blithering Idiot?

Rep. Daryl Issa made a mockery out of his own hearing on Capitol Hill when he tried to shut up his own frakkin' witness who tried to testify about an ATF program that went bad:

The head of the House Oversight committee muted one of his invited witnesses on Wednesday for testifying in favor of tougher gun laws.
Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) said an ATF official's promotion of gun reform fell "outside the scope" of the hearing and "would not be considered valid testimony."
Appearing before the panel, Peter Forcelli, a special agent for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), told lawmakers that straw purchasers – those who buy guns on behalf of others – should be hit with stiffer penalties to discourage gun trafficking. "I think perhaps a mandatory minimum one-year sentence might deter an individual from buying a gun," Forcelli said.
He was responding to a question from Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.), who said the current penalties are so weak that they discourage state prosecutors from pursuing straw-purchase cases. Forcelli agreed the current penalties do little to intimidate straw purchasers.
That brief exchange prompted Issa to intervene.
"We're not here to talk about proposed gun legislation," Issa said.

Political Correction:

We're repeatedly asked whether Rep. Darrell Issa's (R-CA) hearings into a controversial ATF operation that allowed certain shipments of firearms to cross the border into Mexico would also address the weak statutory authority that law enforcement are forced to rely on to prevent trafficking to Mexican drug cartels. Today, we learned that law enforcement witnesses called by Issa are eager to discuss the issue, but the Oversight Committee chairman is willing to do everything in his power to stop that problem from coming to the forefront.
During this morning's hearing, Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) asked ATF Special Agent Peter Forcelli whether he has heard that district judges criticize the prosecutions of straw purchasers as "paper violations" because they are based on statutes that carry such low penalties. Forcelli replied, "I have, and I agree with it," and called for a one-year mandatory minimum sentence for such offenses to better deter purchasers. Issa immediately broke in to cut off this line of discussion, saying that the witness was testifying outside of the scope of the hearing.
After an extended exchange between Issa and Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-MD) in which Cummings said that Issa couldn't tell the witness what to testify to, Maloney explained why this line of questioning is crucial.

ISSA: I'd only caution we're not here to talk about proposed gun legislation. That would be outside the scope of this hearing.
MALONEY: I wasn't discussing that. I was trying to figure out why the Justice Department and the [Inspector General] found that prosecutors often decline these gun cases. I want to know why they're declining them. And to quote from the testimony, one of you said because they believe it is difficult to obtain convictions in these violations.

Aren't Republicans supposed to be tough on crime? We're talking about guns being brought into Satan's backyard; or if you're not talking to Pat Buchanan---Mexico. Here's what this hearing is about:

Issa had called the hearing to examine a controversial ATF operation – dubbed "Fast and Furious" – that put firearms into the hands of known drug smugglers in order to track them to Mexican cartel leaders.
Hundreds of those firearms have gone missing and several have been linked indirectly to the murder of border patrol agent Brian Terry, who was killed in a December firefight in Arizona. Terry's family submitted a statement to Wednesday's oversight hearing, calling for the prosecution of everyone – even government agents – involved in the tragedy.

Why aren't the penalties for bring guns into Mexico relevant to the investigation? I guess his NRA buddies wouldn't approve.

 

President Obama Speaks at the AIPAC Policy Conference

ISRAEL POLITICAL BRIEF: ISRAEL NEWS

President Obama Speaks at the AIPAC Policy Conference

Source: WH, 3-4-12

President Barack Obama delivers remarks to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) Policy Conference at the Washington Convention Center, Washington, D.C., March 4, 2012. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)
This morning, President Obama addressed the AIPAC Policy Conference in Washington, D.C., where he reaffirmed the strength of our Nation’s special bond with Israel. Tomorrow, President Obama will hold a bi-lateral meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House.
During his remarks today, the President discussed the actions his Administration has taken to support Israel:

But as you examine my commitment, you don’t just have to count on my words. You can look at my deeds. Because over the last three years, as President of the United States, I have kept my commitments to the state of Israel. At every crucial juncture – at every fork in the road – we have been there for Israel. Every single time.
Four years ago, I stood before you and said that “Israel’s security is sacrosanct. It is non-negotiable.” That belief has guided my actions as President. The fact is, my Administration’s commitment to Israel’s security has been unprecedented. Our military and intelligence cooperation has never been closer. Our joint exercises and training have never been more robust. Despite a tough budget environment, our security assistance has increased every year. We are investing in new capabilities. We’re providing Israel with more advanced technology – the type of products and systems that only go to our closest friends and allies. And make no mistake: we will do what it takes to preserve Israel’s Qualitative Military Edge – because Israel must always have the ability to defend itself, by itself, against any threat.

The President also discussed the importance of securing peace between Israelis and Palestinians – a goal shared by the Israeli government:

Of course, there are those who question not my security and diplomatic commitments, but my Administration’s ongoing pursuit of peace between Israelis and Palestinians. So let me say this: I make no apologies for pursuing peace. Israel’s own leaders understand the necessity of peace. Prime Minister Netanyahu, Defense Minister Barak, and President Peres – each of them have called for two states, a secure Israel that lives side by side with an independent Palestinian state.
I believe that peace is profoundly in Israel’s security interest. The reality that Israel faces – from shifting demographics, to emerging technologies, to an extremely difficult international environment – demands a resolution of this issue. And I believe that peace with the Palestinians is consistent with Israel’s founding values – because of our shared belief in self-determination; and because Israel’s place as a Jewish and democratic state must be protected.

President Obama also discussed the United States and Israel’s mutual interest in ensuring that Iran does not acquire nuclear weapons. As the President said: “Iran’s leaders should know that I do not have a policy of containment; I have a policy to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.”

A nuclear-armed Iran is completely counter to Israel’s security interests. But it is also counter to the national security interests of the United States. Indeed, the entire world has an interest in preventing Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon. A nuclear-armed Iran would thoroughly undermine the non-proliferation regime that we have done so much to build. There are risks that an Iranian nuclear weapon could fall into the hands of a terrorist organization. It is almost certain that others in the region would feel compelled to get their own nuclear weapon, triggering an arms race in one of the most volatile regions in the world. It would embolden a regime that has brutalized its own people, and it would embolden Iran’s proxies, who have carried out terrorist attacks from the Levant to southwest Asia.

President of Israel Shimon Peres acknowledges recognition from President Barack Obama during President Obama’s remarks to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) Policy Conference at the Washington Convention Center, Washington, D.C., March 4, 2012. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)