Who Says Sarah Palin Can't Think?

Not this Palin:

Palin has also been talking about foreign policy. In an extended on-the-bus interview with Fox News’ Greta van Susteren, Palin addressed a proposal for $2 billion in U.S. aid to Egypt. “We don’t have the $2 billion!” Palin said. “Where are we going to get it? We’re going to go borrow it perhaps from China? We’ll borrow money from foreign countries to give to foreign countries.” The problem would be far worse, Palin said, if the Muslim Brotherhood plays a significant role in a new Egyptian government and “our U.S. dollars go to support a government that perhaps will not be friendly to the American government.”

I think that content very thoughtful.


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Palin's Jewish Star Still Visible

Spotted:

You see it?

Yesterday in Jersey City.

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Palin's Star of David

President Obama goes to a church named Shiloh but Sarah Palin wears a prominent symbol of her connection to the people and the land of Israel where the original Shiloh is:

(k/t = JED)

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It's An Issue of Zoning

Reported:-

Sarah Palin on Wednesday night hammered President Obama for not standing strongly enough behind Israel, conceding too much to the Palestinians, and interfering in a local “zoning issue” – settlement building on the West Bank.

“I think there are many in Israel who would feel even more comfortable knowing that there is an even greater commitment from those who presently occupy the White House that they are there on Israel's side, and that our most valuable ally in that region can count on us,” Palin told Fox News’ Greta Van Susteren in an interview in Naples, Florida.
...Palin struck a pro-Israel tone saying, if she were president, she would take an opposite approach to Obama and stay out of Israel’s way regarding settlements in the West Bank, and take a harder line with Palistineans.

“President Obama was inappropriate to intervene in a zoning issue in Israel,” she said, referring to settlement building on the West Bank. "Let Israel decide their zoning issues themselves.”

Palin said the current administration concedes too much to Palestinians. “Why is it in that the past, too often, the U.S. government has told Israel that they’re the ones, the Jewish community, that they need to back up, they need to back off or there will never be peace,” she said. “Why aren’t we putting our foot down with the other side and telling the Palestinians, If you’re serious about peace, quit the shellacking and the shelling. Quit the bombing of innocent Israelis.”’”

Something I caught which wasn't in the release by Fox:

Palin is asked about the fact that the Israelis have asked our help (implying that if we get help then we are beholden to the US to the extent that we shouldn't do what we want or need to do or should be allowed to do) and Palin answers: "let them build", at around 11:15. "Pesident Obama didn't want to see that allowance of building, and I would have taken the opposite approach".

She adds "Israel facing concession after concession, threat after threat".

I hope there's a transcript around.
You can see the clip here (k/t= Cheryl Lewin).
The Israel theme begins at approximately 9:40.

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Star of David Follow-up on Sarah Palin

Remember my Sarah Palin 'Star of David' post?

Well, her adversaries were upset:-

Some American Jews, like Rabbi Jeffrey Falick of TheAtheistRabbi.com, feel that Palin is merely in Israel "for her own gain, unrelated to the best interests of Jews, Palestinians or anyone else in the region." Falick, for one, wishes that Palin would "take off" the star.

The Atlantic blogger Andrew Sullivan posted a response from a reader echoing Falick's sentiments: "I don't know if there [are] rules about this, but as a Jew, I find it offensive that Sarah Palin is out wearing a Star of David."

The Washington Post got up a slideshow of politicians at the Western Wall but Palin went to the tunnels, not the outside wall and she went to see the "cornerstone" element, not the regular "take-my-picture-at-the-wall" visit.  Which is indicative of a depth of feeling and identification that is different.

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Now We Have The "Sarah Palin Mystery Tour"

Reported:-

Sarah Palin, the US former vice presidential candidate, yesterday appeared to make an aborted trip to Bethlehem, the traditional birthplace of Jesus, when her vehicle approached an Israeli checkpoint before turning back.

Mrs Palin was visiting Israel on her way back from India as she attempts to bolster her thin foreign policy experience amid speculation that she could run for the American presidency in 2012. But the private three-day visit, deliberately conducted out of the media glare, was briefly the subject of intrigue when a car carrying Mrs Palin, her husband Todd and Israeli guides, stopped at an Israeli checkpoint at the entrance to the West Bank town before turning round.
Photographers at the scene said that no one got out of the car before it headed back in the direction of Jerusalem, a 20-minute drive away, via a nearby monastery.
It remains unclear why they drove away, or indeed whether Mrs Palin had actually intended to visit Bethlehem, which is under Palestinian control. Israelis need permission to enter Palestinian territory. The Israeli military authority that coordinates West Bank access for foreign dignitaries said that it had received no request from Mrs Palin's team about a visit to Bethlehem.

Of course, it could have been that she never intended to enter the city as her scheduling time did not account for that.

Maybe she did not have enough security or Danon forgot to coordinate the visit with the authorities who are in charge of VIPs.

But we're now left with a mystery.

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Further News on Sarah Palin's Israel Visit: Stop Apologizing

From here:

...Palin was told that Jews were not allowed to pray openly on the Temple Mount and about the Arab riots that accompanied Netanyahu’s decision to authorize the creation of an exit from the Western Wall tunnels in 1996.  “Why are you apologizing all the time?” Palin asked her guides.

...[Rabbi Shmuel] Rabinowitz said that Palin prayed at the point closest to the Holy of Holies and left a note with a personal prayer...“She said that she absolutely supports Israel and that America is the biggest friend that Israel has,” Rabinowitz said.

[Likud MK Danny] Danon said that Palin’s visit to the Western Wall Tunnels was very exciting. “She really connected to the story of the Jewish nation,” Danon said. “She knows the material but there’s nothing like standing in front of those big stones and hearing about the connection. I know that she loves Israel, and after a visit like this, she has a personal connection to the Western Wall.”

...Palin, who was wearing a large Star of David, told Danon that she had flags of Israel “on my desk, in my home, all over the place” and that she would carry around a flag she bought in Israel.  “She didn’t go into diplomatic issues, but I can clearly say from the questions she asked in relation to our conflict here with the Muslims in these holy sites that she knows that we are right and that the Muslims are just claiming things for provocation and they’re not right,” Danon said. [that is Danon's interpretation note]

Here, also:

While visiting the Western Wall, Palin was told by Danon that Jews and Christians are not permitted to pray or even carry Bibles atop the Muslim-controlled Temple Mount, despite the fact that it is Judaism’s holiest site.  Palin responded: “Why are you apologizing all the time?”

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Netanyahu Hosts Sarah Palin

Informed:

PM NETANYAHU WILL TODAY (MON.), 21.3.11, AT 20:15, AT HIS JLEM RESIDENCE, MEET FORMER ALASKA GOV. SARAH PALIN.
NO COVERAGE; PHOTOGRAPHY BY GPO
(COMM. BY PM'S MEDIA ADVISER

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Star + Star of David = A Shining Hope

Sarah Palin is here and she visited the Western Wall Tunnels (I hope the Muslim Waqf doesn't accuse her of trying to undermine the foundations of their Haram, our Temple Mount):

Neat Star of David there (photo: Meged Gozany).

I don't think any of my camp will be meeting her although I understand that outreaches are being made but as the visit was more of a private one and didn't go through political channels, I am not sure what we can achieve - this time around.

UPDATE

This Hebrew site reports that Palin responded to the Rabbi of the Western Wall, "I have no differences with Israel" after he intimated that the US-Israel friendship is strong 'despite the differences'.

Here she is with MK Danny Danon.

Finally a video clip, in Hebrew but you can hear Palin speak of the "cornerstone of our faith", how she is "overwhelmed".

Ynet has the statement:

"Israel is absolutely beautiful and it is overwhelming to see and touch the cornerstone of our faith and I am so grateful to get to be here," Palin told reporters. "I'm very thankful to know that the Israeli and American link will grow in strength as we seek peace along with you," Palin said.

Of course, the intelligent American liberal, Bill Maher, could permit himself to call her a "Dumb t__t".  And who is uncouth?
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Lamestream Media (and is Sarah Palin Coming to Israel?)

Term comes from here.

And yes, it's a Sarah Palin camp word.

As for coming to Israel saw this story.  Seems verified here.

And the official web site reads:

Statement from Governor Palin on her upcoming trip to Israel.

Following her remarks in New Delhi, Governor Sarah Palin will stop in Israel before returning to the U.S. for a previously scheduled event.

"I'm thankful to be able to travel to Israel on my way back to the U.S.," Governor Palin said. "As the world confronts sweeping changes and new realities, I look forward to meeting with Prime Minister Netanyahu to discuss the key issues facing his country, our ally Israel."

Maybe Danny Danon was involved?
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Remember Sarah Palins's "Blood Libel" Incident?

If you do, then what do you think of this?

People, don’t give Sarah Palin and the Tea Party a pass for their hateful rhetoric. It has energized some very disturbed, racist individuals in this country to shoot and kill innocent people in the name of “Take America Back.”


Who are they taking it back from? Last time I checked, we were all Americans… black, white, green, yellow, Jewish, or Catholic. When we go to war, we go as one. When terrorists bomb a building and kill Americans, we all mourn. When a natural disaster devastates an American city and loved ones perish, we all grieve. When teams win championships, black and white fans come together to cheer for their home cities.

Palin, the Tea Party, and right-wing pundits like Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, and Bill O’Reilly have blood on their hands.  The bodies in Tucson are on them. Palin’s assertion that she’s a victim of “blood libel” is reprehensible and ridiculous. Everyday this lady and those conservative talking heads are on the radio, cable television, Facebook, and Twitter gassing people up with directives to take back the country. They make false claims, including the trope about the black U.S. president not being a citizen. Sick, racist folks listen to this shit, believe it, and are motivated to take violent measures.

(K/t: GP)

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Jewish-Themed Satire at The New Yorker

Allison Silverman composed a piece that has its humor moments, entitled:

A House Divided, and Other Presidential Speeches About the Jews

It spins off the media storm on the statement made by Sarah Palin it which she accused the media of manufacturing a “blood libel.”

Silverman suggests that many US Presidents’ great moments of rhetoric were, in fact, allusions to far-fetched beliefs about the Jews.

Here are two:

• When a young U.S. Senate nominee named Abraham Lincoln warned, “A house divided against itself cannot stand,” he was referring to the then widespread misconception that Kosher households, burdened with two kitchens, one for meat and one for dairy, led to architectural problems which often caused the homes to collapse.

• “Speak softly and carry a big stick” was Theodore Roosevelt’s way of reminding himself to live like the biblical Moses, who had a speech impediment and carried a large staff. At the time, many Christians mistakenly believed that after liberating the Jews from Egypt, Moses invaded Cuba and wore a monocle.

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Making A Statement

Ben Smith, Yisrael Medad and Sarah Palin

Carl caught it first, here.

My interview with Ben Smith of POLITICO.

Why don't you comment there as some balance is needed.


UPDATE

Alana Goodman's take.

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Sarah Palin's Marching Orders

.

...You can stand with allies like Israel, not criticize them. You can let the President know what you believe – Jerusalem is the capital of Israel, not a settlement.

Source


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Some Liberal Doesn't Appreciate Sarah Palin

Found here:

...[Sarah] Palin has positioned herself as a territory maximalist, arguing for the righteousness of continued Jewish settlement of the West Bank, including those parts of the West Bank, presumably, beyond the security fence. This line of argument places her well to the right of the position taken, late in his career, of Ariel Sharon. As I have pointed out on innumerable occasions, this position, seemingly Zionist (or super-Zionist, even) on the surface, actually undermines the idea of Israel as a Jewish state, because settlements are the vanguard of eventual bi-nationalism, not of a Greater Israel. Israel simply cannot absorb the West Bank's Arabs and remain either a Jewish state or a democracy. For an American politician to argue otherwise is a danger to Israel. Sarah Palin encourages the most recidivist elements of the Israeli right, and it is absolutely vital for the Israeli right to grapple with demographic, political and moral reality, before it's too late.

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"Rabbi" Sarah Palin?

Found here.

Pssssst! Wanna See a Picture...

...of Sarah Palin with a Israeli lapel pin?

Here.

So How Come Sarah Palin Hasn't Been Invited to Israel Yet?

Pamela Geller alerted me to a report on

the formation of an organization called Jewish Americans for Sarah Palin.





Plans for the new group are set to be announced on Sunday by a Philadelphia-based journalist and activist named Binyamin Korn, a former executive director of the Zionist Organization of America...The group also hopes to counter suggestions — by, among others, such opposite figures as the widely read Atlantic magazine blogger Jeffrey Goldberg and the left-of-center, anti-Israel publication Counterpunch — that Mrs. Palin’s support for Israel is animated by “end of days” theology that believes an in-gathering in Israel will precede the apocalypse and the destruction of the Jews.

Mr. Korn dismisses such talk, saying that there is “a wide range of views about religion within the Jewish Community and an even wider range of views about religion in the Christian community” and that “whatever motives Governor Palin may have or may be imputed to her are entirely within the mainstream of American discourse . . .” He said his group was encouraged by a defense of Mrs. Palin in an op-ed piece in the Wall Street Journal by the most famous neo-conservative, Norman Podhoretz, who wrote that he would “rather be ruled by the Tea Party than by the Democratic Party” and “would rather have Sarah Palin sitting in the Oval Office than Barack Obama.”

What Jewish Americans for Sarah Palin is saying, Mr. Korn said, “is that the most articulate person in the public arena today in opposition to the Obama administration’s shift in policies against Israel is Sarah Palin.” He called her “very direct,” particularly on the controversy of Jewish settlements in Judea and Samaria, on terrorism policies, and on the emerging Obama doctrine...

I have been in contact with some people and asked if anyone is trying to arrange for a visit of Mrs. Palin to Israel and specifically to inform her on the reasons why Israel needs her help and why the Jewish communities deserves her support in addition to her natural inclinations, as she said in her interview last November:

ABC quotes Gov. Palin as saying Obama is wrong to oppose settlement expansion, an ongoing issue that is dimming the chances for progress on peace between Palestinians and Israelis.

"I disagree with the Obama administration on that," Palin said. "I believe that the Jewish settlements should be allowed to be expanded upon, because that population of Israel is, is going to grow. More and more Jewish people will be flocking to Israel in the days and weeks and months ahead. And I don't think that the Obama administration has any right to tell Israel that the Jewish settlements cannot expand."

Whether she believes our communities will grow due to God or plain old Zionism is a very good base to build on. There are many other good reasons and she should be hear to see, learn and be impressed by all the factors: geopolitical, ideological, legal rights, military and more.

So, when is she coming?

If I Was Sarah Palin's Speechwriter

The nuclear war between Sarah Palin and Barack Obama continues.

As we know:

Sarah Palin had launched the first strike Wednesday on the Sean Hannity Show when she criticized President Obama's nuclear policy by stating that the revamped nuclear strategy, saying it was like a child in a playground who says 'punch me in the face, I'm not going to retaliate."

The next day, President Obama replied, "I really have no response to that. The last I checked, Sarah Palin is not much of an expert on nuclear issues."

On Friday, in a wide ranging speech before the Southern Republican Leadership Conference that criticized a number of Obama administration policies, Sarah Palin referred to President Obama's "--all that vast nuclear expertise he acquired as a community organizer, a part-time senator and a candidate for president."

I would have added a special spin on that community organizer comment, something like:

The only thing nuclear Obama knows is from him experience as a community organizer having to deal with the fallout from the breakdown of nuclear families.

Of course, that could be criticized as beyond the limitations of proper discourse but heck, politics is not the most cleanest of occupations.