Results 1 to 4 of 4

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)

  1. #1
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Apr 2006
    Posts
    7,928

    Democrat Wants US to Reassess Aid to Israel

    International » Article
    Feb 23, 2009 23:56 | Updated Feb 24, 2009 15:46

    Baird wants US to reassess aid to Israel

    By HILARY LEILA KRIEGER, JERUSALEM POST CORRESPONDENT
    WASHINGTON

    A US congressman plans to brief fellow members of Congress and the Obama administration about his recent trip to Gaza, saying the US should pressure Israel regarding border closures and reassess its military support for the Jewish state.

    Rep. Brian Baird, a Democrat from Washington state, visited Gaza last week with fellow Democratic Rep. Keith Ellison of Minnesota and was struck by "the level of destruction, the scope of it, specifically the civilian targets - schools, hospitals, industry."

    Baird also said Israel had "apparently willfully destroyed any capacity of the Palestinians to rebuild their own infrastructure."

    The trip to Gaza by Baird and Ellison coincided with a separate visit there by John Kerry, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations
    Committee. Their presence marked the first time members of Congress had visited Gaza since US personnel were killed in a roadside bomb in 2003.

    Baird maintained that his fellow congressmen would benefit from his first-hand account of the situation in Gaza, as well as from photos and video footage he took. In addition to pictures of physical devastation in Gaza and families living in make-shift shelters there, Baird also has photos of damage from rocket fire on Sderot, which he condemned and planned to share as well. He also indicated he would like to bring in aid and medical workers from Gaza to share their stories.

    "If our colleagues had seen what we have seen, I think their understanding of the situation would be significantly impacted," he said. "They would care about what happened to the Palestinians."

    Baird added that he hoped they, as well as members of the Obama administration, would come away with a sense that "the US has a responsibility to insist on a change in the situation in Gaza and the situation in the West Bank."

    The congressman said he would like to see more humanitarian aid and goods reaching the people of Gaza, accompanied by open border crossings that would allow Palestinians to travel for trade and
    medical care.

    He also said he was troubled by the American origin of so much of the IDF weaponry used in Gaza, and suggested that the US should reconsider
    the military aid it provides and the weapons it sells to Israel.

    "We need to use every pressure available to make these needed changes happen," he said.

    Baird said the Congressional briefing could come as early as next week, with administration briefings being more tentative. He has also talked to Ellison about penning op-eds and otherwise raising awareness of the issue.

    Ellison's office had not responded to queries from The Jerusalem Post by press time.

    Pro-Israel organizations were chagrined at the message Baird was preparing to deliver to his colleagues but said they weren't concerned that many minds would be changed.

    "By and large, we continue to see support for Israel and understand why it was necessary for Israel's leaders to do what they did," one official said about Congress, speaking anonymously. "I'm not afraid of these members coming back and giving a briefing."

    A representative from a dovish Israeli group welcomed Baird's efforts to publicize his experience in Gaza, noting that it was unusual to hold Congressional briefings presenting this perfect, but also didn't expect members' attitudes towards Israel to change.

    "To expect that that would bring about a sharp change in Congress's attitude toward Israel is a reach," he said.

    Meanwhile, the State Department said Monday that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton would pledge a "substantial" amount of aid for Gaza and the Palestinian Authority at a donors' meeting in Egypt next week.

    The conference, to take place in Sharm e-Sheikh on March 2, was called to raise funds for the reconstruction of Gaza.

    "The United States will announce a substantial pledge of humanitarian assistance and support for the Palestinian Authority," an official said.

    The official declined to give a figure because Congress had yet to approve the sum, but said it could amount to hundreds of millions of dollars.

    Preliminary estimates have put the damage in the Gaza Strip following Operation Cast Lead at nearly $2 billion.

    News agencies contributed to this report.

    http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite? ... 2FShowFull

    Brian Baird represents the 3rd Congressional District of Washington:
    http://www.house.gov/baird

    Congressman Baird's Press Release on these issues follows below.
    Join our efforts to Secure America's Borders and End Illegal Immigration by Joining ALIPAC's E-Mail Alerts network (CLICK HERE)

  2. #2
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Apr 2006
    Posts
    7,928
    February 24, 2009
    For Immediate Release

    February 19th 2009
    Brian Views Destruction in Gaza – Calls for Immediate Relief and Change in Policy

    Washington, D.C. – Two members of Congress, Brian Baird (D-WA-03), and Keith Ellison, (D-MN-05), visited Gaza on Thursday to view firsthand the destruction from recent Israeli air and ground attacks and to meet with international and local relief agencies. This visit, which did not have the official sanction of the Obama Administration, is the first time anyone from the U.S. government has entered Gaza in more than three years.

    Prior to Gaza, both Congressmen met with the chief negotiator of the Palestinian Authority, Dr. Saeb Erekat, as well as with Dr. Riad Malki Foreign Minister of the Palestinian Authority. On Friday, Baird and Ellison will tour the Israeli towns of Sderot and Ashkelon, which have been the target of numerous rockets before and throughout the recent attacks launched from within the Gaza strip.

    “Staff from the U.S. State Department advised us of security concerns for our own safety, and we are well aware of the sensitive political issues involved in this visit,â€
    Join our efforts to Secure America's Borders and End Illegal Immigration by Joining ALIPAC's E-Mail Alerts network (CLICK HERE)

  3. #3
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Jul 2008
    Location
    NC
    Posts
    11,242
    Call me a protectionist but why are we giving aid to any country? Of course politics has nothing to do with this!
    Join our efforts to Secure America's Borders and End Illegal Immigration by Joining ALIPAC's E-Mail Alerts network (CLICK HERE)

  4. #4
    Super Moderator Newmexican's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2005
    Location
    Heart of Dixie
    Posts
    36,012
    It seems to me as though the world and our politicians seem to think that the American people are some how magically able to eat paper and "produce" money. That is not the way my grandmother used to say it, but you get the picture.

    A billion here a billion there.. These people seem to think that we can afford to pay for foreign aide ot countries that don't need it, to pay UN taxes, pay for carbon credits, when the developing world is the greatest offfender ( you can't even see Bejing for the smog) AND support 30 million illegals that are breaking the economy with their free health care, housing and other subsidies.

    The American taxpayer can not just pull it out of our backsides to support the world while we lose our homes and our families suffer.

    http://uk.news.yahoo.com/22/20090223/tw ... 5ae06.html

    U.S. plans $900 million pledge for Gaza
    The United States plans to pledge more than $900 million (621 million pounds) to help rebuild Gaza after Israel's invasion and strengthen the Western-backed Palestinian Authority, a U.S. official said on Monday.
    The money will be channelled through U.N. and other bodies and will not be distributed via the militant group Hamas, which rules Gaza, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity as U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton plans to make the announcement next week at a Gaza donors conference in Egypt.
    (Reporting by Sue Pleming)



    Longer Story from MSNBC.

    http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29352401/
    Support our FIGHT AGAINST illegal immigration & Amnesty by joining our E-mail Alerts at https://eepurl.com/cktGTn

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •