Elon Musk and his team at the Department of Government Efficiency—or DOGE—have been granted access to a sensitive Treasury Department payment system that contains the personal information of every American who receives tax refunds, Medicare, Social Security, and other payments from the government.
‘It’s a Coup’: Musk’s DOGE Granted Access to Treasury System That Pays Out Social Security
The House on Tuesday passed a resolution that says “anti-Zionism is antisemitism,” the chamber’s latest piece of legislation conflating criticism of Israel with antisemitism.
House Passes Bill That States ‘Anti-Zionism is Antisemitism’
Related:
Whereas the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of antisemitism is widely accepted and serves as a critical tool to help individuals comprehend and identify the various manifestations of antisemitism;
Whereas, since the massacre of innocent Israelis by Hamas, an Iran-backed terrorist organization, on October 7, 2023, antisemitic incidents of harassment, vandalism, and assault in the United States have spiked 388 percent over the same period last year, according to reports from the Anti-Defamation League‘s (ADL) Center on Extremism;
‘Labor’ camps, next?!
The damage Israel is causing to its support base in the United States is becoming more apparent. A very bright warning flare went up this weekend, appearing once again in the New York Times. This time, it was columnist Nicholas Kristof who took a much bolder and far less speculative step than his colleague, Tom Friedman did last week by suggesting that the very heart of AIPAC’s mission—annual military aid to Israel—should be phased out.
Friedman, you might recall, floated the idea that a “reassessment” of the United States’ relationship with Israel might be on the horizon, if not already starting. As I noted, that was meant as a warning to Israel, not a reflection of any actual steps by Joe Biden’s White House to launch a policy process of reassessment. Indeed, as subsequent events confirmed, and as was indicated by the fact that Friedman cited no sources, even anonymous ones, this was the columnist trying to use his column to get Israel to back off because political winds are shifting. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not heed the warning, instead moving forward uncompromisingly on his domestic agenda and misleading the media about his conversation with Biden. Needless to say, that didn’t sit well in Washington.
Leading liberal Zionist voices call for ending U.S. aid to Israel
Israel President Herzog’s ‘honest’ speech to the US Congress
But if we are honest with ourselves, we should admit that we have also copied the worst of imperial Europe. We share a dark past of settler colonialism, war, ethnic cleansing of Indigenous inhabitants and a persistent history of racism and discrimination including slavery in the Americas, and apartheid in Palestine.
Our success was made possible through the blood and tears of countless victims. We’ve treated our nemeses as warmongers, our critics as enemies, and our enemies as modern-day Hitlers, but no other states have waged as many wars, or embarked on as many military interventions in the past eight decades as we have.
…
But unlike him [Chaim Herzog], I can no longer keep silent as our military and civilian occupation mutates into an apartheid system in the Middle East. I do not say that lightly; I say it with a heavy heart. I do not say it out of pity for the millions of Palestinians, most of whom stubbornly linger under occupation and in refugee camps, I say it out of pity for my people and what’s become of us as decades-long occupiers and dispossessors. Our chutzpah is self-defeating. Our hasbara is wearing thin.
I never was a particularly brave or charismatic parliamentarian and head of the opposition. But that stops now, knowing I will never again have a better platform to address your people and mine. We may have become rich and powerful but we’ve never been so divided, so fanatical; so morally bankrupt.
Friends speak truth to each other. Good friends speak the bitter truth. It befalls upon you, once again, to save us from ourselves. To free us and the Palestinians from an entrenching system of apartheid that is bound to lock us in hatred and violence for decades to come. There is little I can do, as a ceremonial president, other than to speak out.
So, I urge you to condemn racism and apartheid today, as you condemned apartheid in South Africa, albeit belatedly in the past. And I urge you to push us to come to terms with the Palestinians, who soon will become the majority between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea.
Do not believe a word Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says about the Palestinians; he has made a career out of trafficking in fear.
Liberal Zionists rushed to affirm their support for Israel and hatred of anti-Zionism in the wake of the Pramila Jayapal “racist state” comment because they are afraid the Israel lobby will abandon the Democratic party.
Biden, Jayapal, and liberal Zionists rush to prop up the Israel lobby for 2024
President Biden may have crossed a new red line for the Democratic Party when he announced he would send banned cluster munitions to shore up Ukraine’s slow counter-offensive against Russian troops.
Stop Biden From Sending Cluster Bombs to Ukraine
Related:
Rep. Gaetz Says He Will Co-Sponsor Amendment to Block Cluster Bombs to Ukraine
Gaetz said that the NDAA will be voted on this week in the House. “We have an opportunity with bipartisanship to stand against the war-mongering Bidens,” he said.
Here’s why supplying Ukraine with cluster munitions would be a terrible mistake
Democrats Denounce Biden’s Decision to Send Cluster Munitions to Ukraine
A powerful pressure campaign is operating behind the scenes and distorting American policy.
The Ukraine Lobby’s Latest Targets
AMY GOODMAN: This is Democracy Now!, Democracynow.org, the War and Peace Report. When we come back, as the Biden administration vows more military aid for Ukraine we host a debate on the U.S. response to the war and U.S. policy toward Russia. We will speak with Ray McGovern, former CIA analyst who specialized in the Soviet Union, as well as former Bernie Sanders advisor Matt Duss, a Ukrainian-American who is now a Fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International peace. Stay with us.
How to End the War in Ukraine: Matt Duss and Ray McGovern Debate U.S. Policy on Russia, NATO & More
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“The letter was drafted several months ago, but unfortunately was released by staff without vetting. As Chair of the Caucus, I accept responsibility for this. Because of the timing, our message is being conflated by some as being equivalent to the recent statement by Republican Leader McCarthy threatening an end to aid to Ukraine if Republicans take over. The proximity of these statements created the unfortunate appearance that Democrats, who have strongly and unanimously supported and voted for every package of military, strategic, and economic assistance to the Ukrainian people, are somehow aligned with Republicans who seek to pull the plug on American support for President Zelensky and the Ukrainian forces.
Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Statement on Ukraine Letter
Saw someone comment, on this video, about how the letter couldn’t have been written in July—or something like that (I didn’t screenshot it, unfortunately, and can’t find it now). I totally missed the part, in the letter, about the annexations. Referenda were September 23-27. Letter was released October 24. That’s only one month (Go figure, the first one to notice was a NAFO troll)! Haven’t been able to find anyone that pointed this out in any articles, just Tweets. On another note, Kevin McCarthy didn’t say that he was going to end military aid! They’re taking him out of context!
Biden Orders Progressives to Denounce Themselves on Ukraine
Congressional “progressives” are cowards and charlatans. They may actually believe in some of what they claim to espouse but at the end of the day they are more opportunistic than anything else. They have carved out a niche for themselves in certain parts of the country where voters are in fact progressive and want to see their political ideology put into practice. But good luck ever seeing that when the leader of the Congressional Progressive Caucus makes a fool of herself and her members when they didn’t have the courage of their very slim convictions.
According to Ryan Grim, Kevin McCarthy didn’t say that he would stop funding Ukraine. He was basically referring to his voters.
Ms. Cat’s Chronicles 
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