Okay, I'm going to be polite, so click "There's more..." to read this.
I wrote it a few days ago, when my mom got this email. I spent a little while researching, since I don't think there was an official response yet then.
I go point by point through the whole thing, so it might be worth reading for talking points, Dean folks. It's practically a line-by-line refutation.
HOWARD DEAN PROMISED THAT IF HE IS ELECTED PRESIDENT, THE UNITED STATES WILL NO LONGER SUPPORT ISRAEL THE WAY IT HAS IN THE PAST UNDER BOTH DEMOCRATIC AND REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTS.
A group of Vermont journalists who covered Howard Dean during his six terms as governor, recently published a book about him. Called Howard Dean: A Citizen's Guide to the Man Who Would Be President (ed. Dirk Van Susteren), it attempts to give an unbiased portrait of Dr. Dean. Here is what they have to say about his views on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict:
"Dean stumbled into a small political thicket in September 2003 when he told a New Mexico audience that an 'enormous number' of Israeli settlements on the West Bank would have to be dismantled as part of any peace accord, and that it was not America's place 'to take sides' in the conflict. The Dean campaign quickly explained that he meant only that America should not take sides on the specific negotiating details between the two sides. [....] For all the tumult Dean's remarks caused, fundamental support for Israel is as much a presidential obligation as keeping the country strong. Parties and candidates may differ over timetables, details and personalities, but there is a foreign policy consensus behind America's commitment to the security of the state of Israel--based on strategic and moral, as well as political, considerations. Dean has always been part of that consensus, which now includes support for a Palestinian state. This is one area where Howard Dean and George W. Bush agree." And as for those settlements Dean thinks have to be dismantled? He has a caveat for such a deal--first, the terror attacks have to stop.
There is one way Howard Dean would change America's position in the Middle East from "the way it has been in the past under both Democratic and Republican presidents." The book continues ends its section on the Middle East with this Dean quote:
"The United States must reduce its dependence on Middle Eastern oil, and we must have a president who is willing to confront the Iranians, the Syrians, the Saudis, and others who send money to Hamas and finance a worldwide network of fundamentalist schools which teach small children to hate Americans, Christians, and Jews."
IN HIS OWN WORDS HE WILL INSIST THAT THE UNITED STATES BE "EVEN HANDED" .
What he said, to be exact, is:
"Israel has always been a longtime ally with a special relationship with the United States. But, if we are going to bargain by being in the middle of the negotiations, then we are going to have to take an evenhanded role."
THIS IS A TERM REGULARLY EMPLOYED BY ARAFAT AND HIS COTERIE OF ADHERENTS THAT MEANS TO BE ANTI-ISRAEL!!
Here is what Howard Dean thinks of "Arafat and his coterie of adherents" :
"Yassir Arafat is not the answer." (Address to the Council on Foreign Relations, 6/25/03)
"When they have bothered to state them, the Administration's guiding principles in the Middle East are the right ones. Terrorism against Israel must end. A two-state solution is the only path to eventual peace, but Palestinian territory cannot have the capability of being used as a platform against Israel. Some degree of separation between Israelis and Palestinians is probably necessary in light of the horrible bloodshed of the past two years. To be viable, the Palestinian Authority must become democratic and purged of corruption." (Foreign Policy Address at Drake University, 2/17/03)
Upon being told that "evenhanded" is a word used by Arafat et al, the doctor said, in retrospect, he should not have used the term:
"I've since learned that that is a very sensitive word to use in certain communities, so perhaps I could have used a different euphemism. But the fact of the matter is, at the negotiating table, we have to have the trust of both sides."
GOVERNOR DEAN MADE THESE COMMENTS ON CNN ON SEPTEMBER 10,2003 ON THE WOLF BLITZER SHOW. HE HAS REPEATED THOSE WORDS SINCE.
No. He has not repeated those words since, except to say he did not mean it to endorse Arafat.
IF THIS WERE NOT ENOUGH, GOVERNOR DEAN ON THAT SAME SHOW CHARACTERIZED THE HAMAS TERRORISTS AS "SOLDIERS". FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE 9/11 WE HAVE SOMEONE RUNNING FOR THE OFFICE OF PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES CALLING TERRORISTS SOLDIERS.
Wolf Blitzer asked Howard Dean if he was opposed to the targeted killings of Hamas leaders by the Israeli Defense Forces. He said "I think no one likes to see violence of any kind," but "there is a war going on in the Middle East, and members of Hamas are soldiers in that war, and, therefore, it seems to me that they are going to be casualties if they are going to make war." Howard Dean, you see, was not suggesting Hamas terrorists deserve to be treated as soldiers under the Geneva Convention. On the contrary, his implication is that terrorists get what's coming to them when they're murdered, and Israel is well within its rights to assassinate them in cold blood. I don't know any friend of Israel who disagrees with that sentiment.
I URGE YOU THAT IF YOU HAVE ANY LOVE FOR AMERICA AND ISRAEL YOU SHOULD NOT AND CANNOT VOTE FOR HOWARD DEAN FOR THE OFFICE OF PRESIDENT.
Howard Dean's campaign co-chairman is Steve Grossman, who in addition to being a former chief of the Democratic National Committee, is also the former president of AIPAC, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. Called "the most important organization affecting America's relationship with Israel" by the New York Times, AIPAC is also considered one of America's most powerful interest groups by Fortune magazine. Their website states: "Through more than 2,000 meetings with members of Congress--at home and in Washington--AIPAC activists help pass more than 100 pro-Israel legislative initiatives a year. From procuring nearly $3 billion in aid critical to Israel's security, to funding joint U.S.-Israeli efforts to build a defense against unconventional weapons, AIPAC members are involved in the most crucial issues facing Israel."
It is also worth remembering that Howard Dean's wife, Dr. Judith Steinberg Dean, is Jewish, and that their children have been raised Jewish as well.
THIS COMING ELECTION MAY VERY WELL BE ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT IN DECADES.
I agree. Furthermore, I suggest that this election is so important that it should be decided on the basis of facts and candidates' records, not groundless, anonymous smear campaigns designed to spread fear, uncertainty, and doubt.
PLEASE PASS THIS MESSAGE ON TO AS MANY OF YOUR FAMILY AND FRIENDS AS YOU CAN.
If you do so, be sure to pass on these corrections, too. If the deceptions I've revealed upset you, please considering donating your time or spare change at http://www.deanforamerica.com.
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Jon Rubin
email: jonr@tampabay.rr.com
blog-in-construction: www.ubiquit.us