C’est qu’il tente de se faire pardonner et d’éviter la vengeance d’Obama après avoir appuyé Romney, son ami et ancien partenaire d’affaire.
PM to ministers: Don’t talk about Obama
Netanyahu orders party’s lawmakers not to comment on US president’s
re-election without coordinating statements with his office
re-election was celebrated almost everywhere around the world Wednesday,
while in Israel members of the Likud party rushed to expressed their
disappointment, some publicly and some anonymously.
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered all of his party’s ministers and
Knesset members to avoid commenting on Obama’s re-election without
coordinating their statements with the Prime Minister’s Office.
his disappointment with the election results, saying that Obama cannot
be trusted. “The State of Israel will not surrender to Obama. We have no
one to rely on but ourselves,” he argued.
Israel and we’re concerned that he will try to pressure Israel into
making concessions because of his chilly relationship with Netanyahu.”
Office was alarmed by the negative reactions to Obama’s re-election,
which could intensify the cold relationship between the two leaders –
and therefore decided to begin damage control and prevent uncoordinated
responses.
advisors received text messages from Netanyahu’s office, asking them not
to comment about Obama’s re-election. The Likud spokespersons were
requested to stick with the statements issued by Netanyahu’s office.
many in the political system saw as gross intervention in America’s
internal affairs. He hosted Republican candidate Mitt Romney in Israel
and was even included in the Republican Party’s election ads.
the first minister to admit Wednesday that Obama’s re-election did not
benefit Netanyahu. “This is probably not a very good morning for Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu,” Yishai said during a local authority
spokespersons’ conference in Eilat.
elections, he responded: “I don’t know if Israel interfered in the
elections or not, but in general we should not interfere in elections
taking place in another country.”
asked whether did not damage Israel’s relationship with the US by
interfering in the American election campaign.
people who think differently. I prefer to be part of the right minority
than of the wrong majority,” the president replied.
Livni wrote on her Facebook page that she congratulates Obama, “who
moved America once again. The US has put its future in Obama’s hands,
and that means a lot as far as we are concerned as well.
between Israel and the US, which are also built on the trust between
leaders that is missing today. Self-examination and deep reparation are
required.”
JERUSALEM — Le gouvernement israélien se retrouvait jeudi sur la
défensive, l’opposition et les commentateurs évoquant l’hypothèse d’une
« vengeance » du président Barack Obama en raison des sympathies affichées
par Benjamin Netanyahu en faveur du candidat républicain perdant Mitt
Romney.
Le ministre des Finances Youval Steinitz, un proche de M.
Netanyahu, a tenté de réfuter les accusations d’ingérence du Premier
ministre israélien dans la campagne présidentielle américaine.
« Nous
ne nous sommes pas immiscés dans les élections américaines, nous avons
été très prudents », a affirmé M. Steinitz à la radio publique.
« Ceux
qui colportent de fausses informations sur une intervention israélienne
dans le scrutin portent atteinte aux intérêts d’Israël », a-t-il accusé
en visant notamment l’ancien Premier ministre centriste Ehud Olmert.
M.
Olmert, qui envisage un retour en politique pour les élections
législatives du 22 janvier, a estimé qu’en prenant parti, M. Netanyahu a
« violé les règles de base qui régissent les relations entre États »,
selon des propos tenus devant la communauté juive de New-York rapporté
par des médias israéliens.
La dirigeante du Meretz, un parti
d’opposition de gauche, Zehava Galon, a renchéri en fustigeant
« l’intervention grossière de Benjamin Netanyahu dans les élections
américaines », parlant d’un « pari irresponsable ».
M. Netanyahu,
cité par la radio, a dû s’expliquer: « Certaines voix parmi nous tentent
de provoquer un conflit avec les États-Unis, mais elles n’y parviendront
pas. Je continuerai à travailler étroitement avec le président Obama
pour défendre les intérêts d’Israël », a-t-il assuré.
MM. Netanyahu
et Romney, des conservateurs libéraux, partagent des affinités
idéologiques encore renforcées par l’appartenance du républicain à
l’Eglise mormone, traditionnelle soutien de la droite nationaliste
israélienne.
L’ambassadeur des États-Unis en Israël, Dan Shapiro,
s’est efforcé d’apaiser la polémique en qualifiant de « ridicule » l’idée
d’un « désir de vengeance » du président réélu.
Le prix à payer
Les
analystes israéliens s’interrogent néanmoins sur le « prix » que Barack
Obama pourrait faire payer à M. Netanyahu à un peu plus de deux mois
d’un scrutin crucial.
« Netanyahu a parié et nous allons payer », résume le tabloïd Yédiot Aharonot.
Même
son de cloche à gauche, au Haaretz: « Obama a maintenant quatre ans pour
régler ses comptes avec Netanyahu, pour le soutien ouvert à Mitt
Romney, pour ses dépréciations (d’Obama) devant le Congrès, pour le gel
des négociations avec les Palestiniens, pour la colonisation et pour
avoir tenté de lui faire la leçon sur le dossier iranien ».
Le
premier test de l’humeur entre l’Américain et l’Israélien pourrait avoir
lieu très prochainement, à l’occasion de la demande de rehaussement du
statut de la Palestine au rang d’État non-membre à l’ONU.
« Netanyahu
espère que les Américains vont presser Mahmoud Abbas de renoncer à ce
projet, mais le président américain demandera en échange que le Premier
ministre fassent preuve de souplesse envers les Palestiniens », a
pronostiqué le commentateur politique de la radio publique.
La deuxième test devrait porter sur le programme nucléaire iranien controversé.
Selon
plusieurs commentateurs, Barack Obama pourrait tenter de négocier un
accord avec Téhéran sans fixer de limite de temps tandis que M.
Netanyahu ne cesse d’accuser l’Iran de procrastination.
En
septembre, M. Netanyahu a réclamé à hauts cris mais en vain à la Maison
Blanche d’imposer à l’Iran « des lignes rouges claires » à ne pas dépasser
dans son programme nucléaire, en menaçant de frapper préventivement les
installations atomiques iraniennes.
Mais il s’est heurté à une
fin de non-recevoir –au propre comme au figuré– du président américain
qui, comme le reste de la communauté internationale, privilégie à ce
stade un durcissement des sanctions contre l’Iran.
Copyright © 2012 AFP. Tous droits réservés.
Olmert: Netanyahu interfered in U.S. elections for Sheldon Adelson
return to politics, says Netanyahu might not have ‘a friend in the
White House’ after he publicly backed Republican nominee Romney.
Following U.S. President Barack Obama’s victory
in the American presidential elections, on Wednesday former Prime
Minister Ehud Olmert accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of
blatantly interfering in favor of Republican nominee Mitt Romney, adding
that he did so in the name of Netanyahu and Romney-backer Sheldon
Adelson.
« This represents a significant breach of the basic
rules governing ties between nations, made worse by the fact that these
are allies like Israel and the United States, » Olmert said during a
meeting with the heads of New York’s Jewish community.
Olmert, who’s weighing whether or not to make a return to politics
and run in the upcoming elections opposite Netanyahu, was asked by one
of those attending the meeting whether or not the Israeli public was
disturbed by the fact that the premier intervened in the U.S.
presidential campaign.
« The prime minister has a right to
prefer one candidate over another, » Olmert said, adding, however, that
it was « better, obviously, if he kept it to himself. What took place
this time was a breaking of all the rules, when our prime minister
intervened in the U.S. elections in the name of an American billionaire
with a clear interest in the vote. »
During the U.S. presidential elections, Adelson donated over $100
million to Romney’s campaign, announcing that it was his goal to take Obama out of the White House.
« The very same billionaire used Israel’s prime minister to advance a
nominee of his own for president, » Olmert told Jewish leaders in New
York.
Referring to Obama’s overnight victory, the former
premier congratulated the American president, saying that he « was a
friend to Israel before he was re-elected, and he shall remain a friend
of Israel now. »
According to Olmert, Israel-U.S. ties are based
on joint values, but that the level of trust between the American
president and the Israeli prime minister is of great significance in
this matter.
« Following what Netanyahu did in the last few
months, raises the question whether or not our prime minister has a
friend in the White House » Olmert said.
« I’m not sure, » he added. « This may be very significant for us at
critical junctures. Unfortunately, Netanyahu turned Israel from a topic
that was beyond all dispute in the American elections, to an issue at
the center of a debate. »
Obama wins, Netanyahu loses
The Israeli Prime Minister threw his full
support behind Mitt Romney. Will the president make him pay?
VIDEO
of political ricochets in Israel, which faces elections of its own in
just under two and a half months.
does when a cousin delivers bombshell news at a family reunion, with
eruptions of frenzy and concern.
sense of proportion more evident than in the hypocrisy and hyperbole so
cynically employed in order to try and depict Obama as some sort of
latter day Haman who seeks to undermine Israel, if not to destroy the
Jewish people completely, » he wrote. « Many millions of dollars were
wasted in a futile effort to wrest away a few percentage points of
Jewish voters away from the Democrats and into the Republican camp. »
in fact comprised of stubs left in drop-boxes strategically installed in
religious neighborhoods. And IvoteIsrael, upon investigation, appears
to have ties to a Republican operative in the United States.
time in attacking the prime minister for playing favorites with Romney.
In an unusually blunt statement on Israel Army Radio, former ambassador
Dan Kurtzer scolded Netanyahu for « unecessarily endorsing Romney —
something unprecendented — and causing tension in relations between the
two nations. He shouldn’t have done it. There was no reason for this. »
Ehud Olmert leveled a sharply worded analysis of Netanyahu’s actions,
saying that Netanyahu intervened in the American elections on behalf of
« an American billionaire » with a clear interest in the race. (Hint: His
name is Sheldon Adelson.)
presidential candidate. This is a serious violation of the basic
bilateral rules, especially when it comes to allies such as Israel and
the US, » Olmert said.
so now, » Olmert continued. But « after what Netanyahu has done in the
past few months — we have to ask whether the prime minister has a friend
in the White House. I’m not sure. »
fortunes of his Kadima party plummet since elections were announced,
sent a congratulatory letter to Obama and said on Israeli Radio that
Netanyahu had jeopardized Israel’s ties with its closest ally.
issue costs a lot of political capital, but brings very little results, »
wrote Noam Sheizaf, of the webzine www.972mag.com.
that Netanyahu’s Romney wager could lead to the resurgence of an
Israeli peace camp now that « no one is fooled by his denials that he
backed Romney and opposed Obama as demonstratively as he possibly
could. »
member of Netanyahu’s party, estimated that the « very strategic, very
disciplined » Obama is unlikely to quickly forget that Netanyahu betted
on Romney.
« I don’t think we can just assume that what happened between them over
past four years will have just evaporated. When people fight for their
political life and feel that their partner is trying to undermine their
chances — it’s not going to disappear. »
On the one hand, he summoned US Ambassador Daniel Shapiro to Jerusalem
to receive his well-wishes, in which (as was noted on every evening news
program) he was ample in his praise for the United States, but kept his
reflections on its re-elected president to a minimum.
greatest democracy on earth. The security relationship between the
United States and Israel is rock solid,” he said.
According to the Israeli news site Ynet, after several ministers
belonging to Netanyahu’s party made negative comments about the
electoral results, « the ministers’ spokespersons and advisers received text messages
from Netanyahu’s office, asking them not to comment about Obama’s
re-election. The Likud spokespersons were requested to stick with the
statements issued by Netanyahu’s office. »
news of Obama’s victory but also that of a political opponent of
Netanyahu who now leads a religious party challenging him, as something
of a personal Waterloo. Other Israel observers issued calming predictions that Obama, being Obama, will not seek revenge upon the Israeli prime minister.
center on the campaign, it will not be front and center in Obama’s
policy,” Martin Indyk, a Clinton-era ambassador to Israel, told Israel
Radio. “He had his fingers burned in dealing with the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict and unless he sees from both the
Palestinian leadership and the Israelis a real willingness to engage to
resolve the issue, I don’t think he’s going to make it a priority. I
think he is going to be focused on other parts of the world where he can
achieve more. »
U.S. rabbi faces dissent for slamming Obama Following a blog post insulting the U.S. president and his supporters, members of Rabbi Steven Pruzansky’s large Orthodox congregation in New Jersey circulated a petition taking him to task.
Zionist Lobby in US Takes a Hit in Latest National Election
Obama victory spells trouble for Israel’s Netanyahu
Poll: Israeli Jews favor Romney by wide margin
Kabbalists pray for ‘Moses’ Romney’s victory Quorum of ultra-religious men stage secret prayer meant to topple incumbent President Obama
‘Warm’ Netanyahu-Bennett Talk Heralds Anti-Obama Pact?
United States stock markets plunge after Obama’s reelection
Jewish journal reveals Zionist Israel-firsters dominate GOP foreign policy
Major Shake-Up in Congress
• 2012 election sees major changes coming in House & Senate for 2013
Congress will see a steep drop in Jewish members after the November election.
The United States Congress reached several milestones in the latest presidential election on Nov. 6. In this “Spotlight on Congress,” AFP takes a look at the changes that will occur in the next Congress, when a new round of legislators take their seats following the lame-duck session.
In the Senate, there were 10 incumbents who retired (six Democrats and four Republicans from Arizona, Connecticut, Hawaii, Maine, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Texas, Virginia and Wisconsin). One incumbent, Richard Lugar of Indiana, lost in the primary, and there was one special election due to the death of Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.) for the remainder of his term. Out of those 12 seats up for grabs, the Democrats gained three seats (Connecticut, Indiana and Massachusetts, the last won by Wall Street critic Elizabeth Warren who will be the first female senator from that state). The Republicans gained one seat (Nebraska) and an Independent gained another—Maine, which was won by Angus Stanley King Jr., former governor of that state from 1995 to 2003.
Overall in the Senate, the Democrats and Independents picked up one seat each, and the Republicans lost two, so that makes the count Democrats 53, Republicans 45 and independents 2.
Of special note is that, barring any unforeseen occurrences, there will be 20 female senators in the upper house, up from 17, the most ever in U.S. history.
And a big sigh of relief for freedom-loving Americans, their longtime nemesis Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman (I-Conn.), a champion of the police state, a neutered Internet and perhaps his true allegiance, Israel, is one of those retiring. AFP wishes Lieberman mazel tov!
The House of Representatives elections were held for all 435 seats and also for the delegates from the District of Columbia and five major U.S. territories.
In the House there were 40 incumbents who retired—21 Democrats and 19 Republicans, from districts in the 23 states of Arizona, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas, Washington and Wisconsin.
Unlike in the Senate, candidates in the House are impacted by their state’s population in the form of redistricting, and this is the first congressional election using apportioned districts based upon the 2010 Census.
A side effect of redistricting is that many incumbents vie against each other in the same district, which results in a higher than usual number of incumbents being defeated in the primaries.
Each state has its own redistricting standards, which is the process of drawing electoral district boundaries. And with redistricting comes gerrymandering, which is “the deliberatemanipulation of political boundaries for electoral advantage, usually of incumbents or a specific political party.”
According to the U.S. non-profit FairVote, which provides public information about “the impact of voting systems on political representation and voter turnout, issues reports on legislative redistricting and competition in U.S. congressional elections,” “the redrawn districts possibly represented the ‘worst congressional map ever,’ with most districts badly gerrymandered and uncompetitive.”
In the primary elections, 13 representatives lost renomination. Eight lost in redistricting battles pitting incumbents against each other, five incumbents lost nomination to non-incumbent challengers, and one failed to make the ballot for renomination. Seven of those losers were Democrats, five of which were due to redistricting and two due to a non-incumbent challenger, and six were Republicans; three in redistricting and three to a non-incumbent challenger, from the six states of Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Texas.
Also of note, according to USA Today, “the Senate will have six fewer veterans and the House may see little or no change in veterans’ representation as a result of Tuesday’s election, a disappointing result for those hoping to seemore vets in Congress.”
“The Senate currently has 26 veterans, but that number will fall to 20,” said the article, “and this is important because we have been losing about 10 veterans in each election over the last few cycles.”
Additionally, according to the Jewish weekly Forward, “Congress will see a steep drop in Jewish members after the November election,” which was correct.
Forward projected “that 31 members of the House and Senate will be Jewish in 2013. The last Congress with so few Jews entered service in 1979, according to data presented by the Pew Forum.”
On a final note, the House lost two great legislators, who championed peace and honest government.
Longtime peace advocate Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) was one of the congressmen who lost in a heated primary due to redistricting.
And Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) announced during his presidential election that he would be retiring and would not run again for his seat.
Romney,Wall Street Lose Big
On Nov. 7, following the presidential election, stocks and commodities took a hefty tumble in trading throughout the day, reports The New York Times. What was the reason? “Wall Street went long on Mitt Romney, doling out millions of dollars of donations in the hope of beating back financial regulation,” noted the Times. When Romney and Wall Street lost, conceded the Times, the top financial firms sent a message of their own by engaging in a hard sell-off.
Another Loser
Sheldon Adelson, the billionaire casino tycoon who spent $100 million on GOP political campaigns, couldn’t hide his disappointment with the 2012 election.
Israel Haymon, Adelson’s daily newspaper published in Israel, ran a headline on the day after the election which read “America Chose Socialism.”
Israel Hayom fervently supports Netanyahu, a close friend of Romney and the leading voice pushing for a war with Iran. Obama’s victory was a big upset to the warhawks who thought they had their Iran war in the bag.
