Compiled by Donald H. Harrison
The U.S. Senate’s confirmation of Ashton Carter by a 93-5 vote to be U.S. Secretary of Defense, replacing Chuck Hagel, means that Israel will have another friend in the Obama administration, according to a statement by Greg Rosenbaum, board chair of the National Jewish Democratic Council.
“Knowing Ashton Carter from his time at the Harvard Kennedy School, I am confident that this is the right man for the job,” Rosenbaum said following the Feb. 12 confirmation vote. “His remarkable understanding of nuclear proliferation issues makes him uniquely qualified in the ongoing effort to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, and Israeli leaders will be pleased to find they have another stalwart friend joining the administration. It is clear from this overwhelmingly bipartisan vote that leaders on both sides of the aisle agree that Ash’s credentials are impeccable, and we congratulate him on this tremendous day. We look forward to working with him in the months and years to come as he works alongside President Obama to strengthen the U.S.-Israel relationship and to lead our brave men and women in service.”
Sen. Benjamin Cardin (D-Maryland), in a separate statement, said: ““I was pleased that the Senate quickly confirmed Ash Carter in a strongly bipartisan vote. He is the right person to spearhead our national security at this crucial time and has demonstrated his strong commitment to serving our men and women in uniform, as well as their families.” He said that in a meeting with Carter prior to the vote, they “discussed the fight to degrade and destroy the so-called Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). I shared with him my view that this extremist organization must be extinguished without drawing America into another costly ground engagement in the Middle East.”
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NETANYAHU’S SPEECH — The controversy over Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressing a Joint Session of Congress on March 3 has prompted some quarreling among Jewish communal organizations. After Netanyahu said that in addressing the need to impose additional sanctions on Iran, he was speaking not only for Israel but “for the entire Jewish people,” J Street, headed by Jeremy Ben-Ami, issued a statement that Netanyahu doesn’t speak for American Jews and, to prove the point, began a petition campaign asking like-minded Jews to declare the same thing. That prompted Abe Foxman of the Anti-Defamation League to charge that J Street had attempted to mobilize American Jews “to reject the Prime Minister of Israel’s sense of duty and responsibility to world Jewry.” J Street’s rejoinder was that just as Foxman does, it wants Netanyahu to postpone his speech until after Israel’s March 17 election, so it won’t seem as if the U.S. Congress, in greeting him, is endorsing his re-election bid. J Street rejected charges that it was being “inflammatory” and “repugnant,” adding that if any group deserved those adjectives it is the Zionist Organization of America “which has compared opponents of the speech to appeasers of Hitler during the 1930s.” One assumes we will soon hear from Morton Klein, president of the Zionist Organization of America.
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The Jewish American Citizen
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AUMF SUNSET – Democratic U.S. Senators Ben Cardin of Maryland and Chris Murphy of Connecticut have introduced legislation to terminate the 2001 Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF) that was adopted by the Congress after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. “After more than 13 years, it is time we close this chapter of unending war and modernize our approach to terrorist threats in a thoughtful and concise way,” said Cardin. “While the ISIL AUMF outlined by President Obama is limited to three years that sunset means little if the 9/11 AUMF is still in effect as a potentially boundless, all–encompassing authorization. By leaving in place the 2001 AUMF, Congress could be authorizing a state of perpetual war, and giving this President and future presidents a blank check to keep America at war.”… In a related development, Abraham Foxman, national director of the Anti-Defamation League, said on Friday, Feb. 13: “When it comes to an issue as serious as the use of military force in the face of ISIL’s brutal, genocidal onslaught, Congress has a duty to project to the world that Congress and the Administration are united in their resolve to ensure that, as the President declared, ‘ISIL will lose.’The path ahead may be difficult and it may not be clearly lit, but the moral clarity of the core goal compels us to rally around America’s solemn mission to defeat ISIL. The group’s effort to impose its extremist ideology across the Middle East, through the use of mass executions and despicable acts of barbarism, cannot go unchallenged.”
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KITZHABER RESIGNATION—U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Oregon) had the following reaction to news that the governor of Oregon, John Kitzhaber, had announced his resignation in the midst of controversy over whether his fiancée Cylvia Hayes has exploited their relationship to win state-influenced contacts. Said Wyden: “”Oregonians want government to focus on their needs rather than investigations and charges and counter-charges. Oregonians have a right to expect the highest ethical standards from their government, and today’s announcement by Governor Kitzhaber acknowledges that reality. In the days ahead, we will refocus with our new Governor Kate Brown {currently Oregon’s Secretary of State} on the goal all Oregonians share – making the best state in America even better.”
House of Representatives
POLICE SHOOTINGS – U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen (D-Tennessee) hasa pplauded FBI Director James Comey for stating in a speech that it is “ridiculous that [he] can’t tell you how many people were shot by the police last week, last month, last year.” In the same speech, Director Comey suggested that police departments nationwide should be required to report shootings that involve police officers so that these numbers can be tracked. Cohen said he had introduced his National Statistics on Deadly Force Transparency Act (H.R.306) last month” to do just that and more. … FBI Director Comey is exactly right: it is ridiculous that we can’t tell the American people how many lives were ended by police officers this year, or any year. Before we can truly address the problem of excessive force used by law enforcement we have to understand the nature of the problem and that begins with accurate data…”
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CLIMATE CHANGE—U.S. Rep. Eliot Engel (D-New York) questioned Department of Energy Secretary Dr. Ernest Moniz on President Obama’s 2016 budget proposal, at the “Fiscal Year 2016 Department of Energy Budget” hearing. Said Engel: “Like the majority of Americans I recognize that climate change is real, and that we’re beginning to experience its impacts. There is already enough CO2 in the atmosphere to ensure that the U.S. will endure more episodes of climate disruption, like Superstorm Sandy in my home district. Severe weather events that result in lengthy power outages, extreme fuel shortages, and the rationing of important resources are becoming the norm, and we need to take drastic action to reverse course on this fast.”
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AIRLINE TERROR –U.S. Reps. Mike Fitzpatrick (R-Pennsylvania) and Steve Israel (D-New York) introduced bipartisan legislation Wednesday, Feb. 11, which would protect Americans from 9/11-style terror attacks by requiring the installation of secondary cockpit barriers on most commercial aircraft. The Saracini Aviation Safety Act [H.R. 911/S. ] mandates inexpensive, light weight wire-mesh gates to be installed between the passenger cabin and the cockpit door that would blocks access to the flight deck whenever the cockpit door is opened during flight. The legislation is named in honor of pilot Captain Victor J. Saracini, who was killed when terrorists hijacked United Flight 175 on September 11, 2001. Saracini’s widow, Ellen, is a leading advocate on the issue since her husband’s death. “Sadly, we learned on 9/11 that terrorists will exploit every weakness in commercial aviation. Installing secondary barriers on commercial aircraft is a common-sense step we can take to bolster the safety of pilots, flight attendants and passengers for a fraction of the cost of an inflight entertainment system,” said Israel. “I’m pleased to work with Rep. Fitzpatrick and Mrs. Saracini to advocate for the safety of our skies and our continued fight against terrorism.”
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NATURAL RESOURCES—U.S. Rep. Jared Polis (D-Colorado) was recommended this week to serve as a member of the House Committee on Natural Resources, which would make him the only member of the Democratic Caucus from a western-mountain state on the panel. “As the Representative for a district that is composed of 62% federal lands, I’m always concerned with ensuring there is strong local input into the administration of these lands,” said Representative Polis. “As a member of the Natural Resources Committee, I can better support skiers, mountain bikers, hikers, sportsmen, snowmobilers, off-roaders, and others who enjoy our outdoor Colorado lifestyle as well as help generate new jobs in the outdoor recreation economy. The House Natural Resources Committee offers an excellent platform to work across the aisle to advocate for the continued protection of our state’s open spaces and to continue the discussion on how to responsibly access our domestic energy resources.”
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VACCINATIONS–Reps. Adam Schiff (D-California), Charlie Dent (R-Pennsylvania), Thomas Marino (R-Pennsylvania), and Peter Welch (D-Vermont) introduced the bipartisan “Vaccines Save Lives” House Resolution with over 90 other Members of Congress. “In the wake of the latest outbreak of measles in the United States, there has been a debate in the country over the safety of vaccines and whether parents should get their children vaccinated,” Schiff said. “The resolution is intended to highlight the public and global health achievements of vaccinations and immunizations around the world, and to urge vaccination. It recognizes the importance of vaccinations and immunizations in the U.S. as a matter of saving lives, stopping the spread of contagious and often fatal diseases, and maintaining the public health, economic and national security of the American people.”
California Legislature
PORT DISPUTES –State Senator Ben Allen (D–Santa Monica) sent a letter to the Pacific Maritime Association and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Thursday, Feb. 12, urging the two sides to end the stalemate that is damaging West Coast Ports and the California economy. “Of special concern to me is how the resulting deceleration at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach is impacting the greater Los Angeles region’s economy,” he wrote. “As the state Senator who represents thousands of people in the South Bay and Westside of Southern California whose businesses and livelihoods are placed at great risk by any delay in goods movement, I respectfully ask you to resolve this matter as soon as possible. Many of the individuals affected by this situation are small businesses operating on the thinnest of margins who cannot withstand the financial hardship created by this crisis. In addition to the harsh blow to our region’s businesses and the many workers who rely on these businesses for their income, another unfortunate consequence of this slow-down is the decision by certain port customers to redirect the import and export of their products to ports of call outside of our region. As you know well, the competition for trade is fierce, and I believe we can ill afford to give customers a legitimate reason to take their business elsewhere, potentially leading to huge economic losses for our state, regional, and local economy.”
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INVESTIGATIONAL DRUGS – State Sen. Jeff Stone (R-Riverside County) has introduced a “right to try” bill which would allow terminally ill patients, for whom all conventional means of treatment have failed, to try to save their lives with “investigational drugs” that have passed federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) tests but which still have not been approved. He said the bill can bring “hope to thousands of terminally ill Californians and their families” and added that similar measures have been approved by the states of Arizona, Colorado, Louisiana, Michigan and Missouri, and pend in 26 other states.
Local Governments
PAN ASIAN LAWYERS – District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis has congratulated Deputy District Attorney Linh Lam on becoming President-elect of the Pan Asian Lawyers of San Diego. Lam has worked in a variety of capacities in the district attorney’s office since 1006. She currently works I the appellate division. Said Dumanis: “At the DA’s Office, we’ve been working for years to increase diversity among our employees as well as the wider legal community.”
Political Parties
DEMOCRATIC CONVENTION – In her role as chair of the National Democratic Party, U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Florida)announced on Thursday that Philadelphia will serve as the host city for the 2016 Democratic National Convention the week of July 25, 2016. “I am thrilled to announce that Philadelphia will host the convention where we will nominate the 45th President of the United States,” she said. “In addition to their commitment to a seamless and safe convention, Philadelphia’s deep rooted place in American history provides a perfect setting for this special gathering. I cannot wait to join Democrats across the country to celebrate our shared values, lay out a Democratic vision for the future, and support our nominee.” In thanking those who helped Philadelphia secure the convention, Mayor Michael A. Nutter gave shares of the credit to former Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell and former Congresswoman Allyson Schwartz.
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Items dealing with Jewish women in Congress are sponsored by Laura Galinson in memory of her father, Murray Galinson.
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Harrison is editor of San Diego Jewish World. Your comment on any of the items above may be posted in the space provided below or sent to donald.harrison@sdjewishworld.com