RUTHFULLY YOURS

http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_opinion.php?id=3809

Obama’s speech impediment
The warm bath in which U.S. President Barack Obama has been soaking since his arrival in Israel on Wednesday made up for the chilly reception he received in the Palestinian Authority.

While Israelis were decking themselves out in suits and stilettos to prepare for his major speech at the International Convention Center in Jerusalem on Thursday afternoon — and gala dinner at President Shimon Peres’ residence in the evening — Palestinians were in the streets of Ramallah and Bethlehem shouting “Allahu akbar” (“Allah is great”) and burning Obama’s effigy. This was their response to his assertion that a two-state solution has to include a Jewish state.

Such was the PLO’s welcome for the American leader. Hamas didn’t bother with all the rhetoric and ritual. Its operatives simply launched several missiles into southern Israel as soon as the sun came out. No muss, no fuss. Just a bunch of panicked Jewish families barely making it to their bomb shelters in time.

This did not constitute cause for presidential pause, however. On the contrary, Obama was on a mission to encourage everybody to get along. Any acts of violence aimed at the United States and Israel were the work of “extremists” bent on preventing the very peace he had come to promote.

Nor did the grim demeanor of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas — who reiterated his unwillingness to negotiate with Israel until it meets a list of impossible preconditions — put a damper on Israeli enthusiasm. Anyone unfamiliar with the local scene — Iran about to get the bomb; Syria using chemical weapons against its people; Egypt in the throes of radical Islamization; Turkey lost to the West; and the rest of region in turmoil — could be forgiven for asking whether Elvis had been sighted in the Holy Land.

Indeed, since landing at Ben-Gurion International Airport, Obama has been treated like a rock star — one who was gracious enough not to cancel his concert tour, in spite of pressure from BDS groups. And it is this mixture of awe and gratitude that best characterizes the attitude of those lucky enough to be blessed with an invitation to the International Convention Center to see and hear the U.S. president in person.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324557804578373050731998658.html?mod=opinion_newsreel Seders resonate with stories of liberation down through the years since the Book of Exodus. On Monday, millions of children will ask their parents: Why is tonight different from all other nights of the year? Children asking this question in Jewish homes around the world will be told that the Passover festival commemorates the […]

http://www.americanthinker.com/printpage/?url=http://www.americanthinker.com/articles/../2013/03/eleanor_roosevelt_talks_about_her_husband_and_the_holocaust.html April 19 will mark the70th anniversary of the uprising of the Jews in the Warsaw Ghetto. That date always reminds me of 1958 when Eleanor Roosevelt, the widow of Democratic President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, told me about her husband and the Holocaust. We were both NGO (Non-governmental Organization) representatives to the United Nations and […]

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323419104578374423019005526.html?mod=WSJ_Opinion_AboveLEFTTop
The Best Mideast Intentions Obama reassures Israel, but peace in Palestine seems a distant hope.

PULEEZ!!! HOW DUMB IS THIS SENTENCE? “History shows that a generation of militants can give way to a generation of pacifists. It happened in Germany and Japan, and nobody should give up hope that such a change will eventually come to Palestinians, whenever they tire of nationalist or religious slogans.” HUH? JIHAD IS A RELIGIOUS “SLOGAN”…..NO IT IS AN ARTICLE OF ISLAMIC FAITH. AND, THE JAPANESE SHINTOISTS AND THE NAZIS WERE “MILITANTS????” AND BY THE WAY THE ONLY THING THAT MADE THEM CHANGE WAS NORMANDY AND DRESDEN AND HIROSHIMA AND NAGASAKI AND TOTAL SURRENDER…..RSK

President Obama delivered an impassioned speech to an audience of young Israelis in Jerusalem Thursday, pledging America’s commitment to the Jewish state’s security while insisting that, when it comes to the Palestinians, “peace is possible.” Speaking alongside Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah earlier in the day, he also got a taste of how distant that possibility is.

The best news from this trip is that it seems to reflect Mr. Obama’s recognition that America’s friends have to trust him before he can broker a peace with adversaries. The President spent his first term trying to put distance between himself and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and the result was mutual disappointment and discord.

This week Mr. Obama has sought to reassure Israelis about U.S. commitments even as he coaxes them to take risks for peace. From his reference to Mr. Netanyahu as “my friend Bibi” to his tough language on Iran’s nuclear program and his determination to stop it, the President put on a charm offensive designed to woo his skeptical Israeli hosts.

http://www.nationalreview.com/blogs/print/343514 HE IS FIRST OUT OF THE BOX BUT THERE WILL BE OTHERS…SO FAR THEY ARE ALL CONSERVATIVE….BUT NONE ARE DAZZLING…MY FAVE SO FAR IS REP. JACK KINGSTON  (R- DISTRICT ONE)….STAY TUNED Representative Paul Broun is a true believer. When Georgia political insiders talk about Paul Broun, one theme emerges again and again: Broun says […]

http://pjmedia.com/claudiarosett/threats-galore/

For rogue regimes to threaten America and its allies is nothing new. But I have the distinct sense these days that the threats are both prolific and becoming more boldly specific.

North Korea isn’t just making its usual threats to drown South Korea in a sea of fire. Pyongyang has been cranking out cheesy videos depicting missile attacks on Washington, and just threatened to attack American military bases in Japan and on Guam. Iran’s rulers are not only expressing their usual generic wish to wipe Israel off the map. Iran’s top boss, a.k.a. Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, just celebrated Nowruz with a televised speech threatening in geographically precise terms that if Israel’s authorities “make the slightest mistake the Islamic Republic will annihilate Tel Aviv and Haifa to the ground.”
For that matter, Hamas, the terrorist overlords of the rogue non-state of Gaza, took it upon themselves last month to threaten President Obama that if he visited the Temple Mount during his trip to Israel, they would take it as a “declaration of war” against the Islamic world.

Is this business as usual, or cause for increasing alarm?

“Stick and stones will break my bones, but words will never harm me”…? Hardly reassuring. In these realms, there are already too many sticks, stones, missiles and explosive devices. All these actors have an extravagant history of mayhem and murder, going back to their various inceptions. And what they appear to be learning from each other is that they can make ever uglier threats with relative impunity. There are, of course, reasoned arguments to be made that such threats are largely for domestic consumption, or that the comfortably ensconced thugs ruling over such places as North Korea, Iran and Gaza, for all their brinksmanship, would prefer not to launch attacks so devastating as to provoke devastation in response. There’s even a case to be made that dire threats are a sign of desperation, or are perhaps just laying the groundwork for a better starting position at the bargaining table. But with North Korea conducting missile and nuclear tests, with Iran’s uranium centrifuges spinning, with Hamas trucking in weapons from Iran, it’s ever more ominous that the threats from this gang keep pushing the envelope. Time to ring the world’s super cop… but who is that these days?

http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2013/03/jason_chaffetz_baits_trap_for_dem_senators.html

Congratulations to Rep. Jason Chaffetz, who had the wit to recognize an opportunity to help change the political narrative without relying on consultants, focus groups, or a hundred page report. Alex Pappas of The Daily Caller reports:

Citing figures indicating that more than 100,000 federal employees owe more than $1 billion in federal taxes, a House committee on Wednesday approved legislation that would require the firing of government workers who are “seriously tax delinquent.”

The legislation, introduced by Utah Rep. Jason Chaffetz, advanced through the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. It now has to pass the full House to be implemented into law.

Assuming it passes, the bill forces Democrat senators, especially the seven up for re-election in states that voted for Romney, to choose between their financial and organizational dependence on government employee unions and voter sentiment back home in states like Alaska, South Dakota, Louisiana and Montana. The House Democrats have predictably opposed the measure:

Democrats on the committee opposed the bill. Maryland Rep. Elijah Cummings, the ranking member on the committee, said the legislation “seeks to demonize federal employees rather than ensure their compliance with tax obligations.”

“By requiring agencies to fire employees for not paying their taxes on time, the measure actually undermines the ability of the government to collect the unpaid taxes,” Cummings said. “It is much, much, much more difficult to recoup the delinquent taxes from someone who is unemployed.” (snip)

http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2013/03/obama_said_what.html

In the two weeks leading up to President Obama’s visit to Israel and Ramallah (“City of Allah”), there were numerous rock-throwing attacks on Israelis as well as violent protests within the Palestinian Authority that their forces had to quell. I do not have a full list of attacks on Israelis, but here are three as examples.

As of March 13, 2013, reports that B’tselem protested the detention of 27 Palestinian “children” for throwing rocks at Israelis and IDF soldiers in Hebron. The Tel Aviv court has ruled that rock throwing is a hate crime for rocks kill. Well, that’s elucidating the obvious.

Ten Palestinian “children” were arrested for throwing rocks in Samaria that broke the windshield of the car driven by a mother and her three daughters under the age of 8. All are in serious condition in the hospital with little Adele (three years old) critically injured.

Rocks were thrown at a public bus in east Jerusalem. No arrests.

In the light of these reports, can sense be made of this statement from the greatest orator-president of the United States as quoted by the Jerusalam Post?

He described recent protests that have erupted in the West Bank in anticipation of his visit as an “understanding of the moral force of non-violence.”

Obama said these words to Abbas in Ramallah. It is unclear whether he spoke them from beneath the enormous backrop banner of Arafat in his trademark black and white keffiya that he wore shaped like a map of Israel or not.

Whether or not these words were delivered from underneath the master terrorist and cofounder with PA President Mahmoud Abbas of Fatah, this presidentially evaluated “moral force of non-violence” left injured Israelis, including a three-year-old baby in danger of losing her life, her mother and two sisters in the hospital with serious injuries, and thousands of dollars of property damaged in Hebron and Samaria.

If President Barack Hussein Obama considers rock-throwing an “understanding of the moral force of non-violence,” well, Netanyahu and Yaalon, your next steps are clear.

http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2013/03/ben_carson_for_michigan_senate_seat.html

The Detroit News is busy talking up the possibility of Dr. Benjamin Carson running as a Republican for the Senate from Michigan. He could win the open seat race with Levin retiring. An African American, fresh face, who would win a higher percentage of the black vote than other Republicans. The state is 14% black. Republican Governor Rick Snyder won his race in 2010 by 18% (but he may go down this time), and Obama won the state by 10% in 2012. A Dem-leaning state for sure, but an off year electorate (with a higher percentage white vote) would help.

No one has been elected to president as first political office since Eisenhower. It is unlikely to happen again. If he has political ambitions, this seat would be a good place for Carson to start, picking up an open Senate seat, and maybe helping GOP regain control of Senate.

http://www.nationaljournal.com/politics/rick-perry-the-presidential-candidate-ahead-of-his-time-20130320
….and he has a great track record as Governor of Texas….rsk
The Texas governor ran an awful campaign in 2012. But his platform is now belatedly being embraced by party leaders.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s 2012 presidential campaign was a slow-motion train wreck, capped off by his embarrassing brain freeze in a nationally televised debate. But as Perry mulls another presidential race in 2016, it’s striking that he was campaigning on many of the reforms that Republican Party leaders are now desperately pushing.

Republicans have spent the past several months figuring out how to win over more Hispanic voters, moderating their tone on immigration, pitching education reform as a significant issue, and they have reaped the political benefits of challenging President Obama on balancing budgets and reforming entitlements. On all those counts, Perry was a candidate ahead of his time.

“I think he remains a motivated public official and an energized political figure,” said Perry’s former chief of staff Ray Sullivan. “On that score, I could easily see him seeking another term as governor and making another run at the White House.”

Take immigration reform. Eventual GOP nominee Mitt Romney hammered Perry for his support of in-state tuition for undocumented workers in Texas. That was in 2012. Now Republican standard-bearers Marco Rubio and Rand Paul have changed the GOP’s tune on immigration. Rubio teamed with Democratic colleagues to draft principles that could become the starting point for immigration reform, and Paul broke out some Spanish during a recent speech suggesting a pathway for illegal immigrants to become citizens.

Perry’s support among Hispanics in Texas was decent, especially compared with Mitt Romney’s awkward outreach. Perry won 38 percent of the Hispanic vote in his 2010 Texas gubernatorial race, while Romney only took 27 percent of the national Hispanic vote. Texas Republicans attribute that to Hispanic voters’ familiarity with Perry, who as the state’s longest-serving governor, has also appointed Hispanics as state Supreme Court justices, as well as secretary of state and transportation commissioner.