Greetings!
Is an emerging hardline Netanyahu government in Israel on a collision course with the Obama administration - and the rest of the world? Would adding in the more "moderate" Kadima and Labor parties - now increasingly unlikely - block the crash?
With Secretary of State Hillary Clinton having just concluded her visit to Israel, the Obama administration dispatched two senior envoys to Syria. Clinton has rapped Netanyahu's plan to bypass negotiations over a two-state solution with the Palestinians, Israel's continued clamp down on the Gaza crossings and planned demolition of Palestinian homes in East Jerusalem.
Our friends at Brit Tzedek v'Shalom: The Jewish Alliance for Justice and Peace asked me to assess the recent Israeli election and its implications on the prospects for peace and US-Israel relations.
You may be surprised by the conclusions I reached:
Israel's main centrist parties and leaders - Ehud Olmert, Tzipi Livni and Kadima, Ehud Barak and Labor - share the blame with the Bush administration for the dramatic deterioration in Israel's national security, and their own electoral fates.
Their failures stem not from tactical error but rather from banking their and Israel's future on deeply flawed policies towards the Palestinians and the regional security threats the country faces from Iran to Lebanon to Gaza.
Read more here on why Israel's center could not hold, and why the Israeli right has triumphed again.
But for President Obama there is no sign suspended at the Middle Eastern gates reading "Abandon hope all ye who enter here." There may yet be a basis for progress if Obama and Clinton pursue what is emerging as a "A New Paradigm for Israeli-Arab Peace," radically unlike past Israeli and American practice. How might it unfold?
Go here for a measured dose of hope. |
Bibi, Tzipi & Barack: A Chance for Peace? 
What can President Obama do to advance Israeli-Arab peace even if the Israeli government is led by a man who refuses to endorse the two-state Palestinian-Israeli solution backed by the U.S., previous Israeli governments, the Palestinian Authority, the Arab states and the international community?
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Brit Tzedek v'Shalom Intro & Email List Opt-Out 
You supported Obama; now it is time to support the steps he has taken on the Middle East. And I think Brit Tzedek v'Shalom, the Jewish Alliance for Justice and Peace is an outstanding vehicle for doing that. I give Brit Tzedek much credit for helping to change the terms of the debate within the Jewish community, and beyond.
Our friends at Brit Tzedek have organized the country's largest grassroots movement of American Jews dedicated to bringing about a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. With 40,000 supporters, chapters in nearly 40 cities coast to coast, and a national rabbinic network that exceeds 1500 members, Brit Tzedek is transforming the conversation on the synagogue bimah, in the halls of Congress, and most recently in the White House.
It sets up nationwide tours of Israeli and Palestinian speakers. It arranges informative events at synagogues. It gets op-eds into the newspapers. It energizes and mobilizes Jews to advocate with Congress and the Administration to take leadership in bringing about a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: a politically and economically viable Palestine beside a safe and secure Israel.
We'd like you, our subscribers, to learn more about the great work that Brit Tzedek does, nationally and in your community. If you would like us NOT to share your email address with Brit Tzedek, please click here to opt out (if you opt out, you will continue to receive email only from the Jewish Alliance for Change).
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Speaker Available: President Obama, Israel and the Middle East
 I recently spoke on "President Obama, Israel & the Mideast" at Temple Har Zion, a reform synagogue in a Toronto suburb. The response was heartening.
"You deliver a fast, hard punch of facts and history." Members felt that "we needed to have you longer, during the day, instead of Friday night. People wanted to learn more and discuss more with you. I will look at things differently now, trying always to determine what is really in Israel's interest."
- Natalie Cremer, Adult Education Chair, Temple Har Zion
"Members are still talking about your visit, and the debate it stirred. We were impressed by your insider knowledge of Israeli and American political workings."
- Rabbi Cory Weiss, Temple Har Zion
How is President Obama likely to approach the challenges the U.S. and Israel face with Syria, Iran, the Palestinians, Hezbollah, Hamas and the rest of the Arab world?
A Talk by Doni Remba, Executive Director, The Jewish Alliance for Change, Middle East Policy Analyst; Co-founder & Former President, Americans for Peace Now Chicago Chapter & Former Senior Foreign Press Editor and Translator, Israel Prime Minister's Office
To inquire about my availability to speak at your synagogue or other institution, please contact info@jews4change.org |
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Kol tuv,
Doni
Doni Remba
Executive Director
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Broadway for a New America
on our new date
April 13, 2009
Symphony Space
95th and Broadway New York City
featuring a dazzling array of over 30 top named performers from the worlds of Broadway, television, film, music, and comedy, including many Tony, Emmy, Oscar and Grammy Award winners and nominees.
Jim Dale
Kathleen Turner Jerry Stiller
Fran Drescher
Stockard Channing
Richard Belzer
Rosie Perez
Malcolm Gets
Anne Meara
Tovah Feldshuh
Hugh Panaro
Nellie McKay
Seth Rudetsky
Norm Lewis
Ann Hampton Callaway
Jonathan Freeman
Lillias White
Mike Burstyn
Melissa Errico
Scott Blakeman
Jeremy Schonfeld
and a host of other top performers.
Click for tix
Tickets purchased for March 2nd will be honored on 4/13 |
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The work of enacting a progressive agenda for change has only just begun. | |
