ATLAS EXCLUSIVE: Nidra Poller on Condi's Conversion

Atlas readers are well aware of my disgust at Queen Condi's foreign policy capitulation to State. Her appearance  For the life of me I don't why John Bolton isn't Secretary of State.In my previous post "Will Condi  take the Veil?" I said that Queen Condi had made America a laughingstock on the world stage, has squandered the perception of  American military greatness  and rendered American foreign policy a mishmosh of inconsistent platitudes and policy. That said, Nidra Poller writes of Condi's foolish (and dangerous) act of dhimmitude;

Condoleeza Rice honors “the Contribution of Palestinian Americans”
Nidra Poller
Washington DC October 13 2006

Condoleeza Rice was the keynote speaker at the Inaugural ATFP (The American Task Force on Palestine) Gala held in the J.W. Marriott ballroom on October 11th.  Elegant ladies and gentlemen in evening dress, dynamic young couples with Palestinian names and American voices, the very image of moderation: these are the people with whom peace is made.  Compare & Contrast—on the left, a jihadi with a keffieh wrapped around his head and an explosives belt around his waist; on the right, a prosperous young Palestinian American high tech executive. Is this what democracy in the Middle East would bring if only someone could find a strategy for getting beyond the first ten obstacles? Perhaps it is the American contribution to Palestinian Americans that should have been honored! 

ATFP president Dr. Ziad J. Asali huddled with a few reporters for a mini briefing just before guests filed into the ballroom. Dr. Asali said the invitation had been extended to the Secretary of State last April, her presence is certainly a sign of support but did not suggest, as an Arab journalist speculated, that the United States would practice a more “even-handed” policy. 
The celebration of Palestinian Americans began with a film that self-consciously placed them in the framework and iconography of the great waves of European (and in large part Jewish) immigration, going back to the late 19th century.  Their immigration was inflated to tens of thousands by throwing “Palestinians” together with Syrians, Lebanese, and Jordanians. It would be interesting to see the breakdown.  The documentary zoomed in on illustrious immigrants, including a successful builder who Americanized his name to Howard.  His crowning achievement, the Islamic Center of Washington, D. C., is currently embroiled in its second big embezzlement scandal.  The father of Edward Said, born near Jerusalem, emigrated to the U.S. and then settled in Egypt but, we are told, the Saids arranged for every one of their children to be born in Jerusalem.  The family of Rachid Khalidi is also cited in this forced attempt to exaggerate the importance of Palestinian immigrants as an argument for the creation of a Palestinian state.

The documentary was followed by a filmed greeting from PA President Mahmoud Abbas.  The audience rose to applaud Condoleeza Rice, introduced with abundant praise from the ATFP president. Despite her Arabically pronounced “Karim Ramadan”, her tribute to trusted friend and advisor Dr. Asali, her salute to honored guests--Prince Turk al Faisal, Congressman John Sununu, entrepreneur Jesse Aweida--her promises of statehood and religious repetition of Palestinian grievances, Rice’s discourse was received without undue enthusiasm.  Only her promise to expedite travel conditions for Palestinian Americans visiting their homeland was applauded. And she kept her word, as reported by Nicholas Kralev in the Washington Times (“Rice probes travel limits on Americans” 13 October).

When Interior Minister Sarkozy speaks to a Jewish audience in France he is praised to the roof beams, wildly applauded, cherished, adored, hugged to the bosom of the community.  By contrast, an atmosphere of chilly disappointment greeted the American Secretary of State who reminded that Palestinian partners for peace will be expected to disavow terror and violence, recognize Israel's right to exist, and accept all previous agreements, “including the Roadmap, which is the only internationally agreed-upon framework to create a Palestinian state.” There were no outbursts of gratitude for close to five hundred million dollars in humanitarian aid, and promises to create economic opportunities and pursue diplomatic efforts with allies in Egypt, Jordan, the EU. A shiver of resentment could be discerned when Rice spoke out against extremists-- Hamas, Hizbullah, and the Syrian government--without placing the blame for their extremism on Israel.

Condoleeza Rice’s voice went soft and velvety as she concluded in “I have a dream” mode, invoking the Founding Fathers, her own miraculous rise from segregated Birmingham to the State Department, and her belief “that there could be no greater legacy for America than to help to bring into being a Palestinian state for a people who have suffered too long, who have been humiliated too long, who have not reached their potential for too long, and who have so much to give to the international community and to all of us.”

Polite applause. No standing ovation. The two media tables, stuck at the very back of the ballroom, emptied quickly. To date there has been little press coverage of the event, with the notable exception of Carolyn Glick’s Column One , and Jerry Gordon in Israpundit. Will the electoral fallout be any better?  Those who hoped for breaking news or some exclusive message crafted especially for the ATFP were no doubt disappointed.

More broadly, and with great effort to be fair-minded, what have Palestinian Americans contributed to the debate, what have they done to help their countrymen move in the direction of the peace and justice they fervently proclaim? How is their plan different from other plans? What influence do or might they have? What do they condemn, aside from the “occupation, humiliation, persecution, impoverishment”? What do they advocate in the way of goals or strategy other than…the Saudi peace plan?

The abiding impression left by this Inaugural Gala is of a total disconnect from current realities.  A “no way to get there from here” peace plan based on Palestinian demands and Israeli concessions, that ignores the dismal record of an ummah determined to destroy Israel and the blatant failure of all and every attempt at negotiation with a force persistently identified as a national liberation movement and consistently acting by the rules of jihad.
Could it be that American Palestinians are fronting for the Saudis here in the US as their brethren have done on the battleground, sacrificing their vital interests in the service of a Muslim jihad conquest?  While the likes of Mearsheimer, Khalidi, and Judt are arguing that support for Israel is counter to American interests, the ATFP is campaigning to convince us that the creation of a Palestinian state, in no uncertain terms, is in our national interest.
The elegant Gala brochure with its green and silver Islamic cover (as if all Palestinians were Muslim) promises Peace & Prosperity. The list of benefactors speaks for itself. Full video and text transcripts of the presentations of Secretary Rice, Prince Turki al-Faisal and Dr. Ziad Asali are available at here.

Comments

[Joseph]

Bolton gets it. Condi is clueless. This is sickening. And remember, Condi is supposed to be representing the official U.S. position on foreign matters!

[Kevin in Dallas]

The problem isn't so much Condi and her actions, but that President Bush allows her to behave in such a manner.

[scooternyc]

I know you dislike Ms.Rice, but if she's acting on the policies of the President by doing best what she can to carry out his wishes, why is it that you keep up this vitriol towards her.

I dare say that her opinions may be welcomed to the President, but she acts on his decisions, so why don't you hate his decisions then? It's not as though Ms.Rice has free reign to do whatever she wants?

Your disdain doesn't make any sense. Everyone knows that the President sets the policy and the tone, his cabinet carries it out. This is unfounded hatred toward Ms.Rice and seems very inappropriate.

[akak]

I agree Kevin, as Condi says it George is accountable for it. The vitriol however is not exclusive to Condi. Ask Santorum!

[yonason]

"CONTRIBUTIONS" OF "PALESTINIANS" ...TO CIVILIZATION?

The two that come to mind most readily are, airplane hijacking and suicide bombers, without either of which 9/11 wouldn't have happened.

Yes the "Palestinians" certainly HAVE made in impact on the 21st century.

[yonason]

At least the Placentinianz appreciate Condi's efforts on their behalf; ...

I mean, they DO, don't they?

Of course they do. Just pay no attention to this or this or how they mock her in her presence.

After all, if she's oblivious to it, why should we care?