[Peace-discuss] Rep. Blumenauer at HuffPo: "I will not participate in a calculated slight from the speaker ... to attack necessary diplomacy.."

[E. W. Johnson]

First in the water?  not surprising.

Earl Blumenauer is a sort of "device used to introduce a stream of water 
into the body for medical or hygienic reasons, or the stream of water 
itself."

My good friend Delia Lopez opposed him unsuccessfully a couple of times.
He's pretty well entrenched.

Blumenauer voted against Dennis Kucinch's resolution for the withdrawal 
of troops from Afghanistan.
Blumenauer is a noted toady for AIPAC.

One is not surprised to see he is also a opposer of free speech.




On 01/31/2015 10:20 PM, Robert Naiman via Peace-discuss wrote:
> First in the water in pledging not to attend, AFAIK.
>
> http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rep-earl-blumenauer/speaker-boehner-cancel-ne_b_6570654.html
>
> Speaker Boehner, Cancel Netanyahu's Address to Congress
> Posted:01/29/2015 9:14 am EST
>
> BOEHNER NETANYAHU
>
> For the sake of diplomacy, peace, and respect for our ally Israel, to 
> say nothing of stability in the Middle East, Speaker Boehner must 
> cancel the joint session of Congress with Israeli Prime Minister 
> Netanyahu. If he does not, I will refuse to be part of a reckless act 
> of political grandstanding.
>
> The Republicans may have read the Constitution on the House floor, but 
> they don't seem to understand Article II, which vests the 
> responsibility for foreign affairs in the president.
>
> If the invitation was aimed to extract a better deal from Iran and 
> protect our friend and ally Israel, then the speaker miscalculated, 
> for it will do the opposite. If the invitation was aimed at scoring 
> political points by undermining the administration, it's deeply 
> troubling that the speaker is willing to undercut diplomacy in 
> exchange for theatrics on the House floor.
>
> The U.S. is in the midst of high-stakes diplomacy between five major 
> powers and Iran. A joint session, organized in this manner, at this 
> time, undermines the only way of stopping a nuclear-armed Iran: a 
> negotiated solution. Preventing this would be not only inappropriate 
> but extremely dangerous. Let me be clear: I would oppose such tactics 
> by any speaker, Democrat or Republican. Leadership serious about 
> bolstering Israel's security should be focused on using the historic, 
> multilateral sanctions in place today that have brought Iran to the 
> table. Sidestepping the White House in this way could easily fracture 
> the united front America has built with Russia, China, Germany, and 
> others.
>
> Iran's extremists are eagerly awaiting any excuse to walk away from an 
> agreement. If negotiations do fail to progress, it must be 
> crystal-clear that it was Iran, not the U.S., who failed. This will be 
> critical if we're to have the mandate needed to respond accordingly, 
> and in a multilateral way in the future.
>
> Netanyahu is finding this visit to be extraordinarily controversial 
> within his own country. To schedule the joint session immediately 
> before a national election is a dangerous and reckless precedent. I 
> will not dignify this irresponsible joint session -- an affront to 
> diplomacy, process, and security -- with my presence. Congress ought 
> to heed the advice of experts. As former Israeli Ambassador to the 
> U.S. Michael Oren recently stated when asked about the ill-timed joint 
> session, "It's advisable to cancel the speech to Congress so as not to 
> cause a rift with the American government."
>
> There's still time for Speaker Boehner to reconsider his ill-advised 
> effort. Wait until Israelis have cast their ballots, and find out if 
> the time on the clock for negotiations runs out. I will not 
> participate in a calculated slight from the speaker and the House 
> leadership to attack necessary diplomacy. When nuclear security and 
> Middle East stability hang in the balance, no member who cares about 
> peace and Israel should participate in this effort to undercut our 
> president.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
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