Thursday 15 December 2016
Photo, left:
JOHN BATCHELOR SHOW
Co-hosts: Mary Kissel, Wall Street Journal Editorial Board & host of Opinion Journal on WSJ Video. Malcolm Hoenlein, Conference of Presidents.
Hour One
Thursday 15 December 2016 / Hour 1, Block A: Mary Hamilton Electors: “vote your conscience” – yet this is a twisted version of the intentions of the Founding Fathers. On insists that electors be briefed by CIA on possible Russian hacking interference in the Nov 8 election. Clintons thereby would maintain control of the Democratic party. . . . Now it looks as though Pres Obama had info in hand for long that he declined to release till just now. . . . If Podesta presses endlessly in this, maybe Trump will change his mind about investigating Hillary. Tom Perez, Esq: “rigged the Supreme Court docket twice & rewarded by Pres Obama; ignored subpoenas en route.” Keith Ellison, Minnesota, et al. Max Boot, CFR, anent Aleppo: Pres Obama owns this crisis; war crimes, 500K people killed, did not hold to those promises; Iran and Russia have committed a genocide against Sunni Arabs.
Thursday 15 December 2016 / Hour 1, Block B: Edward W Hayes, Esq, and Daily Beast; in re: Andy Cuomo (lawyer: Mr Scheckman, Esq?) spoke with Preet Bhahara; probably vaguely willingly, and said as little as possible. Lots of desperate allegations. Meanwhile DeBlasio seems to have said, “Pay for play is how we do business in New York.” He also got past campaign financing laws by using a nonprofit. Both want to be US president. DeBlasio is ’way to the left of the country; Cuomo’s future outside of NYS is nil. Probably lots of people are secretly spilling the beans to Bharara. If the prosecutors call you – call Ed Hayes.
Thursday 15 December 2016 / Hour 1, Block C: Kori Schake, Hoover, in re: Clear that pres-elect holds that Pres Obama has not led the intl order well; US should lead, and do less while leading. Mr Trump has a lot of flexibility, a real opportunity to explain to Americans how we have not done well enough in the last decade, about trade regimes and alliance with allies. Chinese amb has just chastised the US, and its nuke bombers have twice circled Taiwan; and cruise missile emplacements on its jerry-built “islands” in the South China Sea. Tokyo, Seoul, Taipei, Melbourne: all quite nervous about China’s aggression. New adm needs to think its way through [the thicket], not fumble inadvertently into a crisis. / Is Europe dragging the US into an appeasement crisis with Putin? . . . Trump overlooking that Russia is bombing hospitals in Syria. Maybe he can make a deal that o one else has ever been able to, but I’m skeptical that [the US and Russia can be on the same page.] A new world order where there are three cops on the beat? Possibly in this century -- for years the US has been playing a strong had badly; China, a weak hand awkwardly; Russia, a weak hand very well.
Thursday 15 December 2016 / Hour 1, Block D: Terry Anderson, PERC Montana and Hoover, in re: regulatory powers of the administrative state (“I have a pen and a phone”). Forest Service is beating up on a small land owner: there are multiple access trails to public land; owner said, you can't just enter, you have to follow a few rules. Forest Service figured out how to build a roundabout road. Another owner of 40 acres let people walk through their front yard, then the Forest Svc built a trail right through their home. Forest Svc: All land is their land. This is a recent series of depredations. . . . In Montana, 40% of the land is controlled by the federal govt.
Hour Two
Thursday 15 December 2016 / Hour 2, Block A: Ambassador Elin Suleymanov, Republic of Azerbaijan, in re: PM Netanyahu visited Azerbaijan this week, was most welcome; last night the Azerbaijani embassy hosted a Chanukah party as Israel honored nations who sent firefighters to Israel in the recent crisis. It was a star-studded Washington diplomatic group – Russia, PLO, many many more. Jews have lived in Azerbaijan for 2600 years or more; almost always been quit comfortable there. Region becoming more interconnected, incl East-West Silk Road rail connections, China, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan ,Turkey; also N-S: Russia to Iran. What we want is consistency and free and independent nations incl diversity and liberty. We have an ongoing conflict with Armenia, hope to bring peace to both countries. Over 20 million Azeris in Iran.
· http://www.timesofisrael.com/in-azerbaijan-pm-hails-arms-deals-as-beacon-of-jewish-muslim-coexistence/
· http://jcpa.org/iranian-vigilance-netanyahu-visit-azerbaijan/
· http://www.pmo.gov.il/English/MediaCenter/Events/Pages/EventAzerbaijan131216.aspx
In October of 2011, the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev appointed Elin Suleymanov as Azerbaijan’s Ambassador to the United States of America. Prior to that, for over five years, Mr. Suleymanov had been the nation’s first Consul General to Los Angeles and the Western States leading the team, which established Azerbaijani diplomatic presence on the West Coast. Earlier, he served as Senior Counselor at the Foreign Relations Department, Office of the President in Baku, Azerbaijan and as Press Officer of the Azerbaijani Embassy in Washington, DC. Mr. Suleymanov’s experience before joining diplomatic service includes working with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Azerbaijan and Glaverbel Czech, a leading manufacturing company in East-Central Europe.
Thursday 15 December 2016 / Hour 2, Block B: Michael Rubin, in re: Turkey; 568 people detained since the last alleged PKK attack, plus the thousands detained since the putsch last summer. A country of fear; unstable. Most experienced people in mil and intell; two F16s for every pilot. Iraqi Kurds and Syrian Kurds: Erdogan says he’ll slaughter Turkish Kurds; concerning Pres Trump: if US won’t get involved in “internal matters” then tyrants will calculate that US won’t respond to massacres and so carry on with endless brutality.
Belgian court has determined that Kurds are fighting an armed struggle, which changes the dynamic in Euro law. In Turkey: there are Islamists and ultra-nationalists; Erdogan is trying to infuse his military with ultra-nationalists to avoid the possibility of an imminent coup. Huge massacres in SE Turkey, incl Cisre; after the enormous bloodletting, there may be a war crimes tribunal for Erdogan. Europe has 7% of the world’s population, 50% of the world’s social spending –which is why immigrants flock there.
· http://www.stripes.com/news/europe/turkey-continues-to-detain-hundreds-in-terror-probes-1.444203
· https://www.aei.org/publication/turkey-price-purging-counterterror-professionals/
· https://www.aei.org/publication/could-erdogan-face-a-war-crimes-tribunal/
· http://www.wsj.com/articles/turkish-opposition-finds-base-in-germany-1481643935
· https://www.aei.org/publication/what-role-for-western-powers-in-kurdish-democratic-agenda/
Michael Rubin is a former Pentagon official whose major research areas are the Middle East, Turkey, Iran and diplomacy. Rubin instructs senior military officers deploying to the Middle East and Afghanistan on regional politics, and teaches classes regarding Iran, terrorism, and Arab politics on board deploying U.S. aircraft carriers. Rubin has lived in post-revolution Iran, Yemen, both pre- and post-war Iraq, and spent time with the Taliban before 9/11. His newest book, Dancing with the Devil: The Perils of Engaging Rogue Regimes examines a half-century of U.S. diplomacy with rogue regimes and terrorist groups.
Thursday 15 December 2016 / Hour 2, Block C: Jonathan Schanzer, FDD, in re: Syria and Iran. David Friedman, Esq., nominated to be US amb to Israel; wants to move the US embassy to Jerusalem. Risks for saying “Jerusalem, Israel” at the White House. Palestinians not prepared for this. Israelis: thrilled, but wonder about sequencing—doing it overnight could create problems. US could go to an existing bldg in Jerusalem and simply put up a plaque. Merely calling it an embassy would inflame passions; might create conditions for a third Intifada; recall stabbing and vehicular attacks. However, Trump campaign is based on telling it like it is. Who can believe it’s hard to say, “Jerusalem, Israel.” US sells weapons to Taiwan but mayn’t accept a call? Saudis and Israelis have come together out of a shared antipathy for Obama and the Iran nuclear deal. Could moving the US embassy to Jerusalem spook the Saudis? Need to be delicate in diplomacy. Make it not look like a partisan issue. Slowly would be good. Caution. Also: the strategic relations between Israel and Jordan could be jeopardized as Jordan custodians of the Temple Mount, the Waqf; cd trickle down to intell sharing. / Iranian-Russian-Hezb conquest with countless massacres – “World War II-style slaughter.” Assad regime backed by Iran and its proxies. Obama Adm made clear that Syria would be off-limits because it was “an equity of Iran.” OMG.
· http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_opinion.php?id=17869
· https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/report-islamic-state-manufacturing-arms-on-industrial-scale/2016/12/14/039e3df6-c1bc-11e6-92e8-c07f4f671da4_story.html?utm_term=.15e6dbd1ef4f
· http://www.timesofisrael.com/is-in-sinai-claims-rocket-attack-on-israel-that-missed-target/
· http://www.wsj.com/articles/in-syria-russia-acts-as-u-s-pulls-back-1481763124
· http://en.mehrnews.com/news/121994/Rouhani-issues-orders-in-retaliation-of-US-extension-of-ISA
· http://www.thetower.org/4264-israeli-defense-minister-suggests-hezbollah-was-smuggling-chemical-weapons/
Dr. Schanzer brings solid scholarship and public policy credentials to his job of overseeing FDD's research. He worked as a terrorism finance analyst at the U.S. Department of the Treasury, where he played an integral role in the designation of numerous terrorist financiers. A former research Fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, Dr. Schanzer has studied Middle Eastern history in four countries. He earned his Ph.D. from King's College London, where he wrote his dissertation on the U.S. Congress and its efforts to combat terrorism in the 20th century. Dr. Schanzer is part of the leadership team of FDD’s Center on Sanctions and Illicit Finance, which provides policy and subject matter expertise on the use of financial and economic power to the global policy community
Thursday 15 December 2016 / Hour 2, Block D: Brooke Goldstein, Lawfare Project, in re: BDS, Lawfare: effort to raise awareness of use of Western legal system by extremis terrorists, incl Boycott/Sanctions/Divestment against Israel. Attempt to undermine the institutions of government. What happened in Europe to have adults wandering around thinking that Israel is the problem. Do Arab politicians in Spain get money for doing this? Pure and simple racism and anti-Jewishness. Spanish court said it’s a violation, which lays groundwork for a similar ruling across Europe. “To take it out on Israel is hysteria.” Ask: Do you accept Israel’s existence pre-1967? No. In 1947? No. It’s an attack on the right of Israel to exist. . . . Practice violative of academic freedom. Right now, American universities are defeating BDS.
Brooke Goldstein is a New York City-based human rights attorney, author, and award-winning filmmaker. She is the founder and Executive Director of The Lawfare Project, a nonprofit organization dedicated to raising awareness about and facilitating a response to the abuse of Western legal systems and human rights law. Brooke is also the founder and director of the Children’s Rights Institute (CRI), a nonprofit organization whose mission is to track, spotlight, and legally combat violations of children’s basic human rights around the world. CRI has a special focus on the state-sponsored indoctrination and recruitment of children to become suicide-homicide bombers, child soldiers, and human shields.
Hour Three
Thursday 15 December 2016 / Hour 3, Block A: Eli Lake, Bloomberg, in re: Secretary of State choice, Russian relations. Rex Tillerson to be nominated as State Secretary; he’s not of Washington, of State Dept. He might be voted down: smell test on Russia by Senators Rubio, McCain, Graham. Timing is a problem in view of Aleppo. . . . Mattis, Flynn, Pompeo, et al., will evince an anti-Iran policy. If Tillerson is confirmed, how’ll he [manage to deal with the hornet’s nest at State]? The Foreign Service would much prefer Tillerson to John Bolton, as Bolton knows that building and would clean it up. My assessment is that Putin and henchmen are just murderous liars, but if a deal were to be done – maybe agree to brush Assad aside and cease [intimate] relations with Iran; that’d be good but is not at all likely.
Tillerson knows Kissinger, Flynn has met with him. Recall that Putin ate up Khodorkovsky’s company and put Khodorkovsky in prison for years.
· https://www.bloomberg.com/view/articles/2016-12-15/syria-s-opposition-wants-trump-to-drive-a-wedge-between-iran-and-russia
· https://www.bloomberg.com/view/articles/2016-12-13/obama-should-out-putin-s-wealth-after-election-hack
· https://www.bloomberg.com/view/articles/2016-12-12/trump-looks-for-good-cop-bad-lieutenant-at-state
Eli Lake is a Bloomberg View columnist. He was the senior national security correspondent for the Daily Beast and covered national security and intelligence for the Washington Times, the New York Sun and UPI.
Thursday 15 December 2016 / Hour 3, Block B: Indiana Hoenlein, in re: Abraham Lincoln as a Zionist: most past US presidents were Zionists, made references to wishing to have Jews return to their homeland. When Lincoln was born, 3,000 Jews in US; at his death, 100,00. Lincoln spoke with a Christian Zionist. / to the Palestinian Authority, the undying Mahmud Abbas in the twelfth year of a four-year term. Poll: 2/3 of Pal people want him to resign; Haniyah beats Abbas in polls. Corruption! End to Oslo, return to armed Intifadah. Trends result from incessant incitement. Dahlan: lives in a health club in Dubai, has $70 mil; Abbas sentenced him in absentia. . . . Palestinians trying to modify language to avoid US veto . . . Iran going much harder-line. Bibi in Kazakhstan, to Iran: we’re not a rabbit, we’re a tiger. Rouhani has ordered nuclear-powered boats, which require HEU as fuel. “Nuclear experts said that President Hassan Rouhani's move, if carried out, would probably require Iran to enrich uranium to a fissile purity above the maximum level set in the nuclear deal to allay fears of Tehran building an atomic bomb.”
Thursday 15 December 2016 / Hour 3, Block C: Robert Zimmerman, BehindthBlack.com, in re:
Thursday 15 December 2016 / Hour 3, Block D: Robert Zimmerman, BehindthBlack.com, in re:
Hour Four
Thursday 15 December 2016 / Hour 4, Block A: Sebastian v Gorka, VP & professor of Strategy and Irregular Warfare, Institute of World Politics, in re:
Thursday 15 December 2016 / Hour 4, Block B: Sebastian v Gorka, VP & professor of Strategy and Irregular Warfare, Institute of World Politics, in re:
Thursday 15 December 2016 / Hour 4, Block C: Armies of Heaven: The First Crusade and the Quest for Apocalypse, by Jay Rubenstein (1 of 2)
Thursday 15 December 2016 / Hour 4, Block D: Armies of Heaven: The First Crusade and the Quest for Apocalypse, by Jay Rubenstein (2 of 2)
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