President Obama Funds a Government with an "Epidemic" of Sexual Harassment

As the Democratic National Convention got under way today, the Democrats trotted out in their vagina and "Pillomena"birth control costumes to denounce the so-called Republican war on women. Meanwhile the national debt passed $16 trillion today, with $5.4 trillion of that coming during President Obama's three and a  half years in office.

Nevermind all of that social and domestic economic policy stuff though, the Obama administration has foreign policy issues to attend to. As the New York Times reports:

 Nearly 16 months after first pledging to help Egypt’s failing economy, the Obama administration is nearing an agreement with the country’s new government to relieve $1 billion of its debt as part of an American and international assistance package intended to bolster its transition to democracy, administration officials said. 

 [...] 

 In addition to the debt assistance, the administration has thrown its support behind a $4.8 billion loan being negotiated between Egypt and the International Monetary Fund. Last week, it dispatched the first of two delegations to work out details of the proposed debt assistance, as well as $375 million in financing and loan guarantees for American financiers who invest in Egypt and a $60 million investment fund for Egyptian businesses.

Rather than focusing on reducing America's burgeoning debt, President Obama is extending debt assistance to a country who already owes us more $3 billion, as the Times article later states. But what's a billion dollars when one's administration has added $5.4 trillion already, right? President Obama had already bypassed Congress to give Egypt $1.5 billion in March when the then unelected Muslim Brotherhood already held power. Additionally, as noted above the Obama administration has been instrumental in facilitating an large IMF loan to Egypt.

Furthermore, despite the supposed war on women in America, President Obama is extending loan support to a country that recently elected a Muslim Brotherhood candidate to the presidency in June. This president, Mohammed Morsi, promised to select a female VP, but did not, only choosing women for aide and advisory roles. More appalling though, the election of the Muslim Brotherhood three months ago has lead to what the BBC calls an "epidemic" of sexual harassment (emphasis added):

 Campaigners in Egypt say the problem of sexual harassment is reaching epidemic proportions, with a rise in such incidents over the past three months. For many Egyptian women, sexual harassment - which sometimes turns into violent mob-style attacks - is a daily fact of life, reports the BBC's Bethany Bell in Cairo. 

 [...]  

 The day I met Marwa, she was wearing a long headscarf pinned like a wimple under her chin, and a loose flowing dress with long sleeves over baggy trousers.  

 But dressing conservatively is no longer a protection, according to Dina Farid of the campaign group Egypt's Girls are a Red Line.  

 She says even women who wear the full-face veil - the niqab - are being targeted.  

 "It does not make a difference at all. Most of Egyptian ladies are veiled [with a headscarf] and most of them have experienced sexual harassment.

President Obama adds to our debt to help ease the debt of a country that has a massive and real, sustained war on women. Meanwhile, this week, the Democratic National Convention will have women like Sandra Fluke, a 30 year free birth control proponent, speak on a faux war on women and pay homage to former Senator Ted Kennedy who was notorious for leaving a female companion, Mary Jo Kopechne, to drown after a drunk driving crash and for sexual harassing waitresses. Such blatant and out-of-touch hypocrisy.

However, none of this is any surprise to Governor Palin--often the target of the Democrats' misogyny herself. In February of 2011, she warned of the threats to women's rights (as well as religious rights) should the Muslim Brotherhood take control:

 

 While the Obama administration claims that such funding and diplomatic support to Egypt is aimed to assist the formation a new democracy, they do nothing of the sort when they aid an ideological group based on harassment of women and religious persecution. Crossposted here and here.

Why Governor Palin Was Right on "Arab Spring"

In February, Governor Palin was on Hannity to discuss the role of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt’s new government following the ousting of President Mubarak. Governor Palin warned of the threats to human rights, women’s rights, freedom of religion, and to Israel if the Muslim Brotherhood were to get involved in the new government. She also sharply criticized any hint of President Obama encouraging the Muslim Brotherhood to have a seat at the table in negotiations to be part of the new government.



Fast forward to today, what many liberals and neoconservatives like Bill Kristol praised as an “Arab Spring” has really resulted in a fall of Egyptian freedom for Coptic Christians and for Egypt’s neighbor and our ally, Israel . The Obama administration approved of the potential of Muslim Brotherhood involvement in the Egyptian government since the nascence of the uprising. Earlier this month, US officials met with members of the Muslim Brotherhood, which were meetings that had been planned since June. Reuters quotes a US diplomat on the discussion:

"From our perspective it is important to be in touch with all of the emerging political forces here in Egypt, across the board, that are peaceful and committed to non-violence," he said.

"It helps to understand Egypt and the way the political system is developing, and it helps us to deliver our message and get them to understand where we are coming from," he added.

What has occurred as Egypt approaches its upcoming elections has not been "peaceful and committed to non-violence", as the US diplomat has asserted. In fact, Governor Palin’s warnings of what might happen if the Muslim Brotherhood were to seek greater involvement in Egypt’s new government have proven to be correct.Since the ousting of Mubarak, the military controlled government and an increasing probability of the Muslim Brotherhood's involvement in the new government has caused even more chaos and violence both to Israel and to Egyptian Christians. In September, militants attacked Egypt’s gasline to Israel for the sixth time since Mubarak’s ousting. Last month, after half a dozen Egyptian soldiers were mistakenly killed by Israeli soldiers in response to a Palestinian attack, Egyptians activists called for the expulsion of the Israeli ambassador and attacked the Israeli embassy in Cairo, injuring more than 1,000 and killing 3. Over this past weekend, twenty-six Coptic Christians were killed and nearly 500 wounded when they were simply attempting to engage in peaceful protest after church construction had been attacked by Islamists. The Christians feel the military leadership has been too lenient to the Islamists. As Governor Palin noted in February on Hannity, the Obama administration makes it a point not to use the phrase “Islamic extremists”. The word “extremists” may be left to the perception of individuals, but the Obama administration’s statement following these attacks failed to mention the role of Islamists at all in the lead up to these protests, calling instead for “restraint on all sides”.

Governor Palin’s statements last winter have proven her prescience on supposed “freedom” movements in the Egypt. Elected officials and current candidates would do well to pay attention, and political pundits, like Bill Kristol, who call Governor Palin's foreign policy views "Obama lite" when he himself supported the same "Arab Spring" as President Obama, should take a look in the mirror.

Crossposted here and here.

Governor Palin on the Issues: Israel

In recent weeks, America's relationship with our ally, Israel, has come into focus once again. As the Obama administration has failed to coalesce around a coherent strategy with regards to recent protests in Egypt, the potential for a group like the Muslim Brotherhood to become involved in Egypt's new government is particularly worrisome. To call the Muslim Brotherhood anti-Israel would be an understatement and to see them as a group without a religious/political agenda would be foolish, yet President Obama's own Director of National Intelligence referred to the Muslim Brotherhood as "largely secular". Additionally, our UN ambassador was poised to vote to rebuke of Israel for building settlements on the West Bank before vetoing such a proposal. However, Ambassador Rice stated that the veto should not be, " seen as an endorsement of Israel's settlement policies, which the Obama administration has repeatedly denounced". This extremely poor treatment of Israel is sadly commonplace in the Obama administration. On two occasions, President Obama did not allow cameras into meetings with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. During one of those meetings in March 2010, President Obama abandoned Netanyahu during tough talks regarding Israeli settlements to have dinner with his family. Additionally, during a visit to Israel,as a response to Israel's announcement of further settlement construction Vice President Joe Biden arrived an hour and a half late to a dinner with the Israeli Prime Minister as a disapproving response to Israel's announcement of further settlement construction. Suffice it to say, the Obama administration's approach to its relationship to America's ally, Israel, has been weak, misguided, and immature.

Contrast the Obama administration's approach with Governor Palin's stance on Israel. Governor Palin's support for Israel is not only found on her lapel, it is found in nearly every speech she gives and every foreign policy related answers to interview questions and is a consistent mention in her Facebook posts. Most recently, Governor Palin has emphasized the importance of remembering Israel in discussion of Egypt's new government. She did so in her question and answer session at the Long Island Association on Friday. In a recent interview with Sean Hannity, she also discussed the Muslim Brotherhood's potential effect on Israel if it is involved in Egypt's new government:



Governor Palin recognizes that it is imperative for America to stand with Israel when Egypt, an ally of Israel, has the potential to be led by a group with an anti-Israel agenda. Governor Palin's support for Israel goes far beyond these recent comments about events in Egypt, however. She has stood with Israel in their relationships with Iran and Palestine.

Governor Palin has been critical of the Obama administration's appeasement mentality towards America's enemies coupled with poor treatment of Israel with regards to Israeli-Palestinian relationships. She called for a reset with Israel in a Facebook post last March:

In the midst of all this embracing of enemies, where does the Obama Administration choose to escalate a minor incident into a major diplomatic confrontation? With Iran, Cuba, Sudan, North Korea or Burma? No. With our treasured ally, Israel.

...

Once again, the Obama Administration is missing the boat on a very, very important issue. They need to go back to the basics and acknowledge Palestinian leaders have not progressed any peace process since President Obama was elected. As Israel makes concessions (and is still criticized by the Obama Administration), Arab leaders are just sitting back waiting for the White House to further pressure Israel. The Obama Administration needs to open its eyes and recognize that it is only Iran and her terrorist allies that benefit from this manufactured Israeli controversy. Vice President Biden was actually right when he said last week, before the construction announcement, that “one necessary precondition for progress is that the rest of the world knows...there is absolutely no space between the United States and Israel when it comes to security.” Right now, thanks to the Obama Administration, there is a chasm. It’s time for President Obama to push the reset button on our relations with our ally Israel.

In addition to addressing Israeli-Palestinian relationships, Governor Palin emphasized the importance in standing with Israel against the threat of Iran. In another post last March, Governor Palin called for the Obama administration to impose tougher sanctions on Iran and to exhibit more friendly interactions with Israel:

Public demands for concessions have been made of the Israelis while the Palestinians add ever more conditions to their participation in peace talks, and those in the administration that dare to argue for looking at these policies through the lens of Israel’s security needs are subject to slanderous attacks from “senior administration officials.” The Obama administration has their priorities exactly backwards; we should be working with our friend and democratic ally to stop Iran’s nuclear program, not throwing in the towel on sanctions while treating Israel like an enemy.

She would reiterate this criticism of Iran's potential to develop nuclear weaponry and the subsequent effect on Israel in an op-ed in USA Today this past December.

Beyond strong stances against Palestine and Iran specifically, Governor Palin has stood with Israel on many other occasions, including strong pro-Israel statements during a foreign policy focused speech last summer where she called Israel "our most important ally in the Middle East". She called for President Obama to stand with Israel last summer when more than 10 Israeli soldiers were injured trying to stop Turkish supported Flotillas aimed at provoking Israel. When discussing an endorsement of now Senator Rand Paul, Governor Palin asked about his view of Israel--indicating that a pro-Israel stance is a valuable issue in an endorsee. In a letter to recently elected House members, Governor Palin encouraged new House members to strongly support Israel stating,"[y]ou can stand with allies like Israel, not criticize them. You can let the President know what you believe – Jerusalem is the capital of Israel, not a settlement". Such a statement shows her consistency in her firm support for Israel, as she stated in an interview with Barbara Walters in 2009 and her stance during the VP debate 2008 campaign. On multiple occasions, both during her time as Governor and following, Governor Palin has shared holiday wishes to the Jewish community. It's no wonder more Jewish Americans are supporting Governor Palin. While President Obama sees "bowtowing" to our enemies and ailenating our allies as an effective foreign policy strategy, Governor Palin has just the opposite approach--standing with Israel and against her enemies.

Other "Governor Palin on the Issues" posts have addressed monetary policy, entitlement reform, energy independence, and energy regulation.

Crossposted here, here, here, and here.

President Obama Follows Governor Palin's National Security Advice

Following President Obama's speech on former Egyptian President Mubarak's decision to resign yesterday afternoon, Governor Palin tweeted the following:

Media: ask "Will Obama Admin exert as much 'constructive' pressure on Iranian govt to change & allow freedom ~ as they just did for Egypt?"

Today, the Hill reports (emphasis mine):

The White House said Saturday that, off the heels of 18 days of Egyptian protests that ousted President Hosni Mubarak, Iran should allow its people to demonstrate.

Tehran had praised Egyptians for rising up against Mubarak's secular government, calling it an Islamic awakening. Yet some trace the roots of the grass-roots, social-media-driven revolt in Egypt to the Green Revolution protests against President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's last election and demanding democracy.

Opposition leaders Mir Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroub, both candidates in that election, wanted to stage a rally Monday in support of uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt. But the regime quickly put a damper on the permit request, calling the rallies "riots by seditionists."

"By announcing that they will not allow opposition protests, the Iranian government has declared illegal for Iranians what it claimed was noble for Egyptians," National Security Adviser Tom Donilon said in a statement released by the White House on Saturday.

"We call on the government of Iran to allow the Iranian people the universal right to peacefully assemble, demonstrate and communicate that’s being exercised in Cairo," he said.

Well, what do we have here? Governor Palin tweets, and the next day, President Obama jumps. The Obama administration is thankfully heading Governor Palin's advice for once. However, it cannot be forgotten that President Obama largely ignored the green movement protests during Iran's presidential election in 2009 and has not taken a strong stance against the tyranny of President Ahmadinejad. This is not the first time that Governor Palin has called for respect for human rights and allowance of freedom in Iran. In an op-ed published in the USA Today in December, Governor Palin wrote:

But we also need to encourage a positive vision for Iran. Iran is not condemned to live under the totalitarian inheritance of the Ayatollah Khomeini forever. There is an alternative — an Iran where human rights are respected, where women are not subjugated, where terrorist groups are not supported and neighbors are not threatened. A peaceful, democratic Iran should be everyone's goal. There are many hopeful signs inside Iran that reveal the Iranian people's desire for this peaceful, democratic future. We must encourage their voices.

When the brave people of Iran take to the streets in defiance of their unelected dictatorship, they must know that we in the free world stand with them. When the women of Iran rise up to demand their rights, they must know that we women of the free world who enjoy the rights won for us by our suffragist foremothers stand with our sisters there. When Iranians demand freedom of religion, freedom of conscience and freedom to simply live their lives as they choose without persecution, we in the free world must stand with them.

Of course, in Governor Palin's tweet yesterday, she effectively challenged both the media and the Obama administration using only 140 characters. President Obama may have released a statement quoting his national security advisor, but that's a far cry from a bold stance for freedom and democracy. President Obama has taken a tiny baby step in the right direction. We're all, of course, still waiting for the media to challenge the Obama administration.

Crossposted here, here, here, and here.