Peacemaker George Mitchell Headed to Israel

Bloomberg: President Barack Obama is sending George Mitchell, his Middle East envoy, to the troubled region this week as the new U.S. administration seeks to broker peace between Israel and the Palestinians, a White House adviser said.

Mitchell is charged with the immediate task of facilitating a lasting cease-fire between Israel and the Palestinian militant Hamas movement in the Gaza Strip. The former Senate Democratic leader will probably leave Washington tomorrow, according to the adviser, who asked not to be identified.

Obama has pledged to renew the U.S.’s broader commitment to the peace process, including a separate Palestinian state alongside Israel.

Mitchell, who has negotiating authority in his role as Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s top diplomat for Mideast peace, is set to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Jan. 28, the Associated Press reported, citing an Israeli foreign ministry official it didn’t name.

Mid-East About to Self Destruct

Unfortunately, civilians sometimes pay the price, says Tzipi Livni, Israel's foreign minister, shrugging. What happens when they're done blowing each other to smithereens? More terrorism crops up, more poverty, more unrest.



Protests and background on Gaza and Hamas, the elected leaders of Gaza:

Response to Israeli's attacks:

Welcome to Gaza

Kucinich Criticizes Israel

Dennis Kucinich always speaks his mind. It does seem a little irrational to me to wipe 300 people off the map when no Israelis were killed by Hamas, and Gazans say Hamas doesn't speak for them. (For an update, visit Haaretz).

I know the conflict has so many complexities, chief among them, no one ever criticizes Israel. If neither side budges, they will eternally blast each other to pieces and continue to incite violence in other parts of the world. Hillary!

Obama can't take office soon enough because the Bush administration is totally ineffective. But I'm not sure anyone can change the Middle East, where violence seems like a way of life.

The Hill: Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) is calling for a United Nations investigation into Israel’s attacks on Gaza, criticizing Israel for a disproportionate response to Hamas rocket attacks.

The criticism stands in stark contrast to the statements of other Democrats, who have offered near-unanimous support for Israel amid the latest violence in the Middle East.
....
Kucinich likened the Israeli attacks on Gaza to its war with Hezbollah in southern Lebanon in 2006. In both cases, he said, civilian populations were attacked and “countless innocents” were killed or injured.

“All this was, and is, disproportionate, indiscriminate mass violence in violation of international law,” Kucinich said in a statement. “Israel is not exempt from international law and must be held accountable.”

Dec. 28 Meet the Press: Bush Will Be Judged Harshly

Israel's foreign minister Tzipi Livni says Hamas is to blame and don't you forget it. Israel attacked Gaza Strip after 2 weeks of rocket fire attacks by Hamas, which rules Gaza Strip. Haaretz, an Israeli newspaper, says that Israel has been planning the attacks for 6 months. Haaretz is also reporting that Hamas has threatened to kill Livni and Ehud Barak, Israel's defense minister. 

ABC: The Israeli Army says that over the last week militants have fired 300 rockets or mortars at targets in Israel. One Israeli died in a rocket attack on Saturday according to a report by the Associated Press.

Israel's response of killing nearly 300 people, many civilians, seems a little over the top. The New Republic says no it wasn't. 

Livni said it's acceptable for Hamas to stay in power if it accepts the requirements of the national community -- to accept Israel's right to exist. Hillary! We need your tenacity in the Mid-East.

David Axelrod was also on the show. David Gregory tries to squeeze something new out of him on Blago, taxes and Rick Warren, to no avail.

During the roundtable, it is a foregone conclusion, Bush really blew it (contrary to what Condi Rice says) and his lack of smarts ruined a lot of people's lives. But we can't really blame Bush because we elected him. Going forward, I'm hoping that we will be very careful about who we elect as leaders. It seems the election of Obama set a new tone, which says America is awake. Reset. 

Watch the whole show:

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Some facts about Hamas:

Here are some facts about Hamas:

CAPABILITIES:

* Hamas is believed to have thousands of short-range rockets, as well as scores of longer-range Grad rockets that could strike Israeli population centers up to 40 km (25 miles) from the border with the Gaza Strip.

* Hamas is believed to have a limited number of shoulder fired missiles that could be used against helicopters or slow moving planes, but has little defense against Israel's force of fighter jets, the most technologically advanced in the region.

* First deployed on the streets of Gaza in May 2006, Hamas's main security apparatus, initially dubbed the Executive Force, has grown from an estimated 3,000 members to more than 13,000, divided in several security branches. At least 180 of Hamas's security men were killed in Israel's air strikes.

* Hamas's main security force has grown since its takeover of the Gaza Strip in June 2007, in part because the Islamist group has money to pay salaries. The core of the force is mostly members of the Hamas armed wing, the Izz el-Deen al-Qassam Brigades, but it includes some members from allied militant factions such as the Popular Resistance Committees. More

Obama Firm With Bullies Bush and McCain

bush has no idea who he's messing with. neither does mccain.

cnn: Sen. Barack Obama slammed President Bush on Friday for launching "exactly the kind of appalling attack that's divided our country and that alienates us from the world."


Sen. Barack Obama speaks at a town hall in Watertown, South Dakota, Friday.

He also took a shot at Sen. John McCain for "embracing" the president's "attacks on Democrats," and "suggesting that I wasn't fit to protect this nation that I love."

"So much for civility," Obama said, noting that McCain had talked about the need for civility in politics earlier Thursday.

Obama was responding to Bush's remarks in Israel on Thursday that suggested Obama and other Democrats want to appease terrorists.

In speaking at an event marking the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Jewish state, Bush said, "Some seem to believe that we should negotiate with the terrorists and radicals, as if some ingenious argument will persuade them they have been wrong all along.

"We have heard this foolish delusion before. As Nazi tanks crossed into Poland in 1939, an American senator declared: 'Lord, if I could only have talked to Hitler, all this might have been avoided.' We have an obligation to call this what it is -- the false comfort of appeasement."

White House aides privately indicated the criticism was aimed at Obama.

Democrats, including Obama's rival for the nomination, Sen. Hillary Clinton, condemned the president.

"After almost eight years, I did not think I could be surprised about anything that George Bush says, but I was wrong," Obama said.

"The president did something that presidents don't do. That is launch a political attack targeted toward the domestic market in front of a foreign delegation," he said.

more and video
obama's response:

Obama and McCain Have Hamas in Common

mccain has been trying to distort obama's view on hamas, but obama has said many times before, he believes hamas is not a state and therefore, hamas is not a group he would talk to.

but for many americans, this nuance will go unrecognized. many people will believe the emails that mccain sends out as opposed to seek any truth.

nyt: For his part, Mr. McCain has taken pride in the enmity with which he regards Hamas. “I think that the people should understand that I will be Hamas’s worst nightmare,” he said late last month in a conference call with conservative bloggers.

Conversely, he has tried to portray Mr. Obama as sympathetic to Hamas.

“I think it is very clear who Hamas wants to be the next president of the United States,” Mr. McCain said to the bloggers. “If Senator Obama is favored by Hamas, I think people can make judgments accordingly.”

And in a fund-raising letter sent out in April, a spokesman for Mr. McCain wrote: “We need change in America, but not the kind of change that wins kind words from Hamas, surrenders in Iraq and will hold unconditional talks with Iranian President Ahmadinejad.”

In particular, the McCain campaign has explicitly linked Mr. Yousef’s statements to Mr. Obama’s repeatedly stated willingness to talk to so-called “rogue states” like Iran, North Korea and Cuba.

“Well, Iran is obviously an important supporter of Hamas,” Mr. McCain said Friday.

“Senator Obama wants to sit down and have negotiations and discussions with the person who just yesterday called Israel a quote ‘stinking corpse,’ ” he said, referring to Mr. Ahmadinejad, and “who continues to advocate quote ‘wiping Israel off the map.’ ”

Susan E. Rice, a former State Department and National Security Council official who is a foreign policy adviser to the Democratic candidate, said that “for political purposes, Senator Obama’s opponents on the right have distorted and reframed” his views. Mr. McCain and his surrogates have repeatedly stated that Mr. Obama would be willing to meet “unconditionally” with Mr. Ahmadinejad. But Dr. Rice said that this was not the case for Iran or any other so-called “rogue” state. Mr. Obama believes “that engagement at the presidential level, at the appropriate time and with the appropriate preparation, can be used to leverage the change we need,” Dr. Rice said. “But nobody said he would initiate contacts at the presidential level; that requires due preparation and advance work.”

Mr. Obama has been clear in making a distinction between his willingness to talk “not just to countries we like, but those we don’t,” as he puts it, and Hamas and other political movements similar to it. “Hamas is not a state,” Mr. Obama told a Jewish group last month. “Hamas is a terrorist organization.”

Responding to Mr. McCain’s accusations in an interview with CNN on Thursday, Mr. Obama elaborated on that position. He again called Hamas a terrorist group and said that “we should not talk to them unless they recognize Israel, renounce violence and are willing to abide by previous accords” that Israel has negotiated with its neighbors and with the Palestine Liberation Organization.

That is not a new position for Mr. Obama. In 2006, he, like Mr. McCain, was a co-sponsor of the Palestinian Anti-Terrorism Act, which called on “members of the international community to avoid contact with and refrain from financially supporting the terrorist organization Hamas” until it met all of the same requirements that Mr. Obama enumerated again on Thursday.

McCain: Obama Likes Hamas

yes, indeedy. it has begun.
ironically, it was hillary that kicked it off.
but here we get an idea of how eeeeeasy it will be to beat mccain. he's using websites such as worldnetdaily to raise funds for his already melting campaign.

today, mccain is swirling around a fundraising email (he really needs the money folks) that childishly says hamas wants obama for president. apparently, the website dug up somewhere something that says hamas praises obama.

here is the description of the website:

cnn: That uncredited quote is drawn from an interview published Monday by conservative news site World Net Daily, whose current headlines include “District bans 'John 3:16,' promotes demonic leer” and “Lesbian demands custody of Christian mom's 6-year-old.”

to get an idea how out of touch mccain and his cronies are visit worldnetdaily. there is an ad "the secret life of barack obama."

here's a story from the site with the headline: obama camp flattered.

The McCain fundraising e-mail says Obama’s stands have earned him “kind words” from Hamas. “John McCain's foreign policy provides a stark contrast to the policies of Barack Obama,” writes Ferry. “While Senator Obama would surrender in Iraq and hold talks with the Iranian regime, John McCain will never surrender in the struggle with Islamic extremists. Please join our campaign today by making a generous donation of $50, $100, $250, $500, $1,000 or $2,300.”

In response to earlier comments by McCain over Obama’s position on former President Jimmy Carter’s meeting with Hamas – when the Arizona senator said that “Senator Obama does not have the experience to make the right judgment as to how to deal with terrorist organizations, obviously” and that he approved of the dialogue – the Obama campaign said that the Democratic presidential hopeful did not condone the former president’s decision.