Countdown

There's Still Space for Moderates…

Vol VII, No. 31
Posted on Wednesday September 13, 2006

Making History…

On September 12, nine states and Washington DC hosted the last round of major primaries before Election Day. If those results are a bellwether for November’s results, Arab Americans have reason for optimism. State Representative Keith Ellison won the Democratic nomination to represent Minnesota’s fifth district—one of the most Democratic districts in the country. If elected in November, Ellison will be the first African American to represent Minnesota and the first Muslim ever elected to Congress. Ellison’s campaign has focused on opposition to the Iraq war and advocacy of universal health care. The Minnesota Daily reports that “as Ellison accepted his victory, he said, ‘Peace must be the guiding principle of our nation. We knew that you can win an election by going positive and staying positive,’ Ellison said. He said a caring nation provides for all its people. ‘We don’t let nobody break us apart, we accept you as you are.’” Ellison is already garnering comparisons to legendary Minnesota Senator Paul Wellstone (D) and his win has led political magazine Hotline to declare “Muslim Americans” as winners of yesterday’s primaries.

There’s Still Space for Moderates…

Yesterday’s most visible race was Rhode Island Senator Lincoln Chafee’s® triumph over Republican challenger Steve Laffey. Chafee is regarded as one of the Senate’s most moderate voices whose votes often challenge party orthodoxy. Aside from his campaign, Chafee recently made headlines by challenging the nomination of US Ambassador to the United Nations, John Bolton. Chafee wrote to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice regarding Bolton and other “serious questions about this Administration’s policies in the Middle East.” “Phase one of [the] Road Map states clearly that Israel will freeze all settlement activity. Yet, just this week, it is reported that 690 homes will be built in the West Bank settlements of Maale Adumim and Betar Illit. While the official US policy has been against settlement activity, no credible observer could think that the US could not do more to stop these new actions,” he wrote. “While I am a strong supporter of Israel, and believe her security is non-negotiable, we should have a more balanced approach—so that both sides can see that we are an honest broker for peace. I have been a long-time critic of the disparity between the rhetoric and the actions of the Administration on the subject of the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. However, now I fear that even the rhetoric is going to stop. Is this expansion of settlement activity a signal that holding both sides to their commitments under the Road Map is no longer official US policy?”

Remembering Civilians

On September 6, the Senate, by a vote of 30-70, rejected an amendment offered by Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Patrick Leahy (D-VT) calling for the protection of “civilian lives from unexploded cluster munitions” by preventing US tax dollars from being spent to acquire, utilize, sell, or transfer cluster munitions. Feinstein’s amendment, debated as part of the annual Defense Appropriations bill, was drafted in light of overwhelming evidence that Israel used US-supplied cluster bombs in its recent campaign in Lebanon, and that unexploded cluster bombs have killed and maimed scores of Lebanese civilians since the cease-fire. Feinstein gave a strong speech on the Senate floor, reminding her colleagues of the devastating effects of cluster munitions on civilian populations. “Throughout southern Lebanon, more than 405 cluster bomb sites containing approximately 100,000 unexploded bomblets have been discovered,” she said. “As Lebanese children and families return to their homes and begin to rebuild, they will be exposed to the danger of these unexploded bomblets lying in the rubble. Thirteen people, including three young children, have been killed so far, and 48 injured…Let me say that I join the United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator for Lebanon, David Shearer, in calling on Israel to provide information on where the cluster bombs were used…We have asked for information about the conditions for the sale of cluster munitions to Israel, and we have not been able to get that information. It seems to me that information should be readily available and transparent, particularly to the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives … If there are violations, there should be consequences.”

Lest We Forget

With devastating violence still engulfing innocents in Sudan, September 17 will mark the “Global Day for Darfur” with events in over 32 countries including rallies in Rwanda and Cambodia, a concert in Senegal, a vigil in Egypt, and a petition signing in Bahrain. Nobel Peace Prize winner Bishop Desmond Tutu said, “From Cape Town to London, Moscow to New York, concerned citizens are asking why the UN Security Council’s resolutions on Darfur have yet to be enforced. We are still waiting for a no-fly zone, targeted sanctions against the architects of the genocide, and referrals to the International War Crimes Tribunal. No wonder the Khartoum regime doubts the resolve of the international community, and dates to deny UN peacekeepers’ access to Darfur.” Senator Romeo Dallaire, Force Commander for UN peacekeepers in Rwanda, echoed Tutu’s sentiments, urging citizens to take action. “The influence of the ‘Global Day for Darfur’ is significant because the political will of nations, of democracies, are influenced by the people.”