Countdown

California Dreamin'?

Posted on Wednesday November 15, 2006

California Dreamin’?
The well-publicized battle among House Democrats for the post of Majority Leaders is not the only leadership struggle facing House Speaker-elect Nancy Pelosi (D-CA). A list of fellow California Democrats are vying for leadership positions as well. Intelligence Committee Ranking Member Jane Harman (D-CA) will reportedly not be selected to chair the important committee. Time recently reported that the Department of Justice “is examining whether Harman and AIPAC [the American Israel Public Affairs Committee] arranged for wealthy supporters to lobby House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi on Harman’s behalf.” In addition to Harman, the Forward reports that Congressman Howard Berman (D-CA) may challenge International Relations Committee Ranking Member Tom Lantos (D-CA) for chairman of that committee. It was Lantos who held the administration’s request for Lebanon aid and was a chief proponent of the bill to cut aid to the Palestinian people. While Berman is also staunchly pro-Israel, his chairmanship would likely lead to a more nuanced treatment of foreign affairs.

Assignments Are In For the Class of ‘06
Senate Democrats have announced anticipated committee assignments for the 110th Congress. As expected, Senator Joe Biden (D-DE) will chair the Foreign Relations Committee. All four new committee Democrats—Bob Menendez (D-NJ), Ben Cardin (D-MD), Bob Casey (D-PA), and Jim Webb (D-VA)—are all senators with active Arab American communities. Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) will take over from Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA) at Judiciary and will be joined by Senators Cardin and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI). Armed Services will be led by Michigan Senator Carl Levin, who will be joined by Senators Mark Pryor (D-AR), Webb, and Claire McCaskill (D-MO). Republicans have yet to announce their committee assignments…

And They’re Off…
Now that the midterm elections are one whole week behind us, Countdown—along with the rest of Washington and almost no one anywhere else in America—has turned its attention to the 2008 presidential elections. The first Republican legislator to announce plans for a run was House Armed Services Chairman Duncan Hunter (R-CA), coauthor of a new law to build a fence along the US-Mexico border. Arab Americans will also remember Hunter as one of the lead opponents of the Dubai Ports World deal. Other GOP hopefuls include Senator John McCain (R-AZ), New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, and former MA Governor Mitt Romney, who advocated wiretapping Massachusetts mosques. The Democratic field remains wide open. Contenders include Senators Hillary Clinton (D-NY), Barack Obama (D-IL), and Joe Biden (D-DE) and former Senator John Edwards. Although many Arab Americans had looked forward to his candidacy, Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI) announced that he will not run. Feingold has repeatedly reached out to the Arab American community and is one of the Senate’s staunchest defenders of civil liberties, including his opposition to the “special registration” program and warrantless wiretapping. He may not have won the nomination, but Feingold’s decency and vision would have contributed much to the national debate.

Another “Man of Peace”?!?!?
If President George W. Bush plans to pursue a new path in the Middle East, it was not evident in this week’s press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. According to Bush, the two leaders talked about how they could “work together to achieve peace.” Not a word about the terrible deaths in Beit Hanun or the appointment of noted racist and “transfer” advocate Avigdor Lieberman as Deputy Prime Minister. Olmert praised US progress in Iraq, declaring, “We are very much impressed and encouraged by the stability which the great operation of America in Iraq brought to the Middle East. We pray and hope that this policy will be fully successful so that this stability which was created for all the moderate countries in the Middle East will continue.” Pass the Kool-Aid.