By Lt Col Howard

It is surprising that in this current political debate more about the differences in energy policy and economic, military and social conditions are not raised. During the McCain campaign the US was facing the prospect of five dollars a gallon at the pump and that half of the nation would not be able to afford heat in the winter. At that time Russia enjoyed bountiful income from its petroleum exports and had a very strong political/economic lock on the Eastern European countries.

Communication with Ben Rhodes… Subject: Suggest that Adm steer clear since Putin strongly favors Hillary Clinton in the coming election. Date: October 24, 2016 [To: “ben Rhodes >” ]

See: “Too Little, Too Late From Obama On Infrastructure Security” by Paul Brewer and
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Watch: PM says Trump a friend of the Jewish people, expresses hope he will nix Iran deal – and pave the way for a Palestinian state.

By David Rosenberg, INN

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu expressed optimism about the incoming Trump administration and its ability to work with Israel on pressing matters in the Middle East, telling 60 Minutes he expected a more productive relationship with the President-elect than with his predecessor.

During the sit-down interview with Lesley Stahl, Netanyahu praised Donald Trump, saying his support for the Jewish state “is clear”, and referencing Trump’s recent statements regarding his “warm feelings” towards Israel.
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By Oliver JJ Jane, BRIETBART

The daughter of Palestinian immigrants is to be the Berlin senate’s secretary of state for coordinating federal and state affairs, but attention has focused on her recent remarks in support of Sharia law.

Berlin state senate member, former deputy speaker for foreign affairs and Muslim rising star of German politics Sawsan Chebli is to get a new cabinet post. The appointment by the Red-Red-Green coalition government has caused concern after a recent interview in which she expressed her view that Sharia law was perfectly compatible with secular German society.
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By Dr. Mordechai Chaziza, BESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 385

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The Chinese “Belt and Road Initiative” (BRI) is a planned regional network of sea and rail infrastructure intended to strengthen the position of the Middle East as a critical trade route between East and West. One element of the planned BRI is the Red-Med rail project, which would connect the Israeli ports of Eilat and Ashdod. The Red-Med project offers significant potential benefits to Israel as well as the possibility of improved regional opportunities and relationships.
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By Ambassador (ret.) Yoram Ettinger,
“Second Thought: a US-Israel Initiative”
Straight from the Jerusalem Boardroom #216, December 11, 2016

http://bit.ly/2hhR9HE

Russian presence in Syria usually limits Israel while restraining Assad, Hezbollah and Iran. Israel’s recent actions, however, could provide Hassan Nasrallah with the justification he needs for the next war

By Amir Oren, HAARETZ

On March 10 this year, the Israel Air Force intelligence chief traveled to meet a European counterpart. They discussed the situation in the Middle East, the fighting in Syria and Russia’s involvement there. They separated with a handshake and mutual compliments. Each went his own way and the following week was astonished to hear Russian President Vladimir Putin announce the withdrawal of his forces from Syria. There was no sign of it coming; no organization predicted this turn of events; and the West is still wondering whether Putin himself knew prior to his declaration that he would say what he did.
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By Ellen Nakashima and Adam Entous, WaPo,

In a secure meeting room under the Capitol last week, lawmakers held in their hands a classified letter written by colleagues in the Senate summing up a secret, new CIA assessment of Russia’s role in the 2016 presidential election.Sitting before the House Intelligence Committee was a senior FBI counterintelligence official. The question the Republicans and Democrats in attendance wanted answered was whether the bureau concurred with the conclusions the CIA had just shared with senators that Russia “quite” clearly intended to help Republican Donald Trump defeat Democrat Hillary Clinton and clinch the White House.

For the Democrats in the room, the FBI’s response was frustrating — even shocking.
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Does the Regulation Bill presage Israeli annexation of parts of the West Bank? Will the Supreme Court strike it down? How will the world react?

By Raphael Ahren, TOI

It is not yet law, it has gone through multiple changes, but the so-called Regulation Bill, which the Knesset approved in a preliminary reading late Monday, is understandably drawing immense attention both within and far beyond the borders of Israel.

On Monday evening, opposition leader Isaac Herzog warned it sets the stage for nothing less than “national suicide,” while Jewish Home head Naftali Bennett championed it as paving the path to expanding Israeli sovereignty into the West Bank.
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By Larry Johnson, NO QUARTERS USA

There are two basic types of espionage activity–Covert refers to an operation that is undetected while in progress, but the outcome may be easily observed. Killing Bin Laden is a prime example of a “covert” operation. A Clandestine Operation is something that is supposed to be undetected while in progress and after completion. For example, if the U.S. or Russia had a mole at the top of the National Security bureaucracy of their respective adversary, communicating with that mole and the mole’s very existence would be clandestine.

So, the alleged Russian meddling in our election–was it covert or clandestine?
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T. Belman. +972 is a a far left site and is very supportive of the Palestinians. It gives the impression that but for the refusal of COGAT to issue permits,building without permits wouldn’t be happening. What it fails to stress is that Israel is under no legal obligation to issue such permits and is fully within her rights to not permit illegal Arab construction.

I am left with the querstion, why is there only about 1.5 persons displaced for every house demolished.

Israel ramped up its practice of demolishing Palestinian structures in the West Bank this year, destroying more than twice as many as it did in 2015.

By Roth, +972 MAG

The number of Palestinian structures Israel has destroyed in the West Bank and East Jerusalem has passed the 1,000 mark for the year, according to data from the UN humanitarian agency. As of the end of November, Israeli authorities had demolished 1,051 structures, displacing 1,569 Palestinians.

This represents, with a month of the year left to go, a doubling of the equivalent number from 2015, during which Israel demolished 544 Palestinian structures in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, displacing 757 Palestinians.
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NYT

By Daniel John Sobieski, AMERICAN THINKER

T. Belman. Yesterday, I asked a few friends what happened that the Government finally passed this momentous Bill? This article answers that question but from a left wing perspective.

The crisis over the evacuation of Amona has achieved the impossible, bringing together Prime Minister Netanyahu and Habayit Hayehudi leader Naftali Bennett. There’s far less unity in Zionist Union, though.

By Yossi Verter, HAARETZ

Few remember, but legislation to expropriate Palestinian land and legalize unauthorized outposts came up for a vote in the Knesset four and a half years ago. Exactly the same bill and, then as now, it was submitted by MKs from the National Religious Party (known these days as Habayit Hayehudi). Then, too, the prime minister was Benjamin Netanyahu, and he threatened sanctions against ministers and deputy ministers who breached coalition discipline. Back then, he threatened to fire anyone who supported the bill. This week, acting through coalition whip MK David Bitan, he punished MK Benny Begin (Likud) – who voted against the bill and the party line – by temporarily removing him from the Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee.
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By Daniel Greenfield

The specter of identity politics is haunting the left. It shows up at teary-eyed election parties in Berkeley, debates over craft beers in Williamsburg and the editorial pages of the big opinion shaper papers.

No less an icon of the left than Bernie Sanders has been grumbling that his movement needs to reconnect with working people again. He even tentatively denounced identity politics. “It is not good enough for somebody to say, ‘I’m a woman, vote for me.’” Bernie bears a grudge. That’s obvious. But the old Socialist has a history of spouting the old Socialist working class denunciations of immigration.

Bernie is really arguing that the Democrats ought to emphasize class more and race less. Similar left-wing squeaks have popped up in a handful of editorials. But they aren’t likely to travel very far.
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Israeli Air Force’s Golden Eagle squadron has been preparing for the advanced stealth fighter jet’s arrival for over a year • “The F-35 has incredible capabilities, but here too, the pilot in the cockpit is the one who triumphs,” squadron commander says.

By Lt. Col. Yotam, commander of the IAF’s Golden Eagle squadron

Two F-35 Adir fighter jets will land at Nevatim Airbase on Monday, bringing to a close more than a year and a half of preparations and an even longer process involving multiple departments and organizations in Israel’s defense establishment.

As soon as I accepted to the role of squadron commander, I was tasked with making the most important decisions, such as who would be joining me on this fascinating journey of acquiring Israel’s new fighter jets. We will make the rest of the decisions together, and they will be influenced by the quality of the people, their diversity, and their vision.

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—Misrepresenting Two-Statism

By MARTIN SHERMAN

Oslo failed not because Israelis built crèches, kindergartens and schools across pre-1967 lines, but because Palestinian-Arabs blew up Israeli cafes, buses and malls inside those lines

Raise your hands… how many of you believe in a two-state solution, believe two states is critical? …Okay, it’s the vast majority of people here. How many of you don’t, are willing to say so? There’s one hand up… — Secretary of State John Kerry, at the 2016 Saban Forum, asking for a show of hands from the audience in support of a two-state agreement.

Last week, the annual Saban Forum took place, as usual, in Washington in early December — albeit in what appeared to be a somewhat diminished format relative to the past two years.

Clear political slant
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By Evelyn Gordon, MOSAIC

In 2015, following lengthy negotiations, President Barack Obama concluded an executive agreement marking the accomplishment of a cherished policy goal: the nuclear deal with Iran known as the JCPOA. Also in 2015, after similarly lengthy negotiations, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu concluded an agreement realizing a long-cherished policy goal of his own: a deal enabling development of Israel’s largest natural-gas field by a private American company and its Israeli partner. Both agreements included a commitment by the respective governments to refrain from adverse legislative action over the next ten to fifteen years: in Obama’s case, action to reinstate nuclear sanctions against Iran; in Netanyahu’s case, action to alter the regulatory regime for natural gas to the disadvantage of the private energy companies.
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