By Kevin McCauley
Congressman Steve Rothman is demanding an apology from New York Times columnist Tom Friedman who wrote today that the Congressional standing ovation received by Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in September was “bought and paid for by the Israel lobby.”
The New Jersey Democrat released a statement that read:
“Thomas Friedman’s defamation against the vast majority of Americans who support the Jewish State of Israel, in his New York Times opinion piece today, is scurrilous, destructive and harmful to Israel and her advocates in the US. Mr. Friedman is not only wrong, but he’s aiding and abetting a dangerous narrative about the US-Israel relationship and its American supporters.
"I gave Prime Minister Netanyahu a standing ovation, not because of any nefarious lobby, but because it is in America’s vital national security interests to support the Jewish State of Israel and it is right for Congress to give a warm welcome to the leader of such a dear and essential ally. Mr. Friedman owes us all an apology.”
Friedman believes Netanyahu would receive a much different reception if he spoke at a different venue, such as the University of Wisconsin.
"My guess is that many students would boycott him and many Jewish students would stay away, not because they are hostile but because they are confused," he wrote.
|