L.A. times supresses video of Obama and Rashid Khalidi

[XCALIDEM]

continuation:

In the 1970s, when Khalidi taught at a university in Beirut, he often spoke to reporters on behalf of Yasser Arafat's Palestine Liberation Organization. In the early 1990s, he advised the Palestinian delegation during peace negotiations. Khalidi now occupies a prestigious professorship of Arab studies at Columbia.

He is seen as a moderate in Palestinian circles, having decried suicide bombings against civilians as a "war crime" and criticized the conduct of Hamas and other Palestinian leaders. Still, many of Khalidi's opinions are troubling to pro-Israel activists, such as his defense of Palestinians' right to resist Israeli occupation and his critique of U.S. policy as biased toward Israel.

While teaching at the University of Chicago, Khalidi and his wife lived in the Hyde Park neighborhood near the Obamas. The families became friends and dinner companions.

In 2000, the Khalidis held a fundraiser for Obama's unsuccessful congressional bid. The next year, a social service group whose board was headed by Mona Khalidi received a $40,000 grant from a local charity, the Woods Fund of Chicago, when Obama served on the fund's board of directors.

At Khalidi's going-away party in 2003, the scholar lavished praise on Obama, telling the mostly Palestinian American crowd that the state senator deserved their help in winning a U.S. Senate seat. "You will not have a better senator under any circumstances," Khalidi said.

The event was videotaped, and a copy of the tape was obtained by The Times.

Though Khalidi has seen little of Sen. Obama in recent years, Michelle Obama attended a party several months ago celebrating the marriage of the Khalidis' daughter.

In interviews with The Times, Khalidi declined to discuss specifics of private talks over the years with Obama. He did not begrudge his friend for being out of touch, or for focusing more these days on his support for Israel -- a stance that Khalidi calls a requirement to win a national election in the U.S., just as wooing Chicago's large Arab American community was important for winning local elections.

Khalidi added that he strongly disagrees with Obama's current views on Israel, and often disagreed with him during their talks over the years. But he added that Obama, because of his unusual background, with family ties to Kenya and Indonesia, would be more understanding of the Palestinian experience than typical American politicians.

"He has family literally all over the world," Khalidi said. "I feel a kindred spirit from that."

Ties with Israel

Even as he won support in Chicago's Palestinian community, Obama tried to forge ties with advocates for Israel.

In 2000, he submitted a policy paper to CityPAC, a pro-Israel political action committee, that among other things supported a unified Jerusalem as Israel's capital, a position far out of step from that of his Palestinian friends. The PAC concluded that Obama's position paper "suggests he is strongly pro-Israel on all of the major issues."

In 2002, as a rash of suicide bombings struck Israel, Obama sought out a Jewish colleague in the state Senate and asked whether he could sign onto a measure calling on Palestinian leaders to denounce violence. "He came to me and said, 'I want to have my name next to yours,' " said his former state Senate colleague Ira Silverstein, an observant Jew.

As a presidential candidate, Obama has won support from such prominent Chicago Jewish leaders as Penny Pritzker, a member of the family that owns the Hyatt hotel chain, and who is now his campaign finance chair, and from Lee Rosenberg, a board member of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.

Nationally, Obama continues to face skepticism from some Jewish leaders who are wary of his long association with his pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr., who had made racially incendiary comments during several sermons that recently became widely known. Questions have persisted about Wright in part because of the recent revelation that his church bulletin reprinted a Times op-ed written by a leader of Hamas.

One Jewish leader said he viewed Obama's outreach to Palestinian activists, such as Said, in the light of his relationship to Wright.

"In the context of spending 20 years in a church where now it is clear the anti-Israel rhetoric was there, was repeated, . . . that's what makes his presence at an Arab American event with a Said a greater concern," said Abraham H. Foxman, national director for the Anti-Defamation League.

peter.wallsten@latimes.com


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[Pandora]

It's AMAZING what they're letting obama get away with - close associations with communists, terrorist bombers, crooks, racists, islamofascists. ANY of that would have torpedoed any other politician's campaign in an eye blink. What's next - child molesters?

LOL that is about the only group I can think of that he has not been friendly with yet

 

[primerib]

Release the tape. Why do people overlook Nobama's associations? If it was McCain, he would be roasted and well done, stick a fork in it.

 

[Dr.Who]

Recently a tape of Sen. Obama speaking about the constitution was released. Much of it was droll and un-impassioned. Those parts were of no news interest. However the parts where he demonstrates his disdain for our constitution were of great interest. I am sure that on the strongly left wing websites they discuss the postitive things he said in that tape alone. And any of you can confirm that or not since the tape is available for you to hear.

So now we have some parts of the video at the Khalidi (terrorists supporter) honorarium. But the only parts we have are the parts that the LA Times has chosen to release.

Do we have any doubts that what has been released has been cleaned up with any material very harmful to his campaign removed?

And yet what has been released is bad enough. The article says that there was a great deal of pro-terrorism rhetoric going on. Did BO say any of it? The tape says that he gave a "special tribute" to the terrorist. And it also releases information that let's us know that the relationship between the two was not a one time chance meeting but another friendly alliance.

The article tells us that Obama has been claimed by both sides of the debate. Does this mean that he is two faced? Or does this mean that he only deceives one side? Which one? Isn't it scary enough that the Palestinian terrorists (not just the Palestinian people) embrace him and apparently he them? Isn't it bad enough that he has received the endorsement of Hamas as Presidential candidate?

We want to know, not from a sanitized article from the hiders of truth, when the terrorists at that meeting said the worst thing they said who applauded? We want to know what was in that "special tribute" to a terrorist?

When the hiders of truth who are in the bag for Obama don't want us to know isn't that enough to vote against Obama?

 

[Libsmasher]

Like all leftists, obama sees the constitution as an impediment to leftist goals (which it is) and an archaic document. Particularly revealing were his comments about the Warren court. He said they focussed too much on what government can't do, rather than what it should do "for the people". Look at the bill of rights - a lot of it is "negative" because of the Founders experience with over-reaching and oppressive government: it can't stop free speech, it can't suppress religion, it can't infringe on the right to keep arms, and (in the 14th amendment) it can't treat people differently based on their race - but these are all the things leftists like obama want to do.

 

[bododie]

an unknown background....

Oh don't be so cruel. Obam-ba has served a whole 143 days in the senate, and his wife is a racist. What other qualifications do you want in a president?

 

[Unite Our Nation]

His "minister" is a racist. All the people who launched him toward the Whitehouse are either racists or terrorists.

The hate for Bush has overridden a lot of folks ability to reason.

They hear "change" and forget about checking obama's VOTING RECORD.

Change? Yeah. Obama style. Guns...he voted NO on a bill in IL that would keep a father from going to jail for having the nerve to shot a home invasion thief! 4 times!!! Thankfully, enough decent legislators voted yes. Obama thinks/votes that anyone who shoot anyone, even someone who is trying to kill them, should go to jail.
Conversely, he voted YES on a bill he SPONSORED that would give a free pass on gang members who killed anyone. Oh, it's okay if you kill if you are a gang member, but innocent fathers in their own home should go to jail.

Don't believe me? Go to the IL Legislative site and do a check and read the bills yourself.

 

[Unite Our Nation]

Popeye, that was a GROUP not a PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP.

If obama weren't personal friends with these criminals it would be a different story. Also, there aren't just ONE friend, but about everyone that has launched him into politics!!

Tell me you don't understand the difference.