The Fix is In: Obama fires Dennis Ross and Replaces him with an Iranian Regime Lobbyist

Atlas Shrugs ^ | 11/11/09 | Atlas Shrugs

[devolve]

[piasa]

What could the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) and the National Iranian American Council (NIAC) possibly have in common? CAIR founders had close ties to Hamas, Palestinian Sunni Islamic extremists. NIAC and its main spokesman, Trita Parsi, have become apologists for the regime in Tehran, which exports a rival Shiite brand of Islamic extremism. Sunnis and Shias. We all know the story. They hate each other worse than Irish Catholics and Irish Protestants. Right?
Well, no. As I pointed out in Countdown to Crisis: the Coming Nuclear Showdown with Iran, Sunnis and Shias get along just fine when it comes to killing Americans and killing Jews. Similarly, CAIR and NIAC get along just fine when it comes to opposing the Bush administration policies in Iraq, Iran, and the greater Middle East. But they share much more than just an ideological affinity. They also share publicists in the redoubtable David Fenton.
Fenton Communications has repped the likes of Cindy Sheehan, moveon.org, and CAIR. And now, they have added NIAC to their client list, as this recent NIAC press release shows.... -———”Intimidation Campaign” by (NIAC) Iran Mullahs’ Lobby in US
Persian Journal ^ | 8/26/07 | Persian Journal

David Fenton of Fenton Communications.

[historyrepeatz]

Obama should just order our armed forces to nuke ourselves and be done with it. This slow suicide crap is stressful.

[piasa]

* MEI & Joe Wilson :
....That would also include the pro-Saudi Middle East Institute, whose “adjunct scholar” is one Joseph C. Wilson IV. Remember him? He’s the fellow at the center of the Bob-Novak-published-the-name-of-my-CIA-wife scandal.
The agency sent him to look into the European intelligence stories about Saddam Hussein trying to buy uranium in Africa. He went to Niger, drank mint tea with government flacks, and then wrote a big whiny piece in the New York Times after the White House declined to accept his assurances there was nothing going on.
He was never an intelligence specialist, he’s no longer a “career diplomat,” but he is, like so many other retired ambassadors, on the House of Saud’s payroll. And the Saudis were vehemently opposed to war with Saddam.
Think about that. To investigate Saddam’s attempted acquisition of uranium, the United States government sent a man in the pay of the Saudi government.
The Saudis set up schools that turn out terrorists.
They set up Islamic lobby groups that put spies in our military bases and terror recruiters in our prisons.
They set up think tanks that buy up and neuter the U.S. diplomatic corps.
And their ambassador’s wife funnels charitable donations to the 9/11 hijackers.———————Mark Steyn: With friends like the Saudis . . .,” Mark Steyn, Chicago Sun-Times ^ | October 19 2003,
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1003888/posts via 18 posted on 10/25/2003 10:43:11 AM PDT by Matchett-PI | To 12

[shibumi]

The Death of a Thousand (Defense) Cuts.

[odds]

See #21 post in this earlier FR thread:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2383259/posts#comment

[Piranha]

Never give up! Keep your faith even when the sword is at your neck!

[livius]

I read on another thread that Limbert is a former US Embassy hostage (remember them?) who went native during the experience and now has an Iranian wife and is a known Iranian sympathizer. Bizarre story.

[srmorton]

Dennis Ross may be a Clintonian, but I find myself agreeing with him when he is interviewed. He is very knowledgeable about the Middle East and he does not appear to have a liberal bias.

[ReleaseTheHounds]

It was a year ago that I remember “middle-of-the-roaders” explaining/rationalizing their vote for Obama with the excuse that “he won’t do all the bad things he promised.” And among their rationalizations was that he had surrounded himself with bright centrists such as Warren Buffett, Paul Volcker, and Dennis Ross.

I know Buffett still tacitly supports Obama, but you don’t see him pitching Obama’s policies. Paul Volcker hasn’t been heard from — and in a recent interview with Maria Bartoroma (sp?) of CNBC, he basically stopped the interview and escaped apparently for fear that he might say something truthful that would offend the Obama economic team.

And now we have the sacking of Dennis Ross. I wonder what role, if any, Hillary played in this. More and more, I expect to see Hillary planning the quit the State Department and announce her campaign for governor of NY. Maybe she’ll wait until Christmas to be sure that no health care bill will emerge from Congress. If that’s the case, then she’ll realize that Obama’s presidency is toast and she might as well begin her re-entry to politics and campaign for president in 2012. I’m sure she believes America will embrace her after this sad chapter with Obama.

[Rippin]

Yep. I wonder how that ‘govern from the middle’ thing is working out for them?

[GOPJ]

Limbert is not a neutral arbiter; he serves on the advisory board of the National Iranian American Council (NIAC).

What is the National Iranian American Council?

The Council is widely considered the de facto lobby for the Iranian regime in America. It opposes sanctions on Iran, soft-pedals any controversial events in Iran, and counsels "patience" regarding Iran's stance towards its nuclear program. The NIAC has been at the forefront of lobbying against continued congressional funding of the Voice of America Persia service, Radio Farad, and grants for Iranian civil society.

Ping

[nuconvert]

Trita Parsi, NIAC and their friends at CASMII are all regime sympathizers (if not on the payroll)

[GOPJ]

I’m going with “on the payroll”...

[Nachum]

The list, ping

[stylecouncilor]

ping

[Victoria Delsoul]

Basically Obama has handed over the Iran negotiations to an Iranian regime agency. This is grotesque and shows Obama's determination to avoid confronting Iran at all costs (the only thing actually capable of saving his lame duck presidency). He is willing to sacrifice his own future for the advancement of Iranian interests and the reduction of supposed Israeli/Jewish influence.

More importantly, Obama's decisions and policy are assuring that the Iranians have more leeway in advancing their nuclear program, ultimately making Israel more vulnerable.

[Nachum]

Obama has appointed an advocate for Iran as his diplomat to Iran. At the same time the diplomat works for a Soros funded Iranian lobby group.

[Victoria Delsoul]

I can’t imagine the damage this man is going to cause to America’s relationship with our friends and allies by the end of his term.  He seems to appreciate those who don’t like America more than he appreciates our friends.