26-06-2009, 01:17 AM
Dawn Meredith Wrote:John, great idea. I hope this gets lots of support, both financial and people spreading the COPA word. John Judge has been almost alone at the helm way too long.
Mark, could you go into a bit more detail on the specifics of JFK vs. LBJ vis a vis Isreal? That is a new area for me that I have not seen anyone write on.
Aside from a couple of quotes by JFK.
Thanks,
Dawn
Briefly, at the time of his death JFK was in a standoff with Israeli PM Ben-Gurion over Israel's nuclear ambitions. Over the years, documents have been declassified which reveal the circumstances surrounding this issue, which was hidden from the public for decades. BG resigned as PM in June 1963, and claimed that the existence of Israel was in danger because of Kennedy's insistence that Israel remain nuclear-free. Kennedy then continued the pressure on BG's successor, Levi Eshkol, who avoided direct conflict with JFK on the issue by postponing it on a variety of pretexts.
LBJ was a patron of Israel, supporting them consistently after his arrival in Washington. Former AIPAC director I.L. Kenan called Johnson 'Ísrael's Texas friend'. When Eisenhower considered sanctions against Israel over its failure to withdraw its forces from the Sinai during the Suez crisis in early 1957, LBJ persuaded minority house leader Senator William Knowland to come with him to the white House to tell the President it just wouldn't do. (Piper, p65).
Once LBJ became President, the pressure was off Israel. LBJ half heartedly pursued them about the nuclear reactor in Dimona, finally agreeing to a regime of US inspections, which were fully under the control and manipulated by the Israeli hosts. The reprocessing plant Israel had built underneath the facility was never detected by inspectors and Israel got the bomb. He was also remarkably generous to Israel--a policy still current today--and boosted military aid from nothing to $300 million by 1966. He also covered up for Israel the disgraceful USS Liberty incident in 1967, proving once again where his real loyalty lay.
I don't want to hijack this thread, although it probably looks that way to some readers. I'm just suggesting to John that if COPA's doco is going to focus on US foreign policy changes which resulted from JFK's death, the ommission of this particular foreign policy change will render the project devoid of credibility.