Wednesday, October 03, 2012

US State Department Still Refusing to Say Jerusalem Is Capital of Israel

Lori Lowenthal Marcus
jerusalem
First we learned that the traditional pro-Israel language affirming that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel was deleted from this year's Democratic Party Platform.  Then, after waves of negative publicity, the Democrats re-inserted the magic language in a balagan that will be remembered as one of the most chaotic moments in political party convention history, despite the lack of an obvious 2/3s majority.  In less than an hour, Democratic National Committee Chair Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fl) was saying, with a straight face, that of course it was the position of this administration, as it always had been, that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel.

And Wasserman Schultz insisted that the position of President Obama has always been that Jerusalem is and always will remain the capital of Israel.  What's more, she stated in numerous interviews, that it was President Obama who made sure that the language be re-inserted into the platform.  Never mind that Wasserman Schultz has, throughout this campaign, adamantly supported the State Department Spokeswoman and the White House Press Secretary's refusal to name Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

But we're not done yet.

Less than 24 hours after the "Jerusalem is the capital of Israel" language was reinserted, this administration has once again shifted course.  In today's State Department's daily press conference, the United States officially refuses to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

09/06/2012 04:12 PM EDT

Patrick Ventrell

Acting Deputy Spokesperson Daily Press Briefing

Washington, DC

September 6, 2012

No comments: