IPS Writers in the Blogosphere

Posts by: Eli Clifton

The Emergency Committee For Israel Speaks For Itself And Not Much Else

From On April 5, 2013 · Leave a Comment

via Lobe Log

by Eli Clifton & Jim Lobe

The Emergency Committee for Israel (ECI) is having a rough six months. Last year, ECI and its chairman, Republican operative Bill Kristol, did all it could to portray Barack Obama as insufficiently supportive of Israel. The group’s efforts and considerable spending on television ad-buys did little [...]

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Over $1 million Spent on Anti-Hagel Advertising

From On January 31, 2013 · 1 Comment

via Lobe Log

by Eli Clifton

While the Sunlight Foundation estimates the ad blitz by anti-Hagel astroturf at over $100,000, research by Lobe Log suggests that the actual total probably exceeds $1 million.

Sunlight based its conclusions on FCC-required disclosures on ad buys by two groups who hide their donors’ [...]

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The viral campaign to set a “red line” for Iran

From On January 24, 2013 · 1 Comment

via The American Independent

A viral video calling on world leaders to a “set the red line” to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon has garnered over 1.3 million YouTube views thanks to a savvy social media campaign on Facebook and Twitter.

It’s been promoted by conservative bloggers and Washington-based organizations like [...]

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The Proportionality Of A 33-To-1 Casualty Ratio

From On November 19, 2012 · Leave a Comment

via Lobe Log

The House of Representatives, the State Department, and various pro-Israel organizations in Washington have all issued statements expressing support for Israel’s recent actions in the Gaza Strip and reaffirmed Israel’s right to act in “self-defense.”

Indeed, Israel’s right to self-defense is important to remember and [...]

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FLASHBACK: Gen. Petraeus Warned of US Policies that “Foment Anti-American Sentiment”

From On September 18, 2012 · Leave a Comment

via Lobe Log

Robert Wright has an excellent piece at the Atlantic exploring the “hidden causes” of the protests against the United States across the Muslim world. The violence, which it’s important to emphasize is never excusable, is receiving little serious analysis in the mainstream media.

The American Enterprise Institute’s

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Experts: Military Contractors Hype Economic Costs Of Sequestration

From On June 29, 2012 · Leave a Comment

via Think Progress

Military contractors are in a full court press to prevent the automatic military spending cuts that will come into effect on January 2, 2013, an estimated $55 billion per year, if policymakers fail to avert a budget “sequester.” But while contractors are waving a defense industry funded report [...]

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Rights Group Releases ‘Torture Database’ Of Bush-Era Interrogation Documents

From On June 27, 2012 · Leave a Comment

via Think Progress

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) today released their “Torture Database”website, making over 100,000 pages of government documents on the George W. Bush administration’s interrogation policies, primarily obtained through Freedom of Information Act requests by the ACLU, searchable by the general public.

Alexander Abdo, a Staff Attorney with the [...]

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Suspended U.S. Military Instructor Taught Officers To Wage ‘Total War’ On Islam

From On June 21, 2012 · Leave a Comment

By Eli Clifton and Ali Gharib

via Think Progress

The U.S. military is taking concrete action against an instructor, Lt. Col. Matthew A. Dooley, who taught U.S. military officers at the Joint Forces Staff College (JFSC) to wage “total war” on Islam.

The JFSC has been plagued by reports that course presentations delivered [...]

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The People Who Brought You The Iraq War Release A New Ad: Bomb Iran

From On June 14, 2012 · Leave a Comment

via Think Progress

The Emergency Committee for Israel (ECI) released a new ad today suggesting that the U.S. should immediately bomb Iran. Among those behind the ECI and its ad are the same people who pushed the U.S. into the Iraq war.

The ad from ECI, a group which aims to push pro-Israel [...]

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Former DOD Official: Israeli Attack On Iran Now Would ‘Hurt Our Goal’ Of Dissuading Iran From Nukes

From On June 6, 2012 · Leave a Comment

via Think Progress

Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta and former Israeli spy chief Meir Dagan have both made waves over the past months with statements asserting that a military strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities could only delay, not destroy, the Islamic Republic’s alleged nuclear weapons program. Speaking in Tel Aviv last week, Michèle [...]

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