JUAN COLE'S "MUST READ" ON WHY CHAS. FREEMAN WAS THREAT TO AIPAC

Juan Cole at Informed Comment has a "must-read" posting on why and how Obama called it quits on Charles Freeman as chairman of the National Intelligence Council. Cole says that Sen. Chuck Schumer called Rahm Emanuel to complain about Freeman, thus doing the bidding of those who cannot tolerate a U.S. foreign policy that wants to play fair with both Palestinians and Israelis. The knock against Freeman was that he was too pro-Palestinian.

Writes Cole:

"What happened to Freeman is further evidence for the resilience of the Israel lobbies and their enormous power in US politics. The Neoconservatives were roundly defeated on the budget, and even had to swallow George Mitchell as a special envoy for Israeli-Palestinian negotiations. But they still have the power to exclude a Washington Arabist such as Freeman even from an appointive position.

"Israeli Apartheid will continue unabated under Obama."

CONGRESS MAY CUT FUNDING TO CHENEYS' OFFICE

Josh Catone at Raw Story picks up comments made by Rahm Emanuel that Congress will consider cutting funding to the Vice President's office if Cheney and his aides still insist that the VP's office is exempt from the Executive Order requiring all entities within the executive branch to report on the handling of classified information.

""The Vice President has a choice to make. If he believes his legal case, his office has no business being funded as part of the executive branch," said Emanuel in a statement released to RAW STORY. "However, if he demands executive branch funding he cannot ignore executive branch rules. At the very least, the Vice President should be consistent. This amendment will ensure that the Vice President's funding is consistent with his legal arguments.""