As Trump Confirms Kushner Will Broker Israel-PA Deal, Don’t Take Jared for Granted

JNi.Media

Jared Kushner Photo Credit: Wikimedia

Speaking to the Times of London in his first UK interview as president-elect, published Monday, Donald Trump confirmed that he intends to appoint son-in-law Jared Kushner to broker a Middle East peace deal. Trump also urged Britain to veto any new anti-Israel UN Security Council resolution, and had nothing but harsh criticism regarding President Obama’s handling of the Iran nuclear deal.

The new appointment is very much in the familiar Trump style of management, whereby he sets up competition between top executives he appoints to parallel positions. In the case of brokering a peace deal, Trump has previously announced the appointment of his loyal attorney Jason Greenblatt, who was his adviser on Israel during the campaign, to negotiate a Middle East peace as Trump’s special adviser on international agreements.

This should be interesting to watch: two competing peace deals between Jerusalem and Ramallah. Or perhaps one Trump envoy will take Gaza. There’s no doubt the president-elect continues to do the unexpected and remains unpredictable. The question is, do Israelis have anything to worry about in son-in-law Jared Kushner?

The grandson of Holocaust survivors, Kushner was raised in a wealthy Orthodox Jewish family in New Jersey that made its fortune in real estate, and graduated with honors from the Frisch School, a coed yeshiva high school, in 1999.

One of the formative events in Jared’s life was the fall of his father, Charles Kushner, who in 1985 founded Kushner Companies. In 2005, US Attorney Chris Christie made his career on the back of Jared’s father, getting him convicted of illegal campaign contributions, tax evasion, and witness tampering, and landing him in federal prison. Christie thumped his chest victoriously and pushed for a three-year sentence for Charles Kushner, humiliating him publicly by exposing how he had hired a prostitute to seduce his brother-in-law on tape in retaliation against his sister, who was a witness for the prosecution. Christie announced then: “It shows that no matter how rich and powerful you are in this state you will be prosecuted and punished for crimes you commit.”

It was the Kushner case that helped make Christie governor of NJ in 2009. Jared Kushner, who was an intern for Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau at the time of the trial, later described Christie’s abusive handling of his father’s case as the reason why he changed his career course.

In 2016, Jared Kushner’s intervention with the Trump transition team was widely believed to be the reason why Gov. Christie was dropped from the president-elect’s roster, having served the campaign loyally for much of 2016.

So Jared Kushner is a man who knows how to keep a grudge, and knows the secret of revenge being best served ice cold. It should serve as a stern warning to both Israelis and Arabs as he embarks on yet another US administration’s attempt to broker a long lasting peace deal in the Middle East: don’t underestimate him, don’t mess with him, don’t take him for granted. The man is extremely bright, unbelievably ambitious, and has a very long memory.

Netanyahu’s circle seemed elated last November, when a victorious Donald Trump told the NY Times he was mulling making Jared Kushner his envoy to the peace negotiations. Ambassador Ron Dermer said, “There’s no question that he feels a strong commitment to Israel’s security and Israel’s future.” But the Times pointed out that Kushner is not on a first name basis with the business and political elite in Israel – his only friend in Israel is Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat. Kushner was a child when he met Benjamin Netanyahu when the latter visited Charles Kushner at his NJ home. Trump told the Times that his son-in-law “knows the region, knows the people, knows the players.” But that might be an exaggeration.

Kushner was a valuable asset to Trump in making the connections for him with Netanyahu and Dermer, as well as Sheldon Adelson and other right-leaning, influential American Jews. His start point is probably more favorable to Israel than any of his predecessors in the thankless job of trying to broker peace between Israelis and Arabs. But that’s no guarantee. If, for instance, PM Netanyahu tries his usual yes-but-not-now approach to the two-state solution, he might not get far with Kushner. The PA, by the way, are besides themselves with anxiety over the emphatically pro-Israeli new White House. Which could mean they’d be willing to give up more to Trump than to say, the ever-beseeching John Kerry. Such a change in attitude might, paradoxically, give them a leg up with Kushner.

Indeed, while recent polls have shown that a majority of the PA and Gaza Arabs have given up on the two-state solution, many Arab pundits, such as Ramzy Baroud, suggest there never was a real Arab consensus in support of partition. The new trend for both rank and file and intellectuals on the Arab side is to embrace the one-state approach, just make sure it won’t be Jewish.

This might be a rougher ride than the Israeli right imagined.

Child Soloist Sings “A Sheinem Cholem” (Yiddish) at Kupath Ezra Melave Malka

    shiezoli

In farewell speech, Obama hails Iran deal, leaves out Israeli-Palestinian peace effort

ERIC CORTELLESSA

Just days before start of Trump term, Obama looks to inspire, reassure fearful supporters

President Barack Obama speaks during his farewell address at McCormick Place in Chicago, Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

WaSHINGTON — President Barack Obama used his farewell address Tuesday night to defend his legacy and try to unite a divided country. In recounting his eight years in Washington, he cited the Iran nuclear deal as a central achievement of his administration, but omitted any mention of his efforts to reach Israeli-Palestinian peace.

Forgoing the tradition of delivering his final presidential address to the nation from the Oval Office, Obama spoke in Chicago, his adopted hometown where he met his wife and launched his political career.

With only ten days left till he leaves office and passes the baton of power to President-elect Donald Trump, Obama sought to corral his supporters and fellow Americans to remain optimistic about their ability to protect America’s democratic underpinnings.

The president repeatedly referred to what he considered his signature accomplishments of the previous eight years to press a message that the American people was capable of creating a better future for itself, even in challenging circumstances.

The way his administration conducted diplomacy — evidenced by the nuclear deal with Tehran — was one of the examples he used to relay that message.

“If I had told you that we would open up a new chapter with the Cuban people, shut down Iran’s nuclear weapons program without firing a shot, and take out the mastermind of 9/11 … if I had told you that we would win marriage equality, and secure the right to health insurance for another 20 million of our fellow citizens – you might have said our sights were set a little too high,” he said.

“But that’s what we did,” he added. “That’s what you did. You were the change.”

The speech made no reference to the president’s extensive efforts to achieve a comprehensive two-state peace deal between Israelis and Palestinians, a major priority of his foreign policy since he took office.

In his first term, Obama appointed former New York Sen. George Mitchell as a special envoy for Middle East peace to jumpstart negotiations, and in his second term allowed Secretary of State John Kerry to embark on a nine-month round of intensive negotiations intended to reach a final-status agreement. Both efforts failed.

The president’s farewell speech comes two weeks after the US allowed to pass a United Nations Security Council resolution that condemned Israeli settlements as illegal. The decision was met with fury by Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, with whom Obama has had a turbulent relationship.

Eric Cortellessa covers American politics for The Times of Israel.

What Now?

Ari Fuld

Four murdered IDF officers, killed by Jerusalem Arab terrorist in truck ramming attack at Armon HaNatziv on Jan. 8, 2017
Photo Credit: courtesy, families / Facebook

WHAT NOW?

4 more Jewish families have been destroyed due to radical Islamic terror. Our enemies are handing out sweets in celebration of the murder of 4 IDF soldiers. People are calling the terrorists ‘freedom fighters’ and the UN calls it human nature! Our soldiers were murdered as they were touring the streets of Jerusalem, the city we call our eternal capital and what our “ally” President calls “illegal”.

WHAT NOW?

The terrorist was an Israeli Arab that lives in a Jerusalem village that has produced numerous barbaric terrorists such as the one who entered Mercaz Harav Yeshiva and slaughtered Jewish kids as they studied Torah and were preparing for the Purim festivities.

This terrorist had full Israeli rights and had absolutely nothing to do with the fabricated Palestine excuse radical Muslims use to justify murdering Jews.

Did I mention he was already in Israeli jail for terrorist activity and was released. Why? Well that’s the law! 4 soldiers died for the law.

WHAT NOW?

Tomorrow the entire nation will be in tears as we lay to rest 4 beautiful children whose lives were cut short by a radical Islamic genocidal ideology.

WHAT NOW?

Of course we will survive, we always do!

We have been surviving attack after attack for over 2 millennia and the only question is, how much longer will we define our survival by how well we pick ourselves up from pogroms, holocausts, inquisitions, burning temples, massacres, wars, intifadas, shooting attacks, axe attacks, rocket attacks and of course ramming attacks. How about from now on, we do not give those who clearly seek our destruction the benefit of the doubt. How about we do not give them rights and protect them with the law are trying to murder or use to carry out their next attack.

How about we judge them as they clearly and vocally demonstrate how they want to be judged; radical genocidal, anti-semitic terrorists.

WHAT NOW?

I, like many of you reading this, am sick and tired of funerals.

Personally, I simply cannot go to military funerals any more. Every time I see the coffin draped in the Israeli flag and watch the families lose their sanity as life is ripped out from their world, I am thrown back 23 years when I buried Yehoshua. I cannot stand hearing the gun shots at funerals and neither could Yehoshua. I cannot thinking about how each one of the families will be living their own personal holocaust every day! Over and over!

Yehoshua Friedberg, my platoon mate, who was brutally murdered 23 years ago by Islamic terrorists was laid to rest forever while his murderers were released from Israeli jail, only to murder again,which they did.

WHAT NOW?

Our enemies give out sweets in celebration and we are not disappointed in the slightest bit, because we expect such behavior from them. Some say we can not allow our soldier to kill a terrorist 7 minutes after an attack lest we become just like our enemies. They actually call the IDF soldier who kills a terrorist who came to murder him, a murderer!

Funny how the left hold such a clearly bigoted opinion of our enemies by insinuating (rightfully so) that we are not as barbaric as they are and then advocate making a deal with them as if they all of a sudden believe they are part of our sane Western culture.

WHAT NOW?

Arab textbooks have no Israel on the map and we make believe that all they want is a strip of land and then there will be peace? Abbas praises spilled Jewish blood in Jerusalem and we make believe he is different than Hamas and can be a partner for Peace?

Arabs claim going back to the 67 lines is all that is needed for peace and we believe them even though between 48-67 ALL of Judea, Samaria, Golan, Gaza and all of Jerusalem was already in Arab control and they were still calling for Israel’s annihilation. In fact the PLO, was created in 1964 by Egyptian born Arafat with the goal of destroying Israel. That was 3 years before any settlement ever touched the ground!

recomended by:
Ewa Korulska

WHAT NOW?

How about we stop buying into the false narrative of our enemies. How about we start believing again in who we are and what we are doing here. How about we realize we are part of a miraculous return of the Jewish people to the Land of Israel from all 4 corners of the Earth. How about we embrace our return instead of trying to reverse the process by kicking out Jews in the name of a false sense of Peace.

How about we tell the truth and stop hesitating. We, the nation of Israel, the Jewish people, are the indigenous people of the Land of Israel. Our culture, religion and history are dependent upon this land.

The Middle East is packed withe Arab and Islamic regimes that are hundreds of times bigger than Israel. How about we stop contemplating giving in to the demands of our enemies to split this land and stop making believe that solution is based on justice, truth or even sanity.

Muslims? They occupied the entire Middle East by force. They have no religious, historical or national claim on the Land of Israel, so let’s stop making believe we owe them something.

As MK Betzalel Smotritch so eloquently put it in his plan to stop the killing. When Yehoshua entered the land of Israel, he gave the non-Jewish residents 3 choices:

1. LIVE as human beings in the Jewish homeland called Israel and enjoy all the benefits of this amazing country.
2. LEAVE and join your Arab or Muslim brothers across the Middle East or to any other country in the world you would rather be in.
3. FIGHT and meet the IDF and this time with no holds barred.

For the sake of our nation, for the safety of the Jewish people, to honor those who were murdered after numerous fabricated “peace” plans, let’s stop making believe that there is any pride in crying over dead Jews and being proud of the fact that we survived as we get up bloodied and beaten.

Let’s redefine our survival by not allowing others to beat us up or threaten us.

Let’s stop chanting NEVER AGAIN as they shoot, stab and ram us and start taking action as a unified nation and a strong country, so that they understand NEVER AGAIN is not a wish, it’s our warning and ultimatum to those who seek our destruction. Let’s start standing up for ourselves and let it be known there will be a grave price for killing a Jew. Let’s start doing whatever has to be done to make sure no more Jews die! World opinion? It went up in smoke 75 years ago!

About the Author: Ari Fuld is a sergeant in an IDF reserves elite paratroopers unit. His is the assistant director of Standing Together, an organization that supports IDF soldiers.

The author’s opinion does not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Jewish Press.

Five former IDF chiefs come together to support Eisenkot

Yossi Yehoshua

After seeing the incitement against the IDF chief of staff, his predecessors stand with Eisenkot; ‘It’s the crossing of a red line,’ says Gabi Ashkenazi; ‘I’m not worried about Eisenkot, I’m worried about the country,’ says Benny Gantz; and Shaul Mofaz adds: ‘This incitement raises the question of who are we, what are our values, and how do we protect them?’

Five former IDF chiefs gave their support to incumbent Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot on Saturday evening in the wake of the incitement against him following the conviction of Sgt. Elor Azaria.

aj. Gen (res.) Benny Gantz, Maj. Gen (res.) Gabi Ashkenazi, Maj. Gen (res.) Dan Halutz, Maj. Gen (res.) Moshe Ya’alon and Maj. Gen (res.) Shaul Mofaz came together at Yedioth Ahronoth’s Rishon Lezion offices to express their firm and unequivocal support of the IDF, its chief Eisenkot, and the military judicial system.

The incitement against the IDF did not begin last week, but it did go up a notch when Azaria supporters protesting outside the Kirya IDF headquarters in Tel Aviv called out “Gadi, Gadi, beware. Rabin’s looking for a friend,” inciting to murder of the IDF chief and threatening the lives of the judges and prosecutor in the trial.

The former IDF chiefs: Ya’alon, Halutz, Mofaz, Ashkenazi and Gantz (Photo: Tomeriko)” title=”The former IDF chiefs: Ya’alon, Halutz, Mofaz, Ashkenazi and Gantz (Photo: Tomeriko)

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