Love of the Land: Hannah Rosenthal is officially a burden

Hannah Rosenthal is officially a burden

ShmuelRosner
Rosner's Domain
25 December 09
Posted prior to Shabbat

For those used to worry about big-mouth Israeli officials - especially those Americans who constantly complain (and rightly so) about the inability of official Israel to just shut the hell up - here's a refreshingly rare opportunity for some pay-back. Apparently, Obama's head of the anti-anti-Semitism office, Hannah Rosenthal, has decided that her real battle should be against Israel's ambassador to Washington, Michael Oren. Here's what she had to say:

Remarks by Israel's ambassador to the United States, Michael Oren, against the liberal Jewish lobby J Street were "most unfortunate" according to Hannah Rosenthal, head of the U.S. administration's Office to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism... Rosenthal, who also served on the board of directors of left-wing group Americans for Peace Now, said she believed Oren "would have learned a lot" if he had participated in J Street's conference. "I came away realizing what a generational divide there is and I don't know how it is in Israel. Young people want to be part of the discussion, they feel they have fresh ideas and they feel that we have to end the stalemate," she said. Rosenthal strongly believes that new and different voices need to be heard regarding Israel in the American Jewish community. "We need to have as many people coming together to try and put an end to this crisis, the matzav [situation] can not continue - it's unacceptable and that's why I always paid my membership to AIPAC, but I have always paid my membership to Americans for Peace Now - because they all need to be supported and they all need to be at the table."

Rosenthal was already criticized by some Jewish organization. And Alan Solow of the Conference of Presidents, with measured and well crafted statement, had it just about right:

It is inappropriate for the anti-Semitism envoy to be expressing her personal views on the positions Ambassador Oren has taken as well as on the subject of who needs to be heard from in the Jewish community. Such statements have nothing to do with her responsibilities and, based upon comments I am already receiving, could threaten to limit her effectiveness in the area for which she is actually responsible.

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Love of the Land: Hannah Rosenthal is officially a burden