JustASC

The ADL has retracted a statement it put out yesterday critical of Obama’s remarks folowing his meeting with Jordan’s King Abdullah, saying:

The Anti-Defamation League’s (ADL) statement issued earlier today on remarks made by President Barack Obama, following a meeting with King Abdullah of Jordan, was based on news reports that proved to be inaccurate.

I thought the original news release was a little strange, especially since it contained direct quotations not contained in the official transcript of the Obama news conference, and because it seemed to be criticizing Obama for remarks couched in the anodyne language of diplomacy.

Here’s what he said:

Well, first of all, I think it is very important to recognize that the Israelis now have had a government for a few weeks and it was a very complicated process for them to put a coalition together. So I think more listening needs to be done. They are going to have to formulate and I think solidify their position. So George Mitchell will continue to listen both to Arab partners, to the Palestinians, as well as the Israelis.

But I agree that we can’t talk forever; that at some point, steps have to be taken so that people can see progress on the ground. And that will be something that we will expect to take place in the coming months and we will help hopefully to drive a process where each side is willing to build confidence.

And here was ADL’s original objection:

We are troubled by the President’s remarks after his meeting with King Abdullah of Jordan where he told the press that the Israelis and Palestinians have done enough talking and that ‘now is the time to take steps.’

We find this comment disturbing because it leaves the impression that Israel has not acted for peace. In fact, in the year 2000 Israel made a generous offer for peace to the Palestinians which, if accepted, would have resulted in a Palestinian state, shared control of Jerusalem, and the dismantling of 80 percent of Israeli settlements. The Palestinians said no and turned to violence and terror.

Then, in 2005, Israel took another major step, unilaterally withdrawing from the Gaza Strip and dismantling all its settlements there. This action was met with a Hamas takeover and the launching of thousands of rockets into Israel.

We believe that both Israelis and Palestinians will have to make concessions for peace. We hope that the President will acknowledge that Israel has already taken significant steps toward peace, and that he urge the Palestinians and the Arab world to take positive steps as well.

So even here, in its original release, ADL acknowledged that both sides will have to make “concessions” — which means it and the president are basically in agreement. They know that the process will never advance if Israel approaches the table saying “look at all we’ve done in the past.” The concessions, the “steps,” the confidence-building measures — whatever you call them — are pretty clear, at least on Israel’s part: perhaps a meaningful settlement freeze, easing of West Bank checkpoints, dismantling of illegal outposts and the like.

As to “news reports that proved to be inaccurate” — what in the actual transcript, except from the direct quotations, differs from the interpretation contained in the ADL’s original release? The ADL’s original summary — that Obama “told the press that the Israelis and Palestinians have done enough talking and that ‘now is the time to take steps’” — is not a bad summary of what he actually said.

So is the ADL backtracking because of the fresh, more “accurate” information it received, or because someone in their orbit felt the original statement was unfair?

This entry was posted on Wednesday, April 22nd, 2009 at 10:26 am and is filed under JustASC. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.