McCain's Ties to McCain Identified "PLO Spokesman"

by Karen Hatter | October 30, 2008 at 03:26 am

1665 views | 36 Recommendations | 15 comments

According to an article at Abcnews.com, ties exist between Rashid Khalidi, who has been identified as a "PLO spokesman" by the McCain-Palin campaign, with the International Republican Institute (IRI), where Senator McCain is chairman, having served in the position since 1993, providing funding to the organization, Center for Palestine Research and Studies, which was co-founded by Professor Khalidi.

The McCain-Palin campaign has called upon the Los Angeles Times to release video of Senator Obama who, in 2003, attended and spoke at a function honoring Palestinian Rashid Khalidi, a professor at Columbia University.

From the article:

In 1993, McCain became chairman of the International Republican Institute. He still chairs that respected organization.

That same year, Khalidi helped found the Center for Palestine Research and Studies, self-described as “an independent academic research and policy analysis institution” created to meet “the need for active Palestinian scholarship on issues related to Palestine.” (Its archived Web site is HERE.)

Khalidi was on the board of trustees through 1999.

According to tax returns, the McCain-chaired IRI funded the organization Khalidi founded and served on to the tune of $448,873 in 1998 (click HERE to see the tax return)* as first reported by Seth Couter Walls at HuffPo.

The IRI continued to give money to the CPRS after Khalidi left the group as well.

Click here to read, The Khalidi Gambit: McCain Attacks Obama for Connection to Palestinian Activist Whose Work McCain Helped Fund.

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dunkelberg

flagged this story as Good Stuff

at 07:22 on October 30th, 2008

McCain funded PLO terrorists if Palin is telling the truth. Obama went to one party. However, McCain actually GAVE these "PLO terrorists" MORE than half a million dollars?

Gee, why doesn't Saah "Saks Pack" Palin mention that? Well, perhaps it doesn't fit into her little hate agenda or perhaps because the whole thing hinges on the ludicrous idea of "Saks Pack" telling the truth.

BallyZACA

at 07:52 on October 30th, 2008

This issue is not hinged on the ludicrous questioning of "WHAT" was said by No'Bama at the diner party he attended. If, he said nothing that would compromise the USA then the transcript should be released. That is, unless, there is something more that needs to be swept under the carpet of No'Bama's character??

-END-

dunkelberg

at 07:58 on October 30th, 2008

Obama's character? How about "Terrorist Funding" McCain?

As for releasing the tape, it is matter of ethics for the newspaper and that means it is likely something beyond the understanding of McCain-Bush and Sarah "Saks Pack" Palin.

Perhaps Johnny Boy can explain why a group he chaired gave the guy more than half a million dollars. Well? What does that say about McCain? He is funding terrorists?

Amy Judd

flagged this story as Good Stuff

at 09:36 on October 30th, 2008

Karen Hatter, I like this story. It's good stuff.

P. L. (not verified)

at 09:49 on October 30th, 2008

McCain helped fund a Palistinian Research Center, not Khalidi. Barack Obama stood and praised Khalidi as his good friend at a dinner given in Khalidi's honor.

politisite

flagged this story as Good Stuff

at 10:08 on October 30th, 2008

Karen Hatter, I like this story. It's good stuff. It is disingenuous to make an issue over this man when McCain had some involvement as well.

Caoimhin1

flagged this story as Good Stuff

at 10:37 on October 30th, 2008

Karen Hatter, I like this story. It's good stuff.

René

at 11:08 on October 30th, 2008

Sen. John McCain chaired an organization that granted substantial funding to a Palestinian research group co-chaired by Mideast professor Rashid Khalidi, a harsh critic of Israel and apologist for Palestinian terror.

The report – first carried by the Huffington Post website – comes amid harsh criticism from McCain's campaign of Sen. Barack Obama
for his personal and financial ties to Khalidi.

The website documented how in the 1990s, while he served as chairman of the International Republican Institute (IRI), McCain distributed several documented grants, including one worth about half a million dollars, to the Center for Palestine Research and Studies, or CPRS, a West Bank organization associated with Khalidi.

Unreported by the Huffington Post is that the CPRS, with which Khalidi was for a time moderately involved, is pro-Western and can be characterized as pro-Israel.

Its work has been condemned by the Palestinian leadership and by local terror groups as "Zionist propaganda."

In contrast, the Khalidi organization Obama helped fund as a board member for a nonprofit, alongside domestic terrorist William Ayers, has taken a flagrantly anti-Israel line. Khalidi's Arab American Action Network has hosted scores of Israel-bashing events, including at least one reportedly attended by Obama.

A 1998 tax filing published by the Huffington Post found the McCain-led IRI group granted $448,873 to the CPRS. Also in 1993, seven months after McCain became IRI's chairman, his group funded several extensive CPRS studies, including over 30 public opinion polls and a study of "sociopolitical attitudes."

The CPRS, which bills itself as an independent Palestinian think tank, was founded in 1993 by seven Palestinian activists
, including Khalidi and Khalil Shakaki, who for a time was a visiting professor at several U.S. universities. Khalidi several years later terminated his involvement with the organization while Shakaki became CPRS chairman.

The group has conducted scores of polls that drew the ire of the Palestinian leadership, including in 1993 when it was tasked by McCain's group. One 1993 poll reviewed by WND showed most Palestinians were not fully confident in the fairness of elections that then-PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat had pledged to hold.

Another 1993 survey found most Palestinians wanted independent Arafat opposition groups to have more ability to freely express themselves. A number of other polls showed the Palestinians were unhappy with their leaders.

A particularly dramatic recent poll that contradicted years of Palestinian claims showed the vast majority of Arabs living in so-called refugee camps would accept compensation instead of "returning" to Israel.

This issue is particularly visceral since the Khalidi organization funded by Obama's nonprofit took the opposition position.

While Obama served on the Woods Fund with Ayers, the group in 2001 provided a $40,000 grant to the Arab American Action Network, or AAAN, for which Khalidi's wife, Mona, serves as president. The Fund provided a second grant to the AAAN for $35,000 in 2002.

angelica_77777777

flagged this story as Good Stuff

at 15:54 on October 30th, 2008

Karen Hatter, I like this story. It's good stuff. Good information here! Somehow this revelation doesn't surprise me that much -- in the world of politics it seems that anything goes!

Rhonda J Mangus

flagged this story as Good Stuff

at 16:01 on October 30th, 2008

Karen Hatter, I like this story. It's good stuff.

L Mefford (not verified)

at 09:09 on October 31st, 2008

GREAT story. It just shows the true colors of all of McCain/Palin's negative divisory campaigning tactics has tarnished their own credibility. Obama has done nothing but try to unite the country and take positive steps with other nations while McCain/Palin has only succeeded in dragging their own names in the mud and dividing our country into "real Americans" and ... "fake? Americans?" The McCain/Palin ticket will only serve to tear the country apart and further blacken our reputation among the world. Their egos will be our doom.

Edmund Jenks

at 05:20 on November 2nd, 2008

George Soros wing of the former Democrat Party talking point.

Anyone who has ever wished for consensus politics to happen will commit money in an effort to soften hearts.

The problem here, that everyone knows, is the tactic to obfuscate the Affiliation of a politician guided exclusively through socialist ideology (an ideology that will not bode well for Israel) and to try and create a linkage with a donation from an institution that is trying to persuade/soften an influential opinion organization that operates with political leaders of an opposing point of view.

Frankly, Karen, this type of push back without context is beneath you and your studied approach.

Barack Obama has completely different political values than the values he has articulated since the Democrat Party political convention held in Denver just a couple of months ago. Barack Obama isn’t just a Democrat in the mold of a JFK or just a liberal Democrat in the mold of the “Lion of the Senate”, Ted Kennedy … Barack Obama is a Radical plain and simple and he has NOT been completely honest about his deeply held and idealistic positions.

If he manages to win and assume the office of President, we will soon see how his very strong positions that are against self-determination, self-reliance, and personal freedom effect our every day life here in this country. The template, albeit a much milder form, would be an example from the late 1970’s – The Carter Presidency!

Karen Hatter

at 06:39 on November 2nd, 2008

Connections between Senator McCain and the Republican organization he chaired and funds of close to a half million dollars is the context.

It would seem Senator McCain and the Republican Party share affinity with ideas, ideals and goals with Professor Khalidi, explaining why money was given to the organization the professor co-founded.

If not, it would seem giving someone, who Senator McCain has identified as a "PLO spokesman" almost half a million dollars, trumps Senator Obama attending and speaking at an event that honored Professor Khalidi.

Edmund Jenks

at 06:43 on November 2nd, 2008

For more information on Rashid Khalidi (in his own words), please click link:

Karen Hatter

at 06:59 on November 2nd, 2008

From FightTheSmears.com :

Barack and Joe Biden believe strongly in Israel’s right to protect its citizens. They have consistently supported foreign assistance to Israel. They have called for continuing U.S. cooperation with Israel in the development of missile defense systems.

Barack has nothing to hide: he has openly described his relationship with Rashid Khalidi:

“[Khalidi] is not one of my advisors; he’s not one of my foreign policy people. His kids went to the Lab school where my kids go as well. He is a respected scholar, although he vehemently disagrees with a lot of Israel’s policy…To pluck out one person who I know and who I’ve had a conversation with who has very different views than 900 of my friends and then to suggest that somehow that shows that maybe I’m not sufficiently pro-Israel, I think, is a very problematic stand to take…So we gotta be careful about guilt by association.”