New Lobby Pushes Pro-Israel, Pro-Peace Mission
National Security Adviser James Jones at the J Street Coference - At the inaugural J Street Conference in Washington on Tuesday, National Security Adviser James Jones discussed the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the role of the U.S. in helping to resolve it. (Saul Loeb / AFP/Getty Images)
The Obama administration's national security adviser addressed a pro-Israel lobby in Washington on Tuesday. But it wasn't the well-known American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or AIPAC.
It was a startup group, called J Street, which says it represents a missing voice in the foreign policy establishment. At the new group's first conference, Jewish activists, young and old, spent the past couple of days debating how best to promote peace between Israelis and Palestinians.
Eric Yoffie, president of the Union for Reform Judaism, says he decided to address the group because there is value in debating the issues. But he says that J Street shouldn't try to counter the more well-established pro-Israel lobby AIPAC.
(Saul Loeb / AFP/Getty Images)
"AIPAC does essential work. It has a huge organization, it maintains military support for Israel from the U.S. government," Yoffie says. "If [J Street] becomes an anti-AIPAC effort, then the American Jewish community will turn against it."
Laurie Osher of the Jewish Alliance for Justice and Peace says J Street is not meant to counter what AIPAC is doing, but to let members of Congress and the White House know that they can be both pro-Israel and pro-peace. The group takes its name from Washington, D.C., street names that run the alphabet. However, there is no J Street on the map.
"This organization started because the loudest voice in D.C. talking to our elected officials was AIPAC, and we felt they weren't talking enough about peace in the way we think about peace, which is not so focused on the armaments, but focused on the arguments," Osher says.
J Street is just 18 months old. This week's conference drew 1,500 supporters, according to its executive director, Jeremy Ben-Ami. He says more than 150 members of Congress agreed to be on the host committee for J Street's first gala dinner. But, he says, several dropped out "under pressure."
Ben-Ami says it was "extremely unfortunate that in a campaign of essentially smears and lies, some members of Congress were scared and didn't fully understand who we are," adding that the group is "pro-Israel."
Israel's ambassador to the United States, Michael Oren, also turned down an invitation to speak at the conference. An Israeli official, who asked not to be named, said the Israeli government has "certain reservations" about the policies promoted by J Street. The embassy sent a lower-level diplomat to the conference to listen.
Ben-Ami thinks Israel made a mistake not to engage with a large segment of the American Jewish community.
"This is a group of people that loves Israel, but not unconditionally — and that doesn't mean we shouldn't be welcomed as supporters of Israel," he says. "It is a shame that the government of Israel will only engage with those who see eye to eye and in lock step with it."
The Obama administration, on the other hand, seems to see some value in J Street, sending National Security Adviser James Jones to the conference as a keynote speaker. He won loud applause when he told the audience that the Obama administration will be represented at all future J Street conferences.
Jones did not break any new ground on the issues, saying the U.S. is still trying to create the right atmosphere to restart Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.
"There's is nothing more important that the United States can do to safeguard Israel's future than to walk the path to peace right beside her in friendship and constant support," he said. He even won applause for talking about the need for Israel to stop building Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank.
Ben-Ami says the group's positions are in line with what President Obama says he wants to do to promote Middle East peace.
"One of the critical questions is: Will there be enough political support for him to be able to do what he needs to do to bring the parties together? And the answer to that is a resounding yes," he said.
9(MDAyNzUwMDI2MDEyNTA3MTU5NzcyNTQyNA004))
ROBERT SIEGEL, host:
From NPR News, this is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. I'm Robert Siegel.
MELISSA BLOCK, host:
And I'm Melissa Block.
There is a passionate conversation going on right now about relations with Israel. The Obama administration's national security adviser spoke today at the conference of a pro-Israel lobby. It was not the powerful group AIPAC, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, rather, it was a much newer group called J Street. The group says it represents not only a street that is missing on the map of Washington, but also a missing voice in the foreign policy establishment, as NPR's Michele Kelemen reports.
MICHELE KELEMEN: A hotel ballroom has been turned into a serious debating ground where Jewish activists young and old are talking about how best to promote peace between Israelis and Palestinians. Eric Yoffie, president of the Union for Reform Judaism, says he came here to speak because there's value in debating the issues. But he also says J Street shouldn't even try to counter the more well-established pro-Israel lobby AIPAC.
Mr. ERIC YOFFIE (President, Union for Reform Judaism): AIPAC does essential work. It has a huge organization. It maintains military support for Israel from the United States government. And, look, I don't agree with AIPAC on everything, but AIPAC is a very valuable and important organization. If this becomes an anti-AIPAC effort, then the American Jewish community will turn against it.
KELEMEN: One J Street supporter who overheard those remarks said J Street is not meant to counter what AIPAC is doing, but to let members of Congress and the White House know that they can be both pro-Israel and pro-peace. Laurie Osher came down from Maine to make that case. She's with the group called the Jewish Alliance for Justice and Peace.
Ms. LAURIE OSHER (Supporter, Jewish Alliance for Justice and Peace): This organization started because the loudest voice in D.C. talking to our elected officials was AIPAC, and we felt like they weren't talking enough about peace in the way we think of peace, which is not so focused on the armaments, but focused on the arguments.
KELEMEN: Fifteen hundred people are attending the conference, according to J Street's executive director Jeremy Ben-Ami. And though the group is just 18 months old, he says more than 150 members of Congress signed up for the host committee of tonight's gala dinner.
Mr. JEREMY BEN-AMI (Executive Director, J Street): A handful did drop off under pressure, and I think that's extremely unfortunate that in a campaign of, you know, essentially smears and lies, some members of Congress were scared.
KELEMEN: Israel's ambassador also turned down an invitation to speak at the conference. An Israeli official who asked not to be named said that the government has certain reservations about the policies promoted by J Street. Jeremy Ben-Ami thinks Israel made a mistake not to engage with, as he put it, a large segment of the Jewish-American community.
Mr. BEN-AMI: This is a group of people that loves Israel, but not unconditionally - and that doesn't mean that we shouldn't be welcomed as supporters of Israel. And we can argue and we can disagree, but it is a shame that the government of Israel will only engage with those who see eye to eye and in lockstep with it. It may be one of the problems with the foreign policy of the country generally.
KELEMEN: The Obama administration, on the other hand, seems to see some value in J Street, sending National Security Adviser James Jones to the conference today.
Mr. JAMES JONES (U.S. National Security Adviser): I'm honored to represent President Obama at the first national J Street conference, and you can be assured that this administration will be represented at all other future J Street conferences.
(Soundbite of applause and cheering)
KELEMEN: Jones didn't break any new ground on the issues, saying the U.S. is still trying to create the right atmosphere to restart Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. In this crowd, he won applause for talking about the need for Israel to stop building Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank. J Street's director, Ben-Ami, says the group's positions are in line with what President Obama says he wants to do to promote Middle East peace.
Mr. BEN-AMI: One of the critical questions is: Will there be enough political support for him to be able to do what he needs to do to bring the parties together? And the answer to that is a resounding yes.
KELEMEN: Convincing members of Congress and the White House of that, he says, is J Street's mission.
Michele Kelemen, NPR News, Washington. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright National Public Radio.
