Aid to Israel; Does the U.S. get its money’s worth?
What Israel does for the US
By STEVE ROTHMAN, JPOST
04/09/2010 09:00
There is no economic aid to Israel, other than loan guarantees.
Talkbacks (2)
The argument that American military aid to Israel is damaging to the United States is not only erroneous, it hurts the national security interests of this country and threatens the survival of Israel.
US support for Israel is essential, not only for Israel’s national security, but for America’s. Every bit of that support – and more – withstands all reasonable scrutiny.
Under the 2010 US budget, about $75 billion, $65 billion and $3.25 billion will be spent on military operations and aid in Afghanistan, Iraq and Pakistan during this fiscal year, respectively. Israel will receive $3 billion, in military aid only. There is no economic aid to Israel, other than loan guarantees that continue to be repaid in full and on time.
There isn’t enough space here to discuss the relative merits of the expenditures in these other countries, but we already know the critically important return the US gets for helping its oldest, most trusted ally in the strategically important Middle East – the most powerful military force in that region, the pro-US, pro-West and democratic Jewish state of Israel.
Here’s how.
FIRST, IT’S important to remember that about 70 percent of the $3 billion aid must be used by Israel to purchase American military equipment. This provides real support for US high- tech defense jobs and contributes to maintaining our industrial base. This helps the US stay at the very top in the manufacturing of our own cutting-edge military munitions, aircraft, vehicles, missiles and virtually every defensive and offensive weapon in the US arsenal – with the added contribution of Israel’s renowned technical know-how.
Second, the US and Israel are jointly developing state- of-the-art missile defense capabilities in the David’s Sling and Arrow 3 systems. These two technologies build on the already successful Arrow 2, jointly developed by our two countries, which is already providing missile defense security to Israel and US civilians and ground troops throughout the region. The knowledge the US gains from these efforts also has a positive multiplier effect on applications to other US military and non-military uses and US jobs.
Third, given Israel’s strategic location on the Mediterranean, with access to the Red Sea and other vital international shipping and military lanes of commerce and traffic, it is critically important to the US that Israel continues to serve as a port of call for our troops, ships, aircraft and intelligence operations.
Israel also has permitted the US to stockpile arms, fuel, munitions and other supplies on its soil to be accessed whenever America needs them in the region.
Fourth, America’s special relationship with Israel provides the US with real-time, minute-to-minute access to one of the best intelligence services in the world: Israel’s. With Israeli agents gathering intelligence and taking action throughout the Middle East and, literally, around the world, regarding al- Qaida, Hizbullah, Iran and Hamas, among others, the US receives invaluable information about anti-US and terrorist organizations and regimes.
Fifth, imagine the additional terrible cost in US blood, and the hundreds of billions more of American taxpayer dollars, if Saddam Hussein had developed nuclear weapons, or if Syria possessed them.
Then remember that it was Israel that destroyed the almost-completed nuclear reactor at Osirak, Iraq, in 1981 and Syria’s nuclear facility under construction at Deir-ez-Zor in 2007.
And think about the many operations that Israel’s Defense Forces and intelligence agents have undertaken to foil, slow and disrupt Iran’s efforts to develop a nuclear weapons capability. A nuclear-armed Iran would threaten the lives of hundreds of thousands of Americans in the region, all of Iran’s Arab neighbors, the world’s largest oil supplies and those who rely on that oil. It also would provide anti-US terrorists with access to the most lethal Iranian technology and probably set off a nuclear arms race in the region.
FOR ABOUT two percent of what the US spends in Afghanistan, Iraq and Pakistan this year, Americans can take pride in the return on our investment in aid to Israel.
And with Israel’s truly invaluable assistance to America’s vital national security, we can take comfort that – in actions seen in Tehran and Damascus and noticed by al-Qaida and other anti-US terrorists everywhere – the US is safer and made more secure because of the mutually dependent and beneficial relationship between the US and Israel.
The writer is a Democratic congressman from New Jersey who serves on the House committees responsible for US military and foreign aid. – Bloomberg News
Yamit, you just had to get that final shot in. Hope it makes you feel good. For me, it was another chuckle.
I’ll take what I can get even if unintended. Keep laughing, it’s good for the soul they say, if you have one that is.
Yamit, though unintended I am sure, you have provided me with many laughs. Surely the fact that I find much humor especially in reading some of your more colorful vitriolic writing, must count for something with you in your accepting that I do have a sense of humor. Perhaps, since you are not trying to be humorous in that regard, I guess for me you are something of an accidental comedian.
You’re right, I didn’t get it, somehow I missed it. Darn, I’ll try to get it next time you try to be priggishly funny. Is this one of those times?
Just because you didn’t get the humor of my comment Yamit, Ted did.
Bill, I couldn’t resist. 🙂
Again you demonstrate that you are a humorless Prig.
Ted, don’t you have anything better to do?
On the use of the word “prolix” now that I know what it means, it seems to me that the pot is calling the kettle black.
Very funny Yamit, but I am not out to impress and you know that. Prolix just seemed to me to be the right simple word that explained a lot more than its 6 letter composition.
Just to make you feel good about yourself Yamit, I had not before heard of the word pleonastic. I looked it up. The defintion is: the use of more words than those necessary to denote mere sense (as in the man he said)
Prolix means:
1. : unduly prolonged or drawn out : too long
2: marked by or using an excess of words
Prolix encompasses pleonism, but goes further to describe verbosity or unduly long explanations and expressions of opinion.
I will stick with my word prolix for it better characterizes your writing style when you really get wound up and want to lecture and educate us lesser maivens.
2nd time you’ve thrown that word that nobody ever uses at me. I’m not impressed in the least. I much prefer to be called pleonastic. It has a nicer ring to it. Rolls off the end of the tongue so to speak. Not very impressive Narvey I could think of at least 6-7 more commonly used words that express your thoughts without the need of a thesaurus.
You are a Pompous old gas passer. I say that, not to criticize but simply to make an accurate observation.
Really Yamit? You’re the most prolix of the bunch. Added to that you have been given to following up your lengthy treatises with even more lengthy treatises, commenting further before anyone has gotten a word in edgewise.
I say that, not to criticize but simply to make an accurate observation.
Oh I thought we were being serious. I was. I am. Why not give us your views of how you would like to see our discussions and debates to proceed any differently than they are. May I suggest on your part that there be no long winded recapitulations of what he said she said and concentrate on cores of any issue and Give your opinionated conclusions. That might help for starters.
No Yamit, I am simply encouraging people of differing views to get seriously involved in discussion and debate on Israpundit.
Are you playing at being a resident psychiatrist now? I expected you to say Lay down I want to talk to you.
You haven’t yet caught on to whom you are addressing? HWSNBN,
You are right, Time to turn the ATM of to Israel. The dollar isn’t worth much today anyway and will be worth much less in the future.
Again you are right: Cut them off too!
Duh! They are the terrorist threat. That’s like asking the mafia to help solve your organized crime problem.
There is no energy crisis and nobody is denied oil anywhere if they can pay. The pre 9/11 price was 11 dollars bbl. Break up the cartel and oil company monopolistic practices along with their King Kong lobby and prices will fall without even new major sources.
You can’t stop or compete today with the Chinese they make everything the west doesn’t anymore. How come America allowed the Iraqi government to award all of the new oil concession in Iraq to the Chinese? After a trillion dollars spent one would think….! Something smells very rotten or America is just stupid.
The financial crisis? Forget it the cure may be worse than the disease.
Iran? Learn to duck and cover again.
Bedrock, it is facile to broadly characterize Israpundit as
I expect you know that. Something about Israpundit and its contributors is eating at you. So what is it?
If you have views that differ from either any of the lead post articles or what a contributor says, why not get involved and provide a reasoned and well informed challenge, rather than hurling insults from the sidelines?
“yabba dabba doo”
Why such overwrought concern Narvey? You are behaving like a jilted lover or BB pleading for Mazen to talk with him man to man or whatever. 8)
howieg: Don’t be a putz, why are you taking time and effort in useless argumentation. Here we don’t abide by rational discourse. This is a place for emotional, exenophobia,Islamophobia, and a touch of paranoia to savor the pot.
Belman; America has received and continues to receive real benefits for its financial assistence to Israel. But it is also incurring very tangible costs. The question that must be asked, are the costs worth the benefits? Remember included in the costs must be factored in an additional 75-80 bil$ bribe to Egypt to facilitate the latter’s signing on to the Camp David peace treaty.
The U.S. and the western world needs the Arab/muslim world on its side in solving the terrorist threat, the energy crises, the expansion of the Chinese in Asian and African markets, the Iranian nuclear threat, the fiscal crises, etc, etc.
Belman, but for you there is only one problem which is dictated by your blind, one dimensional nationalism. Sorry Ted, the world does not revolve around Israel.
Ted, write to AE privately and invite him to make a cogent, reasoned and fact based response regardless of what view he offers.
Their teleprompters are broken?
Once you move them off of their programed talking points they become mutes?
Where’s AE and Howieg now that I have posted articles about the $3B. You would think they would read them and comment.