Friday, October 3, 2014
The Significance of Yom Kippur
The Significance of Yom Kippur
Jews around the world commemorate Yom Kippur tonight, the day where we believe that all of humanity will be judged for the year to come for good and for bad. Some will be written in the Book of Life. Others will not. Jews pray to God to forgive them for their transgressions and yearn to have their names written in the Book of Life.
Oct 03, 2014, 06:19PM | Rachel Avraham
Painting by Gottlieb of Jews Praying in a Synagogue on Yom Kippur Photo Credit: Wikipedia Commons
Tonight, Jews around the world will be commemorating Yom Kippur, the
day where we believe that all of humanity will be judged for the year to
come for good and for bad. Some will be written in the Book of Life.
Others will not. For this reason, Jews will be praying in synagogue,
asking God to forgive their transgressions, both committed intentionally
and unintentionally, and yearning to have their names written in the
Book of Life for the year to come.
Jews are supposed to abstain from all
physical pleasures on this day, because the Torah instructs Jews to
afflict themselves because on this day, the Jewish people are compared
to angels and therefore have no physical needs. Additionally, Jews
afflict themselves because they are supposed to show regret for their
mistakes over the past year. Couples refrain from sexual relations and
showing any kind of intimacy with one another. Jews don’t wear leather
shoes on this day. They don’t take bathes or apply ointments, creams,
lotions or perfume. Jews don’t wear gold on this day, believing that it
symbolizes the sin of the Golden Calf.
Additionally, Jews fast from sunset tonight to sunset the following day, abstaining from eating food and drinking liquids, including water. Only pregnant women, women nursing babies, children, and people who have a medical necessity to eat are religiously permitted to eat and drink. However, even children are traditionally educated to fast for a short period of time starting at age 9. These children should eat after sundown on Yom Kippur and their breakfast should be delayed. Yet, only after their Bar or Bat Mitzvah do Jews start to fast on Yom Kippur in its entirety.
Chabad stresses that people who have a medical necessity to eat are religiously permitted to do so because just as God commanded healthy people to fast on Yom Kippur, he also ruled that the preservation of life and health is more important than fasting. However, Chabad recommends that Jews who suffer from a specific illness that bars them from fasting recite the following prayer: “Behold I am prepared to fulfill the mitzvah of eating and drinking on Yom Kippur, as You have written in Your Torah: ‘You shall observe My statutes and My ordinances, which a man shall do and live with them. I am God.’ In the merit of fulfilling this mitzvah, seal [my fate], and [that of] all the ill of your nation Israel, for a complete recovery. May I merit next Yom Kippur to once again fulfill [the mitzvah of] ‘you shall afflict yourselves [on Yom Kippur].’ May this be your will! Amen.”
In Tel Aviv, Israel, the fast begins tonight at 6:02pm. In London, Great Britain, Yom Kippur will start at 6:16pm. In New York City, USA, Yom Kippur begins at 6:17pm. In San Francisco, USA, Yom Kippur commences at 6:32pm. In Chicago, USA, Yom Kippur will start at 6:09pm. In Quebec City, Canada, Yom Kippur will begin at 6:03pm. In Toronto, Canada, Yom Kippur will commence at 6:37pm. And in Melbourne, Australia, Yom Kippur will start at 6:08pm tonight.
Additionally, Jews fast from sunset tonight to sunset the following day, abstaining from eating food and drinking liquids, including water. Only pregnant women, women nursing babies, children, and people who have a medical necessity to eat are religiously permitted to eat and drink. However, even children are traditionally educated to fast for a short period of time starting at age 9. These children should eat after sundown on Yom Kippur and their breakfast should be delayed. Yet, only after their Bar or Bat Mitzvah do Jews start to fast on Yom Kippur in its entirety.
Chabad stresses that people who have a medical necessity to eat are religiously permitted to do so because just as God commanded healthy people to fast on Yom Kippur, he also ruled that the preservation of life and health is more important than fasting. However, Chabad recommends that Jews who suffer from a specific illness that bars them from fasting recite the following prayer: “Behold I am prepared to fulfill the mitzvah of eating and drinking on Yom Kippur, as You have written in Your Torah: ‘You shall observe My statutes and My ordinances, which a man shall do and live with them. I am God.’ In the merit of fulfilling this mitzvah, seal [my fate], and [that of] all the ill of your nation Israel, for a complete recovery. May I merit next Yom Kippur to once again fulfill [the mitzvah of] ‘you shall afflict yourselves [on Yom Kippur].’ May this be your will! Amen.”
In Tel Aviv, Israel, the fast begins tonight at 6:02pm. In London, Great Britain, Yom Kippur will start at 6:16pm. In New York City, USA, Yom Kippur begins at 6:17pm. In San Francisco, USA, Yom Kippur commences at 6:32pm. In Chicago, USA, Yom Kippur will start at 6:09pm. In Quebec City, Canada, Yom Kippur will begin at 6:03pm. In Toronto, Canada, Yom Kippur will commence at 6:37pm. And in Melbourne, Australia, Yom Kippur will start at 6:08pm tonight.
Turkey Will Attack ISIS
Turkey Will Attack ISIS
The Turkish government approved taking military action against ISIS, both in Syria and Iraq. In addition, the coalition will be able to train and operate within Turkish military bases.
Oct 03, 2014, 10:10AM | Rachel Avraham
US attacks Syria Photo Credit: Reuters/Channel 2
The international coalition against ISIS has been strengthened. The
Turkish parliament approved last night a proposal that will permit the
Turkish government to carry out military operations beyond its borders
in Syria and Iraq, in order to fight against ISIS terrorists that
threaten to expand the area of struggle.
In addition, the Turkish Parliament approved
the entry of foreign soldiers into their territory. The soldiers of
western armies will be able to use military facilities in Turkey for
training purposes, preparation and the deployment of military activity.
The Turkish authorities were placed under heavy international pressure to join the campaign led by the United States against ISIS. Before the Turkish Parliament voiced their approval for joining the campaign, US President Barack Obama stated that he would send a representative to a number of countries, including Turkey, Egypt and Jordan, to join the coalition.
The representative John Allen was appointed by the US State Department “to consolidate support for the international coalition’s efforts to weaken and defeat ISIS.” Allen arrived in Iraq in order to meet with the senior level leadership of the country.
The Turkish authorities were placed under heavy international pressure to join the campaign led by the United States against ISIS. Before the Turkish Parliament voiced their approval for joining the campaign, US President Barack Obama stated that he would send a representative to a number of countries, including Turkey, Egypt and Jordan, to join the coalition.
The representative John Allen was appointed by the US State Department “to consolidate support for the international coalition’s efforts to weaken and defeat ISIS.” Allen arrived in Iraq in order to meet with the senior level leadership of the country.
Официальный сайт ФМС России
Официальный сайт ФМС России
Официальные статистические данные
Политическое убежище
| Количество иностранных граждан и лиц без гражданства, обратившихся с заявлением о предоставлении политического убежища в 2008-2013 гг. | ||||||||||||||
| (по странам) | ||||||||||||||
| СТРАНЫ | 2008 г. | 2009 г. | 2010 г. | 2011 г. | 2012 г. | 2013 г. (на 01.03.) | ВСЕГО | |||||||
| сем. | чел. | сем. | чел. | сем. | чел. | сем. | чел. | сем. | чел. | сем. | чел. | сем. | чел. | |
| ИТОГО | 0 | 0 | 5 | 8 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 14 |
| Дания | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Казахстан | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 |
| Киргизия | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Узбекистан | 0 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 6 |
| Украина | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| США | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Количество иностранных граждан и лиц без гражданства, обратившихся с заявлением о предоставлении политического убежища в 2008-2013 гг. | ||||||||||||||
| (по субъектам) | ||||||||||||||
| Регионы РФ и субъекты, входящие в их состав | 2008 г. | 2009 г. | 2010 г. | 2011 г. | 2012 г. | 2013 г. (на 01.03.) | ВСЕГО | |||||||
| сем. | чел. | сем. | чел. | сем. | чел. | сем. | чел. | сем. | чел. | сем. | чел. | сем. | чел. | |
| ИТОГО | 0 | 0 | 5 | 8 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 14 |
| 1. Центральный | 0 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 8 |
| г. Москва | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Брянская обл | 0 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 6 |
| Курская обл. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 2. Северо-Западный | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Мурманская обл. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 3. Северо-Кавказский | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 4. Южный | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 5. Приволжский | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| Оренбургская обл. | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Самарская обл. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 6. Уральский | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 7. Сибирский | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Алтайский край | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Омская обл. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 8. Дальневосточный | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Explainer: How Do You Get Asylum In Russia?
Explainer: How Do You Get Asylum In Russia?
July 26, 2013
Fugitive U.S.
intelligence contractor Edward Snowden has applied for temporary asylum
in Russia and is expected to soon be given a document that would allow
him to leave the transit zone of Sheremetyevo Airport -- where he has
spent the past month. RFE/RL takes a look at the procedure for getting
asylum in Russia.
What kinds of asylum are there?
There are three types of asylum in Russia: political asylum, refugee status, and temporary asylum.
How does political asylum work?
Political asylum, which is very rare, is issued via a presidential decree that takes into account multiple factors including whether it is in Russia's political interest to grant it. The process is regulated by a separate government resolution rather than Russia's Law on Refugees. It is issued to those seeking "asylum or protection from persecution or a real threat of becoming a victim of persecution" in their home country for "social-political activities or convictions that do not contradict the democratic principles recognized by the international community and norms of international law."
Only 14 people applied for political asylum in Russia in the last five years and the Federal Migration Service (FMS) does not report any successful applications on its website.
Political asylum is granted so rarely it is not even clear what rights one gets with it.
What about refugee status?
Refugee status is issued more often, but is still fairly rare. The decision to grant this status is made by the Federal Migration Service in accordance with Russia's Law on Refugees. Russian law defines a refugee as a non-Russian citizen living outside their country of nationality or normal residence who fears becoming a "victim of persecution due to their race, religion, citizenship, nationality, membership in a particular social group or political belief." In practice, the process is slow and often unsuccessful with only a small portion of applicants being granted refugee status in the last five years.
The status is conferred for a period of up to three years, but it is reviewed every year. Refugees have the right to urgent medical assistance, the right to be housed in temporary accommodation, the right to work without a permit and the right for their children to be educated. They receive almost all the rights of a normal Russian citizen -- except for voting rights. They carry a book which looks like this.
So what did Snowden apply for? And how does it work?
Snowden applied for temporary asylum. This kind of asylum is equivalent to Europe's "humanitarian status" and is given out on compassionate grounds. That is to say, if an asylum seeker does not meet the criteria for full refugee status, but cannot be extradited back to his country of origin for "humanitarian" reasons, then he is eligible for temporary asylum status. There are many "humanitarian" grounds such as the risk of a person experiencing inhumane treatment in their country. There were 8,952 applications for temporary asylum in Russian between 2008 and March 1, 2013. Temporary asylum was granted to 5,728 people between 2007 and 2012.
This status allows the bearer to move around Russia without impediment, although there are slight restrictions as to where one can live. A person who has been granted temporary asylum is registered to live in the place where he filed his application. In the case of Snowden -- who applied to the Moscow Federal Migration Service -- he would have to live in Moscow (unless he applied to change the location). Temporary status allows the bearer to work in Russia, which could be good news for Snowden if -- and that sometimes seems a big if -- his lawyer is to be believed. Lawyer Anatoly Kucherena said on July 24 that Snowden is hoping to learn Russian with a view to working. Snowden would also get the right to basic state medical insurance.
Temporary asylum is valid for one year after it is issued. Provided conditions of asylum have not been violated, seekers can reapply for it one month before it expires.
Who are the usual asylum seekers? What are their rates of success in appealing for asylum?
Asylum seekers from Afghanistan, Syria, Central Asia, and Georgia currently make up the lion's share of applicants. Between 1997 and July 2007, 8,683 out of 25,931 (33 percent) applicants received refugee status. Between 2001 and July 2007, 2,446 out of 5,637 (43 percent) applicants got temporary asylum. Political asylum does not figure in the FMS statistics. http://www.fms.gov.ru/documents/asylum/
But the process to get refugee status appears to be getting harder if FMS statistics are correct: From 2007 to April 2012, only 961 people received refugee status in Russia out of over 12,500 who applied. That equates to a meager 7 percent application success rate.
So Snowden has applied for the most commonly issued type of asylum. What comes next?
Initially, there was a bit of confusion. Early reports seemed to suggest that the FMS had issued Snowden a document on July 24 certifying that the agency is officially considering his application for temporary asylum. However, it turned out later that this was not the case. After speaking to Snowden on July 24, lawyer Anatoly Kucherena said: "The Federal Migration Service confirmed to me today that [Snowden’s] papers are being examined. Because there is a specific procedure, there are a series of questions that the migration services must deal with correspondingly. Edward is understanding about this, and he hasn’t been refused [asylum], the process is simply being drawn out somewhat."
Strictly speaking, the document should have been issued immediately when Snowden applied for temporary asylum. In practice, however, there is a lot of variance on how long this initial process takes. On average, the Moscow Federal Migration Service takes about two weeks to issue such certificates, according to Yelena Ryabinina, the Central Asia political refugee program director for the Moscow-based Civic Assistance Committee.
Will Snowden be able to leave the airport if he gets this document?
Yes. This document allows the bearer to legally reside on the territory of the Russian Federation -- even though the United States revoked his passport earlier this month. The document officially acts in place of identity documents since asylum seekers' identity documents are transferred to the Federal Migration Service during application. He will not have to live in a particular refugee center; asylum seekers in Russia are not typically given somewhere to live. According to Ryabinina, there are centers for temporary asylum seekers but they are too few in number.
What happens if Snowden gets that document?
The Moscow Federal Migration Service -- where Snowden has applied -- would then have up to three months to consider whether or not to grant Snowden temporary asylum. Ryabinina says that if the response is positive, then he will know within the next three months. But she is unsure how the situation could evolve.
"I won’t even try to guess how the events are going to develop regarding how he will receive temporary asylum," she says. "A positive response could be extremely quick because the three-month deadline doesn't mean that the three months have to be used.”
If Snowden is denied asylum, he will technically be able to appeal the decision -- either in a court or directly with the FMS and then subsequently in a court. This appeal process -- should the migration authorities repeatedly decide against issuing asylum -- lasts roughly one year.
Is it common to apply for asylum from an airport transit zone on Russian territory?
Absolutely not. This was one of the irregular things about Snowden's case. The majority of asylum seekers apply from within Russian territory. This is because the majority of them are able to enter Russian territory with their travel documents -- or have entered illegally.
As a rule, Ryabinina says, people who apply from transit zones tend to be unsuccessful. Their applications are either ignored or rejected. Ryabinina has cited the case of an Uzbek man who arrived at Moscow's Domodedovo Airport one month ago. He was not allowed into Russia but applied for refugee status. His documents were not even received by migration authorities -- a blatant violation of the law, she said.
So what does all this mean for Snowden?
It's hard to say. Although applying for temporary asylum is nominally apolitical and technical, politics are crucial here, according to Ryabinina.
"The situation will develop in a completely usual way because this is a resonant case," she says. "The Russian authorities have a clear interest [in this case], although I won't speculate on how it will impact on Snowden. I may be mistaken, but in my opinion Snowden, whether knowingly or not, has ended up a pawn in a big geopolitical game."
What kinds of asylum are there?
There are three types of asylum in Russia: political asylum, refugee status, and temporary asylum.
How does political asylum work?
Political asylum, which is very rare, is issued via a presidential decree that takes into account multiple factors including whether it is in Russia's political interest to grant it. The process is regulated by a separate government resolution rather than Russia's Law on Refugees. It is issued to those seeking "asylum or protection from persecution or a real threat of becoming a victim of persecution" in their home country for "social-political activities or convictions that do not contradict the democratic principles recognized by the international community and norms of international law."
Only 14 people applied for political asylum in Russia in the last five years and the Federal Migration Service (FMS) does not report any successful applications on its website.
Political asylum is granted so rarely it is not even clear what rights one gets with it.
What about refugee status?
Refugee status is issued more often, but is still fairly rare. The decision to grant this status is made by the Federal Migration Service in accordance with Russia's Law on Refugees. Russian law defines a refugee as a non-Russian citizen living outside their country of nationality or normal residence who fears becoming a "victim of persecution due to their race, religion, citizenship, nationality, membership in a particular social group or political belief." In practice, the process is slow and often unsuccessful with only a small portion of applicants being granted refugee status in the last five years.
The status is conferred for a period of up to three years, but it is reviewed every year. Refugees have the right to urgent medical assistance, the right to be housed in temporary accommodation, the right to work without a permit and the right for their children to be educated. They receive almost all the rights of a normal Russian citizen -- except for voting rights. They carry a book which looks like this.
So what did Snowden apply for? And how does it work?
Snowden applied for temporary asylum. This kind of asylum is equivalent to Europe's "humanitarian status" and is given out on compassionate grounds. That is to say, if an asylum seeker does not meet the criteria for full refugee status, but cannot be extradited back to his country of origin for "humanitarian" reasons, then he is eligible for temporary asylum status. There are many "humanitarian" grounds such as the risk of a person experiencing inhumane treatment in their country. There were 8,952 applications for temporary asylum in Russian between 2008 and March 1, 2013. Temporary asylum was granted to 5,728 people between 2007 and 2012.
This status allows the bearer to move around Russia without impediment, although there are slight restrictions as to where one can live. A person who has been granted temporary asylum is registered to live in the place where he filed his application. In the case of Snowden -- who applied to the Moscow Federal Migration Service -- he would have to live in Moscow (unless he applied to change the location). Temporary status allows the bearer to work in Russia, which could be good news for Snowden if -- and that sometimes seems a big if -- his lawyer is to be believed. Lawyer Anatoly Kucherena said on July 24 that Snowden is hoping to learn Russian with a view to working. Snowden would also get the right to basic state medical insurance.
Temporary asylum is valid for one year after it is issued. Provided conditions of asylum have not been violated, seekers can reapply for it one month before it expires.
Who are the usual asylum seekers? What are their rates of success in appealing for asylum?
Asylum seekers from Afghanistan, Syria, Central Asia, and Georgia currently make up the lion's share of applicants. Between 1997 and July 2007, 8,683 out of 25,931 (33 percent) applicants received refugee status. Between 2001 and July 2007, 2,446 out of 5,637 (43 percent) applicants got temporary asylum. Political asylum does not figure in the FMS statistics. http://www.fms.gov.ru/documents/asylum/
But the process to get refugee status appears to be getting harder if FMS statistics are correct: From 2007 to April 2012, only 961 people received refugee status in Russia out of over 12,500 who applied. That equates to a meager 7 percent application success rate.
So Snowden has applied for the most commonly issued type of asylum. What comes next?
Initially, there was a bit of confusion. Early reports seemed to suggest that the FMS had issued Snowden a document on July 24 certifying that the agency is officially considering his application for temporary asylum. However, it turned out later that this was not the case. After speaking to Snowden on July 24, lawyer Anatoly Kucherena said: "The Federal Migration Service confirmed to me today that [Snowden’s] papers are being examined. Because there is a specific procedure, there are a series of questions that the migration services must deal with correspondingly. Edward is understanding about this, and he hasn’t been refused [asylum], the process is simply being drawn out somewhat."
Strictly speaking, the document should have been issued immediately when Snowden applied for temporary asylum. In practice, however, there is a lot of variance on how long this initial process takes. On average, the Moscow Federal Migration Service takes about two weeks to issue such certificates, according to Yelena Ryabinina, the Central Asia political refugee program director for the Moscow-based Civic Assistance Committee.
Will Snowden be able to leave the airport if he gets this document?
Yes. This document allows the bearer to legally reside on the territory of the Russian Federation -- even though the United States revoked his passport earlier this month. The document officially acts in place of identity documents since asylum seekers' identity documents are transferred to the Federal Migration Service during application. He will not have to live in a particular refugee center; asylum seekers in Russia are not typically given somewhere to live. According to Ryabinina, there are centers for temporary asylum seekers but they are too few in number.
What happens if Snowden gets that document?
The Moscow Federal Migration Service -- where Snowden has applied -- would then have up to three months to consider whether or not to grant Snowden temporary asylum. Ryabinina says that if the response is positive, then he will know within the next three months. But she is unsure how the situation could evolve.
"I won’t even try to guess how the events are going to develop regarding how he will receive temporary asylum," she says. "A positive response could be extremely quick because the three-month deadline doesn't mean that the three months have to be used.”
If Snowden is denied asylum, he will technically be able to appeal the decision -- either in a court or directly with the FMS and then subsequently in a court. This appeal process -- should the migration authorities repeatedly decide against issuing asylum -- lasts roughly one year.
Is it common to apply for asylum from an airport transit zone on Russian territory?
Absolutely not. This was one of the irregular things about Snowden's case. The majority of asylum seekers apply from within Russian territory. This is because the majority of them are able to enter Russian territory with their travel documents -- or have entered illegally.
As a rule, Ryabinina says, people who apply from transit zones tend to be unsuccessful. Their applications are either ignored or rejected. Ryabinina has cited the case of an Uzbek man who arrived at Moscow's Domodedovo Airport one month ago. He was not allowed into Russia but applied for refugee status. His documents were not even received by migration authorities -- a blatant violation of the law, she said.
So what does all this mean for Snowden?
It's hard to say. Although applying for temporary asylum is nominally apolitical and technical, politics are crucial here, according to Ryabinina.
"The situation will develop in a completely usual way because this is a resonant case," she says. "The Russian authorities have a clear interest [in this case], although I won't speculate on how it will impact on Snowden. I may be mistaken, but in my opinion Snowden, whether knowingly or not, has ended up a pawn in a big geopolitical game."
Obama’s Éminence Grise
Obama’s Éminence Grise
As the Obama administration crashes and burns, insiders begin to blame Valerie Jarrett.
Are significant chunks of the mainstream media in despair over Barack Obama? This past week, Obama used 60 Minutes
to attempt to shift blame for the failure to anticipate the rise of
ISIS, endured a cover-up of White House security disasters by the Secret
Service, and saw a government-agency report that he had skipped nearly
60 percent of his intelligence briefings.
The reaction from some longtime Obama defenders was swift and harsh. “President Obama this week committed professional suicide,” wrote former CNN host Piers Morgan, now an editor-at-large for Britain’s Daily Mail.
He called Obama’s throwing of the intelligence community under the bus a “shameless, reprehensible display of buck-passing” that will result in some analysts’ exacting “cold-blooded revenge on Obama by drip-feeding negative stories about him until he’s gone.” As for the Secret Service fiasco, Morgan said it was “no wonder the Secret Service gets complacent when The Boss exudes complacency from every pore.”
Chris Matthews of MSNBC, the former White House speechwriter who
once rapturously recounted that he “felt this thrill going up my leg” as
Obama spoke, didn’t hold back on Wednesday’s Hardball. “Let’s
get tough here,” Matthews began, as he lambasted Obama for being
“intellectually lazy” and “listening to the same voices all the time.”
He even named names, saying that Obama had become “atrophied into that
little world of people like Valerie Jarrett and Mrs. Obama.”Jonathan Alter, a columnist for Bloomberg News and the author of a sympathetic book on Obama’s first term, reported
that Jarrett is an unusual presence in the White House: “Staffers
feared her, but didn’t like or trust her. At meetings she said little or
nothing, instead lingering afterwards to express her views directly to
the President, creating anxiety for her underlings and insulting them by
saying, ‘I don’t talk just to hear myself talking.’”
Everyone expects a presidential spouse to weigh in on issues, but the reference to Valerie Jarrett, the White House senior adviser who mentored both the president and the first lady at the start of their careers in Chicago, is telling. Her outsize role in many presidential decisions is known to insiders, but she remains resolutely behind the scenes. So when Jarrett does enter the news, it’s significant, because it may provide a window into how the Obama White House really works.
This week, Greg Hinz of Crain’s Chicago Business noted that President Obama was back visiting Chicago but “having to share headlines with Valerie Jarrett.” She began the week with a cameo appearance on CBS’s highly rated show The Good Wife. Then a column by Michael Sneed in the Chicago Sun-Times reported that Jarrett “may be the worst abuser” of any executive-branch official with a Secret Service detail, using guards “round the clock” even while she was shopping, at the gym, or visiting friends in Chicago.
At a time when a government report shows the Secret Service is more than 550 agents below its optimal strength, Sneed bluntly asked, “Is this expense justifiable or is it an abuse of power?” Sneed quoted a source close to the White House: “Jarrett is treated as a member of the Obama family, but she’s had no real death threats requiring the constant use of the Secret Service that I know of.”
When Mark Leibovich of the New York Times tried to trace how Jarrett obtained Secret Service protection, he was told by someone close to her that she found such questions “ridiculous and offensive.”
As the Obama administration crashes and burns, insiders begin to blame Valerie Jarrett.
Valerie Jarrett with President Obama, December 2013. (White House via Flickr)
Comments
313
John Fund 
The reaction from some longtime Obama defenders was swift and harsh. “President Obama this week committed professional suicide,” wrote former CNN host Piers Morgan, now an editor-at-large for Britain’s Daily Mail.
He called Obama’s throwing of the intelligence community under the bus a “shameless, reprehensible display of buck-passing” that will result in some analysts’ exacting “cold-blooded revenge on Obama by drip-feeding negative stories about him until he’s gone.” As for the Secret Service fiasco, Morgan said it was “no wonder the Secret Service gets complacent when The Boss exudes complacency from every pore.”
Advertisement
Everyone expects a presidential spouse to weigh in on issues, but the reference to Valerie Jarrett, the White House senior adviser who mentored both the president and the first lady at the start of their careers in Chicago, is telling. Her outsize role in many presidential decisions is known to insiders, but she remains resolutely behind the scenes. So when Jarrett does enter the news, it’s significant, because it may provide a window into how the Obama White House really works.
This week, Greg Hinz of Crain’s Chicago Business noted that President Obama was back visiting Chicago but “having to share headlines with Valerie Jarrett.” She began the week with a cameo appearance on CBS’s highly rated show The Good Wife. Then a column by Michael Sneed in the Chicago Sun-Times reported that Jarrett “may be the worst abuser” of any executive-branch official with a Secret Service detail, using guards “round the clock” even while she was shopping, at the gym, or visiting friends in Chicago.
At a time when a government report shows the Secret Service is more than 550 agents below its optimal strength, Sneed bluntly asked, “Is this expense justifiable or is it an abuse of power?” Sneed quoted a source close to the White House: “Jarrett is treated as a member of the Obama family, but she’s had no real death threats requiring the constant use of the Secret Service that I know of.”
When Mark Leibovich of the New York Times tried to trace how Jarrett obtained Secret Service protection, he was told by someone close to her that she found such questions “ridiculous and offensive.”
Hinz of Chicago Business
has covered Jarrett for years and has decided to offer her some quick
advice: “Do whatever it takes to get your name out of the papers. And
just watch TV for a while. OK?” He then joked that if Jarrett really
wanted “to have some fun, try to figure out who dropped the dime on
you.”
I wouldn’t bet against Jarrett finding out. As I wrote last year, White House aides “went to extraordinary lengths to uncover the identity of a senior official who was using Twitter to make snarky comments about Jarrett and other White House staffers. . . . The official had gone so far as to tweet ‘I’m a fan of Obama, but his continuing reliance and dependence upon a vacuous cipher like Valerie Jarrett concerns me.’”
When the bloodhounds uncovered Jofi Joseph, the point man on nuclear nonproliferation at the National Security Council, as the offending official, he was fired — not for revealing any secrets but for making disparaging comments about thin-skinned administration players such as Jarrett.
On Capitol Hill, members of both parties are more and more
mystified at Obama’s apparent disengagement from parts of his job.
Months before he dropped the ball on ISIS, he failed to keep himself
properly apprised of the problems with Obamacare’s website. Jarrett
appears to exercise such extraordinary influence that in some quarters
on Capitol Hill she is known as “Rasputin,” a reference to the mystical
monk who held sway over Russia’s Czar Nicholas as he increasingly lost
touch with reality during World War I.No one suggests that
Jarrett is solely responsible for the administration’s slow response to
the crises, contradictory communication, and labored political
calculation that have become its hallmarks. But many do think that she
has failed to encourage the president to bring in new people with fresh
ideas.
So how has she survived? Not only has she been close to the first couple for nearly a quarter-century, but she clearly makes the president feel even better about himself than he would anyway. Consider this quote from her interview with New Yorker editor David Remnick for his book The Bridge (2010):
— John Fund is national-affairs correspondent for NRO.
I wouldn’t bet against Jarrett finding out. As I wrote last year, White House aides “went to extraordinary lengths to uncover the identity of a senior official who was using Twitter to make snarky comments about Jarrett and other White House staffers. . . . The official had gone so far as to tweet ‘I’m a fan of Obama, but his continuing reliance and dependence upon a vacuous cipher like Valerie Jarrett concerns me.’”
When the bloodhounds uncovered Jofi Joseph, the point man on nuclear nonproliferation at the National Security Council, as the offending official, he was fired — not for revealing any secrets but for making disparaging comments about thin-skinned administration players such as Jarrett.
Advertisement
So how has she survived? Not only has she been close to the first couple for nearly a quarter-century, but she clearly makes the president feel even better about himself than he would anyway. Consider this quote from her interview with New Yorker editor David Remnick for his book The Bridge (2010):
I think Barack knew that he had God-given talents that were extraordinary. He knows exactly how smart he is. . . . He knows how perceptive he is. He knows what a good reader of people he is. And he knows that he has the ability — the extraordinary, uncanny ability — to take a thousand different perspectives, digest them and make sense out of them, and I think that he has never really been challenged intellectually. . . . So what I sensed in him was not just a restless spirit but somebody with such extraordinary talents that had to be really taxed in order for him to be happy. . . . He’s been bored to death his whole life. He’s just too talented to do what ordinary people do.Journalists who contacted the White House this week and asked to speak with Jarrett didn’t get very far. Maybe she’s decided to follow the advice of Greg Hinz and lie low for a while. But if journalists really want a fuller explanation for how the Obama administration has reached its current low ebb, perhaps they should continue to follow the threads of the Jarrett string that were revealed this week and see where those lead.
— John Fund is national-affairs correspondent for NRO.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)