Feinstein defends Obama over UN settlement vote

President Barack Obama won some rare support from a prominent US Jewish Democrat, with Sen. Dianne Feinstein calling the decision not to veto the UN Security Council condemnation of Israeli settlements an “absolute necessity.”

Obama’s actions “sends a strong message that the United States still supports a two-state solution,” Feinstein (D-Calif.) said in a statement.

“I’ve watched with growing concern the increase in Israeli settlements over the years, where approximately 400,0000 individuals now live,” she said. “I believe the expansion of settlements has but one goal: to undermine the viability of a two-state solution.” Feinstein’s voice was a rare statement of support for the outgoing president, with most US Jewish leaders condemning the move.

Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) said it was “extremely frustrating, disappointing and confounding that the Administration has failed to veto this resolution. Whatever one’s views are on settlements, the UN is the wrong forum to settle these issues. The UN has been a fervently anti-Israel body since the days of ‘Zionism is racism’ and, unfortunately, that fervor has never diminished. Knowing this, past Administrations – both Democrat and Republican – have protected Israel from the vagaries of this biased institution. Unfortunately, this Administration has not followed in that path and its actions will move us further from peace in the Middle East.”

While most Democrats hesitated to call out the Obama administration for its decision to abstain rather than veto the resolution, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) was clear in assigning blame. In a statement issued quickly after the vote, AIPAC wrote that it was “deeply disturbed by the failure of the Obama Administration to exercise its veto to prevent a destructive, one-sided, anti-Israel resolution from being enacted by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC). In the past, this administration and past administrations have rejected this type of biased resolution since it undermines prospects for peace.”

“It is particularly regrettable, in his last month in office, that the president has taken an action at odds with the bipartisan consensus in Congress and America’s long history of standing with Israel at the United Nations,” the organization, which had sent out an action call to its members shortly before the vote, continued. “AIPAC expresses its appreciation to President-elect Trump and the many Democratic and Republican Members of Congress who urged a veto of this resolution.”

Democrats who had called on Obama to veto the resolution expressed their disappointment Friday afternoon, as did pro-Israel groups.

http://www.timesofisrael.com/feinstein-defends-obama-over-un-settlement-vote/