Topic: WorldNetDaily
We've noted back in January how WorldNetDaily's Aaron Klein attacked (using anonymous sources) Robert Malley, who has advised Barack Obama's campaign, without giving him an opportunity to respond. Klein rehashes the charges once more in a March 20 article, again failing to offer Malley a response or any other view of him or bothering to correct his distortions.
Klein called Malley "an Obama foreign policy adviser." But according to PolitiFact.com, "Obama’s campaign states that while Malley has offered advice and opinions on a couple occasions, he is not a formal adviser." PolitiFact also points out that "in position papers and interviews, Obama has said he does not think the United States should be talking to Hamas," a position Malley has advocated. Klein copiously details Malley's advocacy for talks with Hamas but has never noted that Obama does not support it.
Meanwhile, Klein fails to acknowledge that Malley has, in fact, responded to attacks on him. From a Feb. 20 article in the Jewish newspaper the Forward:
Robert Malley, a former special assistant to President Bill Clinton on Arab-Israeli affairs, told the Forward that the attacks on him by some supporters of Israel have “crossed the line.”
Malley, who now heads the Middle East and North Africa program at the International Crisis Group, emphasized his strong support for Israel and explained his views on the need to engage in talks with Iran and Syria.
[...]
Malley recently received support from five Jewish former U.S. government officials who are known to be strong supporters of Israel. Former national security adviser Sandy Berger and former State Department officials Dennis Ross, Martin Indyk, Aaron David Miller and Daniel Kurtzer released their open letter defending Malley on February 12.
Responding to what they call “a series of vicious, personal attacks” against Malley, the former officials wrote: “These attacks are unfair, inappropriate and wrong.”
The letter is particularly noteworthy because, according to press reports, Berger and Indyk have been advising Obama’s opponent, Hillary Clinton, on Middle East policy.
The letter adds that while disagreements on policy exist, there is no disagreement regarding the special relationship between America and Israel: “We have worked with Rob closely over the years and have no doubt he shares this view and has acted consistent with it.”
[...]
In a roundtable discussion sponsored by the Israel Policy Forum two weeks ago, Malley said he does not believe Obama will talk to Hamas or Hezbollah if elected president.
Despite Malley having responded to such charges, Klein repeated his attacks in articles on Feb. 24 and Feb. 25 without noting Malley's response, in addition to the March 20 article.
Klein also cited a New York Review of Books article by Malley which Klein described as "largely blaming Israel for the collapse of the Israeli-Palestinian negotiations at Camp David in 2000 when Arafat turned down a Palestinian state in the West Bank, Gaza and eastern sections of Jerusalem and instead returned to the Middle East to launch an intifada, or terrorist campaign, against the Jewish state," adding, "Malley's contentions have been strongly refuted by key participants at Camp David ... all of whom squarely blamed Arafat's refusal to make peace for the talks' failure." But the Forward notes:
This article was considered controversial, since mainstream policy analysts in Israel and America had pointed to Arafat as having sole responsibility for the failed talks. Later, however, other scholars and former officials voiced similar views to those of Malley.
We were able to find this rather easily, thanks to the magic of the Internet. Why can't Klein, who purports to be an actual journalist?
