Netanyahu should resign and surrender

Jill Stein has been one of the loudest and clearest voices in the race for president demanding justice for Gaza, and that begins with Benjamin Netanyahu immediately resigning as Prime Minister and surrendering to authorities. Netanyahu is a war criminal who has been charged with the following crimes by the International Criminal Court (ICC);

·  Starvation of civilians as a method of warfare as a war crime contrary to article 8(2)(b)(xxv) of the Statute;

·  Willfully causing great suffering, or serious injury to body or health contrary to article 8(2)(a)(iii), or cruel treatment as a war crime contrary to article 8(2)(c)(i);

·  Willful killing contrary to article 8(2)(a)(i), or Murder as a war crime contrary to article 8(2)(c)(i);

·  Intentionally directing attacks against a civilian population as a war crime contrary to articles 8(2)(b)(i), or 8(2)(e)(i);

·  Extermination and/or murder contrary to articles 7(1)(b) and 7(1)(a), including in the context of deaths caused by starvation, as a crime against humanity;

·  Persecution as a crime against humanity contrary to article 7(1)(h);

·  Other inhumane acts as crimes against humanity contrary to article 7(1)(k).

Jill demands Americans should not support the Biden-Harris funded genocide, and they should never accept this forced alliance with a war criminal.

US Election: A race like no other in history

Immediately after US President Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 race, a move not seen since President Lyndon Johnson stepped back at the height of the Vietnam War, a question suddenly arose. What path would Vice President Kamala Harris take to try and beat Donald Trump?

“Americans are going to have to choose between moving forward or backward, between hope and hate, between unity and division,” Biden said. “We have to decide—do we still believe in honesty, decency, respect, freedom, justice and democracy.”

The Republican nominee had been on a winning streak of late, avoiding a spotlight on his historic criminal conviction, pending trials or even repeated references to a fictional serial killer.

The media spent almost a month focused on Biden, his age and botched debate performance (Biden, at 81, is three years older than Trump).

Kamala wasted no time providing answers to the question. Her campaign is focusing on Trump’s status as a convicted felon, his various other legal entanglements, including being found liable for sexual abuse, and his starring role in blowing up abortion rights.

“I know Donald Trump’s type,” said the 59-year-old Kamala, a former US senator, state attorney general and district attorney.

Francis Wilkinson writes in Bloomberg Opinion that from here to November, the prosecutor should prosecute the predator. 

Polls showed the race tightening with Kamala’s entry, with more enthusiasm among Black and younger voters. Republicans are already trying to use immigration against her, despite Trump arguably being the main reason a bipartisan immigration reform bill was killed.

Then there’s the question of whether Americans are ready to elect the first female president.

Trump, who has a history of racist and misogynistic statements, risks alienating some of the very voters he needs if he pursues that track this time.

Many prominent Republicans however have already started racial attacks on Kamala, calling her “the DEI candidate.” In short, this is a race like no other in US history.

The next step will be for Kamala to select a running mate ahead of the Democratic National Convention.

As the new race was forming up this week, Biden addressed the nation, framing his decision to bow out as a way of uniting the country around a new generation of leaders. He also warned of what he’s said is the existential peril democracy faces in November. 

Courtesy: Bloomberg 

US must reduce aid to Israel, says Ramaswamy

Vivek Ramaswamy, a long-shot contender for the Republican presidential nomination, said in an interview that the United States should reduce its aid to Israel.

In an interview on Rumble, a platform popular with far-right viewers, Ramaswamy said Israel should not get more aid than its Middle Eastern neighbors after 2028, the year that the current US aid package of US$38 billion expires.

Later on Friday, he was referred to as a promising candidate by Elon Musk, the owner of X, formerly known as Twitter. Musk reacted to a post shared by former FOX News presenter Tucker Carlson showing a clip from an interview conducted with Ramaswamy.

"Vivek Ramaswamy is the youngest Republican presidential candidate ever. He's worth listening to," Carlson wrote on X.

He said that he would expand the Abraham Accords, the normalization deals between Israel and Arab countries. After Israel is more integrated with its neighboring countries, Ramaswamy said, Israel should be able to stand on its own two feet financially.

“Come 2028, that additional aid won’t be necessary in order to still have the kind of stability that we’d actually have in the Middle East by having Israel more integrated in with its partners,” he said.

The policy point separates Ramaswamy from his two main rivals vying for the nomination — Donald Trump and Ron DeSantis, who are staunch supporters of Israel and its military. But it puts him in line with a growing number of voices from across the ideological spectrum who says Israel should no longer get as much from the United States as it has.

Ramaswamy, a 38-year-old biotech entrepreneur, and investor, appeared on comedian-turned-podcaster Russell Brand’s video show on Rumble. The comments on aid to Israel were a response to a viewer's question.

He argued that Israel should not receive preferential treatment from the United States, even though our relationship with Israel has advanced American interests over time. “There’s no North Star commitment to any one country, other than the United States of America,” Ramaswamy said.

Ramaswamy’s popularity is on the rise and he is now close behind DeSantis in national polls. A Fox News survey published Wednesday found 11% of respondents support him, compared to 16% for DeSantis and 53% for Trump.

Ramaswamy mentioned Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, and Indonesia as countries he would target as Abraham Accords partners; while Saudi Arabia is deep in negotiations with Israel and the United States about a possible Israel treaty, Oman recently criminalized relations of any kind with Israel. Indonesia is also noted for its high levels of antisemitism — FIFA, the world soccer body, this year moved its under-20 World Cup from Indonesia to Argentina after the Southeast Asian nation protested Israel’s inclusion in the event.

US aid to Israel has become more of a campaign issue over the past two presidential contests. In the lead-up to the 2020 election, prominent Democrats such as Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez brought up the idea of conditioning at least some aid over Israel’s policies, particularly those involving the Palestinians.

In May, Betsy McCollum, a longtime critic of Israel policy, re-introduced a bill that would condition US aid to Israel. Sixteen progressive House representatives co-sponsored the bill, including other prominent Israel critics such as Rashida Tlaib, Ilhan Omar, and Pramila Jayapal.

More recently, centrists and people on the right have joined in openly considering reducing aid to Israel, though for different reasons. Last month, New York Times columnist Nick Kristof floated ending aid to Israel entirely.

Ramaswamy — who had before his campaign been a leading defender of Donald Trump in his ongoing indictment crises — has also indicated he would pull back funding and military support for other allies, including Ukraine and Taiwan.

He told Jewish Insider in June that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had allowed Jews and other minorities to be mistreated during the country’s war with Russia, Zelensky himself is Jewish.

 

 

 

 

 

Can Trump be charged with sedition or treason?

On Wednesday, US lawmakers met to certify the victory of President-elect Joe Biden in the 2020 US presidential election. But the proceedings were interrupted by protesters, who have descended on the US Capitol building following a speech from Donald Trump. Police fired tear gas and ordered the evacuation of several office buildings after the protests turned violent and lawmakers were placed on lockdown inside the building.

Trump vowed in a dramatic speech behind bullet proof glass that he “will never concede” the election, telling a crowd of supporters: “All of us here today do not want to see our election victory stolen by emboldened radical Democrats."

He added: “We will never give up. We will never concede. It doesn't happen.

"You don't concede when there's theft involved. Our country has had enough. We will not take it anymore.”

Trump also lashed out at his Vice-President, Mike Pence, saying he did not have the “courage” to block the formal confirmation of Biden as President.

Trump tweeted: “Mike Pence didn't have the courage to do what should have been done to protect our Country and our Constitution, giving States a chance to certify a corrected set of facts, not the fraudulent or inaccurate ones which they were asked to previously certify. USA demands the truth!"

The actions of protesters at the Capitol have been widely condemned by politicians and lawmakers.

Republican Senator Mitt Romney told the New York Times: "This is what the president has caused today, this insurrection."

Letitia James, New York Attorney General said, “The coup attempt initiated by outgoing President Trump has been despicable. Today, it became violent.

“If blood is shed, it will be on his hands. These actions, fueled by lies and wild conspiracy theories espoused by President Trump, must be unequivocally condemned by every corner of our society.”

When Trump is no longer in office, any sign of encouraging his supporters to oppose the new Government could be seen as sedition.

Congress was tasked with formally certifying the November election results, in a debate that was expected to stretch for several hours as some Republican lawmakers - including Mike Pence - sought to throw out election results in states the president narrowly lost.

Trump has asked protesters at the Capitol to be “peaceful” in a recent social media post. He tweeted: “I am asking for everyone at the US Capitol to remain peaceful.

“No violence! Remember, we are the Party of Law and Order – respect the Law and our great men and women in Blue. Thank you!”

Author Sasha Abramsky has demanded Trump be brought to justice for sedition in a comment piece written for The Nation.

He said: “Trump is now talking the sedition talk on a daily basis, and, one has to assume, actively planning ways to walk the sedition walk over the next month.

“He is meeting regularly with Sidney Powell, Steve Bannon and other plotters, and daily he is being fed a diet of ever more extreme scenarios for overturning the election results.

“This is no idle chatter, and even if we had once been inclined to dismiss it with words to the effect of 'Oh, it’s only the crazy old guy blowing off steam,' we no longer have that luxury.

“In increasingly specific language, Trump and his band of traitors are advocating some combination of martial law, national emergency, and paramilitarism as a way to cling to power.”

Some US politicians have also called for Trump to be prosecuted for sedition.

California Congressman Jared Huffman tweeted: “OK threshold crossed - it's time to criminally prosecute Donald Trump for sedition. This has gone way too far.”

In another tweet, Huffman wrote: “Never imagined I would be locked down in the US Capitol trying to ride out a violent coup attempt led by an American President.”

Texas Congressman Al Green tweeted, “@realDonaldTrump call on YOUR supporters to stop this madness that YOU incited!

“The Constitution intended a peaceful transfer of power.

“This is seditious. Only a dictator or would-be dictator would encourage this. Which are you?”

Treason under the US legal perspective is defined as someone who owes allegiance to the United States that “levies war against them or adheres to their enemies, giving them aid and comfort within the United States or elsewhere”.

When Trump leaves the White House, it may become clearer whether he could face prosecution for his conduct related to the election.