They were quite right all along

Who can forget the storm Walt and Mearsheimer caused, first with their piece on the Israel Lobby in the London Review of Books, and then with their book - which became a best-seller - on the same subject.

The authors were accused of anti-semitism for claiming that the Jewish lobby used its influence with US administrations to shape America's pro-Israel policy.

Now, Walt rightly points out in the latest posting "Wish I'd said that ... (wait a minute ... I did!)" on his blog on FP that he and Mearsheimer were right all along:

"From the New Yorker profile of Haim Saban:

"His greatest concern, [Saban] says, is to protect Israel, by strengthening the United States-Israel relationship. At a conference last fall in Israel, Saban described his formula. His 'three ways to be influential in American politics,' he said, were: make donations to political parties, establish think tanks, and control media outlets."

Presumably Abe Foxman will now denounce Saban for peddling noxious anti-Semitic stereotypes about "Jewish influence." My view is different: I think Saban is just a smart businessman who cares a lot about a single issue and understands how the American system of interest group politics works."

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