Conservative: Israelis a Literary \u2018Crime\u2019?<\/p>\n
Popular novelist R.F. Kuang is in an \u201cawkward situation\u201d as she \u201cfaces a serious allegation\u201d that \u201cshe is giving credence to the idea that Israeli people exist,\u201d because her latest book \u201cincludes a page with an Israeli character,\u201d snarks Commentary\u2019s Seth Mandel<\/a>. Though she gives the character a \u201cnegative portrayal,\u201d including any Jewish Israelis is \u201cstill a woke infraction.\u201d Past critical outrage moved another \u201cauthor to bowdlerize her own book because it referenced an Israeli person engaged in the crime of existing.\u201d Rising to Kuang\u2019s defense are anti-Zionist fans who \u201cbelieve she is fully on their side when it comes to the question of whether Jews ought to be permitted to exist.\u201d Oy.<\/p>\n Diplomacy desk: Obama\u2019s Secret Gift to Tehran<\/p>\n \u201cI used to dismiss what I thought was an urban myth that, to help sell Tehran on the nuke deal, President Barack Obama granted thousands of Iranian spies a backdoor path to residence and ultimately citizenship in the United States,\u201d confesses Peter Theroux at Tablet<\/a>. But \u201cthis supposed myth\u201d gained \u201ccredibility\u201d with the arrest of \u201cShamim Mafi, an Iranian arms trafficker\u201d who came to America and got \u201cpermanent residency under the Obama administration three years later.\u201d And Mafi wasn\u2019t the only one: Eissa Hashemi, whose parents were \u201cembassy hostage takers, \u2018entered the United States in 2014 on visas issued by the Obama administration,\u2019 \u201d reports Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Theroux concluded: To land the nuke deal, \u201cthe Obama administration was currying favor with the worst elements of the Islamic Republic regime.\u201d<\/p>\n Fed watch: \u2018Sore Loser\u2019 Powell\u2019s \u2018Bad Form\u2019<\/p>\n Jerome Powell\u2019s decision to remain on the Federal Reserve Board is \u201cbad form,\u201d slams Stephen Moore at RealClearPolitics<\/a>. He \u201cwas one of [President] Trump\u2019s worst appointments,\u201d since inflation on his watch exceeded the Fed\u2019s target \u201ctwo-thirds of the time\u201d and he almost sparked a recession \u201cwith inexcusably high rates in 2018.\u201d \u201cDuring COVID-19\u2019s aftermath he flooded the economy with cheap money\u201d; Americans are \u201cstill paying high grocery prices\u201d thanks to his blunders. He also used \u201cinterest rate policy\u201d to \u201cbludgeon\u201d Trump, lowering rates only just before the 2024 election, perhaps to help Kamala Harris. Powell\u2019s been \u201cknighted by the media because of his public spats with Trump.\u201d But staying on puts his replacement as chairman, Kevin Warsh, \u201cin an awkward position.\u201d But that\u2019s what \u201csore losers do.\u201d<\/p>\n \t\t\tMore From\t\t\t\t\t\t\tPost Editorial Board<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\tGet opinions and commentary from our columnists\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSubscribe to our daily Post Opinion newsletter!\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\tThanks for signing up!\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n Union beat: Randi\u2019s AFT a Political Racket<\/p>\n \u201cRandi Weingarten is using mafia tactics to bully Target into denouncing immigration enforcement by ICE,\u201d roars Corey DeAngelis at The Spectator<\/a>. The American Federation of Teachers boss threatened to dump \u201cher union\u2019s massive pension holdings [in Target stock] unless it publicly opposes ICE operations in Minnesota.\u201d Par for the course, as she routinely prefers \u201cto push politics rather than do anything to increase student achievement.\u201d \u201cAmerican students continue to fall behind in reading and math,\u201d yet Randi \u201cfocuses her energy on culture-war crusades and corporate pressure campaigns.\u201d The union \u201cwas behind the \u2018No Kings\u2019 \u201d and \u201cMay Day protests.\u201d Its \u201cideological crusades and pressure campaigns reveal the union\u2019s core priorities\u201d and ignore \u201cstagnant test scores and learning loss.\u201d Taxpayers \u201cshould stop subsidizing the [AFT] racket.\u201d<\/p>\n Eye on Britain: Labour\u2019s Love Lost<\/p>\n