person:elliott abrams

Désigné par Trump pour instaurer la « démocratie » au Venezuela, Elliott Abrams a consacré sa vie la détruire. Par John Schwarz
▻https://www.les-crises.fr/designe-par-trump-pour-instaurer-la-democratie-au-venezuela-elliott-abram

The Coup Has Failed & Now the U.S. Is Looking to Wage War: Venezuelan Foreign Minister Speaks Out | Democracy Now!
▻https://www.democracynow.org/2019/2/25/the_coup_has_failed_now_the

https://www.democracynow.org/images/story/61/46261/full_hd/GUEST-Arreaza-cln.jpg

The United Nations, the Red Cross and other relief organizations have refused to work with the U.S. on delivering aid to #Venezuela, which they say is politically motivated. Venezuela has allowed aid to be flown in from Russia and from some international organizations, but it has refused to allow in aid from the United States, describing it as a Trojan horse for an eventual U.S. invasion. On Sunday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Maduro’s days in office are numbered. We speak with Venezuelan Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza, who has recently held secret talks with Trump’s special envoy Elliott Abrams.

#etats-unis #humanitaire

Glenn Greenwald sur Twitter : "It continues to be stunning - dizzying - how many people who have spent 2 years calling Trump a racist, xenophobic, fascist, dictatorial monster are now willing to believe he, John Bolton & Elliott Abrams are just sending “humanitarian aid” to help liberate The Venezuelan People." / Twitter
▻https://twitter.com/ggreenwald/status/109967183434839654

#humanitaire #dissonance_cognitive « #liberal »

Ilhan Omar takes on the establishment | The Electronic Intifada
▻https://electronicintifada.net/blogs/nora-barrows-friedman/ilhan-omar-takes-establishment

Support for Israel is part of a strategy employed by establishment politicians to defend US empire across the world.

It is no coincidence that the same Democratic Party leaders who threw Omar to the wolves had already joined their Republican counterparts in stumping for regime change in Venezuela, with Elliott Abrams appointed as a key policy architect.

Omar’s tenacious antiwar principles, which she employed during her honest examination of Abrams’ record just days after she told the truth about the powerful Israel lobby, are a clear rebuke to establishment politics.

Omar’s colleagues in Congress should follow her lead and use this moment to challenge the status quo. But so far she stands virtually alone.

Criminal Shocked When Congresswoman Says His Crimes Out Loud
▻http://nymag.com/intelligencer/2019/02/criminal-shocked-when-congresswoman-says-his-crimes-out-loud.html

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America loves a feel-good story. How else to explain our government’s appetite for redemption arcs? Elliott Abrams was once convicted of lying to Congress and on Wednesday, he got to testify before Congress again, this time in his capacity as our special envoy to Venezuela. But not everyone was happy to see him. Representative Ilhan Omar, a Democrat from Minnesota, questioned the former Assistant Secretary of State about his old misdeeds. “In 1991, you pleaded guilty to two counts of withholding information from Congress regarding your involvement in the Iran-Contra affair, for which you were later pardoned by President George H.W. Bush,” Omar began, before asking Abrams why the committee should believe anything he had to say.

A spluttering Abrams complained that Omar did not give him a chance to respond, but the congresswoman continued. “You dismissed as ‘communist propaganda’ reports about the massacre of El Mozote in which more than 800 civilians, including children as young as 2 years old, were brutally murdered by U.S.-trained troops,” she said. “You later said the U.S. policy in El Salvador was a ‘fabulous achievement.’ … Do you think that massacre was a ‘fabulous achievement?”

Elliott Abrams Isn’t Going to Bring “Democracy” to Venezuela
▻https://theintercept.com/2019/01/30/elliott-abrams-venezuela-coup

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On December 11, 1981 in El Salvador, a Salvadoran military unit created and trained by the U.S. Army began slaughtering everyone they could find in a remote village called El Mozote. Before murdering the women and girls, the soldiers raped them repeatedly, including some as young as 10 years old, and joked that their favorites were the 12-year-olds. One witness described a soldier tossing a 3-year-old child into the air and impaling him with his bayonet. The final death toll was over 800 people.

The next day, December 12, was the first day on the job for Elliott Abrams as assistant secretary of state for human rights and humanitarian affairs in the Reagan administration. Abrams snapped into action, helping to lead a cover-up of the massacre. News reports of what had happened, Abrams told the Senate, were “not credible,” and the whole thing was being “significantly misused” as propaganda by anti-government guerillas.

This past Friday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo named Abrams as America’s special envoy for Venezuela. According to Pompeo, Abrams “will have responsibility for all things related to our efforts to restore democracy” in the oil-rich nation.

The choice of Abrams sends a clear message to Venezuela and the world: The Trump administration intends to brutalize Venezuela, while producing a stream of unctuous rhetoric about America’s love for democracy and human rights. Combining these two factors — the brutality and the unctuousness — is Abrams’s core competency.

Le shithole country se surpasse : Pompeo nomme Elliott Abrams envoyé spécial pour le Vénézuéla
▻http://www.lefigaro.fr/flash-actu/2019/01/25/97001-20190125FILWWW00365-venezuela-pompeo-nomme-un-nouvel-emissaire.php

Le chef de la diplomatie américaine Mike Pompeo a nommé aujourd’hui un émissaire, Elliott Abrams, pour contribuer à « restaurer la démocratie » au Venezuela, où les Etats-Unis ont reconnu Juan Guaido comme « président par intérim » en lieu et place de Nicolas Maduro.

Elliott Abrams, dont les grandes œuvres humanitaires sont ‘par exemple documentées ainsi sur Kikipédia :

▻https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elliott_Abrams

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They accused him of covering up atrocities committed by the military forces of U.S.-backed governments, such as those in El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala, and the rebel Contras in Nicaragua.

El Salvador

In early 1982, when reports of the El Mozote massacre of hundreds of civilians by the military in El Salvador began appearing in U.S. media, Abrams told a Senate committee that the reports of hundreds of deaths at El Mozote “were not credible,” and that “it appears to be an incident that is at least being significantly misused, at the very best, by the guerrillas.”[13] The massacre had come at a time when the Reagan administration was attempting to bolster the human rights image of the Salvadoran military. Abrams implied that reports of a massacre were simply FMLN propaganda and denounced U.S. investigative reports of the massacre as misleading. In March 1993, the Salvadoran Truth Commission reported that over 500 civilians were “deliberately and systematically” executed in El Mozote in December 1981 by forces affiliated with the Salvadoran government.[14]

Also in 1993, documentation emerged suggesting that some Reagan administration officials could have known about El Mozote and other human rights violations from the beginning.[15] However, in July 1993, an investigation commissioned by Clinton secretary of state Warren Christopher into the State department’s “activities and conduct” with regard to human rights in El Salvador during the Reagan years found that, despite U.S. funding of the Salvadoran government that committed the massacre at El Mozote, individual U.S. personnel “performed creditably and occasionally with personal bravery in advancing human rights in El Salvador.”[16] Unrepentant Reaganite Abrams claimed that Washington’s policy in El Salvador was a “fabulous achievement.”[17]

Nicaragua

When Congress shut down funding for the Contras’ efforts to overthrow Nicaragua’s Sandinista government with the 1982 Boland Amendment, members of the Reagan administration began looking for other avenues for funding the group.[18] Congress opened a couple of such avenues when it modified the Boland Amendment for fiscal year 1986 by approving $27 million in direct aid to the Contras and allowing the administration to legally solicit funds for the Contras from foreign governments.[19] Neither the direct aid, nor any foreign contributions, could be used to purchase weapons.[19]

Guided by the new provisions of the modified Boland Amendment, Abrams flew to London in August 1986 and met secretly with Bruneian defense minister General Ibnu to solicit a $10-million contribution from the Sultan of Brunei.[20][21] Ultimately, the Contras never received this money because a clerical error in Oliver North’s office (a mistyped account number) sent the Bruneian money to the wrong Swiss bank account.[20]

Iran-Contra affair and convictions

During investigation of the Iran-Contra Affair, Lawrence Walsh, the Independent Counsel tasked with investigating the case, prepared multiple felony counts against Abrams but never indicted him.[20] Instead, Abrams cooperated with Walsh and entered into a plea agreement wherein he pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor counts of withholding information from Congress.[22] He was sentenced to a $50 fine, probation for two years, and 100 hours of community service.

C’était téléphoné: Pence Pledged U.S. Backing Before Venezuela Opposition Leader’s Move
▻https://www.wsj.com/articles/a-call-from-pence-helped-set-an-uncertain-new-course-in-venezuela-11548430259

The night before Juan Guaidó declared himself interim president of Venezuela, the opposition leader received a phone call from Vice President Mike Pence.

Mr. Pence pledged that the U.S. would back Mr. Guaidó if he seized the reins of government from Nicolás Maduro by invoking a clause in the South American country’s constitution, a senior administration official said.

Ambassador Slammed Donald Trump Amid UAE Campaign To Isolate Qatar | HuffPost

▻http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/yousef-al-otaiba-emails-trump_us_59358e71e4b013c48169d5dc?section=us

WASHINGTON ― Yousef Al Otaiba, the United Arab Emirates’ ambassador to the U.S. and a confidant of White House senior adviser Jared Kushner, repeatedly criticized President Donald Trump in private correspondence last year ― including with officials loyal to President Barack Obama ― emails obtained by HuffPost show.

Otaiba, one of the most powerful diplomats in Washington, figures in an unfolding regional crisis centered on U.S. partner nation Qatar, which hosts America’s largest military base in the region. The UAE and three other U.S.-aligned Middle East governments ratcheted up a simmering dispute with Qatar on Sunday night when they cut diplomatic and transportation ties to the Gulf nation over its support of the transnational Muslim Brotherhood and alleged assistance to Iran-backed militants around the region.

The Trump administration has not taken a formal position on the issue. Many in Trump’s orbit agree with the UAE on the need to combat forces that Qatar supports in the region, particularly the Muslim Brotherhood movement. The UAE has designated the group a terrorist organization and pushed for the U.S. to do the same, a step counterterrorism researchers say would be controversial and risky.

The leaked emails, which show Otaiba’s comments during a yearlong campaign to discredit Qatar in the U.S., threaten the UAE’s hope to win official American blessing for its pressure campaign against the Qataris. Trump is notoriously thin-skinned: He has banned people who publicly criticized him from his team (including GOP consigliere Elliott Abrams, a fellow Qatar skeptic who is friends with Otaiba) and seems unable to get over slights even years after they occur. And his administration already seems disinclined to pick a side. Top officials like Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Defense Secretary James Mattis have emphasized the importance of resolving the dispute.

USA – Philosophie de l’hyperdésordre global
▻http://vilistia.org/archives/13436

Ouverture libre dimanche 12 février 2017 Commençons par de l’inédit, bien dans la manière du président Trump. Depuis deux ou trois semaines flottait la prévision qu’Elliott Abrams allait occuper le poste-clef du département, derrière le Secrétaire d’État, d’adjoint au … Lire la suite →

#EFFONDREMENT_DES_USA #USA_TRUMP

Philosophie de l’hyperdésordre global
▻http://www.dedefensa.org/article/philosophie-de-lhyperdesordre-global

Philosophie de l’hyperdésordre global

Commençons par de l’inédit, bien dans la manière du président Trump. Depuis deux ou trois semaines flottait la prévision qu’Elliott Abrams allait occuper le poste-clef du département, derrière le Secrétaire d’État, d’adjoint au Secrétaire d’État ; il s’agit de la fonction qui permet d’opérationnaliser toutes les grandes tendances politiques du département, donc d’interférer directement entre le ministre lui-même et l’apport de sa bureaucratie... Poste-clef, poste stratégique, et Abrams, lui, accompagné d’une réputation épouvantable parmi les antiguerres. A quoi songeait Trump lorsqu’il a approuvé cette possibilité de nomination ? Voici ce que Justin Raimondo disait d’Abrams il y a trois jours :

« This possibility is less likely, however, if the more aggressive factions within (...)

Committee for the Liberation of Iraq Members on Iran Deal « LobeLog
▻http://www.lobelog.com/committee-for-the-liberation-of-iraq-members-on-iran-deal

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“Many of the same people who argued for the war in Iraq are now making the case against the Iran nuclear deal,” President Obama observed August 5 at American University in perhaps his most forceful and aggressive speech in favor of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

There really is no question regarding the fundamental truth of that assertion. Virtually all of the political appointees who held foreign-policy posts under George W. Bush—from Elliott Abrams to Dov Zakheim, not to mention such leading lights as Dick Cheney, John Bolton, Paul Wolfowitz, Eric Edelman, and “Scooter” Libby—have all assailed the agreement as a sell-out and/or appeasement with varying degrees of vehemence, if not vituperation.

#assassins

Obama exhorté à freiner les ardeurs de Netanyahou
►http://questionscritiques.free.fr/edito/AsiaTimesOnline/Jim_Lobe/Obama_Netanyahou_constructions_Cisjordanie_Jerusalem-Est_061

(...)
Une indication que cette mésentente a refait surface cette semaine est rapportée par la réunion privée de haut vol, entre des Israéliens de premier plan et leurs supporters américains, au Saban Center de la Brooking’s Institution, où l’ancien secrétaire général de la Maison Blanche, Rahm Emanuel, qui reste proche d’Obama, a accusé Netanyahou d’avoir « trahi à plusieurs reprises » le président.

Emanuel, qui est aujourd’hui Maire de Chicago, s’en est pris aux dernières mesures prises par Israël contre l’AP, qu’il aurait dépeintes comme étant particulièrement vexantes, étant donné le soutien de Washington à Israël durant sa brève guerre contre le Hamas à Gaza, le mois dernier, et son opposition solitaire au rehaussement diplomatique de l’AP à l’ONU.

Certains pensent que le président attendrait pour agir d’avoir résolu des affaires plus urgentes, notamment éviter, à la fin du mois, ce que l’on appelle la « falaise fiscale » et ensuite négocier un plus gros déficit en début d’année prochaine, ainsi qu’assembler et faire fonctionner une nouvelle équipe aux Affaires étrangères.

D’autres, dont l’assistant numéro un de l’ancien président George W. Bush pour le Moyen-Orient et ardent défenseur de Netanyahou, Elliott Abrams, pensent qu’Obama joue peut-être un double-jeu en taisant, d’un côté, le mécontentement des Etats-Unis vis-à-vis d’Israël et en encourageant, de l’autre, les alliés européens de Washington à prendre leur distances avec Israël - comme ils l’ont fait au cours du vote de la semaine dernière à l’ONU.

La décision de l’Allemagne, qui a défendu pendant longtemps les actions de l’Etat hébreu dans les forums mondiaux, de s’abstenir sur le vote palestinien, aurait été perçue comme un véritable choc. En effet, la seule nation européenne qui s’est jointe aux Etats-Unis dans ce « non » solitaire était la République tchèque.

« Le sentiment que la coalition de Netanyahou ne puisse pas s’entendre avec l’Europe ou les Etats-Unis pourrait nuire à Netanyahou vis-à-vis des électeurs israéliens - ce qui est peut-être l’objectif précis de tout cet effort », a écrit Abrams dans National Review Online.

Tandis qu’une telle stratégie pourrait bien porter ses fruits, d’autres insistent pour dire que les enjeux pour les Etats-Unis sont trop élevés pour renoncer à des tactiques plus affirmées envers la direction israélienne, en particulier alors qu’elle dérive de plus en plus vers la droite. Cela est particulièrement vrai à la lumière du Réveil arabe et de la montée de l’Islam politique dans tout le Moyen-Orient.

« La tendance va manifestement vers une plus grande religiosité et une plus grande identification à la cause palestinienne », a fait remarquer l’ambassadeur à la retraite Chas Freeman, un spécialiste américain de haut-vol sur le Moyen-Orient, dans une conférence récente où il a soutenu également que « l’attaque par Israël de la mi-novembre contre Gaza avait tout simplement renforcé l’opinion dans la région qu’Israël est un ennemi avec lequel il est impossible de coexister pacifiquement » et que la saisie de terres par Israël rendait de plus en plus improbable une solution à deux Etats.

Zbigniew Brzezinski, qui a servi comme conseiller à la sécurité nationale auprès de l’ancien président Jimmy Carter, soutient qu’Obama devrait reprendre l’initiative contre l’influence du lobby d’Israël au Congrès, en soulignant qu’il peut y surmonter l’opposition « s’il se tient ferme pour ’l’intérêt national’ »(...)

The Secret History of America’s Thirty-Year Conflict with Iran
►http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2012/al-monitor/the-secret-history-of-americas-t.html

In Bush’s second term, Cheney’s daughter, Elizabeth, a deputy assistant secretary of State, lectured US Foreign Service officers “including those fluent in Farsi” about “the nature of Iranian society and its government” even though she “had no background on Iran,” Crist writes. The lectures were delivered to the “Iran-Syria Working Group, an interagency body co-chaired by Cheney and Elliott Abrams, a neoconservative in the Bush White House.

(via @angryarab)