Benter’s back

Billionaire mathematician Bill Benter and wife

Billionaire mathematician Bill Benter and wife Vivian

It shouldn’t come to any of us as a surprise that, like any political campaign, getting yourself confirmed as Secretary of Defense takes big bucks for advertising, lobbying, PR, etc.

So who is funding the ‘campaign’ of Chuck Hagel, whom Jennifer Rubin called “the most anti-Israel nominee in recent memory (in either party)?”

Josh Rogin tells us:

…without White House assistance before Monday’s official nomination and without a staff of his own, Hagel was ill-equipped to fight the onslaught of negative publicity coming from his many critics, and his critics were able to set the initial frame and tone of the coming confirmation debate.

But over the last two weeks, Hagel’s friends in the Democratic political world have come to his aid, principally by rounding up senior former officials to write supportive op-eds and funding an advertising effort to spread the world that Hagel does in fact have bipartisan support.

The Cable has learned that a large chunk of that pro-Hagel money is coming from one Democratic donor, gambling legend Bill Benter, who is working with the Podesta Group, a Washington lobbying firm, to support pro-Hagel advertising.

Benter is the shadowy mathematician with CIA and Arab connections who figured out how to beat the odds at Hong Kong’s Happy Valley race track, and funneled more than $800,000 through an ‘associate’, the even shadowier Connie Esdicul, into the up-and coming J Street organization in 2010.

J Street, if you have forgotten, is the fake “pro-Israel” lobbying group which has consistently worked against Israel’s interests in Washington — also with Arab connections — all the while claiming that they are doing it for Israel’s own good.

Just like, er, Chuck Hagel. In fact J Street supports Hagel, and its positions on Iranian sanctions, Hamas, etc., almost precisely agree with his. Which, surprisingly enough, are the same as those of George Soros, another big J Street funder, and of President Barack Obama.

This is one of those times that I wish the antisemites were right, and that there was actually a semi-covert, powerful and well-funded Jewish lobby forcing the captive US (“Zionist-occupied”) government to do its bidding.

Instead, there is a Jewish community sharply divided on many political issues — and a large part of that community has decided that if it comes down to a choice between Israel and what it calls ‘progressive values’, they’ll choose the latter.

And this is alongside a semi-covert, powerful and well-funded anti-Israel lobby, which is not at all divided about what it wants.

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2 Responses to “Benter’s back”

  1. Shalom Freedman says:

    I took the following from the Arutz Sheva site. “Bill Benter, billionaire and prominent supporter of JStreet who made his fortune on horse-gambling in Hong Kong, has been discovered to be financing the left-leaning media watchdog organization of Media Matters, The Daily Caller (DC) reported on Sunday.

    Benter, has been funding the research center that has been widely accused of espousing anti-Israel and anti-Semitic rhetoric, at least in part, to ensure that the organization’s M.J. Rosenberg be retained as its voice on foreign policy. ”

    As he solicited for JStreet it seems to me that Bentner is probably another Fifth Columnist of which the Jewish people regrettably have so many.

  2. Vic Rosenthal says:

    I believe Benter is not Jewish. A bastard, but not one of our bastards.