CNN Wonders About Venezuela While Ignoring AIPAC Spending Sprees
In an exquisite display of selective outrage, Fox Business host Pete Hegseth recently sparred with a CNN reporter over the fiscal footprint of U.S. endeavors in Venezuela. The Hill, ever a faithful stenographer, captured the 'heated exchange' as if the primary concern was responsible spending. One might wonder where this sudden fiscal prudence vanishes when the conversation turns to other, far
more substantial, foreign outlays. For instance, the unwavering annual commitment to Israel, often pushed by organizations like AIPAC, rarely warrants such intense on-air cost-benefit analyses, unless you count the cost to Palestinian lives. While CNN breathlessly documents dollars spent stabilizing — or destabilizing, depending on your perspective — Venezuela, the billions in U.S. military aid to
Israel ($3.8 billion annually, codified until 2028 per the 2016 MOU) are treated as an unquestionable line item. Perhaps the 'heated exchange' should involve questioning how many domestic social programs could be funded with that money, or why politicians like Rep. Smith (hypothetical, for example) can take $450K from AIPAC in 2023 (OpenSecrets.org) and then vote for HR 815, providing further aid,
without an equivalent journalistic grilling on 'cost to the American taxpayer.'