Both of New York’s tabloids can be counted on to say what the rest of us think, and in no uncertain terms – who can forget the Daily News’ immortal headline, “Ford to City: Drop Dead,” or the Post’s “Headless Body in Topless Bar,” two classics no self-respecting Journalism 101 course can overlook. Friday’s Obama stab-in-the-Back UN vote was no exception, but only in the case of the right-of-center Post, which dedicated its entire cover to that event: “US lets UN condemn our ally – BAM BETRAYS ISRAEL.”
The competition did mention the Obama vote on the front page, but only as a banner, “Obama Shafts Israel – Blesses UN condemnation of Jewish State.” The bulk of the page was about “Princes Leia Heart Attack – Frantic in-flight CPR saves Carrie Fisher.”
So, the Daily News cared mostly about one (half) Jew, while the Post embraced the entire Jewish State. But, to be fair, both papers’ editorial boards were appalled by the president’s cowardly act Friday.
“This obscenity, on the eve of Chanukah, when the ancient Israelites freed the Holy City and the Second Temple from pagans, should have been immediately vetoed by Israel’s ally, the United States. Instead, President Obama stood aside as the UN Security Council voted unanimously for a measure which has the force of international law,” wrote the Daily News editors, ostensibly on their way to light the first candle.
The Post was less Jewish in its rage: “Friday’s failure to veto an anti-Israel resolution at the United Nations sets a new low in the annals of American diplomacy. It was a shocking betrayal of a firm US ally, and of longstanding bipartisan US policy — a sneaky, dishonest move by a lame-duck president to express his pique at the president-elect and land a final vindictive blow on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.”
We rushed to compare these views to the opinion of the editorial board of the broadsheet NY paper, expecting that the Gray Lady would be delighted with the US vote – only to realize they had nothing to say about it. So, to summarize, The Post and News vote in favor of Israel, the Times abstains.