Malcolm Toon, the U.S. Ambassador-designate to Israel, declined to comment on a “delicate question” during yesterday’s confirmation hearings before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee because of the presence of the “Israeli press” in the hearing chamber. Toon looked over his shoulder at the Jewish Telegraphic Agency reporter when he made that statement.
Joseph Polakoff, chief of the JTA Washington Bureau, made it clear to Sen, Charles Percy (R.Ill,) who was conducting the questioning of Toon, that the JTA is not the “Israeli press” but an American corporation. He also asked why the witness declined to reply inasmuch as the hearings are not classified. The question that Toon balked at answering was whether he thought Israel believed that if a Democratic Administration is elected next year it will be more aggressively supportive of Israel’s views.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
