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April 29, 2005/Nisan 20 5765, Volume 57, No. 35
After Rosen leaves AIPAC, who will take over?
MATTHEW E. BERGER and RON KAMPEAS
Jewish Telegraphic Agency
WASHINGTON - Not so long ago, the word on Steve Rosen, policy director for the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, was that he was so knowledgeable he trained the group's board members in the ways of Washington.
In his 23 years with the pro-Israel lobbying powerhouse, Rosen's encyclopedic knowledge of Middle East geopolitics and Beltway power politics nurtured AIPAC's lay leadership and guided its policies.
Now that the same leadership has fired Rosen because, AIPAC says, of information arising out of an FBI investigation into alleged mishandling of classified Pentagon documents, the question is: Who will guide AIPAC now?
Rosen's imprint remains in substantial ways: Iran's threat to Israel, his top priority in recent years, is to be the centerpiece of this year's AIPAC's policy conference, which begins May 22. The conference will feature a walk-through exhibit on how close Iran is to developing a nuclear weapon.
Yet tactically Rosen's departure already is being felt as AIPAC returns to its roots, working Capitol Hill and moving away from the executive branch lobbying that was emblematic of Rosen's approach.
Significantly, the only on-the-record statement proffered by AIPAC since JTA revealed last week that AIPAC had fired Rosen and Keith Weissman, its senior Iran analyst, who also has been targeted by the FBI, emphasizes congressional lobbying.
"With growing membership, record attendance at events around the country, and continued successes on Capitol Hill, AIPAC is energized and focused on the future," spokesman Josh Block said.
AIPAC officials say the grass roots are solidly on board. AIPAC expects 5,000 people at the policy conference, which culminates with a day of show-of-strength lobbying on the Hill. The number is commensurate with previous conferences, AIPAC officials said.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon are slated to address the conference, a show of support from both governments. A wide list of congressional leaders, including Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.), Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), also will be featured.
Off the Hill - especially at the State Department and the Pentagon - Rosen's departure is expected to diminish AIPAC's Washington visibility.
"Steve Rosen is not a politically known Hill quantity," one former AIPAC staffer said. "But he was very well known in the State Department, Pentagon and Israeli Embassy."
Still, lower visibility in those areas might not be a bad thing for now. It was precisely the relationship between Rosen and Weissman and a Pentagon Iran analyst, Larry Franklin that precipitated the FBI's investigation.
Former AIPAC staffers say there are good and bad things about Rosen's departure.
"He was a brilliant bureaucratic infighter," one former staffer said. "He knew how to do the little things to further his agenda."
Rosen's connections with bureaucrats and appointed officials helped AIPAC garner insider information on Middle East policy. Policymakers on the Hill and Jewish donors craved the tidbits Rosen's operations uncovered, and helped the organization gain a loyal fan base in Washington.
Rosen also crafted strong ties with AIPAC board members, which helped him win internal political battles over the years, former staffers said.
Steve Grossman, a former AIPAC president, said Rosen had a "virtually encyclopedic knowledge of the issues." But Grossman believes the organization has many other professionals who can pick up the mantle.
He said Howard Kohr, AIPAC's executive director, "has made sure there were a considerable number of people with lots of credibility who are able to step in and do it without losing a beat."
Former staffers, many of whom did not get along with Rosen, suggested last week that he could try to sabotage AIPAC or the pro-Israel agenda if he is unhappy with his severance settlement from AIPAC. Grossman said he did not believe that was possible.
"Steve's committed to and personally dedicated to the cause of U.S.-Israeli relations," Grossman said. "It is such a critical part of his life that I have no concerns at all."
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