$$4Israel: The nutcutting Q in GOP foreign policy debate

So, if Rick Perry, Newt Gingrich et al want to start our foreign aid budget at zero for ALL countries, does "all" include Israel? You know the answer, of course.

Scott Pelley asked a follow-up question to Newt about Egypt's post-Mubarak foreign aid receipts, but took a HUGE whiff in not asking the same question about Israel. Let's put that down to a mainstream media general failure to confront Zionism, even when it supports racism and even genocidal actions against Palestinians as a people.

Ahh, a Twitter respondent picked up on what Pelley missed. And, he asked Perry this first. I noticed that this didn't get much applause. Since Pelley said "no booing," I guess he couldn't get booed himself. Too bad Pelley didn't have time to ask others, like Batshit Bachmann, this question before the first hour of the debate ended.

In case you're missing this and other deathless prose, here's the link for tonight's GOP foreign policy debate. (Good thing there's no spelling test afterward; Perry trying to spell, say, "Xinjiang" could produce a new oops.

OK, Tricky Ricky Perry has also morphed into Sarah Palin. The "commander in chief" of Texas? No sir, you do NOT send Texas National Guard troops into combat; only the actual president of the U.S. does that.

Someone from our armed forces, a sailor on a carrier, asks the GOP presidential candidates the question that neither half of the bipartisan duopoly will face: "How do you stand on torture?"

Cain: "Enhanced interrogation."
Bachmann: "I will use waterboarding."
Paul: "Waterboarding is torture ... illegal under international law ... immoral ... and ineffective." He's a nutbar on both social and economic domestic policy, but he's far and away the best on foreign policy up there.
Huntsman: "We diminish our standing in the world ... when we torture. Waterboarding is torture. We dilute ourselves down like a whole lot of other countries."

And, Paul and Huntsman get booed.

Pelley then asks about the al-Awlaki execution by Obama. Both Romney and Gingrich avidly defend the president unilaterally deciding to kill an American citizen.

Mitt starts the hypocrisy on China parade, saying it's stealing our jobs, when venture capitalists like him pay for companies to kill U.S. jobs on China.

Beyond that big whiff on Israel, Tricky Ricky, and torture, I'll possibly update this blog later, but it's clear that, in general, all the candidates on the podium:
1. Will try to look hardline on Afghanistan while not actually signing blank checks;
2. Won't be asked to, and won't try to, explain why we should remain in Afghanistan given what they're saying about Pakistan;
3. Will Israel-pander if given a shot, and thinking about it;
4. Will try to turn questions back to domestic policy whenever and wherever possible.