World News @lemmy.ml filoria @lemmy.ml 3 mo. ago

Biden administration set to greenlight $18 billion sale of F-15 fighter jets to Israel

edition.cnn.com Biden administration set to greenlight $18 billion sale of F-15 fighter jets to Israel | CNN Politics

The Biden administration is close to approving the sale of as many as 50 American-made F-15 fighter jets to Israel, in a deal expected to be worth more than $18 billion, according to three people familiar with the matter.

87 comments

The F-15 is an air superiority fighter. It is designed to destroy other aircraft, and has little use in the ongoing genocide in Gaza.

So when these are delivered in 5 years, who will Israel be attacking? Lebanon? Syria? Iran?

This deal feels more like a short-term bribe to keep the US military industrial complex on Israel's side.
- The F-15 is an air superiority fighter
  
  The F-15EX, the only one for which the production line is still open, is very much a multirole fighter, developed from the Strike Eagle bomber. Sure it can do air superiority, but it can carry a shitton of weapons to strike ground targets just the same.
  
  But you're right, this is a long term order, which won't have impact on the current situation in Gaza. Additionally, it's a request that was initiated over a year ago, long before the whole situation in Gaza escalated: https://breakingdefense.com/2023/01/israel-formally-requests-25-f-15-ex-from-the-us-sources/
- Probably Iran. Gotta keep the war economy rolling so nobody can oust leadership.
- The Ford F-150 is a work truck. Doesn't stop millions of people from using them as a commuter vehicle, even if they're not great at it.
  
  Hell, I used my impact driver as a hammer the other day, and I used a screwdriver as a pry bar.
  
  Just because it's not the primary role for a object doesn't mean it can't perform the role. The sale of arms to Israel is irresponsible at best and complicit at worst.
  
  Yes the Ford F-150 can be used to commute, but you dont see UPS purchasing a new fleet of F-150s to deliver packages. People dont usually accept that level of inefficiency when the price tag is measured in billions.
  
  My point was that the US has a variety of child-shredding and apartment-exploding warplanes that they would be happy to sell to Israel, so why did Israel choose the plane-destroying version instead?
  
  Other commenters gave a good answer: these are likely in the F-15E family, which are equipped to shred children and explode apartments.
  
  I thought that's why they call it a hammer drill
- I mean yeah sorta
  
  F-15Es are still used somewhat often for Air to Ground stuff, just not as much as other aircraft.
  
  F-15Es are still used somewhat often for Air to Ground stuff
  
  Somewhat often? It's their primary role. It's called the Strike Eagle and its nickname is the Mudhen for a reason.
- If the US didn't have planes specifically designed for air to ground, the F-15 would do the job more than adequately. The F-15E has been used in that role
  
  Edit: see below
  
  The US didn’t have planes specifically designed for air to ground
  
  They do have three, not counting the big bombers: Harrier, AC-130 and A-10, though they are more specialised and niche.
Be sure to get out and vote for a piece of shit in November everyone!
- It's a shitty choice between
  
  "Business as usual center right Joe Stability Biden, representing rich old business people with a smile and a grandfatherly handshake" and
  
  "My followers LITERALLY want Hand Maids Tale style Christian Fascism in this country and they have a plan to do it and that's fine with me as long as I get to win and avoid criminal prosecution, also I'm a wannabe Russian mobster! Donald Trump"
  
  So yes, DO make sure to get out and vote against a piece of shit this November.
  
  I love how dumdums are making genocide center right and stable.
  
  And making it acceptable for both of the whole 2 parties to be right wing.
  
  “Business as usual center right Joe Stability Biden, representing rich old business people with a smile and a grandfatherly handshake”
  
  That's an extremely generous way to describe someone committing active genocide.
  
  grandfatherly handshake
  
  New euphemism for genocide just dropped.
- Nah i'm good.
- Our chance was during the primaries, and we fucking choked.
April Fools right guys? Haha... ha...
- Big cri
I hate that man SO much.

Slowest pitch in American history (except maybe Hilary who just HAD to rig the DNC and legitimize Trump) and he is still hellbent on losing.
- Unlike the precision guided munitions, the new F-15s would need to be built from scratch. A US official said there are no plans to expedite delivery of the jets to Israel so, if approved, they would not be delivered to Israel for at least five years.
  
  Is that enough time to vote in some Dems who will stop it?
  
  Don't get your hopes up too much, but potentially yes. Congress is the one that has the power of the purse. They appropriate money to be used for certain purposes and the Executive is responsible for spending that money on the things Congress appropriated it for by a certain date from the bill that did the funding. But usually the form this takes is Congress giving a number and the President deciding exactly what to do to meet that number. Any time before that deadline Congress can decide to reappropriate funds for something else. They usually just opt to change the numbers next time around. Biden tried to get them to do this with some sections of border wall that were funded under Trump. So theoretically yes Congress could cancel this later if they wanted to.
  
  But even if they don't, if what you quoted is accurate this is probably one of the best case scenarios for us non-Genocide Enjoyers. This means that the Biden admin is eating up $18 billion dollars of the money Congress appropriated for Israel aid to build jets that they won't get in time to further their genocidal aims. Since that money has to get spent arming Israel regardless since that's what Congress appropriated it for it's much better if it goes to expensive shit they won't get for years than munitions they could use within weeks to bomb more civilians.
  
  Why would Dems stop it?
  
  Sadly, the 5 dems I would have voted for are all hanging back and letting the rest of the Dems shut them out.
  
  Time to make another run at ending the 2 party system.
  
  It will hurt, but when you let it stay 51/49, everything rapidly goes right.
  
  Also, I would imagine the military contractors have already pocketed the 18 billion that was moved from public trust to Israel to the contractor.
  
  If the deal were cancelled, that's another 18 billion out of the public trust refunded to Israel to buy something else from the military contractors.
  
  If Dems actually stood against genocide, yes.
In other news: Glasses needed? Biden administration fails to read the room, runs into walls
- Why would they do that? Everyone is going to vote for him regardless of what he does (other then die of natural causes, but even then.) There is absolutely no downside for the people behind this decision, and they all stand to benefit either monetarily or for future career prospects.
  
  Except a majority in the US disapproves of Israels recent actions and they are risking their victory - which is likely gonna be a close one - for next to nothing. Even if they really don't give a fuck, they could have just postponed the decision.
Our God here in the US is Mammon, even though he usually goes by other names; rational self-interest, the invisible hand, etc.

Mammon would never let genocide get in the way of glorious profit.
- Yhwh went full mask off.
The genocide isn't going to commit itself.
Of all the wars that happens around the globe, US is the biggest beneficiary.
- Some of you are going to die
  Martyr's, of course, to the Freedom that I shall provide...
Genocide Joe doing his things..
Send them to Ukraine, I want to complete my Top Gun roleplay fantasy
Y'know, at times like these, good ol Genocide Joe reminds me of my favorite Cameo song... "Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeey, you're talkin' out the side of your neck!"
- Here is an alternative Piped link(s):
  
  "Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeey, you're talkin' out the side of your neck!"
  
  Piped is a privacy-respecting open-source alternative frontend to YouTube.
  
  I'm open-source; check me out at GitHub.
Well yes, the US is not too picky when it comes to finding customers for it's arms industry. For example: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/2017_United_States–Saudi_Arabia_arms_deal
Here's a fascinating piece of what appears to be censorship or extremely selective transcribing from transcripts of yesterday's press briefings. You won't find this in the transcript of C-SPAN, or the WhiteHouse.gov transcript.

During the White House press briefing yesterday, White House National Security Communications Adviser John Kirby remarked the following — note that's in brackets was cut from the transcript:

REPORTER: THESE ARE VERBAL URGINGS, NOT COMMITMENTS.

MR. KIRBY: [I KNOW, YOU WANT US TO HANG SOME SORT OF CONDITION OVER THEIR NECK] WHAT I AM TELLING YOU IS WE CONTINUE TO WORK WITH THE ISRAELIS TO MAKE SURE THEY ARE AS PRECISE AS THEY CAN BE AND MORE AID IS GETTING IN AND WILL CONTINUE TO TAKE THAT APPROACH.

Yes, verbal conditions would be excellent. He claims the weapons are for defense, but they are clearly being used for disastrous offensive effect to civilians.

https://www.c-span.org/video/?534613-1/white-house-daily-briefing

Starts around 15:15.
Go vote Genocide Biden more, Far Left. You are Genocide Far Left from now on.
- No leftist is voting for genocide, specially no one "far left"
  
  Oh no no no no, now not acknowledging it.
  
  Shame, shame, shame.
- It's not the far left voting for genocide Joe. It's right wing "centrist" neoliberals.
  
  Excuse.
- Since when is Biden representative of the left at all, let alone the far left? He's a right wing liberal.
  
  AHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAH
  
  Said Left.
- Thank you for your tireless work making Republicans look dumb as fuck.
  
  Democrats, fuck.
- I still prefer student debt relief and price capped medication flavored genocide to mass shooting transphobic abortion bounty religious zealotry flavored genocide
  
  Mass shooting, supported by Left, yours truly.
- Shame we got the Russian bots here too. Man they're pretty low effort though eh?
  
  Russian your ass.

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