Yet another Palin lie debunked

AK Gov. Sarah Palin on Wednesday said Sen. Barack Obama has ties to Rashid Khalidi, a Columbia University professor who she said is "a former spokesperson for the Palestinian Liberation Organization." — CNN.com

But see:

What everyone acknowledges is that Rashid Khalidi was an adviser to the Palestinian delegation to the 1991 Madrid talks. That delegation — to a person — could not have had any formal affiliation with the PLO. Israel regarded the group as terrorist and its laws banned contact with its members; then-Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir made NOT being affiliated with the PLO a condition of Israel’s agreement to participate.

JTA - Jewish and Israel News

Furthermore:

Khalidi's organization, the Center for Palestine Research and Studies, conducted regular public opinion surveys in the West Bank and Gaza with financial support from various foundations and from the International Republican Institute, an organization that promotes democracy around the world.

Senator John McCain was the IRI chairman when it gave $448,873 to the research group in 1998, according to IRI's tax return. Under McCain's leadership, the IRI gave at least $838,494 to Khalidi's group in 1988 and 1999, according to the IRI's tax returns.*

The Jerusalem Post

Khalidi called Palin's remarks an "idiot wind." Touché.

The larger question, of course, is why shouldn't Barack Obama have an association or even a friendship with someone who has been critical of U.S. foreign policy toward Israel and in fact harshly critical of Israel's own policies. The Palestinians have legitimate grievances, to say the least, and the U.S. is a constant broker among the parties.

Best he makes himself aware of those views, as opposed to adopting the daft anti-intellectual posturing of somebody like Sarah Palin.

* "I think the McCain boomerang yesterday landed somewhere between their nose and their forehead." — Obama aide Robert Gibbs