Final_Judgment

112 Genesis [51]
By this time there was a general understanding at the highest ranks of
the Kennedy administration that there was a major problem at hand. The
president's inner circle had begun to realize that Israel deemed Kennedy's
refusal to knuckle under to Israel's demands as a dire threat to Israel's
survival.
According to then-Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara, speaking in
retrospect, "I can understand why Israel wanted a nuclear bomb. There is a
basic problem there. The existence of Israel has been a question mark in
history, and that's the essential issue." 123
The Israelis—and particularly Ben-Gurion—would no doubt agree. In
their view, John F. Kennedy himself was emerging as a threat to Israel's
very existence:
JFK would simply not countenance a nuclear Israel and Israel's leaders
believed that a nuclear Israel would ensure the continued survival of the
Jewish State.
THREATS AGAINST JFK
The American president continued to demand that Israel permit
American inspection of Israel's nuclear development facilities. In response,
Israel called on its American lobby to apply pressure on Kennedy behind the
scenes.
One of those called into action was Abe Feinberg, the New York
businessman who had helped raise critical funds for Kennedy during his
presidential campaign. However, even Feinberg was unsuccessful. 124
However, Feinberg did send a message to the president that continued
demands for inspection of the plant might "result in less support [from the
Israeli lobby] in the 1964 presidential campaign." 125
According to Hersh, "In the end Feinberg and Ben-Gurion could not
overcome the continued presidential pressure for inspection of Dimona. Ben-
Gurion's categorical public denial of any weapons intent at Dimona had left
the Israeli government few options: refusing access would undercut the
government's credibility and also lend credence to the newly emerging antinuclear
community inside Israel. 126
DESERT DECEPTION
So it was that Ben-Gurion finally agreed to allow American nuclear
experts to come to Dimona. However, Ben-Gurion had a clever trick up his
sleeve. The Israeli Prime Minister hurriedly ordered the construction of what
amounted to a phony nuclear plant—one that didn't give evidence of the
construction of a nuclear bomb. False control rooms were set in place and
dummy operations were displayed.
It was all very carefully orchestrated. Even the Israeli guides who took
the Americans through the facility were accompanied by translators who
gave the Americans fraudulent translations of the remarks made by the
Israeli engineers at the plant.