Chas Freeman, President Obama’s controversial pick for National Intelligence Council chairman, was the keynote speaker at the 21st Arab-US Policymakers Conference, or AUSPC, organized by the National Council on U.S.-Arab Relations, and held on October 25-26 in Washington, D.C. Freeman withdrew his nomination when critics noted his connections to a Chinese state-run oil company and his backing from the government of Saudi Arabia. He had been criticized for making anti-Israel statements and blamed the “Israel lobby” for his failed nomination.
