Controversy continues over Jimmy Carter's recent book "Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid." We host a debate on the former president's book with two leading scholars: DePaul University professor Norman Finkelstein, author of "Beyond Chutzpah: On the Misuse of Anti-Semitism and the Abuse of History" and McGill University professor Gil Troy, author of "Why I Am a Zionist: Israel, Jewish Identity, and the Challenges of Today." [includes rush transcript]

Controversy continues over Jimmy Carter's recent book "Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid." In it, the former US President criticizes Israel for what he calls the "continued control and colonization of Palestinian land." Carter faults Israeli settlement expansion for the failure of the peace process and is also highly critical of the US role in the Middle East, particularly its history of using veto power on the UN security council to block more than 40 UN resolutions critical of Israel. Carter spoke about the book in Washington DC last November:

• Jimmy Carter, speaking November 28th, 2006.
  [Click for full transcript]

On Sunday, the New York Times published a long-awaited and largely critical review of the book written by Times Deputy Foreign Editor Ethan Bronner. Bronner dismissed charges of anti-semitism but he characterized the book as "a distortion," and criticized what he called its "narrow perspective."

The book has seen growing media attention which began even before its publication in late November. Leading Democrats quickly distanced themselves from the book and it was immediately condemned by Jewish leaders and organizations around the country. Long-time Carter Center Fellow Kenneth Stein resigned his position in protest of the book. In a letter addressed to Carter and distributed to the media, he accused Carter of omission, factual errors, and plagiarism.

Today - a debate on the book with two leading scholars:

• Gil Troy, professor of American history at McGill University and author of several books including "Why I Am a Zionist: Israel, Jewish Identity, and the Challenges of Today."
• Norman Finkelstein, professor of Political science at DePaul University in Chicago. His latest book is "Beyond Chutzpah: On the Misuse of Anti-Semitism and the Abuse of History." His latest article is titled "The Ludicrous Attacks on Jimmy Carter's Book" is posted on Counterpunch.org.