What a difference a year makes. Last year when President Barack Obama stood before the crowd at the American Israeli Public Affairs Committee’s annual policy conference in Washington, he was on his heels, reeling from a week of …
israel
Sheldon Adelson: All Israel, All the Time
I recently made a private vow not to use the term Israel Firster again, for two reasons: it’s derogatory (and it was, initially, my vituperative response to being called “anti-Israel” by assorted neoconservative blowhards) and it’s inaccurate — most of those who are, I believe, unduly aggressive about Israel’s national security think …
Articles of Faith: Is Obama Really Losing His Jewish Support?
Tell me where you’ve heard this before: Jewish voters are unhappy with Barack Obama. He’s seen as insufficiently supportive of Israel. There are questions about whether he can win enough Jewish votes to carry key states.
If you guessed “during the 2008 Democratic primaries,” then ding, ding, ding! A loaf of raisin-studded challah for …
Weiner Tells Democratic Leadership He Will Resign
Rep. Anthony Weiner called House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and Rep. Steve Israel Wednesday night to inform them that he will be resigning from Congress. The last month has seen Weiner tweet a lewd picture to a 21-year-old …
Borderline Personalities
There are continuing ruffles and trifles about whether President Obama said anything at all different about the borders of a Palestinian state. Much of it is either meta-talmudic picky (Glenn Kessler in the Washington Post) or poisonously disingenuous (the ever-bilious Charles Krauthammer). Kessler’s gripe is that Obama is the first …
Armageddon Blues
Convinced that the world was coming to an end on May 21, my wife and I decided to spend our last days–before being engulfed in the eternal fire–in Italy last week. Imagine my disappointment that the Lord’s smite schedule was …
At AIPAC, President Obama Distinguishes Between Israel And Its Leadership
For the better part of half a century, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee has fought for a singular goal: To rally United States government support for the policy goals of the Israeli government. On Sunday, President Obama appeared before AIPAC’s annual conference to argue that the interests of Israel and its government, led by …
Bibi and Barack Meet: So Much for the Fireworks
Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu continued their icy relationship in front of the cameras Friday after what the President somewhat ruefully called “prolonged” talks, suggesting that Bibi had delivered one of his trademark multi-part lectures on the requirements of Israeli security. The two were correct and diplomatic, …
Obama Struggles to Keep Pace with the Middle East Mess
Listening to the commentary, you might think President Obama’s speech on Thursday was an important moment in Middle East history. It is a “hugely important speech,” said Wolf Blitzer on CNN in the run-up; Obama to …
Foxman on Petraeus?
Abe Foxman of the Anti-Defamation League has, according to Andrew Sullivan, indirectly accused General David Petraeus of “blaming the Jews for everything.” I’m not sure that Foxman had Petraeus, specifically, in mind–or maybe just the vast majority of humans who are concerned about Israel’s continuing colonization of Palestinian lands. …
Israel Embarrasses Vice President Biden, Sparks Rebuke From U.S.
This appears to be the diplomatic equivalent of an ambush. Vice President Biden, on a visit to Israel, spent the day talking up the close relationship between Israel and the United States.
“Progress occurs in the Middle East when everyone knows there is simply no space between the United States and Israel,” Biden said. “The United
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Latest Column–and More on the Middle East
On Gaza.
I’ve spent the past three days wandering about the West Bank, visiting new commercial developments and social programs, and speaking with Palestinian leaders, including President Mahmoud Abbas and Prime Minister Salam Fayyad. I’ve also spent some time in Israel, talking with prominent members of Benjamin Netanyahu’s …
Anti-Semitism, Again
It’s not much fun when your friends get into a deep, personal, cage-match sort of fight. In this case, the fight is between Andrew Sullivan and Leon Wieseltier–people I respect, love and admire. Leon has launched a nuclear attack on Sullivan’s writings about neoconservatives and Israel:
Criticism of Israeli policy, and sympathy for the
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