After two years, it is clear that none of the flights of fancy imagined by our Republican friends about Barack Obama's fitness for office have come to pass. President Obama's record after two years in office is outstanding from a pro-Israel perspective.
President Obama has provided more security assistance to Israel than any president in history, he's created an unprecedented level of military cooperation between the United States and Israel, and most important, he's done more than any other president to thwart Iran's illicit nuclear ambitions. Thanks to President Obama, Iran is now further away from acquiring nuclear weapons than it was when he took office.
We can disagree with President Obama on specific polices or tactics, as we have with every president, but we don't do the U.S.-Israel relationship any favors when we question President Obama's commitment to Israel for continuing American policies that have been in place for decades.
News reports from just one week this January are enough to dispel any lingering doubts:
The New York Times reported on January 15 about a joint American and Israeli effort to undermine Iran's efforts to make an atomic bomb by using the Stuxnet computer worm, which has wiped out a fifth of Iran's nuclear centrifuges and significantly delayed Iran's nuclear efforts.
The Wall Street Journal reported on January 8 that Israel's outgoing intelligence chief said that Iran won't be able to build a nuclear weapon until 2015. The Times also reported that many credit international sanctions which have restricted Iran's ability to procure key raw materials for setting back Iran's nuclear program.
Haaretz reported on January 13 that in a combative exchange with an Al-Jazeera reporter in Doha, Obama's Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, said that "Israel is a sovereign country and it makes its own decisions...You often make decisions based on your own experiences and history. And when the Israelis pulled out of Lebanon they got Hezbollah and 40,000 rockets and when they pulled out of Gaza they got Hamas and 20,000 rockets." That's Hillary talking to Al-Jazeera, not AIPAC.
The Jerusalem Post reported on January 9 that the Palestinian Authority is complaining that the United States has threatened to veto a UN Security Council resolution condemning Israeli settlement activity. (The Obama administration has been very clear that the UN "is is not the place to resolve the long-standing conflict and outstanding issues between the Israelis and the Palestinians. We do not think that that is a productive path for the Palestinians or anyone to pursue.")
The Washington Times reported on January 12 that the Obama administration is ramping up the war on terror, doubling special operations, doubling the use of unmanned drones, and expanding counter-terrorism operations.
And that was just one week. Let's look at the past two years:
Obama fulfilled his campaign promise to boycott Durban II.
Obama renewed sanctions against Syria several times.
Obama fully funded the Arrow 3 ballistic missile system and the Iron Dome system.
Obama provided more security assistance to Israel than any president in history.
Obama maintained the U.S. policy of ambiguity on Israel's nuclear weapons.
Obama told the Arab world in Cairo that America's bond with Israel was "unbreakable."
Obama re-approved loan guarantees to Israel.
Obama has repeatedly condemned Palestinian incitement against Israel and attempts to delegitimize Israel. In late November 2010, the State Department responded to the Palestinian Authority's denial that the Western Wall was Jewish by saying that "We strongly condemn these comments and fully reject them as factually incorrect, insensitive and highly provocative. We have repeatedly raised with the Palestinian Authority leadership the need to consistently combat all forms of de-legitimization of Israel including denying historic Jewish connections to the land."
Obama pulled out of joint exercises with Turkey after Turkey excluded Israel.
Obama repealed import tariffs on Israeli dairy products.
Obama restored Israel's qualitative military edge and took U.S. military cooperation to unprecedented levels after erosion during the Bush administration. More here.
As Daniel Shapiro, President Obama's Senior Director for the Middle East and North Africa National Security Council, explained on May 3, 2010
This commitment to Israel's security is not a slogan for us. We live it every day in the policies we carry out. Since taking office, President Obama has taken what was already a strong U.S.-Israel defense relationship, and broadened and deepened it across the board. Our annual military assistance to Israel has increased to nearly $3 billion. We have reinvigorated defense cooperation, including on missile defense, highlighted by the 1,000 U.S. servicemembers who traveled to Israel to participate in the Juniper Cobra military exercises last fall. We have intensive dialogues and exchanges with Israel -- in political, military, and intelligence channels -- on regional security issues and counter-terrorism, from which we both benefit, and which enable us to coordinate our strategies whenever possible. We have redoubled our efforts to ensure Israel's Qualitative Military Edge in the region, which has been publicly recognized and appreciated by numerous senior Israeli security officials. And we continue to support the development of Israeli missile defense systems, such as Arrow and David's Sling, to upgrade Patriot missile defense systems first deployed during the Gulf War, and to work cooperatively with Israel on an advanced radar system to provide early warning of incoming missiles.The ties between our defense establishments are extraordinary. Throughout the U.S. military and the IDF, from Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. Mike Mullen and IDF Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi, down to generals, colonels, and majors in every branch, personal relationships have been forged, joint work is being done, and a sense of common purpose and shared mission animates the partnership.
We take these steps because the threats Israel faces are real, and because many of the same forces threaten us and our interests. Whether it is an Iran bent on acquiring nuclear weapons, Hizballah acquiring increasingly sophisticated weaponry from Syria, or Hamas smuggling weapons through the tunnels into Gaza, Israelis stand on the front lines, often at great cost, against forces that seek to take the Middle East in a lawless, dangerous, and unstable direction, putting our interests at risk. When President Obama wrote recently that "our alliance with Israel serves our national security interests", and that "no wedge will be driven between us", this is what he was talking about.
President Obama has also steadfastly defended Israel against attempts to de-legitimize it, whether at the UN or other international bodies, while always standing up for Israel's right to self-defense against terrorism and other threats. These are commitments that will not change. When it became clear that the Durban II Conference would unfairly and unreasonably single out Israel for criticism, we did not hesitate to pull out of the conference and lead many of our allies to do the same. We have repeatedly and vigorously voted against and spoken out against the Goldstone Report. When Turkey summarily cancelled Israel's participation in a key military exercise last fall, we did not hesitate for one minute to pull out as well, and we have worked diligently to preserve a positive relationship between Israel and Turkey, which has been an important contributor to security in the region.
You can read more here from Dennis Ross, Special Assistant to the President.
And as mentioned above, Obama has done more than any president to fight Iran's nuclear program, and he's succeeding.
But there's one thing that Israel's enemies and Obama's critics have in common: an unrelenting, almost monomaniacal focus on Israel's settlement policy. For better or worse, President Obama has maintained the same policy on settlements that the United States has maintained since 1967. Unless we're prepared to label every president since 1967 as unsympathetic to Israel, we should not single out President Obama.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu noted on November 9 that the "disagreements with the US over Jerusalem are well-known. They are not new and have continued for 40 years." These differences are apparently not well-known to those who would use Israel for partisan purposes to advance the political fortunes of the Republican party, but those of us who genuinely care about peace in the Middle East and a strong US-Israel relationship know that this is and has been American policy, and is not unique to any one president.
The Bush administration also publicly opposed settlements and building in Jerusalem. Not only that, but the Bush administration demanded that the ban on settlement growth include "natural growth" in its roadmap for peace. Every Democratic and Republican president since 1967 has failed to move the U.S.embassy to Jerusalem. The Jerusalem Embassy Act of 1995 requires that the U.S. embassy be moved to Jerusalem unless the president signs a waiver every six months, which is just what Presidents Clinton, Bush, and Obama (thus far) have done.
Mark Twain said that a lie can make it half way around the world before the truth puts its pants on. One cannot help but wonder if some of Obama's critics have taken it upon themselves to prove it. Space does not permit a refutation of all the falsehoods circulating about Obama, but two that will likely surface again and again are the mythical snub of Netanyahu by Obama at the White House and non-existent statements by Obama that Israel's legitimacy rests on the Holocaust.
The myth of Obama's snub of Netanyahu was manufactured by those seeking to create a rift between the two leaders. Read more here and here.
Obama never referred to 60 years of "occupation," he never equated suffering during the Holocaust to Palestinian suffering, and he never said that Israel's legitimacy is grounded in the Holocaust. Read more here.
But here's what Obama did say: President Obama went to Cairo and told the Arab and Muslim world that America's bond with Israel is "unbreakable." He told the Arab and Muslim world, a world rife with Holocaust denial, that to deny the Holocaust is "baseless, ignorant, and hateful." He told them that threatening Israel with destruction is "deeply wrong." He said that "Palestinians must abandon violence" and that "it is a sign of neither courage nor power to shoot rockets at sleeping children, or to blow up old women on a bus." And he said that "Hamas must put an end to violence, recognize past agreements, and recognize Israel's right to exist."
Who knows where we'd be today if previous presidents had had the courage to personally deliver this message on Arab soil.
History will deliver the final verdict on President Obama once he's completed his second term. But if the case went to the jury now, the verdict would be clear: Barack Obama is a strong friend of Israel, and he's proven it in word and deed.
Conrad Black: Time for Obama to Grow Some Cojones on Iran
I agree that Obama has done a pretty good job, except for his mistaken demand for an upfront settlement freeze. This has given the Palestinians the opening they were looking for to stop all negotiations. With most of their economy supported by international aid hey have no interest in negotiating, compromising and completing a peace treaty. More than 60% of the Palestinian Authority's Gross National Product comes from the United States, European Union, United Nations, World Bank and others countries.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4013700,00.html
There is of course room for improvement. He needs to threaten an aid cutoff to the Palestinians if they don't come to the negotiating table. Restructuring or defunding UNWRA and demanding the Arab dictatorships finally give citizenship to the people who fled the Arab attack on Israel 62 years ago would be a useful tactic to begin settling the dispute. Regardless, Obama deserves a pretty good grade on his first 2 years in office.
And of course they offered to stop the enticement in their media and schools and their BDS campaign.... and agree to recognize Israel as a Jewish state and to scale down their 'return rights'.....
The Palestinians, in particular Hamas and Hezbollah, are a bunch of peace loving people who for the last 63 years, they could not held themselves from offering continuously compromise solutions, starting in 1947 thru Oslo non-accord to the thousands of rockets being launch day in and day out.... It is the outmost hypocrisy by the PA to claim non-violence and let Hamas and Hezbollah to be the 'bad guys'….. this is Arafat classic strategy….
That's a dangerous thing, since Israel became China's second largest arms dealer after Russia, especially given the fact that Israel has been caught red-handed transfering US military tech to China.
"Israel has now become China's second-largest supplier of arms (following Russia).[6] China has purchased a wide array of military equipment and technology, including communications satellites.[6]"
"Israel's increasing defense cooperation with China has caused concern in the United States, which is the largest foreign supplier of military equipment to Israel. Owing to strategic rivalry and concerns over the security of Taiwan, the U.S. has pressured Israel against selling sophisticated equipment and technology to China.[9] Israel cancelled the sale to China of the Israeli-built Phalcon Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) in 2000 in wake of pressure from the U.S., which threatened to cut off USD 2.8 billion in yearly aid if the deal went through.[10] Israel's decision drew condemnation from China, which stated that the cancellation would hurt bilateral ties.[7][10] U.S. intelligence also suspects that the U.S.'s exported Patriot missile's technology and Israel's indigenous made Lavi jet aircraft technology have been shared with China.[7]"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/People's_Republic_of_China_%E2%80%93_Israel_relations
Cut off US military aid to Israel NOW!
Only those to israel bother you?
http://www.veteranstoday.com/2010/03/16/gordon-duff-u-s-tells-israel-you-are-undermining-america-endangering-troops/
Yes, that is really stern message. Kidding. Gilad Shalit been kidnapped by Arab terrorists on on 25 June 2006 and kept captive since then. Let's compare Obama's stance on that. French Foreign Minister Mrs.Michelle Alliot-Marie this week visited Gilad's parents in their tent in front of Prime-Minister residence in Jerusalem. With words of support, Mrs. Alliot-Marie stressed that Gilad is not only Israeli citizen but he is citizen of France as well. French Foreign Minister said that Hamas is guilty of war crimes and she will submit official request to EU Foreign Minister Mrs. Catherine Ashton, as Mrs.Alliot-Marie is Minister for European Affairs too, for EU to denounce war crimes committed by Hamas.
Hamas operatives dug a tunnel to captrure him....
Since whan being on WATCH IS ILLEGAL ACT?
Please................ unless when hating Israel everything goes!
Is there a difference?
"if the case went to the jury now, the verdict would be clear: Barack Obama is a strong friend of Israel, and he's proven it in word and deed."
this is unquestionably true, its also a pity that in being a "friend of Israel" Barack Obama - like so many other American presidents, has turned a blind eye to Palestinian suffering at Israel's hands.
They must throw Abbas, the PA and Hamas OUT and elect responsible and honest leaders that will unite them and talk with Israel on settling the conflict, knowing very well that they cannot turn back the clock 63 years....and demand unacceptable terms to Israel.
Otherwise this conflict will go for another 630 years….
On one side is a western style free democracy, and on the other, the people who celebrated on 9/11.
Tough Choice, indeed.
According to the American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise (AICE), from 1949-2001 the U.S. has given Israel a total of $94,966,300,000. The direct and indirect aid from this year should put the total U.S. aid to Israel since 1949 at over one hundred billion dollars. What is not widely known, however, is that most of this aid violates American laws. The Arms Export Control Act stipulates that US-supplied weapons be used only for "legitimate self-defense."
http://www.washington-report.org/html/usaidtoisrael0001.htm
Can anyone tell me if this is true? Haaretz is a notoriously sloppy newspaper with exaggerated or even fabricated sources. Did Hillary Clinton really say this? I can't confirm it.
We know this already. Yes, it is true. And you know it. You are playing a game here.
And Haaretz is a legit newspaper making as many or few errors as the next. But overall very professional. You can find the report on your favorite news outlet, the Jerusalem Post. Is this enough confirmation for you?
BTW, on March 22nd 2010 Hillary also said:
"We cannot escape the impact of mass communication. We cannot control the images and the messages that are conveyed. We can only change the facts on the ground that refute the claims of the rejectionists and extremists, and in so doing create the circumstances for a safe, secure future for Israel," Clinton said in a riff that doesn't appear in her prepared remarks to the pro-Israel group AIPAC.
This was in response to Israel's efforts at brand management.
http://www.jpost.com/Israel/Article.aspx?id=168506
Hard as you try, you cannot control the message. Truth is the enduring message.
90% of US $2.5 billlion aid to Israel is a subsidy to buy US equipment and weapon. Actually Israel spends THREE TIMES as much in the US, providing good paying jobs to american workers...
So get you information correct and stop the B$ lies you post here.
then why do they need the money IN THE FIRST PLACE?
Pickering, Hills, Sullivan, Beinart, Dobbins, More Ask Obama Administration to Support UN Resolution Condemning Illegal Israeli Settlements
http://www.thewashingtonnote.com/archives/2011/01/pickering_hills/index.php
"As you made clear, Mr. President, in your landmark Cairo speech of June 2009, "The United States does not accept the legitimacy of continued Israeli settlements. This construction violates previous agreements and undermines efforts to achieve peace. It is time for these settlements to stop."
There are today over half a million Israelis living beyond the 1967 line - greatly complicating the realization of a two-state solution. That number has grown dramatically in the years since the peace process was launched: in 1993 there were 111,000 settlers in the West Bank alone; in 2010 that number surpassed 300,000.
The settlements are clearly illegal according to article 49 of the Fourth Geneva convention - a status recognized in an opinion issued by the State Department's legal advisor on April 28, 1978, a position which has never since been revised."
You might want to write them and educate them about the details of the Geneva convention and tell them that they are completely wrong and do not get a cigar.
Their letter concludes with the sign off:
"America's credibility in a crucial region of the world is on the line - a region in which hundreds of thousands of our troops are deployed and where we face the greatest threats and challenges to our security. This vote is an American national security interest vote par excellence. We urge you to do the right thing."
"(a) The continuing Israeli settlement and related activities, in violation of international law, including the expansion of settlements, the expropriation of land, the demolition of houses, the confiscation and destruction of property, the expulsion of Palestinians and the construction of bypass roads, which change the physical character and demographic composition of the occupied territories, including East Jerusalem and the Syrian Golan, and constitute a violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War of 12 August 1949, and in particular article 49 of that Convention"
"the International Red Cross delegation to Israel and the Occupied Territories stated that the establishment of Israeli settlements in the occupied territories is a grave breach of the Geneva Conventions that constitute war crime."
The joint effort to set back Iran's quest for a nuke was outstanding.
(logically thinking, any country would be very grateful to get 1/10th of the soft loans, military "aid" and all other perks Israel receives did during the Bush years... how this is not enough though, is an enigma)
" the UN "is is not the place to resolve the long-standing conflict and outstanding issues between the Israelis and the Palestinians"
The UN is *not*?
Then where?
Presumably you think world problems should all be solved with bullets and bombs?