Haaretz (via M. J. Rosenberg):
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has bowed to U.S demands and promised goodwill gestures toward the Palestinian Authority ahead of his departure for Washington Sunday night, Haaretz has learned.
While Netanyahu has not agreed to stop building in east Jerusalem, he has promised to suspend it.
Other gestures include alleviating the blockade on the Gaza Strip for the first time since last winter’s military offensive.
Any guesses what the AIPAC/Weekly Standard/TNR criticism of this will be? Obama undermined Israeli foreign policy, maybe?
I’m not an expert on this stuff, so maybe there’s an obvious angle I’m missing.
p.a.
why do you hate Ismerica?
rootless-e
Bibi is a typical republican piece of shit. He’s a neo-con down to the last mean spirited bone in his body.
Brick Oven Bill
Perhaps he made the concessions in exchange for continued funding DougJ.
Martian Buddy
Cal Thomas had a column in tonight’s paper entitled “Israel’s latest enemy: America?” It’s amazing how any criticism of the Israeli government gets treated as if one had joined the Intifada or something.
rootless-e
Although when Israel had a reformist liberal/left government, it was suddenly not only ok to criticize Israel but morally necessary according to many of the same people
Max
Paging Eric Cantor… please pick up the white courtesy phone.
Snarky Pickles
Maybe Bibi’s just a self-ha. . . . Oh, nevermind.
Corner Stone
Couldn’t care less.
Bill Arnold
I suspect that Bibi had been buying into fantastical projections fed to him (directly and indirectly) by Jewish American wingnuts/neocons. That the House and Senate will change to Republican control in Jan 2011. (Maybe even that something will happen (???) to neutralize Obama’s power.)
They’ve been delusional IMO. If I had to bet, I’d bet that the odds that the Democrats keep the House are maybe 65-75 percent if HCR passes, way less if it doesn’t. (InTrade has Dems keeping control of the House at 54% right now, but it’s a low-volume bet, not to be trusted.) This is also assuming that the American economy very gradually improves through 2010. An attack on Iran would change those odds, but it is unclear in which direction.
Mary
Part of Obama’s and Hillary’s new strategy is that they have promised to call out and condemn actions by either side that are provocative, destabilizing and not conducive to peace. AIPAC insists that any disagreements between the US and Israel be handled privately, the better to cheat on their agreements. This is what they will be lobbying for and they are already circulating the House and Senate letters directing the Administration to shut the hell up.
Even though Bibi caved on the E. Jerusalem settlements, Israel cheats on their agreements and relies on US silence and they will cheat on this one if the Administration is not able to announce their cheating.
I think this issue is so crucial that I am going to use my newfound skills in calling my Congress people to tell them I want peace, E. Jerusalem settlements are illegal and must be stopped, and that I want the US to monitor Israel’s compliance on these issues and call cheating, provocation and other destabilizing, unhelpful and illegal acts out publicly. I hope everyone does this.
Furthermore, I demand that Israel be restrained from attacking Iran with all of the power that the US government possesses. My Congress people, Van Hollen, Cardin and Mikulski are all progressive dreams, but they are hardcore AIPAC tools. Most of our Democrats are. This has to change or Israel will lead us into World War III like they have been trying to do for years so they can finish their ethnic cleansing project in Palestine. This is every bit as important as health care and the financial cost to the US is actually more than health care. Let’s not forget that the Iraq war is projected at $3 trillion by Stiglitz et. al, when all is said and done.
Cain
@Mary:
I think it is fairly obvious now that if we want change, we are going to have lobby congress like we did the health care bill. That means we get on their ass and get them to change their tone on Israel a little.
A good scare on Israel’s part will do wonders to our relationship with teh middle east. It will also not take our relationship for granted. They need to stop doing illegal things I see their conduct similar to what we were doing with the native indians. Shameless.
If after that, Hamas continues to fuck it up, then the U.S. can start muscling in on them and get their people to change too. We can’t have a “take no prisoners” attitude here. If Obama can do this, the man will be considered the greatest president since winning WW2.
cain
PeakVT
I’m not an expert on this stuff, so maybe there’s an obvious angle I’m missing.
That angle would be: Netanyahu conceded nothing of value and was lying about what he appeared to concede.
Mary
@PeakVT: What is it with Netanyahu and the lying? Angela Merkel just went public with Netanyahu’s lying; said he can’t be trusted. Israel has just burned another of its allies.
Anyway, MJ Rosenberg, an ex-AIPAC hand, sets out a blueprint on where key Congressmen and Senators stand vis-a-vis AIPAC here if anyone wants to see who to call.
SRW1
Maybe the angle is here:
Obama blocks delivery of bunker-busters to Israel