Op-Ed The Obama-Netanyahu dysfunctional tango

[King_David]

The ongoing Gaza crisis seems to have broken a lot of crockery in the U.S.-Israel relationship.

Malicious attacks on Secretary of State John Kerry, tough Obama administration statements on the "appalling" nature of Israeli strikes causing civilian casualties, and greater scrutiny of U.S. missile shipments to Israel have led some observers to conclude that this is among the worst patches in the relationship.

Those worried, or alternatively hoping, that the special relationship is about to become … well, a lot less special better lie down until the feeling passes. However dysfunctional relations are between President Obama and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the U.S.-Israel bond is based on shared values, politics and mutual interests even in times of tension. And unlike Lehman Bros., it really is too big to fail. The rising threat from the Islamic State ISIS and other jihadis will only serve to highlight those bonds.

To be clear, the relationship between the two nations isn't in the greatest shape. And the dysfunction starts at the very top — the president and prime minister neither like nor trust one another. Netanyahu thinks Obama is bloodless and totally lacks understanding of Israel's predicament as a small nation in a dangerous neighborhood. And Obama thinks Netanyahu is a modern-day snake oil salesman conning him on Middle East peace and disrespecting U.S. interests.



http://www.latimes.com/opinion/op-ed/la-oe-0824-miller-israel-obama-netanyahu-20140824-story.html

[Jefferson23]

1. In other words, long live the occupation..until the next general election in the US.

*Aaron David Miller, Ross’ deputy, would later concede Palestinian assertions that Ross was an irredeemably invested mediator: “Far too often the small group with whom I had worked in the Clinton administration, myself included, had acted as a lawyer for only one side, Israel".1

[King_David]

2. Where's that from? nt

[Jefferson23]

3. From the author:

Aaron David Miller, The Much Too Promised Land (New York: Random House,) 75. In an earlier opinion piece Miller put it thus: “For far too long, many American officials involved in Arab-Israeli peacemaking, myself included, have acted as Israel’s attorney, catering and coordinating with the Israelis at the expense of successful peace negotiations”. Aaron David Miller, “Israel’s Lawyer,” The Washington Post, 23 May 2005.

[King_David]

5. What about the 2014 analysis posted?

Your quotes from 2005.

[Jefferson23]

7. The remark I made about long live the occupation? That was mine, I did not attribute that to Miller.

It's his history of involvement, that's why I posted the 2005 info.

[King_David]

8. OK I got it .

Thanks for the clarification .

[Xipe Totec]

4. based on shared values, politics and mutual interests

Remind me which are those because I don't see them.

[King_David]

6. I guess with the fight against ISIS fundamentalism about to explode

And the fight against Hamas fundamentalism and both considered terrorist organizations by Israel and the USA and both extreme right wing groups,the shared values, politics and mutual interests existing currently ,will only expand and grow.

[Xipe Totec]

9. That seems like Israeli interests, not American.

I still don't see it.

The fight against Hamas fundamentalism is the fight to protect Israel.

What are we doing so far from home?

[King_David]

10. With ISIS ?

[Xipe Totec]

11. Yea, with ISIS

They're pissed off at us because we're over there.

We're over there to protect Israel.

If we weren't there, there would be no conflict.

The conflict with us is because we're there.

To protect Israel.

The question is, Why?

Why are we there?

[King_David]

12. USA is in the Middle East to protect Israel ?

I'm not sure what Iraq was all about but it was not to protect Israel .


Small illustration :Israel was attacked during the gulf war and the USA wouldn't allow Israel to retaliate. That's protection ?

It's more about OIL than it is about Israel .

[Scootaloo]

15. Israel was ASKED to not retaliate

The reason was simply that Israel getting involved would have dissolved the already-fragile Arab coalition. I'm not sure if you realize just how strained that coalition was.

Israel happened to assent to the request - Probably with the realization that it was better to be quietly supportive of the US effort, than to throw a spanner into it all and bring war to its own doorstep. Israel was smarter in '91, presumably because it didn't have a bunch of Yigal Amir fanboys running the show?

At any rate, there's nothing Israel could have done that would have been more retaliatory than what happened to iraq.

[King_David]

18. Oh Israel was asked alright ,

100%

Just because something wasn't in your newspaper doesn't mean it never happened.

What Yigal Amir had to do with anything I'm not quite sure , maybe you meant Seth Rogan ?

[Scootaloo]

20. You seem a little confused, David

yes, the US asked Israel to not retaliate. Israel assented. Not sure why you're trying to argue the point.

And I'm saying that the leadership of israel in '91 seemed like it was much more intelligent than the leadership of israel today, who all strike me as a pack of half-feral Yigal Amir fanboys.

[King_David]

22. When the USA "asks" Israel to do something , they do it.

If the USA "asks" Israel to do something and Israel doesn't do it, then the USA didn't really "ask".

[Scootaloo]

23. Such is the life of two-bit client states I suppose.

[oberliner]

13. ISIS kidnaps foreign aid workers and journalists

Pretty sure their being "pissed at us" is not about Israel.

[Mosby]

24. you can't be serious

We're over there all right, in KSA, UAE, Quatar and Kuwait.

Israel has absolutely nothing to do with the rise of Islamic extremism in the middle east and gulf region.

The way the "Arab Spring" emerged and evolved clearly demonstrates that the Arab street is concerned about representation, justice and opportunity. Israel is the model, not the cause, something most Arabs don't want to admit.

[Scootaloo]

14. You didn't answer his question

In fact, all you did was go "ah-booga-booga-booga terrorists terrorists terrorists!" like some thrift store Ari Fleischer knockoff.

[King_David]

16. Not sure what your post means exactly , but

If you don't like an answer ,It doesn't mean the question wasn't answered .

[Scootaloo]

17. It means what it says - the question was not answered. You evaded

And threw up a "But terrorists!" smokescreen.

[King_David]

19. Welcome back from your time out ,

I missed you.

[Scootaloo]

21. Just like you missed answering Xipe Totec's question n/t

[Mosby]

25. the US is there to protect the oil market

In the gulf states.

Pretty simple really, any idiot could figure that out. But unfortunately some want to make it all about Jews. I wonder why?

[azurnoir]

28. that's rather odd considering currently the US only gets about 13% of its oil from the ME

[Mosby]

29. nothing odd at all

The Persian Gulf states produce 28 percent of the world's oil supply and have 55 percent of the world's oil reserves. The US protects the supply thereby creating stability in the worldwide oil market.

Instability in the world oil market would create massive price increases, regardless where the oil is coming from.

I get that progressives want to isolate the US from the rest of the world but American leaders understand that we have a role to play on the world stage and that there is no one else that can do it but us.

[azurnoir]

30. you get that "progressives want to isolate the US from the rest of the world" really?

exactly where do you get that from? Not quite Progressives want the US to stop being



and that is different from isolationism

So now your claiming that the US is protecting the rest of the world from the price of oil increasing? I'll have to remember that next time gas prices take a jump, like this weekend perhaps, is that why we went into Iraq to protect the rest of the world?

[Mosby]

31. Don't you think Progressives support non-interventionism?

Or are they nation builders like traditional Liberals?

Isolationism and non-interventionism are the same thing btw.

The US has been protecting gulf oil for decades, pretty well known.

[King_David]

27. I don't think Israel being defined as a democracy or not has anything at all to do with who YOU are

Post 6 :

"6. I guess with the fight against ISIS fundamentalism about to explode
And the fight against Hamas fundamentalism ongoing and both considered terrorist organizations by Israel and the USA and both extreme right wing groups,the shared values, politics and mutual interests existing currently ,will only expand and grow."