You Can't be Pro-Obama and Pro-Israel

December 4, 2011

By Neil Snyder

Since the day he took office, President Obama has been anti-Israel.

Barack Obama has failed to achieve the bipartisan results that he promised to seek while running for office. In fact, he has created a chasm between the political left and right in this country that is wider than it has ever been.

The president's tendency to shove his agenda down people's throats regardless of the merits, the biting partisan rhetoric that he aims at political opponents, the condescending way that he talks down to legislators with more experience and better ideas, the "this is not about me" mantra that he uses repeatedly to insult anyone who dares to challenge his ideas, and his incessant posturing are huge parts of the president's problem. President Obama has even managed to alienate the far left in his own party. Some say that's because he's too centrist, but anyone who calls Barack Obama a centrist has to ignore his long and sordid history of leftist positions on a broad range of issues and his radical far left friends and advisors.

The president has been able to unite one group, though -- the people of New York's 9^th congressional district.　They call him The Uniter because he was able to accomplish something that no one had been able to do since before the Great Depression. In a heavily Jewish and Democratic district, Obama's treatment of Israel brought the voters together to elect a Republican. The message was loud and clear. They had had enough, and they weren't going to take any more.

Barack Obama is no Friend of Israel.

Since the day he took office, President Obama has been anti-Israel. He has taken advantage of every opportunity to snub Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu; he has created false hope among so-called "Palestinians"; and he has fomented problems in the Middle East that Israel is being forced to suffer through.

"Dithering" is an apt word for describing the president's policies regarding Israel. In a nutshell, it means that the president doesn't have an Israel policy.　 He makes it up as he goes along, and nothing is certain except that he has created a colossal mess in the entire Middle East for us and for Israel.

For example, what were the president's policies regarding freedom-seeking Arabs who wanted changes in their political systems during the Arab Spring? Hosni Mubarak, Egypt's president, had to go and so did Muammar Gaddafi, Libya's president. But what about Syrian President Bashar al-Assad? President Obama wasn't sure about him. As of December 1, 2011, the death toll in Syria was more than 4000 and rising, but the Obama administration has done precious little to quell the senseless violence perpetrated against the Syrian people by Mr. Assad.

President Obama's Israel policy is just as incoherent. At one point, Obama summoned Prime Minister Netanyahu to the White House for a tongue-lashing and a well-publicized, deliberate snub.　 After some political upheaval in the United States because of his Israel policies and rapidly changing events in the Middle East, Mr. Obama wasn't so sure about the Israel situation any longer, but he did hear something about the 1967 borders that sounded like a winner politically. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said that Israel's 1967 border should be her permanent border, and so did Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Obama dithered in that direction, gave another speech, and created another ruckus.　 Problem is Israel's 1967 "border" and all the "borders" before it weren't borders at all.　 They were armistice lines.　 Israel has been fighting wars for survival since 1948, and each war has been defensive.　 At the end of each conflict, new armistice lines were created. The 1967 armistice line and those before it are not relevant in any way except as propaganda tools.

It was no coincidence that Obama delivered his "1967 Borders" speech just before Prime Minister Netanyahu was scheduled to arrive in Washington　for an official visit. The outcry from people in this country who support Israel was　strong and swift so the president backpedaled as best he could, but he also started pressuring Israel to agree to negotiate on the 1967 lines. Reports suggest that　the pressure was intense, and in short order, the European Union came out in favor of the "1967 borders."

Prime Minister Netanyahu rejected the proposal, as he should have, but why would our president take the advice of Israel's enemies and make a major policy proposal concerning Israel's future without consulting Israel first? That makes absolutely no sense unless you realize that Barack Obama is no friend of Israel.

Trying to force Israel to accept indefensible borders is preposterous. It's a step in the process of eradicating Israel completely. If you took away all of the land that Israel has gained in wars for survival since 1948, Israel would have no land. That's exactly what Palestinian leaders want. In their world, Israel doesn't exist. Israel doesn't even appear on their maps and the logo for the Permanent Observer Mission of Palestine to the United Nations that's in use today shows the entire land of Israel as "Palestinian" territory.

Israel is the only true friend that the United States has in the Middle East and maybe the world. Even more, Israel is on the frontline of the war between radical Islam and Western civilization.　 On the western border with Gaza, the Israeli people have been called upon to endure indiscriminate rocket attacks from Hamas with only a minimal response; they must contend with a belligerent Hezb'allah and an unstable Syria in the north; in the east, Jordan is in turmoil and many wonder if King Abdullah can survive; and in the south, Saudi Arabia and Egypt continue to be major exporters of radical Islam.

Making matters worse, Israel's relations with Jordan and Egypt (the only two Arab countries to have signed peace treaties with Israel) are in serious doubt.　 A few days ago, Jordan's King Abdullah went so far as to say that "Israel has an expiration date." With radical Islamists nipping at his heels, it wouldn't surprise me if King Abdullah suddenly decided to abrogate the peace treaty with Israel.　 Following the Muslim Brotherhood's recent election victory in Egypt, Middle East experts openly predicted that "Islamists may also seek to annul the 1979 Egypt-Israel Peace Treaty, which could prompt Israel to seize the Sinai Peninsula for the fourth time in its history to create a strategic buffer zone." These developments don't bode well for peace in the Middle East.

This is the bottom line. Israel has no friends in the Middle East, and her enemies are growing stronger by the day. One of the most incendiary political questions today is whether Israel is preparing to strike Iran, but the fact is that with help from Iran, Israel's enemies are preparing to deliver what they think will be a death blow to Israel. Repeatedly over the years, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has boldly asserted that Iran intends to "wipe Israel off the map." The day has finally arrived when the Iranians think they are ready to launch a coordinated attack, and political instability in Syria may have prevented an attack in September.

Now more than ever before Israel needs a friend in the White House, and Barack Obama is not that person. After examining the facts, I am forced to conclude that you can't be pro-Obama and pro-Israel. The facts are presented succinctly in this short YouTube video: Obama - the Anti-Israel President. Watching it would be well worth your time.

Neil Snyder is a chaired professor emeritus at the University of Virginia. His blog, SnyderTalk.com, is posted daily. His latest book is titled If You Voted for Obama in 2008 to Prove You're Not a Racist, You Need to Vote for Someone Else in 2012 to Prove You're Not an Idiot.