"President Obama -- Good for Israel?"
For
"JERUSALEM (JTA) -- Although Israeli officialdom is not commenting on the possibility of a Barack Obama presidency, in private some officials in Jerusalem are expressing mixed feelings about the prospect.
Some in government quarters are concerned that Obama, the presumptive Democratic nominee, might be soft on Iran, pressure Israel to make concessions on the Palestinian track and even change the tenor of the strategic relationship between Israel and the United States.
Yet Foreign Ministry experts on U.S. foreign policy say no American president, Obama included, would adopt an overtly anti-Israeli posture.... the right wing fears that an Obama administration and the Israeli government could be on a collision course, especially if the Likud's Benjamin Netanyahu wins the next Israeli election.
Although Obama, an Illinois senator, is saying all the right things, there is no way of knowing what he would actually do in office. Unlike his Republican opponent, U.S. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), Obama cannot boast a long, unwavering record of support for Israel.
Against
Obama's powerfully expressed commitment to Israel at the annual American Israel Public Affairs Committee policy conference June 4 in Washington went a long way toward assuaging Israeli fears.
Israeli officials noted Obama’s readiness to use force against Iran if necessary, his promise to maintain the Israel Defense Forces' qualitative edge, his support for isolating Hamas and his commitment to Israel's Jewish character, with Jerusalem as its undivided capital....
The conclusion: Israel has no reason to worry regardless of who wins the White House.... Netanyahu has... taken pains to establish good relations with Obama."
Hmmm.
Interesting quote:
"It's very good…….Well, it's not good, but it will generate immediate sympathy (for Israel)." -- former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the day of the 9-11 attacks.
Need more?
"Netanyahu says 9/11 terror attacks good for Israel"
"We are benefiting from one thing, and that is the attack on the Twin Towers and Pentagon, and the American struggle in Iraq," Ma'ariv quoted the former prime minister as saying. He reportedly added that these events "swung American public opinion in our favor."
CUI BONO, readers?!
