Tag Archives: President Obama

Obama, Sarkozy, and Bibi

Posted on 11/08/2011 by Rabbi Kaufman

My own take. It is problematic that the media chose to keep this secret or frankly that they were asked to do so. That said, let me offer what I think would be the pro-Obama angle on this conversation just for … Continue reading →

Posted in Israel | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

NYT: peace process failing despite the great work of the administration

Posted on 10/06/2010 by Soccerdad

Contrary to the upbeat assessment of the Washington Post, Mark Landler of the New York Times can’t figure out why the Middle East peace process isn’t going smoothly. In Risks and Advantages in U.S. Effort in Mideast, Landler begins: When … Continue reading →

Posted in Israel, Media Bias | Tagged | 1 Comment

The president plans; Abbas throws pie in his face

Posted on 07/14/2010 by Soccerdad

Last week I offered qualified praise to the editors of the Washington Post for their observations about President Obama’s meeting with Prime Minister Netanyahu. The one part of the editorial that I didn’t like was towards the end: Now Mr. … Continue reading →

Posted in Israel, palestinian politics, The One | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

The messaging or the strategy?

Posted on 05/24/2010 by Soccerdad

In a meeting with fifteen Rabbis last week, White House shief of staff Rahm Emanuel said that the administration “screwed up the messaging.” Part of me wants to buy that, but I’m very skeptical. I’d have been a lot more … Continue reading →

Posted in Israel, The One | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Is Obama, Carter, but without the good fortune?

Posted on 05/14/2010 by Soccerdad

In his devastating critique of ex-President Jimmy Carter, Our Worse Ex-President, Joshua Muravchik wrote: Carter’s interest in the conflict is in one sense natural: the agreement he mediated between Israel and Egypt at Camp David in 1978 stands as one … Continue reading →

Posted in Israel | Tagged , | 3 Comments

Imagine if he had shouted out “macaca”

Posted on 04/23/2010 by Soccerdad

President Obama’s coolness towards Israel has busted a lot of myths about Jewish influence. Still it’s a curious phenomenon with possibly negative consequences. Yet if we are seen as neutral, just watch the rest of the world get the message … Continue reading →

Posted in Israel | Tagged | 2 Comments

Cohen: the President doesn’t “get” Israel

Posted on 04/21/2010 by Soccerdad

Richard Cohen thinks that the pro-Israel crowd is being paranoid. As for myself, I receive e-mails saying that Obama, that klutz, asked Binyamin Netanyahu whether Jews could alter the age-old prayer about returning to Jerusalem and substitute the word Israel. … Continue reading →

Posted in Israel, The One | Tagged | 5 Comments

Blaming Bibi

Posted on 04/13/2010 by Soccerdad

This week’s Baltimore Jewish Times featured an article (previously mentioned here) U.S.-Israeli Ties: What’s Really Happening? by Dr. Robert O. Freedman. Over the course of the article Dr. Freedman covers much important territory; unfortunately he also lets his prejudices get … Continue reading →

Posted in American Scene, Israel, Israeli Double Standard Time, The One | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Imposing

Posted on 04/07/2010 by Soccerdad

Two weeks ago David Ignatius wrote: In retrospect, it seems clear that the step-by-step approach was a mistake: Constructive ambiguity, in this case, proved destructive. It allowed the Israeli right wing to perpetuate the idea that it could have it … Continue reading →

Posted in Iran, Israel, The One | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

“Ideological and vindictive”

Posted on 03/25/2010 by Soccerdad

via memeorandum Jackson Diehl, not someone I consider to be pro-Israel, nonetheless acknowledges what the administration is doing: U.S. pressure on Netanyahu will be needed if the peace process ever reaches the point where the genuinely contentious issues, like Palestinian … Continue reading →

Posted in Israel, Israeli Double Standard Time, The One | Tagged | Comments Off

Taking the smart out of smart diplomacy

Posted on 11/02/2009 by Soccerdad

Washington Post reporter Scott Wilson writes of President Obama’s new approach to diplomacy “Shared interests define Obama’s world. Wilson starts: President Obama is applying the same tools to international diplomacy that he once used as a community organizer on Chicago’s … Continue reading →

Posted in American Scene, Politics | Tagged | Comments Off

The shoals of Middle East peacemaking

Posted on 09/23/2009 by Soccerdad

The Washington Post, today, faults the Obama administration for its early forays into Middle East peacemaking. The administration also concluded, wrongly, that obtaining an unconditional Israeli settlement freeze was an essential first step. In fact settlements are no longer a … Continue reading →

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The President’s teachable Mideast moment – the Washington Post vs. the New York Times

Posted on 07/31/2009 by Soccerdad

The Washington Post surprised yesterday with an editorial Tough on Israel: But the administration also is guilty of missteps. Rather than pocketing Mr. Netanyahu’s initial concessions — he gave a speech on Palestinian statehood and suggested parameters for curtailing settlements … Continue reading →

Posted in Israel, Israeli Double Standard Time | Tagged , , | Comments Off

The cost of confrontation

Posted on 07/23/2009 by Soccerdad

Yesterday I blogged about the consequences of President Obama’s pressure on Israel. Daniel Pipes sees it as a sign that the administration is prepared to precipitate a diplomatic crisis with Israel. However Barry Rubin was less concerned. He observed that … Continue reading →

Posted in Israel, Israeli Double Standard Time | Tagged | 2 Comments

The pressure Israel only foreign policy isn’t working

Posted on 07/21/2009 by Soccerdad

President Obama has apparently decided to make a showdown with Israel over settlements his primary foreign policy initiative. Sure he offered an open hand to the Muslim world, but that was just words. The main action he has taken is … Continue reading →

Posted in Israel, Israeli Double Standard Time | Tagged | 1 Comment

The president’s ear

Posted on 07/15/2009 by Soccerdad

Jeremy Ben Ami of J-Street who was at the meeting between Jewish leaders and President Obama, thought that the President was amazing. In an extremely soft interview Ben Ami recounts: One is Malcolm Hoenlein’s, and he’s said this publicly, that … Continue reading →

Posted in Israel, Israeli Double Standard Time, Politics | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

A masterful assuaging

Posted on 07/14/2009 by Soccerdad

Last year those of us Jews who didn’t support President Obama in his bid to be elected president were subjected to ridicule. If we didn’t support him it was because we were prejudiced or misinformed. This mocking didn’t just come … Continue reading →

Posted in American Scene, Iran, Israel, Israeli Double Standard Time, Jews, Politics | Tagged | 1 Comment

They think he still cares

Posted on 07/10/2009 by Soccerdad

While Alan Dershowitz focuses on those American Jews who are critical of President Obama’s forays into Middle East peacemaking, he fails to acknowledge a different group that’s also unimpressed with his efforts so far: Israeli Jews. As Aluf Benn writes: … Continue reading →

Posted in Israel, Politics | Tagged | 5 Comments

Shaping Obama

Posted on 06/14/2009 by Soccerdad

There are two points about the recent Washington Post report, Obama’s aides, friends shaped his views on settlements: The first is the omission of any mention of President Obama’s friendship with Rashid Khalidi or Ali Abuminah. This allows the reporters … Continue reading →

Posted in Israel, Israel Derangement Syndrome | Tagged | 2 Comments

The campaign’s the thing

Posted on 06/12/2009 by Soccerdad

During the campaign last year, we kept on hearing stories about how supportive President Obama would be of Israel. Those of us who looked at his associations and wondered how someone with his background would be pro-Israel were mocked for … Continue reading →

Posted in Israel, palestinian politics | Tagged | 1 Comment