Helene Cooper whose Rolodex seems filled with only anti-Israel experts now writes that President Obama will be “honest” with Israel.
“Part of being a good friend is being honest,” Mr. Obama said in an interview with NPR News. “And I think there have been times where we are not as honest as we should be about the fact that the current direction, the current trajectory, in the region is profoundly negative, not only for Israeli interests but also U.S. interests.
“We do have to retain a constant belief in the possibilities of negotiations that will lead to peace,” he added. “I’ve said that a freeze on settlements is part of that.”
It’s nice to have a constant belief, but when they haven’t led to peace until now, you better have a reason for believing that they would start now. And when the other party has decided to be passive aggressive, well “settlements” aren’t the main issue and ought not to be.
When questioned why he’ll be appearing in Egypt this week, President Obama answered:
Mr. Obama also dismissed criticism that he should not deliver his speech to the Muslim world from Cairo because of Egypt’s poor record in upholding human rights. “It’s a mistake to suggest that we’re not going to deal with countries around the world in the absence of them meeting all our demands,” he said.
So he needs to be “honest” with Israel, but he can let the Egyptians slide. Well guess what, the Egyptians (and the whole Arab world) could use a little honesty.
One remarkable thing he can do for Egypt and the rest of the Muslim world is to offer American help in making governance more sound. He should promote the rule of law by promoting democratic elections and term limits for democratically elected presidents.
This may appear to be long shot. Mr. Obama’s advisers will likely argue against it to avoid offending his host. But such a bold move would win him the hearts and minds of the world’s 1.4 billion Muslims forever.
My guess is that President Obama’s yearning for honesty won’t extend that far. He’ll be seeking approval not advocating change. (And honesty apparently won’t extend to honoring previous commitments.) Maybe he’ll pay some lip service to some symbolic but insubstantial form of recognition of Israel. But I’d guess that honesty In the Middle East will hardly ever be heard except regarding Israel.
Crossposted on Soccer Dad.
