The Obama-Bibi Two-State Two-Step

posted on: Mar 26, 2015

The current brouhaha between the United States and Israel is without a doubt the worst in the modern history of the relationship. Carter and Begin fought; Reagan and Begin too; Bush 41 and Shamir wrestled; and Clinton and Netanyahu too when he was first prime minister. But amid the dysfunction, there was also production. A few things actually got done that benefited both Israel and the United States. Now you have dysfunction without production, a veritable six-year soap opera with both drama and trauma.

But the fight this time around between President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu is not over trivial matters. There are legitimate differences between Israel and the United States on pressing matters, where both countries have much at stake, that are getting in the way of the special relationship. Front and center during the past few weeks was Iran complicating the relationship — and a less legitimate effort by an Israeli prime minister to influence and perhaps kill the Iran nuclear negotiations by interceding into U.S. politics in an unprecedented manner.

Source: foreignpolicy.com