It would seem that former Governor Mitt Romney (R-MA) and I agree on something, we both agree that President Barack Obama threw the nation of Israel under the bus in his speech on the Middle East today. When President Obama endorsed the Palestinian position that the borders need to be based on the 1967 borders that existed prior to the Six-Day War between Israel and her neighbors – Egypt, Syria and Jordan.
President Obama sees this as the starting point in negotiations. Israel believes the borders are something that should be negotiated. The West Bank for instance is necessary for Israel’s security, certainly some of it can be ceded over, but they also have large population centers to the east of the 1967 border. Giving up those settlements are a non-starter in negotiations and would actually keep the status quo that he hopes to break
President Obama has abandoned the commitment made in 2004 which was supported by Congress (including President Obama’s current Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton). I know, I know that it was President George W. Bush who made those assurances, so *obviously* President Obama should be let off the hook. His statement now represents a radical shift is U.S. policy. President Obama has gone back on his word to American Jewish leaders when he said he would not divide Jerusalem, which what would happen if 1967 boundaries are adopted. Needless to say the Israeli government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are not pleased with this development and want President Obama to retract his statement.
President Obama didn’t even make an acknowledgement of Israel’s right to exist as a condition of the creation of a Palestinian state. The President seemed to have forgotten as well that the result of Israel withdrawing their troops to the 1967 border with Gaza led not to peace, but further bloodshed.
For Israel with friends like this current administration, who needs enemies?
