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The American Conservative
Bibi Needs a “Time-Out”
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it looks like. First General Martin Dempsey, and then Hillary have told him that the United States will deal with Iran’s nuclear program according to its own timetable, and in accordance with its own national interests. Now President Obama has apparently put off Bibi’s request for a meeting in September. A scheduling issue, the two won’t be in New York (for the UN General Assembly) at the same time. The White House calmy noted that top administration officials, like Hillary, will be available to meet with Bibi. This is big news in Israel, and sure to be used by Romney: trying to talk Israel out of starting a destructive war, or refusing the demand that America fight its war for it, will be portrayed as “throwing Israel under the bus.” Noam Sheizaf of the indispensable Israeli website 972 analyzes the faceoff here. The sudden show of backbone from an American administration must come as a rude shock to Netanyahu, whose entire previous experience has taught him to think that when he says jump, the role of American leaders is simply to ask “How high?” But lo and behold, Obama isn’t doing that, and Bibi’s having a kind of diplomatic tantrum. The reader comments to the Times story were fascinating –an outpouring of resentment at what people feel is Netanyahu’s blatant interference in the US election.
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