November 7th, 2015 | https://lobelog.com/acknowledging-reality-in-the-u-s-israeli-relationship/#more-31802

Acknowledging Reality in the U.S.-Israeli Relationship

by Paul R. Pillar
On the eve of a visit by Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Washington, we have gotten yet another of the statements from members of his government that are sufficiently unrestrained or unhinged to cause a flap both in the United States and Israel. While Netanyahu’s own comment about the Holocaust being a Palestinian idea is still fresh in our minds, the latest ear-catching remarks come from Ran Baratz, an inhabitant of a West Bank settlement whom Netanyahu has chosen to be chief of hasbara, the selling of Israeli policies overseas. Baratz has posted a trail of entries on Facebook that have insulted, among others, President Rivlin of Israel, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, whom Baratz says has the mental capacity of a 12-year-old, and President Obama, whom he accuses of being anti-Semitic. https://lobelog.com/acknowledging-reality-in-the-u-s-israeli-relationship/#more-31802