Is Obama Pressuring Israel Too Much?

This was the question asked in today's POLITICO Arena. Yes, seriously. My response is below:

If by putting "pressure on Israel" you mean raising its military aid to the largest single expense in the U.S. foreign aid budget, supplying extra budgetary support in the hundreds of millions to develop Israeli military technology, unending diplomatic support in the U.N. Security Council, expanding U.S.-Israel trade relations, supporting their entry into the OECD and raising military cooperation which George Mitchell this week called the "best it's ever been," then yes.

What a horribly absurd question. Yesterday, the single largest pro-Israel lobby in the United States, AIPAC, trotted out hundreds of senators and representatives who were more than willing to repeat the lobby's talking points, stand by a foreign leader and criticize their own president instead of supporting him.

To continue reading the response click here.

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