McCain’s sympathy for Israel and antipathy to its foes is a matter of record, but we all know that pigs will fly before an ambassador to Israel appointed by a President McCain reports for work in Jerusalem.
That said, the rhetorical games about Jerusalem do have some impact beyond the dash for votes.
Despite the growing chorus of pundits who claim that groups like AIPAC are unrepresentative of Israel’s supporters in this nation, most Americans still wholeheartedly support Israel’s stand on Jerusalem.
Even though Israel’s current prime minister has hinted he will allow some of the Arab neighborhoods of the city to go to a Palestinian state in peace agreement, the odds of such a deal happening anytime in the foreseeable future are virtually nil. Even those few Palestinians who would make such a deal know they cannot stop Hamas terrorists from using any soil surrendered to them as a base for terror.
But that hasn’t stopped some of Israel’s critics and a few who claim to be its friends from asking that the United States pressure Israel to make more futile concessions, including some on Jerusalem. In particular, some of Obama’s fans on the left have been hoping that he would do so, and were bitterly disappointed by his speech to AIPAC.
But their hopes are absurd. Pressure on Israel doesn’t bring peace; it just undermines the already slim chances that the Palestinians will come to their senses and start reconciling themselves to the reality of the Jewish state.
Outside of the pro-Arab lobby and a small cadre of Jewish left-wingers – whose agenda is divorced from the realities of the Middle East and more about opposition to AIPAC’s status as the preeminent pro-Israel lobby than anything else – few in this country want to pressure Jerusalem. Indeed, as Obama’s statements trying to reassure the country of his pro-Israel views have demonstrated, support for the Jewish state remains a consensus issue that candidates ignore at their peril. Anything that clouds the issue, including Obama’s backtracking, will only encourage more Israel-bashing, not peace.
As the general election begins to unfold, Obama needs to stop trying to fine-tune his stances. More clarifications, such as those that followed his AIPAC speech, will only reinforce doubts about his steadfastness, and hurt him and the U.S.-Israel alliance. If he can’t stick to that line, it would almost be better to say nothing. Rather than worrying about being accused of pandering to the Jews, the best thing for both him and the cause of peace is to stick to the pro-Israel playbook.