Obama Doesn't Get It

He doesn't get Israel.
He doesn't get Jerusalem.
He doesn't get the Middle East.
He doesn't get American foreign policy.

Jennifer Rubin at Contentions puts it plainly:

If further example is needed that Obama lacks experience (Did he not know what current American policy was, or did he not believe the Palestinians would notice his comments? Did he mean to be bold and then think better of it?) and the clarity to steer foreign policy, this is it. He managed to confuse and annoy just about everyone with this one.

As with direct meetings with Iran, flip-floppery on a key element of our Israel policy only shows Obama to be uninformed and unsteady. Moreover, one wonders whether the speech was not reviewed and vetted by his advisors (the ones that are “official,” as opposed to the ones that are not and say inconvenient things)? Foreign powers tend to take American presidents at their word, unless proven unreliable and erratic. Obama has proven himself to be both.

So if anyone supposes that his AIPAC speech signaled some intellectual or political maturation on Obama’s part (or development of a sophisticated foreign policy staff), there is more than enough reason to be disappointed.

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