Is this the end of the beautiful romance between Israel and the US?
There are few things in life that are a constant, but for the last 75 years, one of them has been the inseparable relationship between Israel and her closest ally, the U.S. Even during times when it wasn’t convenient, such as the hesitation to provide us with weapons during the 1973 Yom Kippur War, Richard Nixon came through and helped to turn the situation around so that Israel could live to see another day.
Each president, from Harry Truman, right up until George Bush, was supportive, warm and always reaffirming in their commitment to our unique friendship. That began to cool down once Barack Obama got into the White House. His administration signaled a decisive downgrading of the relationship. In fact, it’s possible to attribute a real shift in attitude once he became president. Despite his statement, early on, during one of his trips to Israel, where he said, “The United States is proud to stand with you as your strongest ally and greatest friend,” most of us remember his hot mic moment with then French President Nicholas Sarkozy who called Prime Minister Netanyahu a liar, followed by Obama’s comment, “You’re tired of him, what about me?
From that point on, Obama never shied away from expressing his disapproval of any new construction Israel would undertake if it was in an area he didn’t approve and said so publicly in a 2009 speech he gave in Cairo. Things didn’t really get any better. Throughout the eight years of his presidency, the relationship never warmed up, and so it was a refreshing change once Trump won in 2016, culminating in his decision to move the U.S. Embassy to its rightful home in the capital city of Jerusalem.
But all that ended once he lost the 2020 election. Although Biden began his tenure with the expected commitment to Israel, he didn’t count on the harsh reaction received by a significant portion of his base that proved to be against the Jewish state in the wake of the Oct. 7th Hamas massacre. Consequently, over the last four months, we’ve witnessed a rapid downshift from “best buds,” with full support, to the present crisis, which has deteriorated into Biden’s use of vulgarity directed at Israel’s prime minister.
It was reported in Times of Israel that “Biden has been expressing his exasperation with the prime minister in private conversations – even calling him an ‘a**—hole.’ The frustration apparently emanates from his “inability to persuade Israel to change its military tactics in Gaza.”
One example of a recent Biden suggestion, which was rejected by the prime minister, involved agreeing to a pathway for a Palestinian state, in exchange for normalized relations with Saudi Arabia. It’s hard to know which “deal” was more outrageous – the timing of Biden’s Palestinian state suggestion, while Israelis are still mourning the effects of their worst terror attack or the recent Hamas proposal to empty Israeli prisons of all Palestinians, rebuild all of Gaza, on our dime, and completely end the war in exchange for our hostages.
Of course, it’s one thing for hardened, murdering terrorists to make ridiculous demands on Israel which they had to realize were non-starters, despite how desperately everyone wants a return of all those being held in the cruelest of captivities. But it’s another thing for Biden to expect that Israel would be amenable to paving the way for a Palestinian state just a few months after their terrorist government perpetrated a slaughter of 1200 innocents in the most brutal and savage ways which are only reminiscent of the dark ages. Why would Israel be squeamish to cooperate in such a deal?
But none of this is surprising, because Biden is only looking out for number 1, and it isn’t the Jewish homeland! His waning bid to retain his presidency, in the upcoming 2024 election, is in desperate need of resuscitation, and since his age and mental acuity have now become a major issue, casting grave doubt on whether he can pull off a win in November, the best way to prop him up, at this point, would be for him to gain a much-needed feather in his cap.
In other words, Biden likely sees cooperation from Israel as his ticket to remain in the White House for another four years, and if he can’t last that long, the hope is to make it across the finish line in November so that another Democrat can replace him. Either way, it spells the end of a beautiful romance between Israel and the U.S., because any Democrat replacement, who hopes to be supported by a large swath of their base, will have to continue to be critical of Israel in order to survive their political aspirations.
Sadly, we’ve come to learn who our real friends are in a time of need, and it is not a politician whose support is dependent upon a pro-Palestinian base that is willing to throw in with Hamas terrorists who are committed to the genocide of the Israeli people, followed by Jews who live throughout the world. Personal integrity is too costly these days, and anyone who craves power simply cannot afford to hold on to their pre-Oct. 7th conscience.
Biden, in his latest vulgar comments, which he reportedly made on three separate occasions, lacks the courage to come out publicly and let everyone know that he’s enraged as a result of not being able to manipulate Israel in the quest to make his own dreams come true. His distasteful comments had to be leaked for everyone to hear, especially his frustrated pro-Palestinian constituency which has labeled him, “Genocide Joe.”
It's interesting that “sources said Biden thinks it would be counterproductive to be too critical of Netanyahu in public.” Given his precarious position in remaining the Democrat candidate, with many hoping to see his ouster, did he really believe that his “private” comments wouldn’t be leaked?
On the other hand, his choice of words may actually have been intended to serve as a type of performance art speech, designed to calm the natives, another lamebrain strategy by those who have a vested interest in keeping him around a bit longer. Either way, it sends a signal, to the only democracy in the Middle East, that we are about to break up as a couple.
While the honeymoon may have been officially over once Obama moved in, under the Biden administration, it’s beginning to feel as if the divorce papers are being drawn up. Sadly, as in most divorces, there are losers, and, from a Genesis 12:3 point of view, those who stop blessing Israel are usually the ones who live to regret the moment they made that choice. But it’s not just the U.S. who would be the big loser, because the verse says that, through Israel, all the families of the earth shall be blessed, so moving away from us has far-reaching consequences.
The only question to ask is: “Can this marriage be saved?” Only the Almighty knows!
A former Jerusalem elementary and middle-school principal and the granddaughter of European Jews who arrived in the US before the Holocaust. Making Aliyah in 1993, she is retired and now lives in the center of the country with her husband.
