WarSclerotic

On Thursday, several top American journalists — some of whom work for The New Yorker — brutally attacked Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for supposedly aiding Republican candidate Mitt Romney to defeat President Barack Obama. Reaching such a conclusion is not illogical, and Netanyahu should remember how Ezer Weizman got Israel in trouble by endorsing then Democratic candidate Jimmy Carter. Everyone should tread lightly on the matter. But I do not think Netanyahu’s motive is to support Romney, as much as it stems from a deep concern over Iran’s nuclear armament.

Netanyahu has not been able to carry on a conversation without mentioning Iran for years. It would make more sense if he was accused of being obsessed with Iran, but accusing him of acting for the wrong reasons? Impossible. However the current drama unfolds, the relationship between the U.S. and Israel will not break down. This is because, as the Hebrew saying goes, any dispute that stems from a mutual understanding of one another should be allowed to be carried out.

Working on the assumption that Israel and the U.S. are indeed allies, the present argument raises a lot of anger. Those who listen to Netanyahu, Defense Minister Ehud Barack, Atomic Energy Minister Dan Meridor and Strategic Affairs Minister Moshe Ya’alon will notice different shades in their positions regarding the U.S.’s stance on Iran. Netanyahu is convinced that the subject is so important it has to be publicly debated with Obama, knowing that such a debate comes at a price. Barack, and as of recently Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, prefer conversing in private to conceal any disagreement that could escalate into a serious rift in the public arena.

It is clear that two months before elections, Obama is not going to sit idly by. Though the American media does not serve as Washington’s press release agency, both the White House and the Pentagon brief the press on a regular basis, and recent headlines in the U.S. media have slammed Netanyahu. This is the nature of any conflict between democratic countries.

However, the force with which Obama has approached the conflict with Netanyahu is a bit astounding. At the end of the day, he can see what is taking place in Egypt and Libya, and even at the Islamic movement demonstrations in Tel Aviv. He is witnessing a growing hostility toward the U.S., encouraged by al-Qaida at present and I expect, by Iran and Hezbollah during future rounds. Yet Obama only promises to examine, in a cool and neutral manner, the Muslim Brotherhood government in Egypt, and to meet President Mohammed Morsi, as if nothing happened at the U.S. Embassy in Cairo.

There is something amiss with Obama’s current attitude. This is especially true from an Israeli perspective, but also from every conceivable American perspective. It just doesn’t add up: Both the U.S. and Israel have a clearly defined stance against Iran’s nuclear development project, and yet here they are, quarreling in the city square. The numerous cases of mob violence in cities throughout the Arab world go against the very essence of democracy — an ideal held sacred by Americans. And yet the White House is determined to work with the Muslim Brotherhood. That is quite the double standard.