Daniel Maibenco
Several days ago, it was reported that an anonymous U.S. official made a comment about the Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu. Normally, any comment would not be seen as that troublesome, right? Wrong.
It was revealed that an anonymous politician believes the leader of Israel is a chickens***. The person also stated how cowardly, out-of-touch and unconcerned they thought Netanyahu was. They thought he was too afraid of launching wars.
This is a tremendous foreign-relations disaster not just for the President and his administration, but also for the American public at large.
Israel is one of our strongest allies, and maybe our only “true” ally in the Middle East. The fact that someone, no matter who it is, would disrespect any world leader in the name of the United States is utterly shameful.
President Obama said that this individual’s statements do not reflect his views or those of his administration. Secretary of State John Kerry, Senators Lindsay Graham and John McCain as well as many people in the American Jewish community have expressed outrage over these comments. Most importantly, Netanyahu has stated how furious he is at being disrespected.
The timing of this allegation could not have come at a worse time for America. The U.S. and Israel are allies, but they are allies at odds at the moment. Israel recently launched a military campaign against Gaza because they were launching rockets into Israel without provocation. The fighting broke out after the peace talks between Israel, Gaza and the United States collapsed. Now, there are stories that the U.S. may make an historical nuclear weapons deal with Iran.
This wouldn’t be an issue, except that Iran is a sworn enemy of Israel. They, along with other Middle Eastern nations, want to wipe Israel off the map. That has been these nations’ mission statement since Israel’s formation in 1949.
Now comes the following question: will the politician who slandered Netanyahu be revealed and punished? It is one thing to claim to be and feel outraged over this display of callousness. It is another thing to take and display action.
Hopefully in the near future the Obama administration will name and punish this wrongdoer. If they do, it will at least show a clear U.S. loyalty to Israel.
If they do not name and punish this “anonymous” individual, this will send a negative message not just to Israel, but to all our allies. That message will be that our leaders are free to curse allies, but not our enemies. If that message is put out, then our country will lose world-wide respect.
Even worse, if the Obama administration bypasses congress and signs a “reportedly monumental” nuclear deal with Iran, this may spell trouble with our ally Israel. This may lead to all out war between Israel and Iran if Iran somehow develops a nuclear weapon.
In the age of ISIS and global terror, this will embolden many more to join the fight to topple the West.
Essentially, the Obama administration needs to listen to the American people and punish the person who slandered Netanyahu. The bottom line is that the President needs to show his loyalty to our allies and not give into a false peace with Iran. Otherwise, another war will break out.