Netanyahu will speak to Congress, and the front page of the Chronicle reports that some Jewish organizations and Jewish members of Congress are in a snit. The White House is outraged. {mprestriction ids="1,3"}Really? Does this mean the president has veto power over whom Congress may listen to? Yes, the normal diplomatic minuet was circumvented, but if Obama had been approached first, his response would have been negative. Then Israel would be denied the opportunity to make its case to Congress and the American people.
A question. When the current deadline passes, as all Obama’s deadlines seem to do, what do we get? Another deadline? And when that one also is ignored, has Obama said what he will do? Not that it really matters. In foreign affairs, the whole world knows what Obama says is meaningless.
America is uniquely positioned to impose truly effective sanctions that will crush Iran’s economy if they continue developing the bomb. Iran has been sponsoring terrorism throughout the Middle East. This doesn’t come cheap. And now oil prices have dropped in half. Iran’s economy is shaky. Now is the time for decisive action. I doubt if they can weave enough of their Persian rugs to make up for the shortfall.
Obama is letting Iran off the hook at the very time it is most vulnerable. Hopefully, Netanyahu will point this out, along with, more importantly, making Israel’s case on a platform that will permit his message to be heard by millions.
If Obama’s feelings are hurt, it is worth the price. The stakes are far too high to let his thin skin be the decisive issue. Congress is poised to act on tough new sanctions. Obama says he will use his veto. Israel’s destiny is on the line. Meanwhile, that humming sound you hear is thousands of Iranian centrifuges spinning, spinning, spinning.{/mprestriction}