The Pro-Israeli Lobby

“We have always said that in our war with the Arabs we had a secret weapon – no alternative” – Golda Meir (1898-1978), one of the founders of the State of Israel and the fourth Prime Minister of Israel from 1969-1974

In the annals of US foreign policy no country has benefitted more from Washington’s largesse than Israel. Since the 1960’s the foreign policy of the United States in the Middle East has been almost exclusively influenced by its relationship with the state of Israel. Economic assistance to the tune of $140B since the country’s formation in 1948 dwarfs that of any other nation. Today, Israel still receives an annual “gift” of approximately $3B, despite the fact that it is considered a reasonably affluent country in its own right. The United States has continually ignored Israel’s proliferation of nuclear weapons while sanctimoniously condemning other nations in the region from developing their own nuclear capability. Israel has continually cited its national security and virtual existence as its reasons for building a nuclear arsenal and waging a series of regional wars over the past forty years.

Why has Israel benefitted from such preferential treatment from the United States? One hypothesis often floated is that Israel and the United States share the same enemies; terrorist organizations and rogue states in the Middle East that are bent on the destruction of Israel and the creation of a regional Arab hegemony. While it is true that many of the Arab nations in the region view Israel as an illegitimate state, created on lands that Arabs believe belong to the Palestinian people and are therefore hostile to Israel, it is also equally true to say that Arab resentment and hostility towards the United States is largely as a result of America’s unilateral support for Israel and her policies. What is the reasoning behind this unprecedented level of US support for Israel and why does America, in my opinion, continually turn a blind eye to the blatant and disproportionate aggression meted out by Israel on the Palestinian people?

After Israel launched yet another massive land invasion and aerial assault on the Gaza Strip in December, I asked my wife if I was the only person in America that was angered at yet another example of Israel’s belligerence. Israel is perfectly entitled to defend itself but why must its aggression be totally disproportionate – as I write, in excess of one thousand Palestinians have been killed in this latest round of violence. Even ultra conservative commentators here in the United States have been openly critical of Israel’s action. Former Nixon speechwriter and apologist and two time presidential candidate himself, Pat Buchanan, referred to Israel’s most recent incursion in to Gaza as a “blitzkrieg”, in the process creating a “concentration camp” where Israel are “controlling the food, electricity and fuel”.

The pro-Israeli lobby here in the United States is a powerful one. Criticism of Israel in either the House of Representatives (Dennis Kucinich excluded) or the Senate is practically non-existent. There are many prominent Jewish politicians who make sure that Israel’s interests are well served along the corridors of power in Washington and in the White House. Money of course is the fuel that drives every political campaign and pro-Israeli organizations across the country have for decades helped politicians at a local and national level. On the whole however, America’s history of ongoing, unilateral support for Israel has to be seen as having negatively impacted its standing in the Middle East and the world at large. The Arab world’s hostility to the United States is at an all time high and has made America susceptible to Arab backlash, whether it be in the form of a terrorist attack, control over the flow and price of oil or broader support for America’s regional policies.

While I don’t expect huge changes in U.S. foreign policy towards Israel with the inauguration of President Obama and the confirmation of Hillary Clinton as the country’s top diplomat, I will be interested to see if the United States will adopt a more nuanced approach towards its relationship with Israel and the Arab-Israeli conflict in general.

"President Obama”

On January 20th, Barack Hussein Obama will have been sworn in as the 44th President of the United States. Forty years after his death and the day after the holiday that commemorates his memory, Dr. King’s dream has come to pass with the inauguration of America’s first black president. As we leave the disastrous presidency of George W. Bush in the rear view mirror, Americans are looking forward with hope, optimism and excitement at the dawning of a new era in national politics. I for one feel privileged to have had the opportunity to be an interested onlooker while the remarkable story of Barack Obama’s election to the office of President has been written. In the words of Byron, “the great art of life is sensation, to feel that we exist, even in pain”. Indeed.