Monday, August 17, 2009

Nations don't have friends, they have interests

While touring Israel today, Governor Mike Hukabee, putative front-runner for the GOP nominee in 2012 asked the dumb question
“My question is how would the government of the United States feel if Prime Minister Netanyahu began to dictate which people could live in the Bronx, which ones could live in Manhattan, which could live in Queens, and say, ‘We only allow certain people to live in those neighborhoods,’” he said. “How would that go over?
This man wants to be president of the United States, and he's not sure how the Obama administration would react if Israel tried to boss it around? Really? Here's a hint, Huckabee. If Netanyahu started telling Americans where they could or could not live, our president and Congress would laugh so hard they'd wet their collective pants. Then, they'd ignore him.

Not incidentally, this is precisely what I've been advising Mister Netanyahu to do in response to the so-called Obama demands (which aren't that much different from Bush II, Clinton, or Bush I demands.) If Netanyahu allows himself to be pushed around, he's either (a) a creme puff or (b) of the opinion that doing what Obama wants advances Israeli interests.

In either case, no blame should be deposited on the door step of the American president. His job is to advance our interests (as he best understands them) and there are no guarantees that Israeli and American interests will forever coincide.

Arutz Sheva: Huckabee: Would Israel Tell Obama Who Can Live in the Bronx?

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