The first meeting between the newly elected Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu and President Barak Obama at the White House last Monday marks an historic and defining change in the 'special' relationship between the United States and Israel sealed thirty years ago when Jimmy Carter and Menachin Begin were both elected in the mid 1970s.Nurtured by evangelical leaders such as Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson, the Christian Right became leading advocates for Israel in the 1980s working hand in glove with AIPAC. A tripartite coalition emerged between the Israeli Right, Evangelicals and the Neo Conservatives in the US Administration. They ensured US foreign policy in the Middle East coincided with that of Israel. The signs are, however, that this is set to change under the new Obama Administration.
Just as the sub-prime mortgage scandal exposed the bankruptcy of many of America's financial institutions, so growing numbers of Americans are waking up to the fact that the so called "loan guarantees" which fund Israel's illegal occupation of Palestine are not in the best interests of the USA. And continually vetoing resolutions critical of Israel in the United Nations is not winning America any new friends either. While George W. Bush brokered the Road-Map his adminstration did nothing in eight long years to implement it.
As Philip Weiss comments "The Israel lobby has always feared public awareness. But the Iraq war and Gaza have ended the politics of ignorance; awareness is growing, especially on the left."
Robert Dreyfuss in The Nation claims "The results suggest that Obama would have strong support for a hands-on US diplomatic effort to forge an Israel-Palestine deal, even if it means pressure on Israel.
According to the poll, when asked if the United States should "get tough" with Israel in order to back up its call for an end to settlement construction in the occupied West Bank, fully 50 percent of Americans said yes, with just 19 percent saying "do nothing," and 32 percent not sure.
Even though Americans have a high opinion of Israel (by a 71-21 margin) and a low opinion of the Palestinians (by a 25-66 margin) in terms of favorability, overall -- not just in regard to settlements -- Americans say that it's "time for the United States to get tough with Israel" by a surprising 45-44 margin.
Hiding in those numbers, however, is an overwhelming partisan gap, and that is the really striking thing about the Zogby poll.
Asked whether the interests of Israel and the US are identical, only 28 percent of Obama voters agreed, while 59 percent disagreed. Among McCain voters, it was the reverse: 78 percent of McCain voters said US and Israel interests were identical and 15 percent said they are not.Asked about Netanyahu, the favorability rating for Obama voters was 29-49 percent, while the rating for McCain voters was a lopsided 82-9 percent.
And on the crucial question, is it time to get tough with Israel, the gap was a veritable Grand Canyon. Among Obama voters, 71 percent agreed and 18 percent disagreed. Among McCain voters, 16 percent agreed and 73 percent disagreed.
Similar divides showed up on virtually every question asked.
What does it mean? It says that President Obama will have the support of his base, including Democrats and Independents, if he decides to force the issue in coming months with the Israeli leader. According to John Zogby, part of the reason is demographic: black voters, Hispanic voters, and young (18-30) voters are far less attached to the US-Israeli special relationship than are older, more traditional voters, especially among Christian evangelicals."
Since Israel has just issued tenders for the construction of a new illegal settlement at Maskiot, the first test may very well be whether President Obama links the continuation of US loan guarantees with Israel's compliance of its international obligations under the Road-Map and Annapolis Agreement.