{"id":14843,"date":"2015-03-04T16:10:23","date_gmt":"2015-03-05T00:10:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/?p=14843"},"modified":"2015-03-04T16:31:04","modified_gmt":"2015-03-05T00:31:04","slug":"the-butcher-bibi-show","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/2015\/03\/04\/the-butcher-bibi-show\/","title":{"rendered":"The Butcher Bibi Show"},"content":{"rendered":"

I call it a show, because that’s what it was.  On the plus side, I have to admit that Butcher Bibi pulled off a very talented act, but that’s all it was.  There was no substance there.  In fact, it really had little to do with Iran.  Both Butcher Bibi and Agent Orange had their own separate agendas, neither of which involves Iran, per se.<\/font><\/p>\n

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\"0304evilduo\"Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel could not have hoped for a more rapturous welcome in Congress<\/a>. With Republicans and most Democrats as his props, he entered the House of Representatives to thunderous applause on Tuesday, waving his hand like a conquering hero and being mobbed by fawning lawmakers as he made his way to the lectern.<\/p>\n

Even Washington doesn’t often see this level of exploitative political theater; it was made worse because it was so obviously intended to challenge President Obama’s foreign policy<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Mr. Netanyahu’s speech<\/a> offered nothing of substance that was new, making it clear that this performance was all about proving his toughness on security issues ahead of the parliamentary election he faces on March 17. He offered no new insight on Iran and no new reasons to reject the agreement being negotiated with Iran by the United States and five other major powers to constrain Iran’s nuclear program.<\/p>\n

His demand that Mr. Obama push for a better deal is hollow. He clearly doesn’t want negotiations and failed to suggest any reasonable alternative approach that could halt Iran’s nuclear ef<\/strong>forts.<\/p>\n

Moreover, he appeared to impose new conditions, insisting that international sanctions not be lifted as long as Iran continues its aggressive behavior, including hostility toward Israel and support for Hezbollah, which has called for Israel’s destruction… [emphasis added<\/em>]<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Inserted from <NY Times<\/a>><\/p>\n

As long as the US remains in a state of war against nations or groups that claim to follow Islam, Israel remains an important regional ally.  That limits US pressure for Israel to honor  treaty obligations and and helps maintain the regional view that the US is anti-Muslim.<\/font><\/p>\n

Chris Hayes provided excellent coverage.<\/font><\/p>\n