By Gary L. Bauer
Everything that the Obama Administration has done in the Middle East has been a failure. Since taking office, Obama has reached out to Iran repeatedly with an “open hand,” and every time the Iranian response has been a clenched fist. They have accelerated their nuclear program, which threatens U.S. troops, the free flow of oil, Israel and other allies in the region.
Obama’s next great idea was to reach out to Syria to entice Damascus away from Iran and Hezbollah. Failure again. Syria recently held a summit with Ahmadinejad and Hezbollah in which they pledged “solidarity” in the struggle against the U.S. and Israel.
Now there are credible reports that Syria may have transferred scud missiles with a range of 430 miles to the jihadists in Hezbollah. If true, the missiles put Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and the Israeli nuclear reactor at Dimona all within range.
The administration condemns Jewish homes in Jerusalem neighborhoods, but is silent on scuds in the hands of Hezbollah. Unbelievably, when informed of this development, the State Department expressed concern for Lebanon, not Israel. Spokesman Philip Crowley said, “If such an action has been taken, and we continue to analyze this issue, clearly it potentially puts Lebanon at significant risk.”
Obama’s third great idea has been to curry favor with Middle East thugs by diplomatically pummeling Israel. There is no evidence that these thugs can be satiated by anything other than the destruction of Israel. Meanwhile, the Israeli public is feeling betrayed by the White House, and the Palestinians have no reason to come to the peace table as long as the Obama Administration is demanding more Israeli concessions even before negotiations begin.
Today, Israel is conducting an unannounced nationwide police drill to prepare for an emergency. (It has reportedly caused one gigantic nationwide traffic jam.) Israel is also accelerating the distribution of gas masks to the Israeli public to protect against chemical and biological attacks.
Sadly, I believe there is no doubt that another Middle East war is coming. The question is when it will happen and whether the Islamofascist death worshippers will be defeated. The immoral strategy being pursued by Barack Obama of appeasing our enemies while undermining our friends will make victory more difficult and more costly in blood and treasure.
