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>From http://www.middleeastwire.com:8080/storypage.jsp?id=5112
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US politics vs. Middle East reality
publisher: Jordan Times (Amman)
By: James J. Zogby
Posted: 2002-04-23
After president George W. Bush proclaimed Ariel Sharon a “man of peace” and
praised his withdrawal from the West Bank, I was inundated by questions from US
reporters. Many were indignant, others were just confused. “What”, they asked, “was
he doing?” On April 4, Bush, despite his extra criticism of Palestinian President
Yasser Arafat, appeared to be fair in calling for an “immediate” Israeli withdrawal.
He was, he said, dispatching Secretary of State Colin Powell with messages for both
Sharon and Arafat. And, the president concluded, “I expect results”.
Powell's trip ended without results. Israel's marauding army continues to lay waste to
areas of the West Bank. War crimes have been committed and the brutal siege of
several cities and towns remains in place.
Despite this obvious failure, the president inexplicably proclaimed victory, thanking
Sharon for his cooperation while focusing his criticism on Arafat. All over the world,
and here in the US, people were baffled by the all too obvious disconnect between
reality and Bush's observations.
What happened? Bush blinked. In the face of political pressure coming from within
his own party, the president backed away from his April 4 insistence on an
“immediate Israeli withdrawal”. It was not the insubstantial Jewish-led pro-Israel
rally
that pressured Bush, it was the substantial criticism he was receiving from his neo-
conservative and religious right-wing Republican supporters.
In fact, it might be said that the position of the White House began to turn after
Republican senators invited former Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu to
address the Senate. Netanyahu used the opportunity to implicitly criticise the Powell
mission. Imagine, US senators inviting a foreign personality to undercut their own
president and secretary of state, who was at that very moment in the midst of his
mission to the Middle East.
This pressure was amplified in television and newspaper commentaries and in letters
from senators to the president. Slowly, the White House began to alter its language
and course.
“Suicide bombers” became “homicide bombers” and “immediate withdrawal” became
“progress in the days to come”. By the end of the Powell mission, the political shift
was complete.
Although Powell's last press statement in the Middle East contained some of the
April 4 rhetoric, just an hour later, the president, speaking in Virginia, appeared to
be
moving away from this position. All in an effort to silence his domestic critics.
But this rather transparent effort to call black white and white black will not fare
well.
First and foremost because US reporters, especially those who accompanied the
secretary of state and those who have been covering the Israeli assault from the
region, know what really occurred and they continue to ask tough questions.
The US public is also apparently not impressed. Although the president still retains
high overall ratings, he receives a 20 per cent lower score for his handling of the
Middle East conflict.
And while public sympathy, shaped by biased media coverage and negative
stereotypes, remains with Israel, on policy issues the public is demanding balance. In
fact, almost 75- 80 per cent of the public says that they want a US policy that applies
pressure evenly and does not favour either side.
In this context, it is worth noting an incident at last week's State Democratic
Convention in Florida. Senator Joseph Lieberman, attempting to court favour with the
crowd, exhorted the president to stand more firmly with Sharon and Israel. Press
reports noted that Lieberman's comments were met with silence.
It is also important to note that the internal struggle within the administration will
not
end. The State Department will continue to push for a more realistic approach to
diplomacy.
Just last week, after the president's comments, we conducted a briefing at the State
Department based on our recent poll of Arab opinion towards US-Middle East policy.
It is clear that whatever political pressure can do to alter policy, it can't alter
reality —
and US diplomats know that.
Especially in the next few weeks, when the destruction and horrors of Jenin and
other sites in the West Bank become clearer and when international reaction grows,
the US will be forced to deal with the reality of Israel's brutal aggression. US
diplomats know this and they will continue to press the White House on these
matters.
It is also very clear that not only Arabs are upset with the lack of balance in US
policy. A recent Pew Research poll of five European countries establishes that in
France, Great Britain, Germany and Italy, public opinion is, by a significant margin,
opposed to US policy. This is reflected in growing frustration in the European Union
and the United Nations and threats that these bodies may apply their own pressure
on the US.
Despite all this, pro-Israel efforts, from the traditional lobby and its right- wing
allies,
continue. Operating according to the principle that a good offence in the best
defence, the pro-Israel groups have been hard at work, to shore up support in
Congress and have moved their campaign into the other areas as well.
Individual state legislatures are now being pressed to pass pro-Sharon, pro-Israel
resolutions. There is also an intense campaign to attack media outlets accusing
them of being anti-Israel.
Can these efforts succeed? While realities in the world and Arab pressure will serve
as a check against the pressures of domestic politics, if Arabs do not respond in an
aggressive US campaign of their own, real damage can be done.
© 2002 (Jordan Times (Amman))
End<{{{
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