A reader writes:
The poll says: Only 12 percent -- down from 25 percent last year -- say that Arabs should continue to fight even if there is a two-state peace agreement.
How is this bad news? The more Arabs that are willing to acknowledge Israel in the case of a two-state peace agreement the closer we come to having one. No other president has gotten Israel to suspend settlement increases, or gotten Bibi Netanyahu to be so willing to come to the bargaining table.The reason Israel elected Likud is because the population is cynical about the peace process and wanted a political party that would protect them from terrorism and missile attacks. Now even that party is basically demanding face to face negotiations with Abbas. The Arabs who disapprove of Obama are sounding a whole lot like the liberals who disapprove of Obama -- considering all he's done to further the peace process there's a whole lot to be happy about.
Obviously we're not there yet, but let's not get caught up in whether Arabs are happy with Obama. Israelis also aren't happy with Obama. Maybe that's for the best. They can unite in their mutual loathing for the guy who is working to save their lives in the Middle East.
But there is a window for Obama's credibility. And it is slowly closing, while Netanyahu does his best to wait it out. The prime minister has, however, apparently promised a real shift this September. Let's wait and see. And believe me, if the Palestinians turn out to be the resistant party in the wake of Israeli concessions, the Dish will not be turning a blind eye. I'm interested in winning the long war of ideas against Jihadism. I think, in the end, the Israelis are too.