Obama Keeps Nuclear "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" with Israel

Forget about Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's slip up. He revealed Israel was officially part of the nuclear weapon club. That happened on the Bush shift, when Barack Obama was a U.S. Senator. Did Senator Obama sing out "la, la, la", while covering his ears? Apparently so. Reuters reported:

The U.S. administration of President Barack Obama will not force Israel to state publicly whether it has nuclear weapons, an Israeli official said on Thursday.

He said Washington would stick to a decades-old U.S. policy of "don't ask, don't tell."

Add another chink in the armor of America's impartial mediator role. Obama isn't just Bush like, he's now Nixonian.

Historians say that the Nixon administration forged a tacit policy of not pressing Israel on the matter. The official American reticence angers Iran -- which denies seeking the bomb -- as well as the Arab world.

Ch-ch-ch-change...

U.S. to Fully Fund Israel's Missile Defense System

The Obama administration offered goodies to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The Jerusalem Post reported:

The US has said it will provide the full funding for the development and production of the Arrow 3 anti-missile system

Is that in addition to the $2.77 billion in annual military support America provides to Israel? How did the Arrow 3 avoid the budget axe? Expensive military gear needs to be used.

Later this year, the IAF will hold an unprecedented, massive exercise with the US military to test three different ballistic missile defense systems, the Israeli-made Arrow and the American THAAD and Aegis, which will be brought to Israel for the exercise. The drill, which will span several days, is called "Juniper Cobra."

When will it happen? Maybe October, the deadline Dennis Ross set for Iran negotiations? Will it involve the CIA?

Yosemite Sam National Park

Pack up your six shooters and head to Yosemite National Park. Congress approved a new mascot for the pristine California wilderness. It's shoot 'em up Yosemite Sam! Guns are expressly welcomed. What's the fun of having a gun, if you can't use 'em on varmits? Varmit hunting, coming to a National Park near you. Be sure to thank Congress!

Panetta's "Political Spat" Ignores Truth & Justice

The Wall Street Journal reported on CIA Director Leon Panetta's reaction to remarks made by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. While his concern for CIA field agents is admirable, Panetta's discounting of the law is concerning.

Both the red and blue teams avoid any credible investigation into America's recent history of torture. Truth and justice are the beacon. Panetta, Pelosi and their ilk draped a wet blanket over America's shining light.

Israel Building New Settlement

It didn't take Israeli P.M. Netanyahu long to break his promise to only expand existing settlements. Haaretz reported:

Israel has moved ahead with a plan to build a new settlement in the northern West Bank for the first time in 26 years, pursuing a project the United States has already condemned as an obstacle to peace efforts.

The move comes on the eve of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's first meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama, despite Western calls for Israel to halt its settlement activity.

Israel clearly wants land more than peace. It has over a decade long record in this regard. The U.S. ignores it.

Update 8-20-26:  Reuters reported:

U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee has warned militant Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank not to steal property owned by Palestinian Americans, describing such behavior as "a violation of God's law". 

"You don't take something that doesn't belong to you."

Patently laughable given what has happened over the last thirty years.   Israel has taken and taken and taken and taken and taken and ....

Obama Notes Iran's Existential Threat to Israel

Before Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visits the White House, President Obama noted the threat Israel faces from Iran. The Jerusalem Post reported:

"I understand very clearly that Israel considers Iran an existential threat, and given some of the statements that have been made by [Iranian] President [Mahmoud] Ahmadinejad, you can understand why," Obama said in an interview with Newsweek.

With respect to concerns Israel might carry out an air strike against Iranian nuclear facilities, the US president said that since Israel is "right there in the range" of Iranian missiles, "their calculation of costs and benefits are going to be more acute."

Obama remarked that he did not think it was his place to "determine for the Israelis what their security needs are."

That's funny for a country supplying $2.77 billion in annual military aid to Israel. A year ago candidate Obama proved he could AIPANDER at an AIPAC meeting.. He's looking similar as President.

Obama's Meeting with Netanyahu

"The meeting on Monday is a continuation of a very close relationship between the U.S. and Israel, very close friendship and cooperation on many issues," said one senior Obama official.

"This is [the president's] first opportunity to take the next step to deepen and expand this cooperation. And I'm quite sure it will be the first of many such conversations."