To this writer, that sounds, if not like the ranting of a madman, at least of someone who deeply and fundamentally misunderstands the entire Middle East problem. Clearly McCain hasn t noticed that it is Israel that has not lived up to its commitments, and that true American self-interest in the Middle East is peace with justice that will create political and economic stability, ensure respect for human rights, and save lives there. If he thinks there s something that transcends that, he may be as nutty as Pat Robertson. If McCain were elected president, our kids might soon be fighting Israel s unjust wars, and Americans would be at risk both at home and abroad. Meanwhile, since in the last issue we compared Sen. Bill Bradley s Middle East voting record with McCain s, justice requires us to repair inadvertent damage to Bradley.
Most Democratic candidates are dependent to some extent on pro-Zionist donors and media support.
But Bradley nevertheless manages to sound much more nuanced, even when he s pandering. I think the Barak government has a very clear idea of what it means as a negotiating strategy. I think the United States should not jump into the middle of that, that it should be a negotiation of the confrontational states, and ultimately they have to make an agreement that they can live with. And that negotiation itself would produce a positive result. I do not think the United States should prejudge this.