Republican “temper-tantrum” coordinated attack on Democrats and President Obama a dirty tricks political ploy for 2016
The partisanship-izing of the Israel-U. S. relationship continues unabated. This time, even as Netanyahu tries to soften his attacks on U.S. policy, the Republicans are continuing to throw fuel on the flames on an ongoing basis.
Recall that Republicans Speaker of the House, John Boehner, broke with a long standing tradition by inviting Prime Minister Netanyahu to speak before a joint session of Congress—WITHOUT first notifying either President Obama OR the Democratic leadership in Congress. This in the final days of the Israeli election. Interfering with an Israeli (or U.S.) election was yet another historical N0- No!
Netanyahu cemented the alliance of the Israeli right-wing to the U.S. right-wing by both accepting the invitation–a slap in the face to President Obama–and then by refusing Jewish Senator Dianne Feinstein and others’ invitation to meet face-to-face with congressional Democrats.
Now, Speaker Boehner announces a post-election visit to Israel, and Republican Spokesmen are sounding a unified insulting attack on the Democratic President Obama, urging him, as National Review (a Conservative magazine) long-time Obama-hater Rich Lowry on Meet the Press, to stop having a “temper tantrum.” It was no coincidence that another long-established Obama-hater, Senator John McCain, whom Obama defeated in the 2008 election, almost immediately came up with the “temper tantrum” charge. Of course neither quoted anything by President Obama that could even vaguely be described as a temper tantrum. Honesty has never been either’s forte. Their hope is that a lie, if repeated often enough, will stick. And the target is not just President Obama, but the Democratic Party nominee for President in the 2016 election. I have no real evidence about who organized this coordinated attack, but it surely smacks of “dirty tricks” Republican strategist, Karl Rove.
Make no mistake about the objective of these attacks on President Obama: It’s the Jewish vote in 2016. Jews, who used to vote Democratic at a mid-eighties percent rate, more recently polled at 62 percent. Most Democratic Jewish voters are no great fans of Netanyahu, and focus more readily on President Obama’s reassurances that the U.S.-Israel relationship is unshakable. But if even a few percent switch, it could be key in such close states as Florida and Ohio. Fundamentalist Christian voters will also resonate with the Republican attacks on President Obama, and by extension on the Democratic Party candidates for the 2016 elections. But, the vast majority of those who will do so are already in the Republican Camp.
Representative Boehner was born a little more than a year after Democratic President Harry Truman quickly recognized the new State of Israel. Republican efforts to stir muddy waters and posit futile arguments rather than actually legislate. Democrats would do well, in my opinion, to recall the successful campaign strategy employed by President Truman in his campaign for re-election. He attacked relentlessly the “Do Nothing (80th) Congress.” These sneaky and disingenuous snipes by Republican spokesmen for the Right must be met by a vigorous and truthful response.
