stating that we had to let them sign off on all of our decisions, and that we weren't allowed to disagree with them in public.

Maybe it's a condition of all the money, weapons, and diplomatic support they give us.

The White House denied an Israeli newspaper report on Tuesday that U.S. President Barack Obama had invited Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to meet in Washington next month.

Citing unnamed U.S. State Department sources, Yedioth Ahronoth daily said the two leaders could meet in the White House on July 15 or 16, after the June 30 deadline for an Iranian nuclear deal over which they have frequently clashed.

Since Netanyahu's election to a fourth term on March 17, U.S. and Israeli officials have said they expected he would meet Obama again. But no date has been set, and a White House official denied Netanyahu had received any U.S. invitation.

"No invitation has been extended, though certainly we’d expect that there will be occasion for the two leaders to meet in Washington at some point going forward," the official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said in response to Yedioth's report.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/06/16/us-iran-nuclear-israel-usa-idUSKBN0OW0C520150616

the Israeli PM would be in DC."

"President Barack Obama deliberately damaged the relationship between the United States and Israel, according to Israel’s former ambassador to the U.S."

Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2015/06/michael-oren-israel-ambassador-on-obama-wsj-op-ed-119046.html#ixzz3dFJYuZiW

not letting Israel run our foreign policy in the region--disagreeing with Israel in public and not getting their permission to make policy statements.

Considering that the Israeli government under Netanyahu has been an extension of the Republican party in the United States, this is especially galling.

Wonder if the nest POTUS will be more pliant? I think Israel is depending on it

Once they get in office, we'll see.

Clinton won't let anyone tell her what to do, and Jeb doesn't give a f@ck about Israel.

Still trying, ever so subtly, to intimidate and threaten. Still ready to pretend he knows other peoples motives for rhetorical purposes. What a diplomat.

But this is Oren, he has always been a bloviator

really I think they're just biding time until January of 2017

a Summer PR offensive to patch things up and surviving to the end of Obama's term as the primary strategic objective,
and I think we are seeing the beginnings of that in things like Dersh saying Obama is a good guy after all.

Times of Israel, I think it was. I'll see if I can find it.

Apparently nobody has clued Oren in yet.

Netanyahu's 'Autumn Restart' Plan

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's speech at the Herzliya diplomatic gathering on July 9 was a first, cautious trial balloon of sorts for what political sources in Israel call his "autumn restart." By this they mean a new diplomatic initiative that Netanyahu will launch as soon as the Iranian issue is no longer on the agenda by the end of June, assuming that a nuclear agreement is reached.

Ultimately, the goal of this initiative is the renewal of diplomatic negotiations with the Palestinians. This would be achieved by adding Isaac Herzog's Zionist Camp to Netanyahu's coalition, rebooting relations with the United States, reducing the growing tensions between Israel and the international community — particularly with Europe — and hindering the campaign of delegitimization and boycotts being waged against Israel. All that remains to be seen is whether Netanyahu will eventually accept and implement the plan, or whether the chaotic, unforeseeable events of the Middle East will impede it.

---

It should not be forgotten that Netanyahu spent six years milking his 2009 Bar Ilan speech for all it was worth, even though nothing actually came of it. A second speech focusing on the Arab Peace Initiative will buy him even more time, and he doesn’t need much. In fact, all he needs is about 18 months. That’s because Netanyahu’s real task at this stage is to survive Barack Obama’s presidency. But that will not be easy, and anything that can help him will be put to use. It doesn’t matter if it’s Herzog, the Arab League or a partial freeze on settlement activity. All that matters is outlasting the Democratic president in Washington so despised in Jerusalem.

There were indications of this intent in the speech by Netanyahu’s Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon at the same Herzliya gathering. Ya’alon, Netanyahu’s defense mentor, says publicly what Netanyahu says behind closed doors. Ya’alon has long played the role of the “bad boy,” and once again, he did not disappoint. “The most stable thing in the Middle East is instability,” he said. Then he continued, “I see no chance of a stable peace being reached between Israel and the Palestinians in my lifetime, and I plan to live a little longer.”

http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2015/06/netanyahu-diplomatic-initiative-autumn-arab-peace-proposal.html

way. We'll see what happens with Obama domestically first, then as they say, Iran.

Kerry had the ducks lined up before the poof, and those ducks are pissed off at Bibi
and sick of him....the EU.

I've wondered if Bibi is going to try to present himself as the 'moderate', considering his actions in relation to the banning of Palestinians from buses in the West Bank, but that's a risky thing to do considering his coalition government

Deputy IDF Chief of Staff Maj.-Gen. Yair Golan said Tuesday that Israel's security situation on the northern border has improved as a result of the Syrian civil war, which has served to drain the blood of Hezbollah.

On the surface, these appear to be trivial remarks, which have been repeated by military experts and analysts over the past several years. But to hear them from such a senior military authority is refreshingly new.

As far as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minsiter Moshe Ya'alon are concerned, these comments verge on heresy. If our security situation has improved, does the IDF really need additions to its budget? And what about the approach taken by Netanyahu, who continues to warn, on every possible occasion, of the threat of Iran, Hezbollah, and Islamic State?

Indeed, Israel's strategic situation has never been better. Arab states that were once armed to the teeth, such as Libya and Iraq, have fallen apart. Egypt is a military and intelligence ally of Israel in its fight against Hamas the Sinai terror threat.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/1134105018

things about Obama. AIPAC keeps this dysfunction alive and well.