Emanuele, you may be right, sadly. But there is a point at which the administration does diminish the enthusiasm — both financial and electoral — that they have taken for granted. And then there is the broader political landscape. By taking on Israel, they have handed pro-Israel conservatives yet another national-security issue in the upcoming election. We have already seen Marco Rubio and Mark Kirk, two senate candidates, weighing in. And where are their opponents? Silent so far. Pat Toomey’s spokesman e-mails me with this: “If this Administration was nearly as tough on Iran as it is on Israel then our policies would have more credibility with both our friends and our enemies.” As national security rises in the public’s list of concerns, I think it’s entirely likely that Democrats and those Republicans with a record of antipathy toward Israel will be put on the spot: do they support Obama’s anti-Israel offensive? Chalk it up as one more problem Obama has foisted onto his fellow Democrats who struggling to stay in office.
And then there is the evangelical community, which remains stalwart in its support of Israel. Recall that the administration was going to make headway with this group. Well, now they are none too pleased. A representative of the pro-Israel Christian community expressed to me his concern that the administration was overreacting. “The timing of the announcement was a mistake,” he told me, “but by all accounts Netanyahu had nothing to do with this timing and has apologized for it. But the administration seems determined to use this diplomatic dust up as an excuse to apply even greater pressure on the one side willing to resume direct talks immediately — Israel. This is counter-productive.” The reaction of non-Jews, evangelical or otherwise, in an electorate overwhelmingly pro-Israel will be telling. The Obami may assume that only Jews care about this issue. They are wrong, I think.
But Emanuele, you are certainly correct that the proof will be at the ballot box and in the support afforded to Obama and those in his party who condone (either overtly or not) this newest line of attack. Is there a point at which American Jews cry “Enough!”? The Obami clearly think this is a cost-free gambit for them, domestically. We’ll have to see whether they are right.