On Foreign Soil

Who leads U.S. foreign policy? According to the Constitution, it's the Executive Branch. But if you're John McCain and Joe Lieberman, maybe you think you're in charge of it:

Government sources said the threat of the US using economic leverage - such as withholding loan guarantees - to place pressure on Israel was not raised in the one-hour conversation. US Middle East envoy George Mitchell, when asked last Wednesday in a television interview what "sticks" the US had in its arsenal against Israel, raised the notion of withholding loan guarantees, although he quickly said this was not the direction the US wanted to go in.

Lieberman, after saying that an administration official had already disavowed Mitchell's statement, said that in his opinion "any attempt to pressure Israel, to force Israel to the negotiating table by denying Israel support, will not pass the Congress of the United States. In fact, the Congress will stop any attempt to do that. I don't think we will come to that point."

McCain was equally unequivocal, saying that this type of pressure would not be helpful "and I don't agree with it."

McCain added that he was sure that the administration would make it clear in the future that this was not its policy.

I support Israel the way the progressives in Israel support their own country, in that there has to be some kind of change in entrenched approach, otherwise it will not go well for Israel in the long run. Yes, there has to be strong defense against the forces that would like to wipe it off the map, and yes, there has to be some give on the Palestinian side, but if there is only the fist (think the atrocities coming to light from the most recent Gaza invasion), there will never be peace.

Is there anyone out there on the Likud side or to the right of it that has a real concept for a future that isn't just continued threat of aggression and extinction?

If so, I'd love to hear it. Status quo for the next millennium is a pipe dream.