This past Thursday President Obama gave a speech laying out his policy on the Middle East. The President covered a wide range of issues in this region to include the so-called "Arab Spring" uprisings, but some conservatives have focused all of their attention on one sentence; "the borders of Israel and Palestine should be based on the 1967 lines with mutually agreed swaps so that secure and recognized borders are established for both states."
GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney was quoted as saying “President Obama has thrown Israel under the bus.” Mr. Romney is joined by candidates Tim Pawlenty and Rick Santorum in disapproval of creating a Palestinian state based on 1967 borders with land swaps. “This is an outrage to peace, sovereignty of Israel, and a stable Middle East" according to Mike Huckabee.
But is their outrage justified or even rooted in historical facts? Has Obama taken US policy towards Israel and Palestine in a radical new direction? Have we abandoned Israel? No. President Obama's position is consistent with what US policy has been for the greater part of the past 44 years and more specifically he is continuing the policies started by President Clinton and George W. Bush.
William J. Clinton
The Clinton administration worked very hard to reach an agreement between Israel and Palestine through the Oslo Accords which laid out a phased plan to draw boundaries that would lead to a Palestinian state based on the 1967 lines. The Oslo Accords were followed-up by other efforts such as The Hebron Protocol, The Wye River Memorandum, and The Camp David 2000 Summit.
The "Clinton Parameters" laid out a land swap that would return Palestine to 97% of the land boarders as they were in 1967. This is the same land swap that was mentioned in President Obama's speech.
George W. Bush
On June, 25th 2002 President Bush gave a speech laying out his roadmap for a resolution to the Israeli/Palestinian conflict; a roadmap that would lead to the creation of a Palestinian state. In this speech he notes the need to create borders in accordance to those outlined by the UN Security council in 1967.
In a 2004 letter written to Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon President Bush requested that "as part of a final peace settlement, Israel must have secure and recognized borders, which should emerge from negotiations between the parties in accordance with UNSC Resolutions 242 and 338." UNSC Resolution 242 drafted in 1967 demanded that Israel withdraw from all territories it occupied as a result of the 6 Day War. UNSC Resolution 338 drafted in 1973 condemned Israel for violating the sovereignty of Lebanon and called upon all parties involved to cease military action.
With the exception of the Reagan administration US policy towards this region has been for Israel to withdraw it's troops from territory it has gained from the 6 Day War of 1967. There can be no solution to this conflict without creation of a Palestinian state, as long as the Palestinian’s feel they are being occupied there will be continued violence towards Israel. But both sides must give ground to achieve peace, neither side will get everything it wants. It all comes down to compromise.
I do not fault conservatives who feel that Israel is justified in its occupation of Palestinian territory and I do not fault anyone for rejecting the notion that Israel withdraw to its 1967 borders or that Palestine become a sovereign state. I disagree with them, but I respect their position. Where I do find fault is with those conservatives who make up their own facts, who are making it look as if President Obama is turning his back on Israel and bucking years of US policy. On Friday Mr. Santorum wrote a piece for The National Review criticizing President Obama for his position, but he chose to ignore that Mr. Bush and Mr. Clinton held the same views and also "prejudged" talks on the 1967 borders. I confronted Mr. Santorum on this issue on Twitter presenting him with copies of speeches and documents from previous administrations who held the same position as the President but Mr. Santorum (or whomever runs his Twitter account) deleted my replies to his tweet. You will only find supportive tweets on his account, I guess he didn't want his followers to know the truth.
Obama's position on Israel isn't radical, it's the status quo. Some conservatives are just choosing their own set of facts.
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