Three days to the Barbarian’s return. Still hoping for a stroke. Meanwhile, US and Israeli media speculate on credit for the cease-fire agreed between Israel and Hamas. The competition: Biden, Trump, or Netanyahu. Much is made of Trump’s purported threat there’ll be “hell to pay” if a deal wasn’t reached by the time he’s inaugurated.
This is yet another case of low-quality reporting. First, the deal that was reached is not substantively different from what’s been on the table for months. It wasn’t finalized previously because Netanyahu, who holds all the cards, chose not to do so for political and personal reasons: his coalition may fracture, and his criminal reckoning would come sooner.
Second, the stream of Washington rhetoric about “pressure” on the Israelis has always been fiction. Biden and Blinken might have nudged and suggested, but at no point did they say, Stop, or else. This puts to rest the idea that the US objected to Israel’s obliteration of Gaza. And if Biden abetted Israel, Trump is more, not less, likely to do so.
Third, equally fanciful is the notion that Trump “threatened” Netanyahu. With what? Like every other president, Trump is — always has been — in Bibi’s pocket. He’s not going to withhold munitions, insist on the two-state solution, demand that Israel stop stealing land in the West Bank, or stop bombing Syria.
As will be revealed eventually, the more likely explanation for Netanyahu’s agreeing to a Gaza ceasefire now is the unconditional support promised by Trump to support Israel in its coming assault on Iran. That support will not be limited to rhetoric. The US military will be involved, though the extent remains to be seen.
Naturally, Trumpers will cheer. Babble about his being a president “for peace” will quickly evaporate. “War-mongering” is only something that Democrats do. Unfortunately (if typically), Democrats will jump on the bandwagon and sing from the national song sheet the one and only lyric they know: “Israel has the right to defend itself.”
So will the Infotainment Complex. It will laud Trump as master deal-maker who, simply by being “tough,” gets the warring sides to agree. When he ultimately gives Israel the green light to bomb Iran, no one will care that he is (uncharacteristically) keeping a promise. No one will even ask.
