The Bibi Bomb

On the eve of "Republican Senator from West Jerusalem" and Israeli Prime Minister Bibi "Bomb Bomb" Netanyahu's speech to Congress, we're hearing more criticism:

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) knocked Netanyahu for suggesting that he represents all Jewish people on the topic of Iran. 

“He doesn’t speak for me on this,” Feinstein said Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union.” “I think it’s a rather arrogant statement. I think the Jewish community is like any other community. There are different points of view. I think that arrogance does not befit Israel, candidly.” (our emphasis)

Well, count that as one "hawk" showing displeasure.  Clearly, though, Bibi thinks he's playing a smart game, coming to Washington to undercut the President, something he's never tried before... What?

Three times in the past 20 years, an Israeli prime minister has headed into an election while openly battling a U.S. president. The first two times the incumbent lost, establishing the Israeli political maxim that endangering relations with Washington was ruinous. In 1999, the loser was Benjamin Netanyahu, who calculated, wrongly, that he could outmaneuver President Bill Clinton by appealing to Congress. Remarkably, a politician known for his caution has now bet his career, and the future of the U.S.-Israel alliance, on the same strategem.  (our emphasis)

Well, at least he's shoring up his cred in Israel, which is his true audience given the election in a few weeks:

When Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivers his apocalyptic message to Congress on Iranian nukes on Tuesday, he will seem the personification of the Israeli hawk. 

But back home in Israel, where I’ve been reporting for the last two weeks, there’s a strong sense even among hard-liners that Netanyahu has blown Israeli foreign policy and is making his nation weaker by imperiling its relationship with its most critical patron, the United States.  (our emphasis)

We realize there are plenty of Israelis who support what Bibi is up to, as well as a certain noxious "independent" American pol.  But we have no doubt that Bibi's cynical gambit, aligning himself to the bumbling, ineffective Republican Weeper of the House John Boehner (Eunuch-OH), is going to have a lasting negative impact on U.S.-Israel relations.  Bibi's intention isn't to affect American policy in the Iran nuclear negotiations;  it's only to burnish an image of him as "protector of the Jewish people," one that he's manufactured in the aftermath of the Paris and Copenhagen terrorist attacks.  He' already been shown to be a liar when it comes to the Iranian nuclear program.

It's an election cycle so it's all about Bibi.

BONUS:  This comprehensive look at what Bibi Bomb Bomb is up to is worth a read.

(Photo:  Boehner and Bibi, a.k.a., Alphonse and Gaston)

Americans Don't Like The Bibi And Boehner Show

In addition to the unpopularity of his Department of Homeland Security shutdown gambit, Weeper of the House John "Mr. Tangerine Man" Boehner's invitation to Israeli Prime Minister Bibi "Bibi Bomb Bomb" Netanyahu to address Congress without consulting with the White House has shaped up to be another FAIL with the American public:

A large majority of Americans believe that Republican congressional leaders should not have invited Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to speak to Congress without consulting the White House, according to a new CNN/ORC survey. 

The nationwide poll, released Tuesday, shows 63% of Americans say it was a bad move for congressional leadership to extend the invitation without giving President Barack Obama a heads up that it was coming. Only 33% say it was the right thing to do. (our emphasis)

Again, the roughly 30% thinking it was "the right thing to do?"  The Republican base. (It was the right-wing thing to do, apparently.)

(Accompanying musical coda.)

(Photo:  "Alphonse" and "Gaston".)

The Tangerine Man's Dangerous Hubris

Weeper of the House John "Mr. Tangerine Man" Boehner has clearly set course to collide with the President on policy toward Iran and Israel.  Likely egged on by powerful contributors ** cough Smelly Shelly Adelson cough** and by the rapture caucus in his own party, the weeping one has been put on the defensive as criticism of his invitation to Israel's Prime Minister Bibi "Bibi Bomb Bomb" Netanyahu to address Congress has spread from the U.S. to Israel.  When asked by a mildly incredulous Chris Wallace on Fux about why he went behind the White House's back to arrange Bibi Bomb Bomb's appearance, Mr. Tangerine Man replied,

"...I wanted to make sure that there was no interference."

The contempt for President Obama isn't anything new for Boehner;  it's the contempt for the office of the President and his Constitutional obligation to conduct foreign policy that's stunning and unprecedented.  Of course, in the next breath, Mr. Tangerine Man will be bloviating about defending the Constitution, as he bows to a foreign politician's wish to intrude into domestic politics.