Gadi Taub
JNS, July 28, 2024
“Regional integration” is a progressive, postcolonial version of an old State Department bias. It assumes that America’s allies, especially Israel but now also the Saudis, are an unnecessary burden.”
The media mostly discussed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s fourth speech before a joint session of the two houses of Congress in terms of performance, which even his detractors conceded was masterful. They did not ask, however, about Netanyahu’s aims, which they seemed to assume were self-evident. But they were not. The speech laid a major trap for the Biden administration. Since the trap was hiding in plain sight, it was easy to miss.
Everything seemed straightforward: Netanyahu defined the war with Hamas as one tributary of the larger struggle against Iran and called on the whole of Western civilization to unite around it. “This is not a clash of civilizations,” the PM said, alluding to the title of Samuel Huntington’s famous book. “It’s a clash between barbarism and civilization. It’s a clash between those who glorify death and those who sanctify life.”
The speech also successfully linked American patriotism to the war against barbarism and Congress resoundingly agreed. Senators, representatives and guests alike responded to the portrayal of American patriots in direct opposition to Iran’s “useful idiots” with chants of “USA! USA! USA!”
The speech created the illusion of wide consensus around self-evident moral truths. But in reality, the Biden administration is not exactly part of such a consensus. In this light, the speech may be said to be highly provocative: Netanyahu portrayed the whole of the West as united in opposition to the Biden administration’s Middle East policy. … [To read the full article, click here]