THIS IS BRILLIANT. I AGREE WITH EVERY WORD.

By David Weinberg, ISRAEL HAYOM

[..]
So it’s time for Israel to re-articulate its thinking about the process of achieving Israeli-Palestinian peace. Netanyahu should capitalize on his sweeping victory to reset the diplomatic table by outlining a pragmatic process that Israel can participate in, and to draw clear Israeli red lines as to acceptable contours of a solution.

Doing so is especially urgent since Israel is already facing a renewed international campaign for West Bank withdrawals. The Obama administration is not-so-subtly threatening to throw its support behind a new United Nations Security Council resolution recognizing Palestinian independence and demanding rapid withdrawal to the 1967 lines (with some itsy-bitsy possible land swaps mentioned as a sop to Israel).
Read more…

Rebuking Obama rapprochement, Petraeus warns Iran is taking control in Iraq, and is an enemy of the US and its allies.

By Ari Yashar, INN

At a time when US President Barack Obama’s administration has shown a softening stance vis-a-vis Iran, even considering an alliance against Islamic State (ISIS) terrorists in Iraq and Syria, former CIA head Gen. David Petraeus warned Iran is a greater danger than ISIS in Iraq.

In an interview conducted in Iraq and posted by the Washington Post on Friday, Petraeus, who led US troops during the 2007-2008 surge in Iraq, spoke about the challenges facing the war-torn country.

Speaking at the annual Sulaimani Forum of Iraqi leaders in northern Iraq’s Kurdistan region, the general acknowledged that aside from Iraqi factionalism and sectarianism leading to disaster, the US had made many mistakes in the country as well.
Read more…

Senator Tom Cotton (R), Arkansas is a rising star.

“After graduating from Harvard in three years, Cotton returned to Claremont to pursue a master’s degree, but abandoned it after a year, finding academic life “too sedentary.” Instead, he enrolled in Harvard Law School. On September 11, 2001, he had just begun his final year. He wanted to serve his country, but first, he had student loans to pay off. Three years later, with the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan intensifying, Cotton left the Washington law firm where he was working to join the Army. He did not want to be a military lawyer; he wanted to fight. He became an infantry officer. He was sent to Iraq.”

He is very tall and very young (37).

He is the person who assembled 47 Senators to sign the letter to Iran recently, warning it that the Senate has the last word on the deal.

And now he has made a speech in which he pledges that the Senate will do its utmost to prevent the Obama administration or any other institution, be it the UN or the ICC, from harming Israel.

GO HERE TO WATCH THE VIDEO.

Mark Levin to Obama: “Let’s Have A National Discussion About The Anti-Semitism That Reeks From Your Administration”

MARK LEVIN: He doesn’t like Congress. He’s got his pen and his phone. And when Congress doesn’t do what he says he’s off doing his best Benito Mussolini. He doesn’t like Netanyahu. Netanyahu just won in a landslide; Obama’s never won in a landslide. The American people rose up in November and told Obama how they are disgusted with his programs and his policies. And what did he do? He turned around and spat in our faces. And he does the same in 2010 when they lose the House of Representatives. Read more…

By Evelyn Gordon, COMMENTARY

Nowadays, it’s become virtually accepted wisdom that Israel is becoming increasingly right-wing, and that this shift constitutes a major obstacle to peace. No less a figure than Bill Clinton made this claim at a Clinton Global Initiative conference in 2010. A 2011 study by the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies similarly declared, “Today Israel’s Jewish population is more nationalistic, religiously conservative, and hawkish on foreign policy and security affairs than that of even a generation ago, and it would be unrecognizable to Israel’s founders.” A popular corollary of this thesis is that Israel, as it moves rightward, is becoming less democratic, less respectful of civil rights, and less tolerant of minorities.

Both halves of this thesis are wrong. In fact, Israeli politics have shifted sharply to the left; ideas once confined to the far-left fringe are now mainstream. And civil rights, democracy, and treatment of minorities have all been improving.
Read more…

By Martin Sherman, JPOST

With respect to the people’s choice, if this is in fact its choice, I do not accept it … If that is the choice of the people, the people should be changed
– Labor leader Yitzhak Ben-Aharon, on hearing the results of 1977 election in which, for the first time ever, the Labor Party was ousted from power by the Likud, after almost three decades of political hegemony

The unthinkable has been avoided – narrowly. Had the election gone the way many had expected, the country would have had a prime minster who, in his own words, believes that “the term ‘Jewish state’ is totally misguided.”

Indeed, against all odds
Read more…

As March 31 deadline nears for nuclear agreement, Tehran wants U.N. sanctions lifted right away; U.S., Europeans say ‘no way.’

By Laurence Norman And Jay Solomon, WALL STREET JOURNAL, March 19, 2015 7:27 p.m. ET

LAUSANNE, Switzerland—When international sanctions on Iran would be lifted has emerged as one of the largest remaining stumbling blocks to an agreement to constrain Tehran’s nuclear program by a March 31 deadline, according to U.S., European and Iranian officials.

Tehran’s negotiators in Switzerland, according to these diplomats, have hardened their position that United Nations sanctions on their country be repealed at the front end of any deal reached this month with the U.S. and other global powers.

The U.S. and its European allies are demanding the U.N.’s sanctions be suspended or terminated in a phased time-frame over years.
Read more…

“If America does not stand with Israel, who would we stand with?” Rubio said.

T. Belman. Obama is making a big mistake. The more he beats up on Israel, the more the Senate will challenge him on Iran.

ISRAEL HAYOM

One of the first and most important tasks facing the next government will be to deflate the real estate price bubble. This is a mega-bubble that has only grown, and we are familiar with the consequences. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu talked about this issue in the final days of the election campaign. He admitted it needed to be dealt with and promised to do so.

The correct way to dismantle a bomb is slowly and cautiously. So the goal should be to lower housing prices gradually to a reasonable level. A sharp decline could produce shock waves in the economy that would undermine the stability of the financial system and send the economy into a recession. We saw what happened in the U.S. in 2008 when the real estate price bubble burst. The economy of the entire world ground to a halt.

Still, the high prices must be taken care of. We are cruising in the outer reaches of the atmosphere and the air is thin. A young couple who want to purchase an apartment must have hundreds of thousands of shekels in equity just to get a mortgage.
Read more…

In NBC interview, prime minister insists he still supports creation of Palestinian state, says that he is not a racist

BY REBECCA SHIMONI STOIL, TOI, March 19, 2015, 7:02 pm 19

WASHINGTON – Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday walked back statements made during campaigning rejecting the possibility of a two-state solution, telling NBC’s Andrea Mitchell, “I don’t want a one-state solution. I want a sustainable, peaceful two-state solution.”

Netanyahu’s first post-elections interview was delivered to the US news source, indicating a focus on calming tensions with Washington, which have risen steeply following a sharp right turn by Netanyahu in the final days of his campaign.

“I haven’t changed my policy,” Netanyahu insisted. “I never retracted my speech at Bar-Ilan University six years ago calling for a demilitarized Palestinian state that recognizes a Jewish state.”
Read more…

All aspects of relationship up for reevaluation; coming weeks critical as US waits to hear if PM will dial down anti-two-state, anti-Arab rhetoric

BY REBECCA SHIMONI STOIL, toi March 19, 2015,

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration woke up Wednesday morning to a sobering new reality on the ground in Jerusalem – instead of a weakened or rejected Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Washington will now face the return of “King Bibi.” The White House has to come to terms with a Netanyahu who, defying the predictions, has been shored up by a strong mandate for his rightward-turning campaign.

In the final days before the election, the Obama administration was on good behavior – both the State Department and the White House barely responded to campaign statements by Netanyahu that walked back his previous comments in support of a two-state agreement. They also abided not-very-veiled accusations of US meddling in an effort to undermine Netanyahu’s candidacy. But on Wednesday, the gloves came off.
Read more…

A hawkish new Netanyahu government will face an angry White House and frustrated EU, yet things might not be as bad as they seem

BY RAPHAEL AHREN, TOI,  March 18, 2015, 10:46 pm 53

It was no secret that the international community was keeping its fingers crossed, praying for a change to a more dovish government in Israel. Now that these hopes were crushed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s resounding victory Tuesday, some fear that Europe and the United States will increase pressure on Israel over the stalled peace process with the Palestinians.

There’s certainly cause for concern. The European Union has long threatened to punish Israel for what it perceives as foot-dragging, as well as over ongoing settlement construction, which is considered an obstacle to peace. Neither is US President Barack Obama much of a fan of Netanyahu, especially since the latter’s Congress speech earlier this month, in which he ferociously attacked the administration’s policy on Iran.

How the international community will react to Israel’s 33rd government will, of course, depend to a large degree on its makeup and the policies it pursues.
Read more…

According to sources, the consideration is in light of Prime Minister Netanyahu’s remarks against the idea of two states.

Mar 19, 2015, 10:37AM | Gal Cohen

The United States is considering to support the decision of the UN Security Council in defining the boundaries of a Palestinian state with the 1967 borders, reported the New York Times. According to the report, officials in the U.S. government are considering recommending the move after Netanyahu’s remarks against the establishment of a Palestinian state in Judea and Samaria, and due to his warning against the high voter turnout in the Arab sector.

The American officials added that despite the fact that relations between Israel and the U.S. will remain strong, they may not be run by President Obama himself, but instead by Secretary of State John Kerry and officials from the Department of Defense.
Read more…

Levin: We Now Have a Mandate, And a Responsibility

MK Yariv Levin said that the elections finally gave the Likud a clear mandate to rule Israel in the way the party felt it should be ruled.

By Yaakov Levi, INN

In an interview with Arutz Sheva, MK Yariv Levin, chairman of the outgoing Knesset’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, lauded his party’s victory in Tuesday’s elections, and said that it finally gave the Likud a clear mandate to rule Israel in the way the party felt it should be ruled.

“This is a great accomplishment, and I salute the public who supported us, despite all the anti-Netanyahu propaganda in the media and by Yitzhak Herzog and Tzipi Livni, and all the money that was spent to beat us,” said Levin. “

The pressure in the media was great, but the fact that the issues were placedbefore the public allowed us to present out views to the public, turning us into a strong political force.”
Read more…

Support for Likud actually rose in the middle-class and peripheral towns compared to the last election, despite the social agenda pushed by the center-left camp.

By Or Kashti, HAARETZ

Zionist Union got the highest number of votes in 28 of the country’s 33 wealthiest towns, while Likud enjoyed a decisive majority among Jewish local authorities in the middle- to lower-middle-class range; in 64 of these 77 towns, Likud came in first.

The Central Bureau of Statistics divides Israeli communities into 10 deciles based on variables like per capita income, the number of new cars, the percentage of students, the ratio of residents to unemployment, and more.

Segmenting the voting by socioeconomic levels reveals a major and probably decisive difference between Likud and Zionist Union; the former got lots of votes in wealthier communities, but the latter did very well almost solely in those richer areas.
Read more…

JPOST

Israel will have a new government in place in time for Independence Day celebrations, sources close to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday.

Despite exit polls indicating a close race Tuesday night, Netanyahu won a sweeping victory, beating the Zionist Union by at least five seats, 29 to 24. The Likud may receive another seat Thursday after the counting of soldiers’ absentee ballots is complete.

With an unquestionable victory, Netanyahu is not expected to come under pressure to change his mind about forming a right-wing nationalist coalition with Kulanu, Bayit Yehudi, Yisrael Beytenu, Shas and United Torah Judaism, rather than a national-unity government with the Zionist Union.

President Reuven Rivlin is to begin consultations with the elected parties Sunday, with the goal of appointing Netanyahu to form a government after official results come in next Wednesday.
Read more…

Is Bibi already reneging on his promises or just a tactic to manage the international pressure?

By Chris Coffee,  ALGEMEINER

Israel’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Tzachi Hanegbi (Likud) said yesterday in an interview that the new government is willing to return to the negotiation table with the Palestinians.

“We would be delighted to renew the negotiations,” Hanegbi said in an interview with the Israel Project. “We believe it is in the interest of both people– the Israeli and the Palestinian– to have a dialogue; to discuss our disputes; to try and find [a] common denominator in the issues that are so crucial to both people.”

Hanegbi, a Netanyahu loyalist, also said that the new government will begin an intense effort to renew the trust between the United States and Israel.
Read more…

Politico: US May ‘Dump’ Israel at UN, International Forums
Taken aback by Netanyahu’s victory Tuesday, US State Department may drop Israel as ally in international bodies like the UN, report says.

Obama intends to refrain from vetoing a UN resolution which pressures Israel

By John Hudson, FOREIGN POLICY

After years of blocking U.N. efforts to pressure Israelis and Palestinians into accepting a lasting two-state solution, the United States is edging closer toward supporting a U.N. Security Council resolution that would call for the resumption of political talks to conclude a final peace settlement, according to Western diplomats.

The move follows Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s decisive re-election Tuesday after the incumbent publicly abandoned his commitment to negotiate a Palestinian state — the basis of more than 20 years of U.S. diplomatic efforts — and promised to continue the construction of settlements on occupied territory. The development also reflects deepening pessimism over the prospect of U.S.-brokered negotiations delivering peace between Israelis and Palestinians.
Read more…