Daybreak: Political Israel
Plus Bibi gains popularity at home, and more in the news
May 26, 2011
The packed House during Bibi’s address Tuesday.(Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images)
• Republicans see President Obama’s Mideast maneuverings as an opening for them to turn Israel into a partisan issue and make advances in attracting Jewish voters. (More on this later. [NYT]
• Mideast envoy Tony Blair argued that Obama’s actions can be explained with reference to his concern for what will happen to Israel in September at the U.N. [AP/WP]
• Fareed Zakaria slams Bibi’s intransigence and notes that Obama’s main policy shift was to commit himself to trying to halt Palestinian statehood via the U.N. [WP]
• While Prime Minister Netanyahu received high grades for oratory back home, many Israelis were despondent that he failed to advance the peace process; yet he also surged in the polls. [NYT]
• Several officials attended the opening of a building complex for religious families in a disputed East Jerusalem neighborhood. [NYT]
• As the uprisings continue, the U.S. is trying to drive a wedge between Syria and its erstwhile, complicated ally, Lebanon. [LAT]
Marc Tracy is a staff writer at The New Republic, and was previously a staff writer at Tablet. He tweets @marcatracy.
