Epstein Secrets

n between our troubles with Syria and Iran is pretty straightforward. The Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad is Iran's closest ally, and its link to the Arab Middle East. Syria has provided the land bridge for the transport of Iranian weapons and militants to Lebanon and the Gaza Strip. Without Syria, Iran's pretens

kely see Israeli- Palestinian negotiations as a bottomless pit for diplomatic energy rather than as a priority. If Obama is reelected, he will have no Middle East hands to whom he can turn. Mideast advisor Dennis Ross has left; Jeffrey Feltman, assistant secretary of state for Near East affairs, departed for

ill in all likelihood leave when a new secretary of state is appointed or a few months later. In January 2009, Obama appointed Mitchell as special Middle East envoy on his second day in office. That kind of priority will not be assigned to the "peace process" in January 2013 -- no matter who wins. The ne

r negotiations when it came to light that they were negotiating a plan to raise far more revenue than the deal that Obama was ready to strike with Boehner. Instead of a grand bargain, in late July the White House and Republicans agreed to raise the debt ceiling enough for about eighteen more months o

presence of a Muslim Brotherhood government in Egypt frightened the Israeli government. To Israel, which has never supported democracy anywhere in the Middle East except Israel, the presence of a brutal military dictatorship bent on the EFTA00718108 extermination of Islamism is not only tolerable but desirab

nstead, what resonates with the public are misleading analogies with the finances of an individual family, which is why Mr. Obama began echoing Mr. Boehner. And even supposedly well-informed people balk at the notion that simple lack of demand can wreak so much havoc. Surely, they insist, we must have

Israel loves Iran," "Iran loves Israel" and even "Palestine loves Israel." Ronny Edry of Israel accidentally created an online movement for peace in the Middle East when he posted a Facebook image that declared "Iranians, we will never bomb your country." This is the courageous thing to do: to try to reach the o

hn Boehner's failure to persuade rank-and-file House Republicans to raise taxes even on millionaires fits the fanatic's strategy exactly. It allowed Boehner to credibly claim he has no choice in the matter -- Republican fanatics in the House tied his hands and manacled his feet -- so the only way to avoi

ibility" to forge that peace. Writing in the Financial Times, former U.S. National Security Adviser Brent Scowcroft intoned: "The nature of the new Middle East cannot be known until the festering sore of the occupied territories is removed." Read: The fate of democracy hinges on Palestine. So do "Iran's h

invitation from House Speaker John Boehner to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to address a joint session of the U.S. Congress on May 24. Boehner acts as if the idea of inviting "Bibi," as the prime minister is universally known, was his own. But the facts indicate that this most- sought-after

r those who didn=92t understand prior to the American invasion of Iraq about this boiling c=uldron of tribal hate that played so important a role in Middle Eastern se=urity, the evidence grew stronger throughout the war. AI-Qaeda and its affiliated organizations have killed untold thou=ands of Shiites in the pa

hing terror=sts seize growing swathes of Iraq, adding: "And what is the president doing? Taking a nap!" <=p> 4 EFTA_R1_02111342 EFTA02708695 Mr Boehner chided M= Obama for failing to reach an agreement that would have allowed large num=ers of American troops to stay in Iraq after 2011. He urged the