Then there were the virtually identical comments of State Department and White House spokespersons questioning Prime Minister Netanyahu’s commitment to peace following Mr. Obama’s meeting with Mr. Netanyahu in early October.
Further, though the precise details are still murky, there were reports last August that for at least a short period during Operation Protective Edge the Obama administration put a halt on certain arms shipments to Israel.
So there certainly is reason to fear a broad new push by the president for a peace agreement, largely on Palestinian terms, during his remaining time in office. This concern is underscored by the fact that there are a number of other fundamental initiatives he has been husbanding in the runup to the midterm elections.
Thus Mr. Obama has, with questionable legal authority, delayed the implementation of several of the more unpopular provisions of Obamacare until after the midterms. He has also delayed releasing his grand plan for immigration reform – not a widely favored project and one that also raises serious legal questions – until after the elections. Nor are there readily available ways to test their legality in court.
And he has been transparently loath to make serious decisions about ISIS, Iraq, and Syria in the months leading up to the elections. His setting November 24as the target date for a deal with Iran over its nuclear development has fooled no one.
President Obama plainly seeks to leave a legacy of an America that is fundamentally different from the America he found when he entered office. He is now poised to pursue that goal with little regard to the law and the views of most Americans.