We Have the Chance to Reel In Israel Right Now
Rahm Emanuel’s speech on Israel reflects an understanding that major changes in the optics of US policy toward Israel are needed if the status quo is to be maintained. This is an opportunity that Israel’s critics should not let go to waste.
Major critics of Israel’s genocidal violence have floated policy proposals that suffer from two major flaws: they fail to spell out the extent of Israel’s international obligations, and they lack real teeth. Now is a time to change that. (Patrick T. Fallon / AFP via Getty Images)
First, let’s get one thing straight. Rahm Emanuel’s much-heralded speech on US-Israel relations portends no shift at all in Democratic Party policy toward Israel.
In fact, if leaked media accounts are accurate, it doesn’t contain a single proposal that wasn’t already adopted in the waning days of the Biden administration (but quietly rendered toothless by the policy fine print).
What Emanuel’s speech does signal is an understanding that major changes in the optics of US policy will be needed if the status quo is to be maintained.
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