Thursday, July 26, 2012
A generation ago, it was the three I’s. A presidential
challenger’s obligatory foreign trip meant Ireland, Italy, and Israel. Mitt
Romney’s itinerary is slightly different: Britain, Poland, and Israel.
Not quite the naked ethnic appeal of yore. Each
destination suggests a somewhat more subtle affinity: Britain, playing to our
cultural connectedness with the Downton Abbey folks who’ve been at our side in
practically every fight for the last hundred years; Poland, representing the
“new Europe,” the Central Europeans so unashamedly pro-American; Israel,
appealing to most American Jews but also to an infinitely greater number of
passionately sympathetic Evangelical Christians.
Unlike Barack Obama, Romney abroad will not be
admonishing his country, criticizing his president, or declaring himself a
citizen of the world. Indeed, Romney should say nothing of substance, just
offer effusive expressions of affection for his hosts — and avoid needless
contretemps, like his inexplicably dumb and gratuitous critique of Britain’s
handling of the Olympic Games. The whole point is to show appreciation for
close allies, something the current president has conspicuously failed to do.
On the contrary. Obama started his presidency by
returning to the British Embassy the bust of Winston Churchill that had graced
the Oval Office. Then came the State Department official who denied the very
existence of a U.S.-British special relationship, saying: “There’s nothing
special about Britain. You’re just the same as the other 190 countries in the
world.”
To be topped off by the slap they received over the
Falkland Islands, an issue the Brits had considered closed since they repelled
the Argentine invasion there 30 years ago. They were not amused by the Obama
administration’s studied neutrality between Britain and Argentina, with both a
State Department spokesman and the president ostentatiously employing
“Malvinas,” the politically charged Argentine name, interchangeably with
“Falklands.” (Although the president flubbed it, calling them the “Maldives,”
an Indian Ocean island chain 8,000 miles away.)
As for Poland, it was stunned by Obama’s unilateral
cancellation of a missile-defense agreement signed with the Bush 43
administration. Having defied vociferous Russian threats, the Poles expected
better treatment than to wake up one morning — the 70th anniversary of the
Soviet invasion of Poland, no less — to find themselves the victim of Obama’s
“reset” policy of accommodation with Russia. So much for protection from
Russian bullying, something they thought they had finally gained with the end
of the Cold War.
And then there is Israel, the most egregious example of
Obama’s disregard for traditional allies. Obama came into office explicitly
intent on creating “daylight” between himself and Israel, believing that by
tilting toward the Arabs, they would be more accommodating.
The opposite happened. (Surprise!) When Obama insisted on
a building freeze in Jerusalem that no U.S. government had ever demanded and no
Israeli government would ever accept, the Palestinian Authority saw clear to
become utterly recalcitrant. Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas openly told
the Washington Post that he would just sit on his hands and wait for America to
deliver Israel.
Result? Abbas refused to negotiate. Worse, he tried to
undermine the fundamental principle of U.S. Middle East diplomacy — a
negotiated two-state solution — by seeking unilateral U.N. recognition of
Palestinian statehood, without talks or bilateral agreements.
In Israel, Romney will undoubtedly say nothing new. He’ll
just reiterate his tough talk on Iran’s nuclear program. But I suspect he’ll
let the Israelis know privately that contrary to the conventional wisdom that
his hawkishness signals his readiness to attack Iranian nuclear facilities, his
real intent is to signal that, unlike Obama, he is truly committed to
permitting Israel to do what it needs to defend itself. This will be welcome
news to a nation that has never asked anyone to fight on its behalf, just a
green light to defend itself without impediments or veiled threats from its
friends.
Most important, however, is to just show up. That’s 80
percent of life, Woody Allen once noted. No need to say much. Romney’s very
presence will make the statement.
To the Israelis: “We understand your unique plight. If
and when you do as you must, we will stand by you.” To the Poles: “You can
count on the American umbrella. I will never leave you out in the cold.” And to
the British: “We are grateful for your steadfast solidarity in awful places
like Iraq and Afghanistan. The relationship truly is special.”
“And one more thing. Still have that bust of Churchill?”
Righting his ship late Thursday in London, Romney did say
he wants Winnie back in the Oval Office.
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