U.S. Middle East policy

Paralysis on Syria

Submitted by James Besser on Mon, 05/09/2011 - 13:46

One of these day the Obama administration is going to have to figure out a policy for dealing with the unrest in Syria and the Assad regime's brutal repression. Unfortunately, it will probably be after it's too late.

Today's New York Times reports that the crackdown is intensifying, with hundreds now under arrest and the death toll rising.

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Co-Author of Palestinian Statehood Plan Set to Take Key Role on Middle East

04/28/2011

WASHINGTON (JTA) -- The White House reportedly is set to name Steve Simon, the co-author of a comprehensive outline for a Palestinian state, as a top Middle East official.

The Obama administration will tap Simon, a former top National Security Council official in the Clinton administration, to head the NSC's Middle East desk, according to Laura Rozen of The Envoy foreign policy blog on Yahoo.com. Simon would succeed Daniel Shapiro, who by default has become the top administration point man for pro-Israel groups and Israeli officials.

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Adam Dickter Interviews Michael Grimm

Congressman-elect Michael Grimm, who will soon represent New York's 13th District including all of Staten Island and parts of Brooklyn, discusses working with Mayor Michael Bloomberg on behalf of the city, Obamacare, tax cuts, U.S. policy in the Middle East and his opponent's controversial Jewish donor list.

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Obama Extends Jerusalem Embassy Waiver

06/03/2010

WASHINGTON (JTA) -- President Obama has extended a waiver for an additional six months delaying the move of the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem.

Obama's waiver, issued Wednesday, follows in the footsteps of predecessors Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, who also extended the waiver every six months since the law was adopted in 1995 calling for the move of the embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

Presidents are permitted to delay the move on national security grounds.

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