Obama’s statement on Bush’s speech at the Knesset:
“It is sad that President Bush would use a speech to the Knesset on the 6Oth anniversary of Israel’s independence to launch a false political attack. It is time to turn the page on eight years of policies that have strengthened Iran and failed to secure America or our ally Israel.
“Instead of tough talk and no action, we need to do what Kennedy, Nixon and Reagan did and use all elements of American power — including tough, principled, and direct diplomacy — to pressure countries like Iran and Syria.
“George Bush knows that I have never supported engagement with terrorists, and the president’s extraordinary politicization of foreign policy and the politics of fear do nothing to secure the American people or our stalwart ally Israel.”
Indeed, Obama does not support engagement with terrorists, just the regimes that financially sponsor them.
AFP caption: Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Iran’s president (L) pledges funds to Khaled Meshaal, the leader of Hamas.
And while Obama has never met with Hamas (despite their praise and public expressions of hope that he will win), it is only his advisers like Robert Malley that actually meet with terrorist groups like Hamas.
UPDATE: John Podhoretz sees this as a wild overreaction, and wonders if Team Obama has gone nuts.