Philip Giraldi

The considerable buzz in conservative circles about Barack Obama, best exemplified by Andrew Bacevich's article "The Case for Obama" in The American Conservative, has largely focused on his potential as the only candidate who might actually end the war in Iraq. Maybe he would or maybe he wouldn't, but it is dead certain that neither John McCain or Hillary Clinton would rush out of Baghdad, nor would they put an end to the neocon-derived globalism that threatens to involve the U.S. in still more wars of choice in places like Iran. Obama might be better on both counts, hence his appeal to some conservatives, most particularly the ones who believe that the war in Iraq is a truly existential issue for the United States and must be ended at all costs.

Conservatives and other voters who have been concerned about U.S. foreign policy in general and who long to see a shift away from Washington's unflinching support of an Israel-centric Middle East might also be intrigued by Obama. To be sure, Obama has had to run the gauntlet of the Israel-firsters, imitating every other candidate but Ron Paul and Dennis Kucinich in swearing fealty to Tel Aviv's politicians and policies no matter what impact they have on the national interest of the United States. Barack Obama has nevertheless been on the receiving end of more vitriol from the Israel Lobby than any other candidate, possibly because his middle name is Hussein and he lived in Indonesia. The Abe Foxmans of this world, sensitive to even the slightest whiff of disloyalty to Greater Israel, detect that Obama might not be completely faithful to the cause. On March 18, while delivering his highly praised speech on racism in America, Obama was forced to perform the ultimate obeisance, diverging wildly from his theme to condemn naysayers who see "the conflicts in the Middle East as rooted primarily in the actions of stalwart allies like Israel, instead of emanating from the perverse and hateful ideologies of radical Islam." Score a big one for stalwart ally Israel, whose subjugation and occupation of Arab Palestine apparently has nothing to do with anything.
Read the rest: http://www.antiwar.com/orig/giraldi.php?articleid=12647