Photograph Source: Dan Scavino – Public Domain

Over the last few weeks, much has been made about the supposed split between Netanyahu and Trump. Like much else about the operation of both regimes, it’s hard to say how much is serious and how much is political theater, but as always, the real decisions are being made by state department teams on both sides in a manner that is not accessible to immediate media evaluation.

What has shocked many people is that they mistakenly believed Israel and AIPAC dictate US foreign policy, so this appears to them like some sort of unpredictable change. In reality, it has always been Washington in the driver’s seat, with Israel acting as a sort of permanent mercenary presence in the Middle East—surrounded by hostile neighbors, it must do the dirty work of the only country capable of supplying it with the seemingly bottomless resources required to maintain the military preeminence and security dominance their society demands. It should be noted that American state department prioritization of Israel as a permanent ally in the region really only solidified after its performance in the 1967 war, although Eisenhower’s administration began a necessary pivot towards Israel as early as 1958, with interest in a secure ally in the region really becoming apparent during the suez crisis. The results of the Six-Day War........

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