OPINION
Now that John McCain's whirlwind visit to Israel is history, it is time to reflect on what was said and what was not. Taking advantage of his recent primary victories that all but assures him of his party's nomination, the Cinderella candidate must now await the outcome of highly personal and not very substantive slugfest between Democratic contenders Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. In previous columns we have discussed why from a Jewish and Israel perspective, both Democratic candidates are highly problematic. The question remains, "Why McCain?"
There are two principal reasons to vote for any candidate: his policies and his persona. In this column we have focused on Israel and the Jewish perspective, both of which militate strongly in favor of a vote for McCain, particularly in the aftermath of his recent visit.
The first thing that must be noted is that McCain chose to come to Israel at all. Originally the plan was to go to Iraq and make stops in one or two major European venues. But the very fact that McCain chose to add Israel to itinerary tells you something about the man's perspective on the Middle East and his priorities.
Israel is important in his strategic thinking and that is good for Israel. Among the Democrats, and many career foreign service officers in the State Department, Israel is a sideshow that creates many problems and few opportunities for US foreign policy. Many of these people see the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as the source of instability in the Middle East and predict that were only Israel to make peace with its neighbors, all would be well in the region.
Like most of us, McCain wants there to be peace in the Middle East, but he is under no illusions about who are the principal troublemakers in the area. He stated unequivocally during his visit that he views Islamo-Fascism as the main culprit propelled primarily by the Iranians and semi-autonomous terror organizations. He understands as well that the outcome of the war in Iraq will play a central role in determining whether the West or the Islamo-Fascists will prevail here.
As one commentator recently noted, "McCain has a deep understanding of the region's strategic problems and publicly supports a nuclear deterrent for Israel." Additionally, McCain stated in a very clear and unequivocal way regarding the threat faced by Israel and the West that "the only thing worse than a military confrontation with Iran was a "nuclear armed Iran," and that the "regime must understand that it cannot win a showdown with the world." Since the dubious NIE report's release last December that cast a cloud over Iran's nuclear weapons ambitions, McCain has been in the ranks of those dismissive of it. When have you heard that from either of the Democratic candidates?
McCain also made clear that the constant barrage of missiles and mortars against southern Israel from Hamas-controlled Gaza is utterly intolerable. He indicated that had the same thing in his native Arizona; there would be little doubt about the American response - swift and brutal. Hamas is part of the crazy-quilt of organizations financed and controlled by the Iranians aimed at weakening, demoralizing and eventually destroying the Jewish State.
At the same time, McCain made it very clear that the proper response was Israel's and Israel's alone to make. There would be no dictating to Israel from a McCain White House what is necessary for her national defense and security. That, of course puts the ball squarely in our court here - where it belongs.
McCain also comprehends that the struggle of the Muslim extremists against Israel is not merely a matter of anti-Semitism and anti-Zionism, it is part and parcel of the general struggle between radical Islam and Western civilization as a whole. It is this struggle that America has been leading since 9-11 and which it must continue to lead for the foreseeable future.
It was equally significant to many including this writer that McCain did not find time in his schedule to travel to Ramallah and pay homage to Abu Mazzen, the PLO-Fatah leader nominally in control of certain areas of the West Bank (Judea and Samaria). Almost every world leader visiting Israel has been told that it he or she must give equal time to the Palestinians and the Israelis.
While McCain reiterated his hope and belief that Abu Mazen can lead his people to a peaceful settlement with Israel, his actions showed an acute understanding of the facts on the ground. McCain did find the time to visit Sderot and commiserate with some of the victims of the daily outrage that has turned that western Negev community into a virtual ghost town. That he did visit Sderot and did not visit Ramallah is highly instructive about how the Republican candidate sees the balance of equities in this part of the Middle East. There were no laments about the vicious cycle of violence, such as we hear constantly from the U.S. State Department and the Europeans.
McCain gets it - he does not suffer from the disease of moral relativism in the current chapter of the Israeli-Palestinian Arab conflict.
Another important aspect of McCain's visit was the fact that he came along with Democratic Independent Senator Joe Lieberman (I-Conn). The symbolism of this partnership cannot be overstated. Lieberman has been a lifelong Democrat. He was that party's nominee for Vice President in the 2000 Elections and unsuccessfully attempted to be the nominee for President of the United States in 2004.
Notwithstanding his unquestioned loyalty to his Party, the Party leadership targeted him for defeat in the 2006 mid-term elections and succeeded in ousting him as the Democratic candidate for Senator. It was only because of his own courage and determination and the not insignificant support he received in the general election from Republicans and Independents, including the Republican White House, that Joe Lieberman was returned to Senate.
Those same Democratic forces are now enthusiastically pushing the Obama and Clinton candidacies. Stating that it was the Democratic Party that moved too far left and not that he left them, Senator Lieberman announced that he strongly believes that John McCain is the best qualified candidate to lead the free world and therefore he endorsed the Republican nominee John McCain for President in November 2008.
