Obama and Jeffrey Goldberg Took Aim at Netanyahu, Shot Themselves in the Foot

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The calculated media leak has been a regular tool in the Obama Inc. PR box. It’s never been a very effective tool, but that never stopped them from using certain publications, the New York Times, and certain hacks, Jeffrey Goldberg, to distribute their talking points.

But the problem with using someone like Goldberg to distribute another Netanyahu smear is that he’s an attention whore who cares more about clickbait than politics. And he’s quite good at spinning an otherwise mediocre story or interview into major news by finding the right provocative word or phrase.

The so-called Chickegate is a bonanza for Jeffrey Goldberg, but has ended up undermining Obama and the larger anti-Israel agenda.

Goldberg’s story was another brick in the wall for a narrative characterizing Netanyahu as “the problem” in the US-Israel relationship. It was supposed to lift the blame for Obama and sell him and the Democrats to Jewish voters.

It might have done that if not for the story being condensed down to a member of the administration calling the Prime Minister of Israel a “coward” and “chickens__t”.

It’s hard to take that money quote and blame Israel.

Jeffrey Goldberg scored his media moment, again, while unintentionally vaporizing his own narrative. Instead of Netanyahu being the problem, suddenly the pettiness and personal antipathy of the administration looks like the problem.

Instead of making Netanyahu look bad, Goldberg made him look good and put Obama Inc. on the defensive. It doesn’t really matter that he doesn’t want to give up his source. His attention whoring burned his source already. The article has done more damage to the narrative than anything put out by the right. It will take a while to put everything back together again.

Jeffrey Goldberg took an insider topic and made it international news. The insider topic was personal antipathy to Netanyahu. That’s a hot topic among Israeli lefties, who obsessively hate the man, and various foreign policy wonks who hate anyone on the right.

The consequences of that publicity will be to undermine any Obama Inc. critique of Netanyahu and Israel as personal animosity. By insulting Netanyahu, they took the conflict out of the realm of policy and into the realm of spite.

And that means they lost the policy argument with anyone who doesn’t share their personal hatred of Netanyahu.

All that’s left is the hate.

  • Isahiah62

    I love the way you think sir

  • Gee

    It is amusing to see a bunch of chicken-hawks that have never done anything for anybody else accuse Netanyahu (a former Captain in the elite Recon forces) of being a coward and a chickensh*t.

    I have my reasons for not liking Netanyahu and have expressed them. Cowardice is not one of them nor is being an Odumba thug

    • tickletik

      He’s a tough guy to pin down. A lot of people on the right have expressed that sentiment because of his policies that sell us out. But at the same time you ask yourself “is this retreat? Or is it a tactical withdrawal?” And it is hard to tell. I don’t know.

      • carpe diem 36

        who are you talking about?

  • roger

    The calculated media leak, yes , that’s exactly what it is.
    It would also be to put pressure on Israelis to replace Netanyahu because he is a strong leader and doesn’t fold so easily to the whims of the Obama admin.
    Perhaps also to test the waters with the American Jews.

    • gerry

      The whims of the Caliph,title given to him by Ayatullah Durrani.

  • RIckuh

    Nothing more than a case of the inferior attempting to pull the superior down to their level. Standard tactic of libtards.

    • gerry

      Inferiority complex.

    • carpe diem 36

      short and sweet, Thank you for your comment.

  • Yehuda Levi

    Leftist American Jews are more than happy to accept Goldberg’s reporting (they haven’t worn the uniform anymore than Goldberg has) and snicker. Netanyahu is ridiculed because he is not on the left.

    Increasingly, ideology is more important to leftist Jews than Israel. Their allegiance is to leftism (Democrats), not Israel or Judaism.

    • truebearing

      And you can’t serve two masters, so they have decided Israel is expendable.

    • Patriot077

      Would this sort of spiteful personal attack from the insiders in this administration have any repulsive effect on the leftist Jews? I find it repulsive enough that it would cause me to look at who has the reins of our government. Juveniles or statesmen?

      • Yehuda Levi

        Juveniles not statesmen.

        If Netanyahu was a leftwing Jewish PM and being ridiculed by a Republican US president, yes, they would be in an uproar. Even the ADL would be upset.

        Ideology first.

        • gerry

          In this particular case it is not ideology first it is antesemism at work.Never,neverforget that Obama’s mentor was the good old Reverend who used to rave and rant about the jews.For 20 years Obama sat in his church and heard nothing.There is also the video of the dinner kept under wrap by the L A Times.Obama does not like Israel,does not like Americans and America.

        • Patriot077

          I’d like to think otherwise but it seems to me that Bibi gets it from both ends of the spectrum. He isn’t strong enough; he isn’t conciliatory enough.
          I pray for Bibi and all Israel’s leaders.

        • Gee

          Let’s face facts – in America Netanyahu would be a leftist. Sad but true – nearly all American politicians are to the right of Netanyahu

    • carpe diem 36

      Leftist ideology is also more important to Americans. This is why they voted for this POS who has nothing to show as success both in his personal and as a president, so their ideology made the country poor and weak.

  • Shlomo Rifkind

    The problem is this. Our PM was NOT attacked – as Bibi would have us believe – because he stands up for Israel. Rather, Bibi was attacked because he does not stand up for Israel ENOUGH. Our PM wavers and dithers in face of pressure from BHO and his henchmen – and thus he invites upon himself the scorn of an unfriendly US Administration. If Netanyahu stood up consistently and forthrightly against Anti Semitic world pressure, no one would dare call him a C”S.

    • Yehuda Levi

      Bibi has to walk a very narrow path when the US has a president who clearly favors Muslims over the Jewish state.

      In the geopolitical game of chess, he is defending not attacking.

      • Shlomo Rifkind

        That is precisely why I brought this up. In an antagonistic world – the best way to gain their respect is to stand up for what you know to be right. Case in point was the 6 Day War. Israel had no choice but to preemptively attack the Arabs. The result: besides a few jealous grumblings – Israel enjoyed overwhelming respect and support for for its action. Bibi is going about this in the opposite way. He runs to the UN and explains and tries to convince the antagonistic world as if he is trying to gain their “love” and sympathy. So of course, our PM is answered with the worlds anger and disgust. We do not need the worlds love – we only need their respect – and respect comes when you stand up for – and assert your rights proudly. Bibi is failing at this over and over again. So for such a flawed approach, of course he is being termed a C”S. Which, in fact, is quite an accurate term for a leader who does not stand up to her enemies forthrightly and consistently. It makes little difference that the worlds biggest C”S leader presently occupies the White House. In this case, it truly takes one to know one.

  • Arf

    The look of absolute hatred on the face of Obama is deeply chilling. America, you have put a diabolical lunatic in the White House. This won’t end well for the U.S. and the American people. Americans may say that this is just Obama and does not reflect them. The world doesn’t see it that way.

  • Douglas J. Bender

    “All that’s left is the hate.”

    Daniel, did you intend that to have a double-meaning?

    • truebearing

      Good question, because it works quite well.

  • RAM500

    “All that’s left is the hate.”
    Hate is Obama’s inspiration and everything else is his implementation.

  • Gamal

    I think the administration is trying to do 2 things. It’s trying to send the message to Netanyahu that you better make concessions because we don’t like you as much as you think we do. The other message I think it’s trying to send is that not making concessions is a sign of cowardice. The administration knows that Israelis value courage and the administration wants Israelis to see Netanyahu as a coward for not making the concessions they want him to make.

  • attguy98

    Of course they hate Netanyahu. It’s very natural that very high placed Muslim Brotherhood operatives like Obama and Jarrett would oppose anyone that doesn’t support them in their patient, multi-front campaign to weaken and eventually remove the ‘Nakba’ eyesore from the Islamic world.

  • carpe diem 36

    “policy wonks who hate anyone on the right.” They hate them because it shows the huge difference between their false “god” and Mr. Prime Minister B. Netanyahu. Mr. netanyahu is everything Obama is not, he was a soldier, and real Commander in a real war, and in the Antebe rescue as well. He is a strong person, a popular leader of his brave little country, a world renown orator, and above all a lover and defender of his country. The contrast between these two men is so glaring so enormous, that no wonder Obama and his cronies do all they can to put him down, but of course they do not succeed. The more they try the worse they look, And chickenshit does not help him at all.