You'll recall Barack Obama's speech to AIPAC almost a year ago to the day. "Jerusalem will remain the capital of Israel, and it must remain undivided," he said, only to later clarify that Jerusalem would instead remain a "final status issue."
But a campaign adviser clarified Thursday that Obama believes "Jerusalem is a final status issue, which means it has to be negotiated between the two parties" as part of "an agreement that they both can live with."
"Two principles should apply to any outcome," which the adviser gave as: "Jerusalem remains Israel's capital and it's not going to be divided by barbed wire and checkpoints as it was in 1948-1967."
Now the Obama administration has decided that Jerusalem must be divided and that the Jews must stop building in areas that should be handed over to Palestinians at some undetermined date in the future. The State Department is demanding "that Israel limit Jewish growth in these areas of Jerusalem, 'whose status remains to be determined' in negotiations." Apparently the third principle that must apply to Jerusalem is that Jews cannot build on land the Obama administration has set aside for other uses -- like appeasing the Arabs.
A spokesman for the Israeli government responded: "I have to admire the residents of Iroquois territory for assuming that they have a right to determine where Jews should live in Jerusalem."
