For all those bewildered about why Barack Obama made no attempt to reach out to the democracy demonstrators dying in the streets of Tehran (shades of Benghazigate), it seems our president had his eyes set on a bigger prize – diplomatic relations with Iran’s Islamofascist Mullahs.
From the Times of Israel:
Soon after he took office, President Barack Obama began a process ultimately designed to reestablish full US diplomatic relations with Iran, including a reopening of embassies, an Israeli daily reported Sunday. The initiative, part of a wider shift in America’s diplomatic orientation, aimed at reaching understandings with Tehran over suspending its nuclear program, Maariv claimed, citing “two Western diplomats very close to the administration.”
The initiative led to at least two US-Iran meetings, the report said. Israel was made aware of the contacts, and opposed them.
But Iran rebuffed the “diplomatic hand” offered by the White House, Maariv reported. The Islamist regime “opposed any sign of normalization with the US, and refused to grant a ‘prize’ to the Americans,” according to an anonymous Israeli source quoted by the paper.
The information — the lead item on Maariv’s front page, headlined “Obama offered to renew relations with Iran” — comes on the heels of reports earlier this month that the US and Iran held back channel contacts toward establishing direct talks over Tehran’s nuclear program. Both the White House and Iran denied those reports.
According to Maariv, Deputy Secretary of State William Burns met with chief Iranian nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili for an hour in 2009, and one other meeting between officials from both sides took place as well.
Included in the diplomatic incentives package offered by Washington would be, in the first stage, the opening of interest sections in Washington and Tehran, with the possibility subsequently of expanding to full diplomatic ties, including US and Iranian embassies and ambassadors in each other’s capitals, Maariv claimed.
As part of restored diplomatic relations with Iran, Maariv reported, Washington was ready to hold senior level diplomatic contacts, to agree to reciprocal visits, to approve security cooperation between the countries, direct flights between the US and Iran, and the granting of visas to Iranians wishing to visit the US.
Like the guy trying to assassinate the Saudi ambassador in downtown D. C.
UPDATE: As Michael Ledeen has pointed out frequently on PJM, back channel discussions between the US and Iran have been going on literally for decades, so this is really a big yawn. On the other had, it’s interesting to see what Obama was selling.
At best Dear Liar is dangerously naive.
Yep: “At best Dear Liar is dangerously naive.”
At minimum, Dear Liar is simply dangerous.
Oops, hit submit too quickly.
I wonder if handing back the released 1979 hostages was part of the deal too.
Undoubtedly promised to dig up the Shah and have Holder try him in Manhattan.
The real prize he has his eye on is the bright flash he’ll be able to see high in the sky over the CONUS from his new house in Hawaii. He will see it, smile fondly about those days when he went into hiding during Iran’s election protests and he will say to himself, “Now that looks as beautiful to my eyes as the call to prayer sounds to my ears. Mission accomplished. God is great indeed.”
There is a miasma of death around this administration…
“Great Birnam wood to high Dunsinane hill” has come.
whoops … intended for J. Christian Adams’ post on the BHO campaign falling apart.
We have semi normal relations with lots of not so nice folks. What is wrong with that?
How many of these not-so-nice folks have overrun our embassies and kept our diplomats hostage for 444 days, resulting in the deaths of a number of Americans sent to rescue them?
We should never ever have relationhips with an angry, bile-filled, anti-American tyrannical regime that is seeking to completely change international and domestic affairs and that is evil enough to do anything, including overseeing the deaths of American citizens.
So the Mullahs did the right thing in refusing to be conned by the Fraud.
Ouch. OUCH. OUCHITY-OUCH-OUCH. Ouch to the seventh power.
You, weo, are a giant among men, and a beacon of inspiration to The Andrew Breitbart Memorial Trouble Makers League. All honor to you, elder brother.
Obama is a twenty-four carat idiot.
The only way that we may possibly be “normal” relations with Iran is after their ruling mullah clique and its backers like Ahmadinejad have been removed from power, and not one minute before.
I’m utterly convinced that there are four Americans dead because Obama was afraid to conduct a show of force there, not because of how that would sell at home but because it would be frowned upon by our enemies.
I’ve read some conspiracy theories about Benghazi that I now have to think twice about. Humor me for one minute while I repeat some of the things I’ve read and share your thoughts.
What if Obama is trying to wash off Jimmy Carter. He does this because he failed to wash off the stink of Carter by negotiating this reopening of friendly terms with Iran. So instead, he decides to re-create Carter’s big failure so he can show that he is international diplomat enough to succeed where Carter failed.
To do this, he sets up a mock protest in Benghazi and hires a bunch of Libyans to show displeasure at the obscure YouTube video. He sets the whole thing in motion, complete with instructions to take the 4 Americans to a nice location in Libya and hold them until Obama can “rescue” them, wagging the dog all the way to a 2nd term. This is why he doesn’t beef up security, why he tells the SEALs to stand down and why he does not send in a rescue team. He believes they aren’t in any danger, because he orchestrated the entire event.
However, AQ has no loyalty to BHO, and they steal the show. They take over the protest, kill the Americans, and go after the SEALs annex. BHO has the drone overhead, and watches what he thinks is his plan unfolding, when in reality it is a true terrorist attack. Where he originally soft-pedaled the rhetoric on “terrorism” he later learns, and must call the attack, what it was – true terrorist activity.
Others suggest that our Ambassador knew things that BHO couldn’t have come to light before the election. I suppose both could be true – use the Libyans to hold on to Stevens, save the day, and ride the wave of American sentiment to a 2nd term. But you have to admit, if true these things would explain much. Especially the part about Gen. Ham being replaced – that only makes sense when you realize that it came immediately after he decided to send in a rescue mission against orders.
I don’t put anything past the Fraud, but for those ideas to work, multiple intelligence organizations would have to be involved and/or knowledgeable about it. Somebody would have leaked by now.
The one I think makes some sense is Beck’s claim that the Fraud was using the Ambassador to run arms to the Syrian rebels. The big unasked question is what the Ambassador was doing in Benghazi on 9/11 anyway. If he was managing a weapons supply chain, it would explain why he went to a ridiculously dangerous place for seemingly no good reason. Beck also has a lot of very specific information, including multiple names involved in the scheme, which lends a lot of credibility to his claim. For that one, multiple agencies would have to be involved as well, but since the objective of the scheme is much broader and more supportable than merely to improve the Fraud’s re-election chances, it makes sense that people in the know wouldn’t have a lot of cause to talk about it.
I do hate speculation – but when your administration is “the most transparent EVAH” then I guess that’s all we’re left with. I’ll check out Mr. Beck’s site – thanks for the response.
Prediction:
Regardless of who wins the election, Obama is going to give that scruffy mass murderer, the blind shiek, back to Egypt. It might be on the 19th of Jan 2013 just before he greets president-elect Romney on the steps of the White House before they ride over to the swearing in, but he’s gonna do it. A parting gift, so to speak, to the Americans who rejected him.
Well, it would be nice if he gave the blind sheikh back in a body bag.
We can all dream…
Smart Diplomacy. Disrespect and ignore our friends, cravenly appease our enemies.