Obama Seeks to Repair Israeli Relations

As he embarks this week on his first presidential trip to Israel, President Obama “will seek to clarify his support for the Jewish state’s theory of its historical roots — addressing one of several subtle, but essential, missteps he is attempting to fix in his second term. The trip is a mission of remedial diplomacy, rather than the kind of specific peace initiative common for previous presidential visits,” the Washington Post reports.

“Obama will also travel to the West Bank city of Ramallah during his four-day trip for air-clearing meetings with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and other leaders, who are deeply disappointed by Obama and his staunch opposition to their diplomatic push for statehood through the United Nations.”

A new Washington Post-ABC News poll finds Americans by a wide margin sympathize more with Israel than the Palestinian Authority when it comes to thorny Middle East politics, 55^ to 9%.