Lileks: the Moral Authority of Howard Dean and the Peace Process
. . . The energetic head of the DNC had this to say:
If you think whats going on in the Middle East today would be going on if the Democrats were in control, it wouldnt, because we would have worked day after day after day to make sure we didnt get where we are today. We would have had the moral authority that Bill Clinton had when brought together the Israelis and the Palestinians.
The problem with Moral Authority is its antonym, the Palestinian Authority. Does Dean mean the Oslo accords? President Clinton had been in office less than a year. Theres a reason theyre not the Little Rock Accords: Norwegian diplomats did all the heavy lifting. (Specifically, suspending disbelief about Arafats motives, which can throw your back out if youre not careful.) Does Dean mean the Camp David negotiations, which ended in the bloody second intifada? Details, details. Moral authority, thats what counts. Doesnt stop wars, but it makes the bad guys look extra guilty. Ingrates!
This is not to underestimate President Clintons ability to make other diplomats feel good about themselves or produce impressive pieces of paper. But Mr. Clinton is not running in 2008, and neither Gore nor Kerry had his conspicuous gift for oleaginous empathy. Then again, who knows? Perhaps Al Gore would have Moral Authority gushing out his ear if hed chosen to leave Saddam in power. No question Hezbollah would be impressed - perhaps enough to aim the rockets to the left a little, so they landed on the outskirts of the playgrounds.
But the revelatory moment in Deans assertion was its touching faith in Talk and Work. President Gore or Kerry would have been working day after day after day on the issue. Non stop! Sleeves rolled up, dinner at the desk: make another pot of coffee, Mabel, this Golan Heights dispute wont solve itself. This suggests they believe the difficulties of the Middle East have the weight and consequence of a tariff dispute. This suggests that they dont understand that the Hezbollah definition of Disarm is blowing off the limbs of Israelis. Imagine a typical negotiation:
Fierce-eyed Hezbollah representative: Thank you for the invitation; lovely office. Death to Israel.
Gullible American: Well, thats just rhetoric; we understand.
Hezbollah: It is not rhetoric. It is truth. The Zionist entity is a festering infected splinter in the lip of the Caliphate.
(pause)
GA: So youre saying you want some antibiotics as well? We can do that. But you have to show us youre ready to coexist with Israel.
Hezbollah: We recognize the right of Israel to exist, but only as a footnote in history books.
GA: So we agree on principle, and the rest is just a matter of details. Great! Well draw up the treaty for the signing ceremony. Youre going to love the pens. Theyre Cross. Smoothest pen youve ever used.
Hezbollah: I will save it to plunge into the heart of the last Jew to crawl towards the sea.
GA: Do you need your parking validated?
Repeat until the last accords fall apart, then call for new accords.
Howard Dean is not a stupid man; he knows Iran and Syria are the real actors behind this game. But his words placate the netroots people who think that Bush is stumping the country blaming the Hezbollah attacks on Max Cleland. Fine. If Israel eliminates Hezbollah, humiliates the fascists of Syria and lets Lebanon get on with the Cedar Revolution devoid of murder-gang influence, will that be Bushs doing?
Of course not. He doesnt have the Moral Authority, like a Pope. Or Bill Clinton.
Posted by: Mike 2006-07-21 |