Two Scholars say pro-Israel Lobby has Warped U.S. Policy
By Frank James
August 28, 2006
WASHINGTON – Two scholars who created a controversy earlier this year when they wrote that the pro-Israel lobby exerted too much influence over U.S. foreign policy said Monday that the recent Israel-Hezbollah war in Lebanon was yet another example of what they view as a dangerous tendency.
John Mearsheimer, a University of Chicago political science professor, and Stephen Walt, a professor of international relations at Harvard University’s Kennedy School, said the U.S. government’s unstinting support for Israel’s recent war in Lebanon once again placed the agenda of what they call the Israel lobby ahead of U.S. strategic interests.
The result, they said, was that the U.S. position in the Middle East, already strained due to the Iraq War, had worsened with consequences that wouldn’t just be bad for America, but Israel as well.
“One, Iran and Syria are more likely to continue arming and supporting Hezbollah,” Mearsheimer said.
“Two, Iran and Syria have even more reason to keep the U.S. pinned down in Iraq so it’s not attacked by U.S. troops,” he said. “Three, Iran has more reason than ever to acquire nuclear weapons so it can deter an Israeli or U.S. attack on its homeland.” (….Full Article)
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C-SPAN Video of Walt & Mearsheimer 8/28/2006
