Taking Bush Back to Reality?

James Baker's Iraq Study Group may be about to do the unthinkable - tell president Bush to stop ignoring the obvious and we'll all be a lot better off if he listens.

While the Baker group is supposed to keep quiet until after the elections on Tuesday, word of their deliberations and conclusions has been leaking out. It sounds as though they have concluded that Bush has it all backward - and they're right.

Bush has always taken the position that the path to stability in the Middle East begins at Baghdad and runs to Jerusalem. The ISG is said to be planning to tell Bush that it actually has to begin in Jerusalem and run to Baghdad. In other words, resolve the Palestinian question first and then the rest should become much more manageable.

One of the perpetual myths that the reich-wingers pitch is that the Arab world refuses to recognize Israel and so peace is impossible. Pardon me, that's not a myth, it's an outright lie. In 2002, Saudi King Abdullah launched an Arab peace initiative on behalf of 22-Arab states. The deal they offered was full recognition of Israel, including normal economic relations if Israel returned to its pre-1967 borders and the Palestinians received a proper state on the west bank. Israel would have none of it.

This isn't rocket science. Just about everyone knows this is the deal, the only deal, that has any hope of bringing peace and stability to the Middle East. There are two bumps in this road to peace: Israel and America's evangelical right. Israel wants to hold on to the occupied lands. The evangelicals believe Israel isn't even big enough as it is but must expand to the supposed borders of ancient Israel in order to fulfil bibilical prophesy and bring them their Rapture.

There is only one way this deal will work: Washington has to impose it on Israel. It's time the dog began wagging the tail instead of the other way round. American troops could play a very productive role in the Middle East by providing the peacekeeping and security force this deal would require until it becomes reality.

The Deal could have far-reaching effects. It will defuse perhaps the most volatile issue that fuels Arab extremism. The mere fact of 22-Arab states recognizing and trading with Israel will go a long way to restoring America's squandered political capital in the region while undermining the extremist movement.

Will Bush have the vision and the courage to make a stand on this, to make this his legacy? No. He hasn't shown the force of character this job would require. Perhaps his successor will be the one to do the right thing for the Middle East.