Believe It or Not, Hillary Clinton Wasn’t Always This One-Sided on Israel

The former secretary of state used to hold a more nuanced view on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, in contrast to the fact that she now seems to blindly support Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s increasingly right-wing regime.

From The Intercept:

The text of Hillary Clinton’s speech to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee conference in March runs 3,301 words, almost every one of them praising Israeli policy in one way or another, and expounding on taking the “U.S.-Israel alliance to the next level.”

Only a single sentence — 15 words to the effect that “everyone has to do their part by avoiding damaging actions, including with respect to settlements” — could possibly be interpreted as criticism of Benjamin Netanyahu’s extremist right-wing government.

The speech was the battle cry of Clinton the presidential candidate, unflinchingly dedicated to military and diplomatic support of the Israeli government, literally regardless of what policies the Israeli government pursues.

The same stridently pro-Israel tones were echoed in remarks her husband, former President Bill Clinton, made on the campaign trail last week in response to protesters demonstrating against his wife’s support for the 2014 Israeli assault on Gaza.

“Hamas is really smart. When they decide to rocket Israel, they insinuate themselves in the hospitals, in the schools, in the highly populous areas, and they are smart,” he said, shifting all of the blame for Gaza’s casualties onto Hamas, and none onto Israel.

But Hillary Clinton has not always been so one-sided on the issue.

Hillary Clinton the secretary of state, for instance, clashed with Netanyahu.

And Hillary Clinton the first lady embraced the wife of the leader of the Palestinian movement.

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