Last Thursday, members of the Brandeis community listened as Gil Hoffman, the chief political correspondent and analyst for The Jerusalem Post, outlined what was at stake in the U.S. elections for United States-Israel relations. At the event, titled "Red States, Blue States and the Jewish State," Hoffman discussed the role President Barack Obama's reelection would play in Israel and how the link between Israeli and American politics could impact the unstable situation in the Middle East. Though there was originally a full audience, the speaker's one-hour late arrival, due to him getting lost on his way to the event, resulted in a smaller, more intimate crowd in the Hassenfeld Conference Center.

The discussion aimed to encourage dialogue on how to ease the conflict between the two allied countries. "The tension that there has been over the last four years is very real," Hoffman said. "They started off-[Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu and Obama-on the wrong foot."

But, while Hoffman stressed that the leaders have much work to do, he also said the risks are too high for Israel and the United States to avoid cooperation. Faced with the fear of Iran obtaining a nuclear weapon and the Palestinian request for statehood, Hoffman said that the two countries must collaborate.

"Obama can indeed regain Israelis' trust," Hoffman told students and staff, because policy disagreements do not cause problems among nations, surprises do. Therefore, Hoffman speculated that if communication improves between Netanyahu and Obama, and if both are aware of the other's incentives and initiatives, the United States-Israeli relationship will improve.

But why do Israelis dislike Obama? More Israelis believe the president is pro-Palestinian than pro-Israel, said Hoffman, because though three billion dollars in military aid is appreciated, and Israelis are grateful for the deaths of Osama bin Laden and Muammar el-Qaddafi, Israel holds Obama responsible for increased hostility in the Middle East.

"Egypt falling to the Muslim Brotherhood is, to Israelis, ... Obama's fault," said Hoffman, referring to the Egyptian revolution in 2011. "He was the one who said 'Now' when all his advisors told him not to say ... when [former President of Egypt Hosni] Mubarak has to leave," Hoffman added.

Likewise, Hoffman said Israelis also blame Obama for the Syrian uprising, which has become an ongoing civil war between the Ba'ath Party government and its opponents. Hoffman continued, whereas Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush allowed Israel to build settlements on the West Bank in blocks that "everyone believes will be part of Israel forever," Obama told the Israelis they could not, angering both the Israeli center and left.

But though Netanyahu may not have supported Obama's reelection, there is proof Netanyahu believed Obama would succeed, said Hoffman: "[H]e didn't bet on the wrong horse. The very fact that he [Netanyahu] ... set red lines before the election, showed that he was trying to put pressure on the president when he had leverage over him" because after an election, Netanyahu would lose that influence.

Obama's reelection, Hoffman said, may impact the United States-Israel rapport more so than Israel's own national election on Jan. 22. Provided that Netanyahu wins reelection, he and the president will meet in Washington, D.C. at the American Israel Public Affairs Committee Policy Conference in March to resume talks on the peace process.

With the passing of Netanyahu's father and father-in-law, both of whom convinced Netanyahu not to compromise on peace, Netanyahu is now more willing to negotiate, said Hoffman. And, the world has been taking him more seriously.

During a pre-recorded interview that was aired during the Super Bowl last February, Obama was asked if Israel would attack Iran, emphasizing an issue that Netanyahu has stressed, front and center. "This is the highest- rated television show in the history of mankind on the Earth," said Hoffman. "You know how much it costs for a 30-second ad in the Super Bowl? Like two million dollars, and we got it for free. That's when I saw the Israeli approach to preventing the nuclearization of Iran was working."

Though Hoffman was late, those students who stayed found the discussion informative and beneficial. "I wasn't entirely sure what to expect. I'm not incredibly knowledgeable on the conflict happening in the Middle East right now. ... So, coming here, I'm definitely getting a very different view of Israeli culture and politics," said Joe Babeu '15.

"I think that for those participants who were here, they really learned a lot about what internal politics is like in Israel and how the dynamic between Netanyahu and Obama was in the last four years and how it will be going forward," said Alex Thomson '15, Brandeis Israel Public Affairs Committee copresident.

BIPAC sponsored the event along with the Politics department, Brandeis Democrats, Brandeis Libertarian Conservative Union, the Brandeis Tea Party Nation and Hillel at Brandeis.
While Hoffman may not have changed everyone's perspectives, he did convince them of the significance of Israel-United States relations. "[T]here is one thing we can be sure of," Ilana Rosenbaum '15, BIPAC's campus engagement coordinator, wrote in an email to the Justice. "The results of the US election are deeply influential to Israeli life and to the US/Israel relationship, especially in this time of extreme turmoil and upheaval in the countries of the Middle East surrounding Israel."