Soccer Dad

Avigdor dangerfield?

Daled Amos notes that some wags think that Israeli FM Avigdor Lieberman is being sidelined purposely and is ..

"... is sort of Israel's version of Joe Biden."

David Hazony though, argues that Lieberman is being used where his advantage is the greatest

The very feature that makes Lieberman distasteful to many Westerners -- his power-affirming nationalism -- may make him more respected and, frankly, understandable in other parts of the world, especially in places like Russia and Latin America, where strongmen are respected rather than reviled. There is something ingenious about Netanyahu's deployment of his foreign policy assets, from his assignment of Lieberman to places where he is most likely to be respected and his positioning of Michael Oren (disclosure: friend, former Shalem Center colleague, and fellow Commentary contributor) as ambassador to the U.S., to his own rallying of Israeli public support against Obama's firm stance on settlements.

A few months ago Daniel Pipes cited some polling data to suggest that building non-traditional would be a good approach for Israel.

I'd add that for Netanyahu, using DM Ehud Barak as his point man for dealing with America makes a lot of sense. Ehud Barak might very well wear a t-shirt that says, "I went to Camp David and all I got is this lousy t-shirt." When the Americans press Israel to make more concessions, Barak can say, "When I was PM we tried that and more and the Palestinians still rejected our offers." In other words Barak can instruct the highly ideological American administration the lessons of realism in the Middle East.

This suggests that Lieberman is not being sidelined as a sign of disrespect but rather he's being used where he can be most effective.