Barack Obama describes himself as a friend of Israel. In reality, the relationship between the former president and the State of Israel, one embodied by his approach to their leader Benjamin Netanyahu, has always been strained, if not downright hostile, since Obama was elected president.

Reportedly, when Netanyahu was invited to the Obama White House, he was snubbed and then kept waiting by Obama for half an hour, before the president finally condescended to see the leader of our country’s great ally and only friend in the Middle East.

Obama’s petulance continued to be publicly displayed when he failed to congratulate Netanyahu on his 2015 re-election.

The rift between Israel’s leader and our former president was heightened just recently as Obama, in his usual condescending and pontifical manner, warned Netanyahu and Israel that their retaliation against Hamas was likely to “harden Palestinian attitudes” towards the State of Israel.

From everything I have read and heard regarding Hamas’s position towards Israel, that terrorist group has always publicly and obscenely called for the destruction of Israel and the death of all Jews. Try as I might, I cannot imagine a worsening of that position.

Hamas rewarded kidnappers of Israeli civilians with cash rewards and free apartments upon returning to Palestinian-occupied territory with those captured Israelis.

They have, according to multiple reports, raped and murdered Israeli citizens and have gone so far as beheading Israeli babies.

If Obama, despite these Hamas atrocities, thinks the Palestinian attitude towards Israel could get worse, and if he really believes he is giving Israel friendly advice, Israel’s thought must certainly be, “With friends like this, who needs enemies?”

Bill Hansmann is a dentist and dental educator with over fifty years in the profession. He continues to teach and write political blogs and semi-mediocre novels while living with his wife and cats in Florida.

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