House Speaker John Boehner has lashed out at the Obama administration for reports that one senior official described Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a "chickens...," while another unnamed official described him as a "coward."
Boehner said that the comments reported in
The Atlantic suggesting Netanyahu is more concerned about his political self-interest than forging peace in the Middle East could threaten America's relationship with Israel and the long-term security of the region,
Politico reported.
"For the last six years, this long-standing and bipartisan framework has been tested by an Obama administration that has repeatedly chased after adversaries at the expense of core U.S. national security interests and the security, confidence, and trust of our allies," Boehner said in a release.
"When the president discusses Israel and Iran, it is sometimes hard to tell who he thinks is America's friend and who he thinks is America's enemy. The House of Representatives has no trouble drawing that distinction," he added.
The
White House on Wednesday distanced itself from the comments, characterizing them as "inappropriate and counterproductive," but a top Democrat also had strong words for the administration.
"I was shocked and disappointed on reading the comments in The Atlantic," New York Rep. Eliot Engel, the ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said in a statement, according to
The Hill.
"I call upon the Administration to reassert the importance of the relationship between the United States and Israel, and to reaffirm that the bonds between our two countries are unbreakable. I realize that two allies, such as the United States and Israel, are not going to agree on everything, but I think it is counterproductive and unprofessional for Administration officials to air their dirty laundry in such a public way."
He added, "I am getting tired of hearing about the leaks and denials. This ought to be the last time we hear of such talk because it is getting to a point where nobody believes the denials anymore."
On Wednesday, Netanyahu made pointed comments in response to the slur in The Atlantic.
"Our paramount interests, first and foremost, security and the unity of Jerusalem, are not of vital importance to those same anonymous sources who attack us and me, personally," he said. "I am being attacked personally only because I am defending the state of Israel."
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