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Barack Meets Barak; Tells Bibi: "I Could Fall Asleep Standing Up"

July 23, 2008 4:26 AM

JERUSALEM -- Boker tov!

At the fabled King David Hotel this morning, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Illinois, had breakfast with Israeli Defense Minister and Labor leader Ehud Barak.

The presumptive Democratic presidential nominee was accompanied by senior advisers Dennis Ross, Jim Steinberg, former U.S. ambassador to Israel Dan Kurtzer; former Navy secretary Richard Danzig and Dan Shapiro.

Also present: Barak's chief of staff Mike Herzog; chief of the Defense ministry's military political department Gen. Amos Gilad; Defense ministry director Brig. Gen. Pinchas Buchris; and military secretary to the Minister of Defense, Gen. Eitan Dangot.

Obama, wearing a blue-and-white striped tie, posed for photos with Barak.

"Where are we sitting?" Barack asked Barak.

Barak motioned him to the other side of a large wooden table covered with orange juice, bread, fruit, cheese and salad.

The next meeting was with Knesset member/Likud Party Chair Benjamin Netanyahu, who asked Obama how he was feeling.

"I could fall asleep standing up," Obama said, according to Bloomberg News' Tel Aviv correspondent Jonathan Ferziger.

Obama advisers Steinberg, Danzig, Shapiro and Dr. Susan Rice met with Bibi as well. Bibi was joined by former Ambassador Dore Gold; former national security adviser Uzi Arad; Zalman Shoval, former ambassador to U.S.; Netanyahu's counselor Ron Derner and Netanyahu chief of staff Ari Harrow

"Mr. Obama?" asked one of the reporters in the small pool permitted into these meetings.

"There's not going to be any questions now," Obama said. And the reporters were escorted out.

(As Rabbi Hillel said, "If not now, when?")

Obama "raised his policy in which he said that he would never seek in any way to compromise Israel's security and that this would be sacrosanct to his approach to political negotiations, and I think this is very much something on our minds," Netanyahu said after their meeting.

"The Senator and I agreed that the primacy of preventing iran from becoming a nuclear power is clear and this should guide our mutual policies." He said he told Obama that "achieving this goal is more important than how you achieve it, but it's terribly important to achieve it."

**

A Gallup poll from May shows Obama beating Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., among American Jewish voters, 61% to 32%.

But it's a relatively weak performance considering how Democratic Jews traditionally vote -- it's 20 points worse than both Bill Clinton and Al Gore did, and 15 points worse than Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., in 2004.

**

Right now Obama is touring the Holocaust Museum here, Yad Vashem. After that, he will meet with Israeli president Shimon Peres.

Then, on to Ramallah in the West Bank where he will meet with Palestinian National Authority President Mahmud Abbas and Prime Minister Dr. Salam Fayyad.

Amidst some reports questioning whether the Palestinians would be in charge of Obama's security while in the West Bank, Dr. Rice underscored this morning that the U.S. Secret Service will be in charge as it has been this entire trip.

Following a visit with Foreign Minister Tzipora Malka "Tzipi" Livni, Obama will fly by helicopter with Livni and Barak to Sderot, where they will meet Minister of Internal Security, Avi Dichter.

Located less than a mile from Gaza, Sderot has been a target of Qassam rocket attacks from militant Palestinians. Since 2001, 13 people in the town of roughly 20,000 have been killed; aid organizations estimate that up to one quarter of the town's residents have fled their homes.

"We had a tragic and painful reminder of the persistent threat terrorism poses to Israel's people just steps from here yesterday," Rice said this morning to reporters, referencing the bulldozer attack, "and today in Sderot he'll have an opportunity to see the pain and the challenges posed to Israeli people by living in such dangerous proximity to Hamas rockets." In Sderot Obama will meet with a local family selected by Israeli officials.

Obama will visit a police station there, where a number of rockets that have fallen are on display. Reporters may or may not get to ask Obama a question or two in Sderot.

He will return by helicopter back to Jerusalem and in the evening will have a dinner meeting with embattled Prime Minister Ehud Olmert

-- Jake Tapper and Sunlen Miller

July 23, 2008 | Permalink | Share | User Comments (23)

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Hmmmmm! If he is exhausted when he is on vacation, hope he does not get that 3 a.m. phone call! Appears BO naps on the job. lol!

Posted by: Beckie | Jul 23, 2008 7:49:05 PM

Bibi wasn't asking how Obama was feeling out of concern. He was sizing him up. Bibi only cares about himself and is just as pompous, if not more, than Obama.

Thing is, if Obama wins, Netanyahu is going to be the PM he'll most likely have to work with.

Hope he doesn't fall asleep.

Posted by: Brooke | Jul 23, 2008 4:57:27 PM

"Barack Meets Barak; Tells Bibi: 'I Could Fall Asleep Standing Up'"

Obviously, they must've been watching a McCain town hall meeting.

Posted by: RobSoLF | Jul 23, 2008 10:10:51 AM

It seems essential to the sanity of America that Obama should lose.
If Obama lost, too many people around the world could continue to believe that if only America got out of whatever it is in, everything would be better.
If Obama wins and fails to satisy his unrealistic supporters, Obama may be broken. The daydream will never be broken.
For all those whose cares have been our concern, the work goes on, the cause endures, the hope still lives, and the dream shall never die even if Obama fails because he's not the change and hope that we can believe in....

Posted by: neil1785 | Jul 23, 2008 8:22:00 AM

jump up,

I completely agree with you. Hillary should now try to convince DNC in the convention or run as independent. Nothing good or better will happen to US if Obama run the country....

Posted by: neil1785 | Jul 23, 2008 8:13:28 AM

- Michelle Whitedove (America's #1 Psychic, God-fearing Catholic)

What will happen to Obama?
As of today, Obama is over-confident and the power is going to his head. He is buying into his own PR hype. His people are playing up the Christian family man, but we are in the beginning stages of scandal, after scandal. His colorful past will crop up as his opposition is digging for the dirt. In Obama’s younger years he never thought that he would be running for US President. So now the ugly truth will be spoon fed to the American public: marital indiscretions, prejudice, drug use, associations with the wrong people and even money laundering associated with his church. The country’s opinion will turn on him. Unfortunately this will cause Oprah great embarrassment, and will lead to a drop in her ratings.

Posted by: neil1785 | Jul 23, 2008 8:06:01 AM

When is going to do the getto fist bump with his fellow muslim extremist on the world stage for all to see? It looked so presidential and sophisticated when he and michele did it on camera as an in your face Hillary jester.

Posted by: sayuncle | Jul 23, 2008 8:04:28 AM

America’s #1 Psychic still stands by her prediction that Hillary will be our next President
I do not believe in psychics. I am a secular humanist. When every poll is showing that Hillary is losing, I heard that one psychic, Michelle Whitedove is predicting since last year that Hillary will win. Then we had more bad news for Hillary. I wondered whether the psychic is just guessing or really predicting using her own techniques whether scientific or not. I am curious to know whether based on latest news, she would back track. Naturally after Obama coronation, I went to her site to see how she defends her prediction.
To my great surprise, she is standing by her prediction even in her yesterday’s update.
Her latest updated prediction is
=Hillary will not concede and drop out. Hillary is reserving her right keep her delegates so she can reverse her suspension and take her bid for Presidency all the way to theDemocratic National Convention in Denver August 25-28.
=My future vision remains the same, I see Hillary being sworn in.
=Obama is now ego centered instead of solution driven. He is all talk and lacks a real a game plan. You will hear this in his upcoming interviews.
= He has more scandals that will continue to come to light that will continue to tarnish his reputation. He will take a beat down in the media. When this happens the super-delegates can change their vote and go with Hillary.
= McCain will not be the president. The 2008 Election will be a win for the Democrats, although closely won.
Her website says she correctly predicted last two presidential elections (win for W)
Let us wait and see.
Needless to say, I shall be happy if she proved correct

Posted by: neil1785 | Jul 23, 2008 8:02:04 AM

zagar, wrote,
"As Obama tours Afghanistan, the senator from Illinois says he is "more interested in listening than doing a lot of talking.""

IT'S BECAUSE OBAMA DOESN'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT FOREIGN POLICY THAT'S WHY HE CANNOT PARTICIPATE IN THE DISCUSSION ... HE'S DOEN'T EVEN NATIONAL SECURITY OR OUR AMERICAN ECONOMY....GEEEEZZZZZ... DNC, BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE PLEASE REPLACE THIS IDIOT WITH HILLARY WHO IS BETTER TO CONTEND WITH MCCAIN....

Posted by: neil1785 | Jul 23, 2008 7:59:17 AM

Omentum, wrote,
"Sure is nice to have a TRUE US representative going abroad these days. Not just a warmongering oil man or a senile has been posing to be a leader"

Obama will do whatever it takes to justify his 16-month troop withdrawal from IRAQ because that's exactly what he promised the people in every state during the democratic primaries... seems like he's not gonna stick to that promise because he flip-flopped just to pander votes... millions of viewers are witnessing to his true colors... he won't win the Novemeber Election....I doubt if he can last til november....

Posted by: neil1785 | Jul 23, 2008 7:52:58 AM

Obviously this trip is about photo ops to use in Obama's upcoming campaign ads and wooing the support of other nations' leaders. As usual, Obama refuses to answer reporters' questions; after all, when he speaks off the cuff his ignorance becomes clear. Obama is playing by the old adage "fake it til you make it" which would be fine except that after he "makes it" America will have a "fake" in charge.

Posted by: HoosierSue | Jul 23, 2008 7:46:23 AM

- Michelle Whitedove (America's #1 Psychic, God-fearing Catholic)

What will happen to Obama?
As of today, Obama is over-confident and the power is going to his head. He is buying into his own PR hype. His people are playing up the Christian family man, but we are in the beginning stages of scandal, after scandal. His colorful past will crop up as his opposition is digging for the dirt. In Obama’s younger years he never thought that he would be running for US President. So now the ugly truth will be spoon fed to the American public: marital indiscretions, prejudice, drug use, associations with the wrong people and even money laundering associated with his church. The country’s opinion will turn on him. Unfortunately this will cause Oprah great embarrassment, and will lead to a drop in her ratings.

Posted by: neil1785 | Jul 23, 2008 7:40:52 AM

Wow....

Sure is nice to have a TRUE US representative going abroad these days. Not just a warmongering oil man or a senile has been posing to be a leader.

Posted by: Omentum | Jul 23, 2008 6:43:00 AM

As Obama tours Afghanistan, the senator from Illinois says he is "more interested in listening than doing a lot of talking."

That would be good if it were the case.

Unfortunately, Obama is busy making promises.

Posted by: zagar | Jul 23, 2008 6:25:55 AM

Obama's childish electoral rhetoric of ‘end the war’ which worked so well with the easily pleased and naive moveon.org crowd.

Obama has no intention of getting the US out of the Middle East.

Clinton really should run as a third candidate now with the promise to really get us out of all conflicts in the Middle east.

Posted by: jump up | Jul 23, 2008 6:25:00 AM

I am sure Obama used his middle name often while visiting the Islamic countries. But now goes by the name jewish name of Barry while visiting Israeli

Posted by: jump up | Jul 23, 2008 6:22:58 AM

Obama's childish electoral rhetoric of ‘end the war’ which worked so well with the easily pleased and naive moveon.org crowd.

Is that same moveon.org crowd still with Obama on his stance on Afghanistan and a Pakistan invasion.

Posted by: zealots | Jul 23, 2008 6:17:11 AM

Vote for Obama to end the disastrous war.

Well, think again, and get ready for an escalation of the Other Wars if Obama gets elected – the one in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Now we will be fighting WARS with at least 3 countrys.

CHANGE WE CAN BELIEVE IN to end the WAR

Posted by: Help Amercia | Jul 23, 2008 6:03:47 AM

Clinton said in 1998 "What is most important to the history of the world? The Taliban or the collapse of the Soviet empire?

Posted by: fester them | Jul 23, 2008 5:56:35 AM

Even less noticed is the responsibility of Democrats for the mess in Afghanistan, which provided the incubator for the 9/11 attack

Posted by: hanoi hilton | Jul 23, 2008 5:54:10 AM

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