GOP Rep Cole: Obama Israel Policy ‘a Series of Calculated Insults’

Tuesday on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” Rep. Tom Cole (R-OK) took aim at President Barack Obama’s treatment of Israel, particularly after the United States declined to use its power on the U.N. Security Council to thwart a resolution condemning Israel for the location of settlements in what the body claimed was disputed territory.

Cole called in a break with traditional U.S. policy and said he was eager to see if the Israeli government indeed had proof the United States “colluded” with other countries to push the resolution.

“Frankly, it is a break in our long-time policy — not on the settlement issue, but it made sure that U.N. resolutions are not one-sided,” he said. “This clearly was. To do it the last 30 days of your presidency when you know the incoming administration holds a different position I think was reckless and reprehensible. And I’m going to be interested to see if the Israeli charge that the United States actually colluded in this is true. I think it is too early to tell, but there is nothing reassuring about the way we handled this situation in my view.”

As a whole, Cole said the passage of the resolution was the final insult in a series of insults the administration had levied on Israel.

“Look, I think he has certainly been supportive in terms of defensive weapons and those kinds of things. But no, I think you look at the Iranian agreement, I think that was very reckless and I think it endangered Israel. You know, he’s let it out personally when microphones caught him that he certainly didn’t like President Netanyahu. He kept him waiting one time famously in the White House while the president and his family had dinner. He didn’t invite the prime minister to join them. So no, I think its been series of calculated insults and I think this was the last insult on the way out the door. I don’t think it makes the president look very well. And certainly to do something that you know deliberately at odds with what the incoming president is going to do on a stage this big shows a certain pettiness that I’m surprised to see in President Obama who usually rises above these sorts of things.”

Follow Jeff Poor on Twitter @jeff_poor