BYE BYE GAZA - Barry Chamish

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In Bush, both Israeli and American conservatives believed
the US had found a president who not only recognized this
threat, but who was willing to put his money where his mouth
was and do something about it. That he unapologetically
surrounded himself with what his attackers called the
"neoconservative cabal" (his administration included the likes
of Douglas Feith, Elliott Abrams, Paul Wolfowitz and
others) – and simultaneously befriended Sharon – deepened
the natural three-way alliance between Washington,
Jerusalem and the conservatives, who finally felt their ideas
were being adopted by the leaders of both countries. And
that, for the first time in decades, America was not
pressuring Israel to make concessions that would be harmful
to its interests...
But most others, including Podhoretz, his wife, Midge
Decter, syndicated columnist Charles Krauthammer and
Weekly Standard Editor William Kristol, are behind Sharon.
As a result, Commentary and the Weekly Standard, which
published numerous pieces against the Oslo Accords, have
been relatively quiet over the disengagement plan.
Hudson Institute head Herb London, who supports the
plan, says the split on the Right over disengagement is not
as peculiar as it appears.
"Such disagreements are not unusual among conservatives,"
he said. "We've had many such arguments, including over
the war in Iraq – not the principle behind it, but the details.
The idea is for the Palestinians to democratize. It is the way
to achieve this that's being debated."
Like London, Podhoretz and Decter consider the plan to be
completely different from Oslo in terms both of its goals and
of the risks involved, mainly because of Bush.
"The toppling of Saddam, and Bush's determination to
reshape the entire region, have created an entirely new
context," Podhoretz said.