I'd say the president's trip was extremely fruitful, and only the beginning of some (hopefully) more progress. I hope Secy Kerry will be equally succesful in followup efforts.

Secretary of State John Kerry talks with President Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority at the Mugata Presidential Compound in Ramallah, the West Bank, March 21, 2013. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)




U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu before their working dinner in Jerusalem on March 23, 2013 (State Department Photo/Public Domain)

no use yahoo, we know there's lizard skin under that suit!..lol

boycott israel until they change their apartheid policies, not that there's much a regular citizen can do as far as a boycott, lending support to the idea is about all we can do, so...there's that and don't buy any more uzi's!

get the maximum credit and exposure for their actions. Great political theater.

. . . that you'd question whether they're responsible for these changes.

Who else did you have in mind to credit for the reconciliation?

You are way ahead of me somewhere. I didn't question anybodies responsibility for anything at all.

"I find it fascinating how this is all arranged so that the politicians in question get the maximum credit and exposure for their actions. Great political theater."

I guess I took that statement the wrong way. From what I saw, these decisions were made behind the scenes and were reported on afterward by the press. I imagine there was some effort by the principles to feed those reports. Thing is, this decision wasn't touted in public by any of the politicians; at least not yet.

That's not always true, but it is the way to bet. But I don't mean that as criticism, that's sort of how democratic government has to work, as a sort of theatrical production, carried out (more or less) in public.

I am admiring both of what is being done and how well it's been put together, almost out of nothing.

. . . and so much is being kept very confidential. That's unusual and, I think, provides much of the 'surprise' reaction from the press and observers; most likely to enhance the 'theater' of it all.

We can see, also, how the conservative contingent of politicians and interests converged before this trip to portray the relationship between the President and the Israeli leaders as severely damaged and at odds on almost every issue. It was a successful strategy by the WH and their diplomatic team to orchestrate an series of events in which the President could both highlight his own initiatives, and also reassure the Israeli public that he shared many of their key concerns, understandings, and aspirations for their country.

I think the array of positive responses from Israel has been breathtaking in their ebullient praise of the style and substance of the President's presentation; as well as their reporting of the public's overwhelmingly positive reaction to his appearances.

More complicated, after all of that is said and done, is the U.S. and the President's relationship with the Palestinians. Fair or not, that is going to be measured by the degree in which Israel and the Palestinians handle their difficulties; in many ways, because of President Obama's broad and warm public embrace of Israel. Not as much focus on the 'Palestine' people on this trip. Maybe that's the press; maybe it's a WH calculation.

Maybe it was a flat and equal trip planned, but the reality of the two countries produced dissimilar results in coverage and appearance.

Just some thoughts . . . thanks for explaining.

State Department or Obama's National Security council, they ALL work for President Obama. President Obama will and should get credit for any positive changes they manage to facilitate. (As to Netanyahu - I'm not sure that most of the world will give him "credit" - rather they will agree it is a tiny step in the right direction to correct the major inequities. That is after all an accurate estimation of what he has done.)

Especially with major peace agreements or treaties, there usually is a huge amount of work done by people we will never hear about - until maybe when they retire. Then there may be a statement expressing thanks for all that was done explaining what they did. I remember a very nice Kerry Senate floor speech when a staffer who worked for him on the SFRC for over 20 years retired. She had worked with him on everything he did in Vietnam and she had written (with Kerry) the first draft that led to PEPFAR covering AIDS in Africa. I think, other than the Senate record, Kerry's Senate site and her local paper - there was no coverage.

Obviously, if there - as the result of much work by many people from many countries - there is anything that can be seen as even a step towards a solution in this intractable mess, it will be Obama, the Israeli leader and the Palestinian leader at whatever marks the signing of the agreement.

It's very Obama-like somehow, these little dramas, I call them dramas. He's very comfortable on the public stage.

I'm just impressed, both with something being done, and how smoothly it's all scripted out for public display. Just comparing it with the recent past.

A game changer was clearly needed - and his speech was very good in saying things that US leaders have not said and to try to get Israelis and Palestinians - especially the young - to rethink their positions -- which have resulted in a multi decade stalemate (other than settlements taking more and more land)

The State Department website has Kerry's answer to the WP reporter's question at an Iraq press conference. She asked for his impressions of Obama's visit to Israel and whether he was optimistic. Here is his response.

[div class='excerpt']
SECRETARY KERRY: Oh, with respect to the Mideast process, I think the President’s trip to the Mideast was historic in every respect, and I know that the folks in Israel felt its impact. They were impressed by him, impressed by the vision that he expressed, and I think that his words even after he has left are reverberating. People are debating and talking, and that is precisely what the President sought to do.

So I think it was an extremely successful visit, a moving one for Israelis. I know for Prime Minister Netanyahu, whom I saw last night, he felt very strongly that it was an outstanding meeting. And I know from the President, before he left, that he was very impressed by the discussions he had. He felt they were the best that he has had to date, and I think the stage has been set for the possibilities that parties can hopefully find a way to negotiations.

Now, I think all of us have learned in the course of the last years, through many presidents and many secretaries of States, there has been no more intractable problem. And so expressing optimism when you don’t even have negotiations would be foolhardy. What I have is hope. I have hope that the President’s words kindled a sense of the possible in the people of Israel and the region and the Palestinians. I think that he has charged me and others with the responsibility of trying to find out what the way forward is. And I engaged in some of that discussion yesterday, both with President Abbas as well as with Prime Minister Netanyahu and some of his team.

We have to keep working at this. We’ve just begun those discussions. I wouldn’t characterize them in any way except open, candid, and a good beginning, and that’s where I’ll leave it. Thanks, appreciate it