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Ron Dermer Named Next Israeli Ambassador to U.S.: Reports
WASHINGTON DC (The Forward) – Washington — Ron Dermer, Benjamin Netanyahu’s close adviser known for his strong ties with Republican politicians, will reportedly be Israel’s next ambassador to the United States.
Dermer, 42, served until recently as Netanayhu‘s senior adviser at the prime minister’s office. He was born in the United States and moved to Israel in 1998 and entered politics first as an aide to Natan Sharansky, with whom he co-authored the book “The Case for Democracy,” which was adopted by former president George W. Bush and by many in his administration as a roadmap to democracy in the Middle East.
« click for cartoon by Daniel Hertzberg
Dermer’s father and brother both served as Democratic mayors of Miami Beach, but the the family also forged close ties with the Bush family. Ron Dermer chose cultivated ties with the Republicans and grew close to neo-conservative circles, initially through his friendship with Richard Perle, one of the top strategists associated with the neo-conservative school of thought.
Dermer’s close political ties in America were also seen as a handicap when dealing with Obama’s Democratic administration. Israeli sources has said in the past that Dermer was viewed by the White House as the source behind several negative articles about President Obama written by pro-Israel pundits. According to press reports, Israeli officials also got the impression that Dermer doubted Obama would win a second term and told his colleagues in Jerusalem to prepare for a Mitt Romney presidency.
In his years working on the intersection of American and Israeli affairs, Dermer cultivated close ties with the established Jewish community and has served as the main point of contact for Jewish leaders at the prime minister’s office.
Mr. Sharansky, Mr. Buchanan, welcome both. This book has created quite a stir here in Washington, “The Case for Democracy.” The president of the United States said this: “If you want a glimpse of how I think about foreign policy read Natan Sharansky’s book `The Case for Democracy.’ …It’s a great book.” “I think it will…explain a lot of the decisions that…you’ve seen made and will continue to see made.”
The president went on that the book was part of his “presidential DNA. …It’s It’s what I think; it’s”– “part of all policy. …It is part of my philosophy.”
And, in fact, we saw that in the State of the Union address, the inaugural address. Let’s watch.
[listen to the horror of a Republican president, lest one forgets! – Oui]
