Re: Bush mideast policy

Boris--I'm not following what you think the roots of Bush's policy are.  As 
this article notes, it represents a striking departure from his father's, which 
tended to be influenced by the oil industries desire for closer relations with 
the Arab states (besides, as James Baker famously noted, Jews don't vote for 
Republicans anyway).  W's policy seems in line with his other foreign 
policy--macho militarism (Sharon seems like his type) plus hostility to 'wimpy' 
interventionism (we don't want to get overly involved in 'peace processes'--we 
have missile defense systems to build!).  Furthermore, given the importance of 
Florida, even though most Jews don't vote for them, the Republicans can't risk 
losing any of the votes of those who do (the same sort of considerations are 
likely to mean no progress on Cuba during this administration).  As the New 
York Times is clearly distancing themselves from Bush's policy, it seems hard 
to argue that embracing Sharon represents a consensus among t!
he American capitalist class--am
 I misunderstanding you?

Steven Sherman