Republican Sen. Jim Inhofe said Thursday that he thinks President Obama is out on a political limb with his endorsement of the 1967 borders — with modifications — as the basis for a final peace deal between Israel and a new Palestinian state.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected the president’s approach in a visit to Washington earlier this week.
“First of all it’s a bad thing to do from a policy perspective — it’s a total reversal of everything we’ve stood for. But over and above that, politically, it had to be the dumbest thing I’ve ever seen,” the Oklahoma senator told the Washington Times-affiliated “America’s Morning News” radio program.
He said the president’s position inexplicably undermines America’s top ally in the troubled Middle East.
“I’m hoping it’s naivete, because the other choices are not very comforting,” he said.
Mr. Inhofe said he was one of the many lawmakers roused by Mr. Netanyahu’s address to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday, in which the Israeli prime minister said a return to the 1967 borders would leave his country militarily indefensible.
“I was very proud of [Mr. Netanyahu], he’s a hero to me,” Mr. Inhofe said, adding that he had never seen anyone give a speech before Congress that was supported so strongly by both Democrats and Republicans.
The Oklahoma Republican is in his third term and is a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee.
