Israel's Fears

Anxiety over the Iranian nuclear program is strongest in Israel, whose government has repeatedly declared that it would be prepared to use force to arrest the development of an Iranian bomb. In every statement of the U.S. position there is the affirmation that "all options are on the table," meaning the use of preemptive force. I will finally relieve myself of anxiety that the Bush administration is plotting some such attack on January 20, 2009, for it has been evident that strong voices within the administration, above all Vice President Cheney, wanted to do that very thing. The guessing game will doubtless go on. Will the Bushies do it in the interregnum? Will Israel do it alone? Did Obama mean what he said to AIPAC?