Do Israeli Interests Fire U.S. Iraq Policy?

March 15 -- A joke currently circulating around the Internet tells the story of Saddam Hussein and George W. Bush sharing their dreams with each other.

Saddam Hussein phoned President Bush. "I had a dream about the United States," he said. "I could see the whole country, and over every building and home was a banner."

"What was on the banner?" asked Bush.

"LONG LIVE SADDAM!" answered the dictator.

"I'm so glad that you called," said President Bush, "because I too had a dream. In my dream, I saw Iraq and it was more beautiful than ever; totally rebuilt with many tall, gleaming office buildings, large residential subdivisions with swimming pools in every yard; and over every building and home was a big, beautiful banner."

"What did the banner say?" asked Saddam.

I don't know," answered President Bush, "I can't read Hebrew."

The joke may offend some, but it underscores a growing debate over the role of Israel — and American Jews supportive of Israel — as the United States moves further toward war with Iraq.

In recent months, everyone from Slate's Michael Kinsley to former U.S. presidential candidate Gary Hart to Hardball host Chris Matthews has commented about the problem of "dual loyalty" in this conflict — the question of whether some Americans — especially certain Jewish members of the Bush administration — are supporting war with Iraq because they believe war is in Israel's interests.

The debate surfaced in public March 3 when Rep. James Moran, D-Va., told a church forum that, "If it were not for the strong support of the Jewish community for this war with Iraq, we would not be doing this."

The White House condemned Moran's comments and the congressman has since apologized for his comments.

American Jewish groups have not endorsed the war, and many Jews have been active in the anti-war movement. But, as evidenced by Moran's recent comments, the debate continues over Israel's role, American Jewish support of the Iraq war, and a perceived dual loyalty.

Kinsley wrote in October that there has been a "lack of public discussion about the role of Israel in the thinking of President Bush." The Moran flap was the first time the White House has gotten involved. Before, the discussion has stayed in the realm of political magazines and op-ed pages. Below we break down the debate:

The ‘Elephant in the Room’

In his October column, Kinsley wrote that in discussion about Iraq, Israel is "the proverbial elephant in the room" — the topic that everyone agreed was an issue but that no one wanted to talk about, for fear of sounding anti-Semitic. But writers recently have been more willing to ponder how much Israel, or at least those concerned about Israel's security, influences U.S. Iraq policy.