The WH's Israel-Iran message

On Sunday's "This Week," VP Biden made what some are calling another of his candid gaffes when he repeatedly said that Israel is a sovereign state and can make its own decisions about Iran.

I watched the show, and to me is was very clear that Biden was not being a loose cannon. He spoke very deliberately and chose his words carefully. Several times, he said some variation of this quote:

"We cannot dictate to another sovereign nation what they can and cannot do when they make a determination, if they make a determination, that they're existentially threatened." Other comments were variations on the statement that the US "cannot dictate to another sovereign nation what they can and cannot do".

Others thought that this was a signal to Israel, giving it license to attack Iran.

I didn't think that was right either. And Obama later clarified the administration's position, which doesn't at all contradict what Biden said; it just emphasizes the other side of the statement. Obama said

"We have said directly to the Israelis that it is important to try and resolve this in an international setting in a way that does not create major conflict in the Middle East." And then on CNN he said "absolutely not" about our giving Israel the green light to attack Iran.

So what was Biden's message, assuming it was carefully thought out ahead of time?

Some are saying that it was a message for the Iranians -- because we still want to have talks with them in spite of their controversial election and its aftermath, and this was a signal to them that clearly differentiates our policy from that of Israel -- and that probably has to do not only with attacking Iran but the whole Israel-Palestinian issue -- so that we are seen by the Muslim world as less closely allied with Israel than we have been in the past.

Ralph