Imitations of influence: Eisenhower, the Jews, and the Middle East

The persistent emotional quality of America's attachment to Israel, religious and secular, and the notion that a 'special relationship' existed since Truman gave America's support to the creation of the state, has often obscured where practical policy choices began and ended. If that line was not blurred for policy-makers, then it has been for observers. Perceptions about the 'specialness' clouded the reasons, and the reasons have subsequently become excuses on issues that were prone to polemics anyway. This consistency has also disguised the fact that the special relationship was not a fait accompli from 1948, and few have recognized that Eisenhower was an aberration among the presidents who served since Truman insofar as American policy toward Israel. Although there were concerns among military planners that World War III might occur as a result of the contest between the Soviet Union and the United States over control of the Middle East, Eisenhower saw Israel as the problem rather than a possible solution as his successors did.; The difficulty observers have had in determining where practical policy choices ended and emotion began has been further complicated by the visibility of public opinion on Middle East issues, the most controversial of which has been identified with the Jewish community. American Jewish interest in U.S. policy toward Israel has always been 'different' from others who express a position because of their historical and communal interests. Our understanding of Jewish concerns has been clouded by old, unpleasant, and inaccurate beliefs about Jews. Historians and political scientists have not had any special immunity from the subtle currents of traditional perceptions.; This work addresses these issues by looking at the Eisenhower administration within the context of the past rather than in relation to subsequent history. It also looks at that president's Middle East policy in relation to the complexities of the Jewish community. Understanding the tensions within the community in the wake of Israel's creation is critical to assessing the strength of its efforts at shaping U.S. policy.; Research supporting the study relied on archives in the U.S., throughout the U.K. and in Israel.