CONFRONTING A REVOLT – AT 9:03 A.M. ET:  President Obama appeared before a group of Democratic senators to counter a revolt in his own party over his wobbly Iran policy.  When a president has to do that, he's in trouble.  From The Politico:

President Barack Obama hosted Senate Democrats at White House on Wednesday in an effort to synchronize legislative and political strategies — and talk about the divisive issue of Iran sanctions.

The White House has notably split with more than a dozen Democratic senators including Chuck Schumer of New York and Robert Menendez of New Jersey on whether a new round of economic penalties are needed as the U.S. attempts to negotiate a long-term deal to wind down Iran’s nuclear ambitions.

On Wednesday evening, Obama delivered a “strong message” that the Senate must continue to hold off on new sanctions while negotiations continue and a six-month interim agreement is implemented, a source briefed on the meeting said. The source added that the back and forth on Iran was “not contentious.”

COMMENT:  No, it wasn't contentious.  Meetings with a president rarely are.  People show respect for the office, if not for the occupant. 

But the real story here is why the meeting had to be held at all:  Even Democrats are becoming disillusioned with Obama's foreign policy, which has been a colossal failure everywhere.  The recent gains by Al Qaeda in Iraq have added to the disillusionment.

Added to the problem are pathetic statements coming out of the White House, like the statement by one aide who said that Democrats who want to impose new sanctions on Iran are warmongers.  No apology has been given. 

Naturally, some are attributing the Congressional suspicion of our Iran policy to the "Israel lobby."  But that just isn't washing.  There is legitimate and serious worry, across the political spectrum, about an administration that seems to punish our friends and reward our enemies. 

I'm guessing that Congress, in the end, will grant Obama's wish and hold off on new sanctions during this six-month period.  But I have no confidence that Obama will come out with any agreement with Iran that protects us.

January 16, 2014