When to SPY on your Friends - US and Israel

CNN - Politics: Reports " House Speaker John Boehner said he was "shocked" by a recent report that the Israeli government spied on Iranian nuclear talks and leaked information on the developing deal to lawmakers, and that he hadn't heard anything from the Israelis himself. "

Lets Get Real:

The best people to spy on are your friends, they can be worse than your enemies.  Israel has to worry that the Obama Oval will sign any deal with Iran to get a decent 24/7 news cycle.   The liberal left wing media have shown contempt for Israel for years, they are more interested in the creation of a Palestinian State and the are pro Arab when it comes to the Middle East Peace process.   The Mossad of Israel are the best in the business, they sometimes go over the line, when it comes to British interest and subjects there are lines that Israel should not cross, if you have to annoy anyone go after other European Countries.    As Israel is not part of the talks with Iran they have to use old methods to get the important information, then they can get the Israeli Lobby to lobby the US Congress to say NO to the agreement between Israel and the US/UN.   Friends can sometimes hurt more than enemies, you do not expect to be sold out by your friends. 

The downfall of Yemen - The New War on Terror

Guardian: Reports " Yemeni minister urges Gulf Arab military intervention against Houthis..Foreign minister Riyadh Yaseen calls for Gulf Cooperation Council’s military force to help stop advance of Iranian-backed Shia Houthi fighters "

Lets Get Real:

The Obama Administration has a problem, the Tehran Regime is supporting Iraqi Forces against IS, on a pure tactical level that works for the Oval Office, at least is not Western troops fighting IS.   On the strategic level this means that the US is on the same page as the Tehran Regime and the Assad Regime in Syria when it comes to IS.   On the other hand Yemen was seen as a successful part of the Obama foreign policy, that has gone up in smoke. The Gulf States do not trust Iran, and because the Oval wants a deal so badly the Gulf States do not trust the Obama's America.    It will be interesting to see if the Gulf States take action, this would mean that other US allies will threaten any deal with Iran, it can be postulated that Iran will place pressure on the US to make sure its Gulf States allies do not act, power playing in the Middle East can be complex. 

When your Finished your Finished - David Cameron and being PM

BBC News: Reports " David Cameron has told the BBC he will not serve a third term as prime minister if the Conservatives remain in government after the general election. "

Lets Get Real:

This was a tactical mistake by the PM, all the runners for the leadership will want to make sure that their elbows are bigger than any opposition, and that is just the Conservative Cabinet.   Also it was a statement that undermines the confidence of the voter, if they vote Conservative they are voting for David Cameron to be PM, now they will start to think that if they vote Conservative they will face a soap opera for the leadership within a few years.  On the strategic level its a mistake because the leaders of the other political parties wont say the same thing, they will rubbish the move, also as stated the maths is against PM, he will not get a second term, this will lead to a Conservative defeat and a call for a leadership ballot.   This blog will start to look at the Labour Cabinet after the May election, of course Ed Miliband will be the PM, the question is does he have the power to move Ed Balls from No 11, otherwise it will be a return to the Blair/Brown years of conflict.   

The US and Afghanistan - Afghan War

Fox News: Reports " President Obama plans to keep most of the 10,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan in the country through 2015 -- and keep open two key airfields -- as part of an effort to slow the U.S. withdrawal and help prop up Afghan forces, sources told Fox News. "

Lets Get Real:

This is a wise move by the Obama Oval, after the failure of the Iraq and the growth if IS, the Oval does not want to deal with the growth of IS in Afghanistan,  the franchise of IS can be seen with its base in Syria, its growth in Iraq and even in Libya.   Also in Yemen the Western allied government has been overthrown by a group that is supported by Iran.   The Obama policy in the Middle East has  been a total disaster, to finish it all the Oval Office will take a bad deal with Iran over no deal.  The next President either him or her, will have to spend their first term building up relationships in the region.  The one event that could really change the Oval Office's view of the Middle East is if Israel attacks Iran, this would force Obama to support Israel, he can hardly support Iran.  That is for the future. 

The Clinton Email Scandal - Update

The New York Times: Reports the following on the Clinton emails, " But they did show that Mrs. Clinton’s top aides at times corresponded with her about State Department matters from their personal email accounts, raising questions about her recent assertions that she made it her practice to email aides at their government addresses so the messages would be preserved, in compliance with federal record-keeping regulations. "

Lets Get Real:

Thus Clinton defenders will need to clear up the last remarks by Secretary Clinton, as the Secretary stated she had sent emails back to government email accounts of her staff, as the above shows the Clinton aides at the US State Department used private email to communicate with the Secretary, the House Select Committee on Libya will need the emails of those that worked for the Secretary.    Lets be clear, Hillary Clinton is not Bill Clinton, she is not that good on the campaign trail.   Also the Clinton strategy for 2016 is to stress women issues and other liberal issues, the Clinton camp think that if they follow the Obama strategy they can win, that is a mistake.   A female candidate has to show that she can use the US military, if you stick fuzzy liberal issues it does not build up the character, in fact it makes her look weak.    Thus we shall see who is right.

Is Labour DEAD in Scotland? - 2015 Election

Guardian: Reports " ICM poll: Labour faces wipeout in Scotland after new leader fails to dent SNP support...Exclusive: Poll suggests Scottish Labour will lose 29 of the 41 seats Gordon Brown won in 2010, with Nicola Sturgeon’s SNP still way out in front  "

Lets Get Real:

If Labour is to form the next government it will need the votes of the SNP, it can be postulated that Labour will be the biggest Party in the House of Commons, Ed Miliband has stated that only he and Ed Balls would write the budget, Ed is in Disney land if he thinks Ed Balls is going to let him near the budget.  Ed Miliband has stated that there will be no SNP MPs in his Cabinet, thus it will be an alliance of vote by vote, the SNP leadership has stated that it wants billions spent on Scotland, that Trident be abolished.   As Ed Miliband stabbed his brother in the back one can see Ed making big concessions to get to No 10.   The English voter will be run from Scotland and the SNP.    For the political geek the minority Labour Party needing SNP votes will be fun to watch, for the UK, it will be five years of misery and Ed Miliband as PM and his Chancellor, Ed Balls fighting each other for the soul of Labour. 

The Burial of a King - King Richard 111

BBC News: Reports " People wanting to view Richard III's coffin have been urged not to join the queue after the wait passed four hours. "

Lets Get Real:

It is not ever day that you pass a coffin of a Monarch, the last Monarch to die was the Queen's father, George VI in the early 1950s.    It is historic, and lets be honest, off all our Kings and Queens, the most infamous is Richard 111.   Of course the Tudor's made sure that his record was seen bad, but his reforms on the legal front have stood the test of time.  So can one dare say, good old King Richard would have loved the fact that thousands have come to see his coffin, of course you would have to exclude the fact that he took his nephew's throne and is the main suspect in the murder of his nephews in the Tower of London.   That debate will go on, one does wonder what Richard 111 would have made of the UK now, of course Scotland only become part of Great Britain with the succession of James VI of Scotland and James the 1 of England.  Thus UK with the Act of Union in 18th Century.