The Path of Least Resistance Leads to Hell

Taking the path of least resistance can save a president from politically damaging fights, but it will also ensure that he supports disastrous policies because it is politically easier.

Aaron David Miller and Daniel Kurtzer give the Biden administration advice on what it needs to do next in Israel and Palestine:

 If Biden wants change, however, his administration must undertake bolder policy moves—ones that firmly guide the region toward a two-state solution. Policymakers may wish to avoid bold moves in a fast-changing situation: such moves will be practically difficult and politically risky. But the facts on the ground suggest that the region cannot return to its unstable prewar status quo. Instead, without careful guidance, a new status quo is likely to emerge that will be even more problematic. Only bold American leadership now will support a good outcome in the aftermath of this war.

A lot of the advice in Miller and Kurtzer’s article makes sense, and Biden would be wise to act on their recommendations. Unfortunately, I see no evidence that Biden is willing to take any of the bold actions they suggest. If there has been one constant in Biden’s presidency on foreign policy, it is his unwillingness to take political risks even when that is what his own public commitments require. One thing that a lot of Biden’s more dovish and restrainer critics agree on is that Biden doesn’t act boldly to reverse Trump-era policies or to challenge entrenched interests, and that this is one reason why his foreign policy hasn’t been successful.