Amusing or Pragmatic, Mideast Abuzz over Clinton Fake Peace Process Better than None Comment

Consensus on whether Hillary Clinton’s comment that a false peace process is better than none is amusing, pragmatic or contemptable, the remark revealed in the latest WikiLeaks postings has the Middle East abuzz with reaction. According to the cited email, Clinton was responding to comments made by her senior aides regarding Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s post-election (2015) apology for his now infamous remark about Arab voters coming to the polls “in droves.” According to the email as reported by WikiLeaks, she viewed the Netanyahu statement as “an opening that should be exploited,” opining that, “A Potemkin process is better than nothing.” A “Potemkin” is a reference to a 1787 ploy by Grigory Potemkin who built a fake village in order to impress Catherine II on a visit to Crimea. In politics and economics, a “Potemkin village” refers to something created in order to deceive others into thinking a situation is better than it is. (Wikipedia) Other WikiLeaks messages dealing with Clinton’s relationship with Israel suggest Prime Minister Netanyahu was assessed by close confidant Ambassador Ron Dermer as preferring Clinton among the presidential candidates.