Huckabee to Obama: Palestinians Have ‘Zero Interest’ in Mideast Peace

Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee tells Newsmax that President Obama won’t succeed in restarting peace talks in the Middle East because the Palestinians have “zero interest” in negotiations.

The 2008 Republican presidential candidate also says the administration’s dealings with Mohammed Morsi and Egypt are “foreign policy gone wild,” and warns that the United States will be viewed as a “toothless tiger” if Obama doesn’t respond as promised to the use of chemical weapons in Syria.

Huckabee is now the host of “The Mike Huckabee Show,” broadcast on 227 radio stations in 48 states, and a Fox News contributor. His latest book is “Dear Chandler, Dear Scarlett: A Grandfather’s Thoughts on Faith, Family and the Things That Matter Most.”

President Obama is making his first official trip to Israel and the Palestinian territories this week. In an exclusive interview with Newsmax TV, Huckabee was asked if Obama will be able to get the Israelis and Palestinians back to the negotiating table.

“I don’t see that happening, in large measure because the Palestinians have shown zero interest in doing what it will take to have a legitimate and thoughtful negotiation,” he says.

“You’ve got a Palestinian regime that has embraced Hamas, put them in power in Gaza. So on one hand you’re supposed to negotiate with the group of people that even the State Department has declared a terrorist organization, an organization that has launched rockets at civilian targets in Israel.

“You’ve got a Palestinian government that refuses Israel’s right to exist. It’s really hard to negotiate with someone when they don’t even believe you have a right to exist, much less exist with a level of safety and security.

“If the president honestly believes he can do something about the peace process, he’s not smoking a peace pipe – there’s something else in that pipe.”

Read more at NEWSMAX.

{Matzav.com Newscenter}