This article completely misses the point. Of course the special relationship is intact. That is because the Israel lobby is intact. What is new is that there is pushback, something we have only seen happen 4 times in the past 60 years. Policy makers since '48 have known that Israel is a strategic liability, an albatross they have to carry because of domestic electoral imperatives. Yet except for Eisenhower, Ford, Carter and Bush I, no one has dared to confront Israel. Of the three, only Eisenhower stood his ground. To not see the significance of this development, regardless of whether Obama stands firm (in all likelihood he wil) is to merely forego an opportunity to exploit and deepen the rift.