Congressman Tom Price (R-GA) issued the following statement in response to President Obama’s refusal to let the press photograph or record meetings with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu during the latter’s last two official visits to the United States. This action comes on the heels of several troubling reports about the Obama Administration’s posture toward America’s number one ally in the Middle East, including Secretary of State Clinton’s recent remarks about an “Israeli occupation” in the Jewish homeland.

“President Obama’s been filmed shaking hands with Hugo Chavez and Muammar Gaddafi, yet he’s stopped giving the Prime Minister of Israel the same courtesy,” said Congressman Price. “That’s absurd. And it portends a troubling inclination by the President and his Administration to garner popularity abroad by distancing themselves from long-time allies. The White House’s overreaction to the announcement of an Israeli housing project has put needless strain on the close relationship our two countries have long enjoyed. U.S. diplomacy with Israel and in the Middle East is ill-served by coddling nations that eschew freedom and punishing nations that embrace liberty.”