So concluded Bruce Riedel, a former CIA official and senior adviser to three US presidents, including George W. Bush. "I came back from a trip to Israel in November convinced that Israel would attack Iran." said Reidel, as reported American Newsweek magazine and The Jerusalem Post.
According to The Jerusalem Post,
http://www.jpost.com/...
Riedel told American Newsweek his impression that Israel would attack Iran on its own was formed before the publication of the National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) report. "This [the NIE] makes it [a strike on Iran] even more likely," he said.
The question is, once Israel takes this action, what will be the blowback on U.S. forces in Iraq, and on relations with China and Russia, who see the NIE report as further confirmation of the validity of their approach of strengthening ties with Iran?
When ("if" seems to be increasingly improbable) Israel attacks Iran in spite of the NIE report, how will Bush, and how will the current Presidential candidates, handle it? Depending on when Israel's attack on Iran occurs, it can become a major influence on campaign discussion and candidate popularity.