Netanyahu responded with thanks, saying Obama spoke of "the great transformation that has occurred in the life of the Jewish people with a rebirth of the Jewish state" that has grown from a once powerless population into a nation that has "both the right and the capability" to defend itself.
The city is powerless, suggests Mr Atrianfar, to force the conservative-run armed forces and thestate broadcaster to pay the millions of dollars of back taxes they owe.
Given the current political climate and implicit anti-bailout mandate of the new Congress, the Federal government might be powerless to do anything but accept painful state defaults.