Actually, we'd love to see Assad overthrown

Yaakov Katz argued that the US may be going easy on Assad due to fears that Assad will take his wrath out on Israel is he is treated roughly.
In a letter to the Wall Street Journal, Israel's ambassador to the United States, Michael Oren, says 'please don't go easy on Assad because of us' (Hat Tip: Instapundit).

For the second time, a recent Journal article ("Syrian Violence Tests U.S.," page one, June 3) asserts that Israel has expressed fears of instability in Syria if leader Bashar al-Assad is overthrown. I emphatically denied this the first time ("U.S. Seeks to Raise Heat on Syria," page one, April 25) and categorically deny it again. Israel has expressed no such concerns. Allied with Iran, Mr. Assad has helped supply 55,000 rockets to Hezbollah and 10,000 to Hamas, very likely established a clandestine nuclear arms program and profoundly destabilized the region. The violence he has unleashed on his own people demonstrating for freedoms confirms Israel's fears that the devil we know in Syria is worse than the devil we don't.
Ambassador Michael Oren
Israeli Embassy
Washington
Gee, ya think maybe the Obama administration keeps planting these stories about the Israelis wanting them to go easy on Assad to justify Obama's predilection to go easy on Assad 'the reformer'? Hmmm.