President Obama's special envoy, George J. Mitchell, arrived in the Middle East on Tuesday, kicking off the new administration's attempt to bring a little "Yes We Can" to the troubled region.

Senator Mitchell's fame precedes him: he helped President Clinton broker peace in Northern Ireland ten years ago, compelling the radical Irish Republican Army to accept the "Mitchell Principles," which included non-violence. His appointment was received well in the Israeli press—Ha'aretz said that Mitchell "reflects the direction and pace Obama has chosen for the region…without which the parties will not reach a compromise." The fact that Mitchell is an Arab American (his mother is Lebanese) also gives him credibility within the Arab world, or at least cautious respect, which is something few envoys have received before now.

He sounds like the man for the job. But on this initial eight-day "peace trip," there seems very little he can actually accomplish toward President Obama's stated goals to "solidify the cease-fire, ensure Israel's security, also ensure that Palestinians in Gaza are able to get the basic necessities they need."

However, Mitchell—and by extension the administration—is already doing at least one thing right. His first stop on the "Listening Tour" will not be Tel Aviv, but Cairo. Egypt is the only pro-U.S. nation right now in direct talks with Hamas. This means that Mitchell will be hearing the Hamas side of events before he even arrives in Israel—all without conferring legitimacy on or even formally meeting with Hamas. Mitchell and Obama have arranged the theater to appear both pro-Israeli and pro-Palestinian. This is an important step to take both to achieve Obama's immediate goals and to establish America's role as an "honest broker" in the peace process—something President Clinton never attained and President Bush never really tried.

What shall be trickier for Mitchell is finding a way to wade into Israel's upcoming election without appearing to do so. The election—two weeks from Tuesday—will determine who will be Obama's partner on the Israeli side for the rest of his term. At present, Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party looks set to beat narrowly the centrist Kadima, which currently rules. A win for Likud would likely end this current push at the peace process before it begins. Netanyahu's campaign website flatly states, "I do not believe that the Palestinians are prepared today to make the type of historic compromise that would end the conflict."

It appears the most Mitchell can do in this circumstance is to give the Kadima government as much good, local press as he can manage. A strong condemnation of the Gaza War—as some have suggested the administration make—would only drive Israeli voters, who overwhelmingly supported the war, into the arms of Likud. One advantage is the fact that Kadima's candidate for prime minister, Tzipi Livni, currently serves as foreign minister. If she and Mitchell are seen as working well together, it may help.

What is most important of Mitchell—and Obama—to remember is that engagement with the peace process is about more than Israel and Palestine, or indeed about Iraq or Iran or anywhere else. Still less is it about the worn out slogan of "getting them to like us." It is about more than American prestige; it is about restoring American power in the region.

In 1995, Saddam Hussein—yes, that one—released two prisoners to then-Congressman Bill Richardson, thanks partly to Richardson's negotiation, but largely to the fact that he represented the President of the United States. By 2006, the prime minister of the backwater country of Lebanon was able to forbid the American Secretary of State from entering. He simply told her, "You are not welcome."

We are on the path to what Fareed Zakaria called a "post-American world." If we want to maintain leadership in the world, or even a seat at the table, credibly engaging the peace process is absolutely vital.

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