additional point
I don't think there's any need to extend 07/25; all that's really needed is to make a small change to the bilateral to allow ORK to allow US carriers to fly from ORK. While it's probably too late for this Summer, I could see something happening in '08 and with CO, NW, AA, US and soon, DL, operating 757s on t/a flights (for which a 7,000' runway is perfectly suitable), the opportunities are certainly there.
There are more than enough Corkonians (or of Corkonian descent) in NY, Boston or Philadelphia to make this a possibility.
However, maybe the key factor in achieving success here will be to take a page out of the NOC handbook; do they wait until the regulatory issues are sorted out, or do they make a deal with an airline and then tell the authorities this is what they want to do? Maybe the latter is better; this way, they can say to the govt, "look, guys, we have this US carrier that wants to add a route; if you obstruct this, we'll make it known that you have scuppered what could be a very important economic boost"?