Regular readers of JoshuaPundit already know that I feel there's a lot to like about GOP presidential candidate Duncan Hunter. He has a stellar voting record on both Israel and national defense . Recently,he contacted Charles over at lgf ( which shows he understands the new media as well!) and asked for permission to do a guest post on Israel to make his position even more clear on the subject:
" I’d like to thank Charles Johnson for giving me an opportunity to talk to his readers at Little Green Footballs about Israel.
I strongly support the wall that the Israelis have built, which has greatly reduced terrorist attacks — and believe that it’s very important for the United States to help Israel improve its missile defense in order to prevent the sort of attacks that country suffered during its war with Hezbollah last year. Incidentally, I’ve been encouraging Israel to build up her missile defense since back in 1987 as well as supporting the funding of joint missile defense technology programs such as the Arrow program.
Additionally, while the United States should do what it can to resolve the conflict between the Israelis and the Palestinians, it’s simply not possible for the Israelis to make peace with people who refuse to recognize their existence, kidnap their soldiers, and blow themselves up in crowds of Israeli civilians. So, until the Palestinians renounce terrorism and stop their attacks on the Israeli people, peace will be out of reach. Let me also add that I’ve been to Israel, have seen the importance of regions like the Golan Heights to their security, and believe that Israel should not be asked to give up any more land in order to make peace with the Palestinians.
I consider Israel to be America’s best ally in the Middle East and strongly support Israel’s survival as a free nation. So, if I become President of the United States, people who care about the fate of Israel can feel confident that they’ll have a friend in Duncan Hunter."
Coincidentally, National Review Online posted a kick-ass piece by potential GOP presidential candidate Fred Thompson on Israel that spells out the situation in a nutshell:
Let me ask you a hypothetical question. What do you think America would do if Canadian soldiers were firing dozens of missiles every day into Buffalo, N.Y.? What do you think our response would be if Mexican troops for two years had launched daily rocket attacks on San Diego — and bragged about it?
I can tell you, our response would look nothing like Israel’s restrained and pinpoint reactions to daily missile attacks from Gaza. We would use whatever means necessary to win the war. There would likely be numerous casualties on our enemy’s side, but we would rightfully hold those who attacked us responsible.
More than 1,300 rockets have been fired into Israel from Gaza since Palestinians were given control two years ago. Israelis, however, have gone to incredible lengths to stop the war against them without harming Palestinian non-combatants. But make no mistake, Israel is at war. The elected Hamas government regularly repeats its official promise to destroy Israel entirely and replace it with an Islamic state. Hamas openly took credit for killing one woman and wounding dozens more last week alone.
The Palestinian strategy is to purposely target and kill Israeli civilians. Then, when Israel goes after those launching the attacks, Palestinians claim to be the victims. If Palestinian civilians aren’t hurt in the Israeli attacks, they stage injuries and deaths.
Too often, they garner sympathy and support from a gullible or anti-Semitic media in the international community.
Israelis, themselves, are often incapable of facing the damage they inflict in self-defense. Knowing this, Islamic extremists are using their own populations as human shields.
I’m beginning to wonder how much longer this vicious plot will work though. International sympathy for Palestinians has diminished as the same Islamofascist extremists have brought havoc to Madrid, Bali, Somalia, London and elsewhere. More importantly, Israelis themselves are suffering so badly, they may be on the verge of losing their sympathy for the people who have sworn to kill them.
Imagine what it would be like to live, knowing that a rocket could fall on you or your children at any minute. Half of those who live nearest to Gaza have fled their homes. Those remaining are traumatized by daily warning sirens and explosions.
The irony is that Israel has the military might to easily win the war that is being waged against them today. They haven’t used that might, in the past, out of compassion for Palestinian civilians and because it could trigger a wider regional conflict.
That balance of power is about to change, though. If Iran develops nuclear weapons, the very existence of this tiny nation of Israel will be threatened. The Iranian regime has left little doubt that it intends to see Israel “wiped off the map.” Hamas is using the same language, not coincidentally, and has announced it will begin launching missiles into Israel from the West Bank too.
If the world doesn’t act to stop Iran’s nuclear ambitions, it must be prepared for the consequences of Israel defending itself."
Considering that Rudy Giuliani, the man who threw Yassir Arafat out of Lincoln Center and returned Saudi Prince Alaweed's blood money after 9/11 is also running as a Republican candidate, I hope that American Jews - or indeed anyone who cares about winning the War on Jihad - who's been considering voting Democrat think very carefully about who really has their interests at heart.
Could you imagine uncompromising statements like this coming from the likes of Barak Obama or Mrs. Clinton?
d. hunter & f. thompson both lost the joooish vote with those comments.
ReplyDeleteOdd you should say that, Louie.You're only half right.
ReplyDeleteI worked on the Bush campaign in 2004 ( OK, who knew? Don't remind me..)mainly concentrating on the Jewish community.
The breakdown was interesting.
Bush did pretty decently in the Orthodox community, in the sizeable Russian Jewish expatriate community, among Persian Jews and among the expatriate Israeli community.
He did abysmally in the wealthy Jewish ( mostly reform or non-observant) enclaves in places like Santa Monica and Beverly Hills.
Of course, many of the people who voted for Bush in 2004 might have a few second thoughts today. That's what happens when you betray the people that brought you to the dance in the first place.
Another interesting factor to consider is that the demographic trend in the Jewish community favors a much less liberal kneejerk stance in the future, since the Orthodox/observant/immigrant community is who's having the vast majority of the kids now.
ff,
ReplyDeletethere is no way i'm going to challenge you on demographics and/or assessment.
my opinion comes from watching IBA news. the feminist are more concerned about women's rights than they are missiles landing in israel every day. women's rights are important, but to sacrifice your nat'l security for the sake of this cause, seems to me to be ignoring the more clear and present danger.
and the jooish intellectual left that i see interviewed........the US has nothing to compare to them.
but that's just me.
The Orthodox are out of step with the rest of the Jewish community. For most non-Orthodox Jews, their belief system is liberalism (some watered down of version of Judasim and the notion of Tikkun Olam defined creatively.) It is astonising the rich Jews you describe don't even vote their own interests, siding instead with those who are inclined to confiscate their wealth!
ReplyDeleteI half agree with you. I can't believe that Barack Obama would make such a statement. I can believe that Hillary Clinton would. I also believe that in her case the words would be hollow as they'd be negated by her actions.
Very nice post, thanks. Didn't know much about this "fringe" candidates. Like the tough talk.
ReplyDeleteRemember our gallant little ally this June 8, 2007. The 40th anniversery of the Israeli murder of 34 sailors of the USS Liberty, in a prolonged attack including jets straffing, napalming, and a submarine torpedo in an attempt to sink the Liberty.
ReplyDeleteSince June 8, 1967, the United States has given an indeterminate amount of money and weapons, some sources estimate of a trillion dollars worth.
More Americans have been killed by Israelis than by Palestinians.
What if we had a Federal Government that wasn't such a step and fetch it for the shitty little country?
Well anonymous, let's discuss it, shall we?
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, the `Liberty' thing has been exhaustively investigated by both the US and Israel..and there is no `there' there, except in the mind of certain wacked out Jew haters. I'm certain a reasonable,patriotic American like yourself isn't part of that camp, right?
Let's take your second point, all of that moolah those damn Jooos have gotten from the American tax payers. For one thing, the money we've given collectively to our Arab `friends' far eclipses it, but let's examine what we bought for all that money, 80% of which goes to purchase US weapons and thus stays right here at home:
- Israel singlehandedly kicked the Soviets out of the Middle East, cost them billions, turning over Soviet personnel and hi tech arms to our CIA and helped win the Cold War..all without a single American serviceman needing to be deployed.
- Israel destroyed Iraq's Osirak reactor, curtailing Saddam's nuclear weapons program and saving thousands of American lives in the Gulf War and operation Iraqi Freedom, not to mention potential terrorist attacks on the US.
-Israeli high tech contributes significantly to US defense programs, which is why the US does joint ventures with them an dwhy an Israeli made radar system, `green pine' is th esystem of choice for our own misile defense shield.
-Israel, because of its native Arab speakers has provided a major part of intel in the Middle East for us.
-The IDF guards NATO's southern flank
- the IDF helped train our troops in Iraq on how to conduct warfare in Arab cities, based on their experience in shitholes like Jenin.
There's more, but if you do the math, what we received from Israel is a bargain for the value received.
The Israelis have killed more Americans than the Palestinians? You'd have to prove that to me. And the Israelis never murdered or tortured to death any of our diplomats, like Arafat did.
`..shitty little country?' Oh hey, I guess you are one of those whacko Jew haters..and certainly not what I'd call a patriotic American.
freedom fighter is 100 percent right i just researched the info thanks for supporting Israel and the Jewish community, may God Bless You.
ReplyDeleteanansmous God Will Curse You, especially since you dont have balls to print your name asshole.
By the way not all of the Orthodox Jews vote republican and not all of the other Jews vote democrat, the Jews who absolutley dont care about Israel and America are the ones who would vote against it and vote for somebody like Barack Obama. remember the Jews who went to iran for the holocaust denial conference were orthodox and the founders of the modern state of Israel were Conservative, Reform, etc.