The next time you hear someone say their is no difference between the parties, show them this article.
Posted on 06/28/2002 6:57:57 AM PDT by xvb
Remarks to the Republican Jewish Coalition
House Majority Whip Tom DeLay
Washington, DC June 18, 2002
During these critical days, all of us who support Israel and love freedom need to redouble our efforts.
We need to fully and adequately convey to the American people exactly why Israel cannot possibly find peace or achieve security by rewarding aggression with weakness and concessions.
On the morning of September 11 every American realized that the war against terrorism was now the defining mission for our generation.
Americans suffered through the types of brutal homicide attacks that have become a familiar pattern in Israel.
On the scales of morality, all terrorism is equal. It's evil when a teenage girl is killed walking to dinner in Tel Aviv. It's evil when thousands die in the Trade Center.
The tactic of harming civilians to achieve political objectives is always wrong and we must never lend legitimacy to terror by negotiating with terrorists.
There's no comparison between a democracy practicing self-defense and homicide bombers.
Ted Turner has been wrong about a lot of things before, but his twisted attempt to justify terrorism against Israel by establishing moral equivalence descends to a new depth of depravity.
Turner's sick and shallow thoughts on the Middle East are the pathetic rant of a man with a defective moral compass.
When Israel fights back against the group that killed 19 people this morning it will be self-defense. In less than two years, terrorists have committed 70 homicide bombings in Israel. Our friends in Israel must be allowed to defend themselves.
Average Americans understand what's happening and it explains their strong support for the President's war against terror. America awoke to the reality that terrorism must be confronted and terrorists eliminated.
The similarity between attacks against Israel and Sept. 11 lights a guiding principle: Terrorists target freedom and we cannot pave a safe passage to peace with the bricks of reckless appeasement.
Every free and democratic government should begin by acknowledging that terrorism directed against one democracy is at bottom an attack upon freedom itself.
That's why all of us who worry about Israel's security can draw confidence from the President's recent comments -- especially his remarks following his meeting with Prime Minister Sharon last week.
President Bush stresses six critical points:
He reiterated Israel's right to self-defense and the need to root out terrorist organizations.
He recognized that Israel can't possibly negotiate a political settlement with the current Palestinian leadership structure.
He acknowledged that a new Palestinian Authority must replace corruption with fundamental reforms before it can be a legitimate partner for peace.
He understands that an end to terrorism is a prerequisite for a resolution of the political issues between Israel and the Palestinians.
He stated that the absence of a moderate Palestinian leadership was denying hope and confidence to both the people of Israel and Palestinians.
And he agrees that there's no point in laying out timelines on Palestinian statehood or convening a summit until you have a responsible Palestinian leadership that has proven itself by dropping terrorism and suppressing terrorist groups. The President's straightforward comments flowed from direct conversations with Prime Minister Sharon and they reveal his true instincts and guiding principles.
The President spoke with a clarity and directness that didn't require and wasn't improved by so-called "clarifications."
He said that the United States doesn't believe Israel should be pressured to negotiate with Arafat because Arafat can't be trusted.
The President understands that security must come first. There's no point in discussing complicated issues before the violence and homicide bombings stop.
To expect the people of Israel to negotiate with groups that are systematically murdering their fellow citizens would be pointless and reckless.
No search for peace will succeed without a Palestinian leadership that is willing to genuinely renounce violence. They must work to stop those who would murder civilians.
George W. Bush is a steady ally for the State of Israel. And at the White House today, all of you must reinforce that the President's bold division between freedom and terror is the key to victory.
Average Americans understand what's happening in broad terms. But we all need to do more to fully explain the treachery behind Arafat's Palestinian Authority and some of the other hostile Middle Eastern regimes.
They claim to be our allies but spew calculated evil propaganda through their state-controlled media.
We need to get out the facts. This raw hatred needs to be documented, analyzed, and explained to the American people. If we rely on the media to tell this story, it will go untold.
America and Israel are united by our reverence for democracy and our unconditional opposition to terror.
We understand that the groups committed to the State of Israel's destruction are the real threat to peace. And on the basis of our shared principles and democratic values, America has an undeniable obligation to stand squarely with our democratic ally against those attempting to end the State of Israel.
Israel and the United States differ greatly in size, population, and natural resources. But in the things that truly matter, our countries are strikingly similar.
Our Founders were profoundly influenced by faith. Both countries practice religious tolerance. Both countries are filled with immigrants summoned by dreams.
For people fleeing the storms of persecution, both countries have been safe harbors.
We respect freedom and honor individual rights.
We tolerate a vigorous public debate through unfettered speech and a free press.
We welcome the conflict of contested elections.
We live under the rule of law. And we respect human rights.
The homicide bombings in Israel underscore the terrorists' true goal: Eliminating the State of Israel. But the things democracies treasure and protect are the terrorists' additional unstated targets.
No democracy fighting terrorism can hope to protect itself without actively destroying terrorist networks wherever they are found.
And to the Beltway elite that stubbornly prods Israel to peddle away her security through an endless series of concessions, let's be clear: You're dead wrong.
Every Israeli citizen murdered by terrorists demonstrates the folly of using negotiations with terrorists as a pathway to peace.
Now, Ted Turner and some of our deluded diplomats may actually believe that this approach can deliver peace for Israel. But I put my trust in practical experience.
Concessions to terrorists send a clear and unambiguous signal: "You're winning. Keep it up and you'll achieve more and more of your goals."
But some Western governments can't comprehend that the enemies of civilization won't be swayed by civilized gestures.
The idea that weakness in the face of violence directed against democracies can lead to anything but additional violence is the most dangerous and destructive fallacy of our time.
Let's look at the history.
During Oslo, the Palestinian leadership signed a commitment to non-violence. They agreed to resolve outstanding issues through negotiation.
They committed themselves to a peaceful resolution and they renounced terrorism. They said they'd be responsible for all the elements of the PLO. In short, they agreed to crack down on terrorism.
But since Oslo, Arafat's Palestinian Authority has been nothing but a holding company for terrorist subsidiaries.
And, when we talk about Arafat, let's stop pretending that the Sun sets in the East. If it wasn't clear last month, last year, or thirty years ago, it's clear today: Arafat isn't interested in peace.
When a man spends his life fomenting, orchestrating, and directing the slaughter of innocent people that man is, by his very evil and corrupted nature, a terrorist.
And democracies must never negotiate with terrorists. Yasser Arafat is utterly untrustworthy and the United States shouldn't treat him as a legitimate leader.
And we shouldn't expect anyone else to deny forty years of terror and pretend he is a partner for peace.
Arafat is behind more than the murders of thousands of Israelis, he has also betrayed the best interests of his own people. By eliminating anyone who supports peace, this dictator chains the Palestinians to bleak and empty lives.
We need moderate Palestinian leaders to step forward. Only Palestinians who abandon the goal of destroying Israel can negotiate in good faith.
But before a new Palestinian leadership can safely emerge, Israel must dismantle Hamas, Hezbollah, Islamic Jihad, and the rest of the terrorist infrastructure that is commanding and controlling homicide attacks.
Only after Arafat's dictatorship gives way to moderate Palestinian leaders, can we expect to see a genuine peace that advances the true interests of the Palestinian people and ensures the survival of Israel.
But, in the search for a resolution, we can't permit the process to become the objective.
We cannot act as a mere broker. We must confront terrorists wherever they are found in the world. And we must support other democracies as they fight separate battles in a common struggle.
Remember, it was the so-called "Peace Process" that brought Arafat into Israel and allowed a terrorist organization to be built in Israel.
Winning the battle against terror may demand a heavy price not only from our military but from average Americans as well.
Thankfully, we've shown that the American people are strong enough to weather the storm and wise enough to stand with our ally Israel--even if other Western democracies abdicate their own responsibility to defend freedom.
But whether the Europeans can be shamed into confronting terror or not, Israel will endure. America doesn't run out on her friends and we'll never abandon Israel. And you can bet we'll never allow those who would destroy her to succeed.
Thank you and God bless you.
BINGO.
The next time you hear someone say their is no difference between the parties, show them this article.
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