I am convinced in my heart and in my mind that if the United States fails to stand with Israel, that is the end of the United States . . . [W]e have to show that we are inextricably entwined, that as a nation we have been blessed because of our relationship with Israel, and if we reject Israel, then there is a curse that comes into play. And my husband and I are both Christians, and we believe very strongly the verse from Genesis [Genesis 12:3], we believe very strongly that nations also receive blessings as they bless Israel. It is a strong and beautiful principle.
Right now in my own private Bible time, I am working through Isaiah . . . and there is continually a coming back to what God gave to Israel initially, which was the Torah and the Ten Commandments, and I have a wonderful quote from John Adams that if you will indulge me [while I find it] . . . [from his February 16, 1809 letter to François Adriaan van der Kemp]:
I will insist that the Hebrews have done more to civilize men than any other nation. If I were an atheist, and believed in blind eternal fate, I should still believe that fate had ordained the Jews to be the most essential instrument for civilizing the nations. If I were an atheist of the other sect, who believe or pretend to believe that all is ordered by chance, I should believe that chance had ordered the Jews to preserve and propagate to all mankind the doctrine of a supreme, intelligent, wise, almighty sovereign of the universe, which I believe to be the great essential principle of all morality, and consequently of all civilization.
. . . So that is a very long way to answer your question, but I believe that an explicit statement from us about our support for Israel as tied to American security, we would do well to do that.
Commenter Karl notes:
Comment posted February 8, 2010 @ 10:29 am
It’s no wonder Bachmann speaks so fondly of Israel. They’ve provided her and her family members free annual vacations to Israel every year she’s been in office–to the tune of $44,380.
Most recently, in July-August 2009, Bachmann and her daughter traveled to Tel Aviv on the dime of the American Israel Education Foundation, living like royalty in $500-a-night hotels. Cost of the trip for Michele and Elisa Bachmann: $19,414.74, covered entirely by the Jewish group, which is affiliated with the powerful pro-Israel lobbying group AIPAC (American Israel Public Affairs Committee). They each even got a nice photo album from their hosts as a momento of their junket.
In 2008, Bachmann and her husband, Marcus, traveled to Jeruselum, this time courtesy of the Jewish Community Relations Council. Cost of trip: $7,170.
In 2007, Michele and Marcus jaunted off to Tel Aviv with the American Israel Education Foundation picking up the tab again, including luxurious $436/night hotels. Cost: $17,796.
It’s not like Minnesota’s 6th District is heavily Jewish or anything. That matters little to our bought-and-paid-for congresswoman. What really matters is that for their $44,380 investment in Bachmann, the Israeli/Jewish lobbyists, er, “educators,” have gotten a loud mouthpiece to drum up support for Israel among the evangelical Christian base.
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