In a packed, ornate room at a W Hotel in Manhattan, Texas Gov. Rick Perry told a group of conservative Jewish leaders on Tuesday that “help is on the way” for Israel.
Perry was speaking directly to what he deemed weak leadership on the part of President Obama on Israel, but the speech was a precursor to the UN General Assembly this week, in which the Palestinians may seek statehood recognition from the international body. Perry came out swinging against that notion, calling it a “gambit” and vowing that were he president, his foreign policy in the Middle East would be a stark contrast to the “naïve, arrogant, misguided and dangerous” one of the current administration.
Perry cited his own faith as a reason for his position, saying that as a Christian, he has a “clear directive to support Israel.” He also presented a much more antagonistic view toward the Palestinians and their position, even though he ultimately said that he supports a two state solution. He said it was time for the US to end its run of “appeasement” toward the Palestinians, warning that “the end-run on Palestinian statehood imminent before the U.N., America must act swiftly.”
“By not insisting on these principles, the Obama Administration has appeased the Arab Street at the expense of our own national security interests,” Perry said. “They have sowed instability that threatens the prospects of peace.”
In a back and forth with a reporter on the question of settlements in Palestinian territory, Perry was asked point blank “Should they keep building?” “Well I think so,” he replied in his patented Southern drawl as the crowed responded with applause.
In fact, the crowd liked basically all of what Perry had to say, as he laid out an policy toward Israel that most hardliners within the county would support. He pulled back slightly at one point, saying that Israel was “not a perfect country,” but it was mostly red meat on on the issue.
The message du jour in the hall before the speech was on Republican Bob Turner’s win in New York’s 9th Congressional District, who won a special election for the seat after Rep. Anthony Weiner’s district. TPM reported on the effect of the Israel issue in that race.
After standing at Perry’s side during his speech, Turner offered his own remarks saying “our foreign policy doesn’t need to be very complex,” rather, that we should support Israel fully.
Kyle Leighton
Kyle is the Poll Editor at TPM. He graduated from Beloit College (WI) and began working in politics before getting an M.A. in magazine journalism from New York University, where he interned at TPM and the website of The New Yorker.
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