Excerpts of Mitt Romney's speech...

Some excerpts of Romney's speech (emphasis added):




"...It is a deeply moving experience to be in Jerusalem, the capital of Israel.(Obamba, not even as a candidate called Jerusalem the capital of Israel, note by E. Nahum).



"...At this time of Tisha Be Av (day of mourning for the Jews, in remembrance of the destruction of the Temple, note by E. Nahum), we also remember the 11 Israeli athletes and coaches who were massacred at the Munich Olympics forty years ago...tragedies like these are not reserved to the past. They are a constant reminder of the reality of hate, and the will with which it is executed upon the innocent




"...So it is today, as Israel faces enemies who deny past crimes against the Jewish people and seek to commit new ones.



"When Iran’s leaders deny the Holocaust or speak of wiping this nation off the map, only the naïve – or worse – will dismiss it as an excess of rhetoric. Make no mistake: the ayatollahs in Tehran are testing our moral defenses. They want to know who will object, and who will look the other way.



"My message to the people of Israel and the leaders of Iran is one and the same: I will not look away; and neither will my country.



"We must not delude ourselves into thinking that containment is an option. We must lead the effort to prevent Iran from building and possessing nuclear weapons capability. We should employ any and all measures to dissuade the Iranian regime from its nuclear course, and it is our fervent hope that diplomatic and economic measures will do so. In the final analysis, of course, no option should be excluded. We recognize Israel’s right to defend itself, and that it is right for America to stand with you.



"Different as our paths have been, we see the same qualities in one another. Israel and America are in many respects reflections of one another.



"...I believe that the enduring alliance between the State of Israel and the United States of America is more than a strategic alliance: it is a force for good in the world. America’s support of Israel should make every American proud. We should not allow the inevitable complexities of modern geopolitics to obscure fundamental touchstones. No country or organization or individual should ever doubt this basic truth: A free and strong America will always stand with a free and strong Israel.



"And standing by Israel does not mean with military and intelligence cooperation alone.



"We cannot stand silent as those who seek to undermine Israel, voice their criticisms. And we certainly should not join in that criticism. Diplomatic distance in public between our nations emboldens Israel’s adversaries.



"By history and by conviction, our two countries are bound together.



"...Thank you all. May God bless America, and may He bless and protect the Nation of Israel.



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You can find the full text of that speech here:



http://www.algemeiner.com/2012/07/29/full-text-of-mitt-romney-speech-to-jerusalem-foundation-2012/



And video, in two parts, of the full speech here:



http://www.rightspeak.net/2012/07/mitt-romney-speech-from-israel-full.html



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I would have to write a book to mark all the differences between what Romney said here and what Obama has stood for, going on four years now. Undoubtedly I will return to this. Obama visited Israel as a candidate too, although he has not been here as president. I remember it all vividly, for his behavior was a tip-off that rang bells for me.



At about the time Obama arrived here, there had been a terrorist attack in Jerusalem. From Jerusalem he went to Sderot, near the Gaza border, where he learned about innocent Israelis subject to rocket attacks. Leaving Israel, he went to make a major speech in Germany, in pale imitation of John Kennedy. In his talk he spoke about nations subject to terrorism, but he neglected to mention Israel. Ah! I thought.



Then, when he was newly inaugurated, the very first international "leader" he called was Mahmoud Abbas, president of the Palestinian Authority. Ah! again.



And it's been downhill ever since: Obama specifically invited members of the Muslim Brotherhood to his Cairo speech (although at the time they were bearly tolerated and outlawed as organization, by president Mubarak, note by E. Nahum). Obama deliberately set a policy of "neutrality" with regard to Israel's differences with the PA, which permitted light between the US and Israel. Obama was overtly rude to PM Netanyahu at the White House. Obama set the bar for negotiations higher for Israel, by making the PA demand also his demand: the basis must be the '67 line. And the most recent incident, of just days ago: the White House spokesman refused to say Jerusalem was Israel's capital.



© Arlene Kushner. This material is produced by Arlene Kushner, functioning as an independent journalist. Permission is granted for it to be reproduced only with proper attribution.