Presidential Candidates’ Views on Israel and Palestine: Same Old, Same Old

By Delinda C. Hanley

Analysts from the American Jewish Committee and other Jewish organizations and newspapers, including the Forward, the Jerusalem Post, Haaretz and Ma’ariv, have used a lot of ink debating which presidential candidate would be best for Israel. Each of the remaining candidates in the race have taken great pains to assure voters that they are pro-Israel. Apparently they believe that an “even-handed” candidate is still unelectable in the United States, so the subject doesn’t even surface in the debates.

Major candidates in both U.S. parties have similar views on the Arab-Israeli conflict, stressing their commitment to defending Israel’s right to exist and calling on the Palestinians to renounce terrorism. But each candidate must know in his or her heart that an American president who is a true friend to Israel will need to press the Jewish state to reach an equitable peace with the Palestinians. Most candidates must realize that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict lies at the core of every conflict in the region.

The Council on Foreign Relations <www.cfr.org> has an up-to-date issue tracker for each candidate. Here’s what the Council says about the candidates’ views on the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, as last updated on Jan. 9, 2008.

Hillary Clinton

“Though her advocacy for Palestinian statehood in the 1990s drew criticism from American Jewish groups at the time, Senator Clinton (D-NY) generally has aligned herself with pro-Israeli interests throughout her political career. In a February 2007 speech before the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), Clinton said Hamas, which took control of the Palestinian Authority in January 2006 and formed a coalition government with Fatah in February 2007, should not be recognized ‘until it renounces violence and terror and recognizes Israel’s right to exist.’ Clinton also supports Israel’s ‘security wall,’ which divides Israel from the West Bank with the declared purpose of preventing terrorist attacks.

“Clinton co-sponsored the Palestinian Anti-Terrorism Act of 2006. She also sponsored a Senate resolution in 2007 ‘calling for the immediate and unconditional release of soldiers of Israel held captive by Hamas and Hezbollah.’ That resolution was approved. Since taking office in 2000, she has regularly supported military and financial aid packages to Israel.”

Barack Obama

[Obama, the son of a Kenyan-born Muslim who spent part of his childhood in Indonesia, has fascinated international observers and provoked heated debate from Israel’s supporters.]

“Senator Obama (D-IL) has taken a strongly pro-Israel tone in addressing the conflict. In a speech before AIPAC in March 2007, Obama said the United States must ‘strengthen the hands of Palestinian moderates’ and isolate Hamas. Haaretz U.S. correspondent Shmuel Rosner said that before AIPAC, Obama ‘sounded as strong as Clinton, as supportive as Bush, as friendly as Giuliani.’

“Obama co-sponsored the Palestinian Anti-Terrorism Act of 2006 and, like most of his fellow candidates, has called on the Palestinian leadership to ‘recognize Israel, to renounce violence, and to get serious about negotiating peace and security for the region.’

“If elected, Obama says he would ‘insist on fully funding military assistance to Israel’ (Jerusalem Post) and continue to cooperate with Israel on the development of the Arrow missile defense system.”

Mike Huckabee

“Huckabee, who has taken nine trips to Israel in the past 35 years, calls himself a ‘steadfast supporter’ of Israel. On his campaign site, Huckabee pledges that as president, he would ‘ensure that Israel has access to the state-of-the-art weapons and technology she needs to defend herself from those who seek her annihilation.’

“In October 2007, Huckabee said he believes a Palestinian state should be created (Yeshiva World), but that it should be moved away from Israel. He named Egypt and Saudi Arabia as possible locations.”

John McCain

Senator McCain (R-AZ) has described himself as “proudly pro-Israel.” Like [Rudolph] Giuliani and [Duncan] Hunter, McCain argues that there can be no peace process ‘until the Palestinians recognize Israel, forswear forever the use of violence, recognize their previous agreements, and reform their internal institutions.’ McCain says he would be willing to use military force against Iran if it attains a nuclear weapon and poses a ‘real threat’ to Israel.

“He also believes the United States should continue to provide Israel with ‘whatever military equipment and technology she needs to defend herself.’ He has said that if elected president, he would ‘work to further isolate the enemies of Israel’ like Syria, Hamas and Hezbollah, and he would ‘never pressure Israel to make concessions to states or movements committed to its destruction.’ (Jerusalem Post)

“McCain said Israel’s military action in Lebanon in 2006 was justified. (Arizona Daily Star).

“McCain co-sponsored the Palestinian Anti-Terrorism Act of 2006.”

Ralph Nader

Announcing his independent candidacy for president on NBC’s “Meet the Press” Feb. 24, activist Ralph Nader said of Democratic front-runner Obama (although, as evidenced by the above, the “lack of sympathy” could be ascribed to all the candidates): “He was pro-Palestinian when he was in Illinois before he ran for the state senate…[and] during the state senate. Now he’s supporting the Israeli destruction of the tiny section called Gaza, the million-and-a-half people. He doesn’t have any sympathy for a civilian death ratio of about 300-to-1: 300 Palestinians to one Israeli.”

Two other excellent sources readers can refer to as they examine candidates’ positions on national security, civil rights/civil liberties, and U.S. national interests in Iraq, Iran, and U.S.-Muslim World relations, are the Muslim Public Affairs Council’s online election guide on its Web site <www.mpac.org>, and the Arab American Institute’s Election Central, <www.aaiusa.org>.