Quotes on Howard Dean's Pro-Israelism

Revealing article from the Internet version of the Jewish-American New York paper The Forward at:
http://www.forward.com/campaignconfidential/

Campaign Confidential

December 23, 2003

More Dean Defense

The national co-chairman of Howard Dean's campaign, Steve Grossman, is dispatching a letter to supporters and Jewish communal leaders to quash the anonymous Internet rumours that have circulated questioning Dean's support for Israel.

"Because so much inaccurate information has been transmitted over the Internet during the past few days about Howard Dean's positions and statements on the U.S.-Israel relationship, I want to share with you the real story," Grossman writes in the December 18 missive. "Howard Dean believes that the United States must remain committed to the special, longstanding relationship we have with Israel, including providing the resources necessary to guarantee Israel's long-term defense and security. Maintaining Israel's security is a key U.S. interest.

"Governor Dean also believes that the United States is the only intermediary that can bring the Israelis and Palestinians to the peace table, and that playing the role of a fair and honest broker is consistent with the special relationship the U.S. has with Israel," Grossman continues.

He then cites the Anti-Defamation League's national director, Abraham Foxman, who called the unsigned email "venomous" and "dis- and mis-information." The Anti-Defamation League's "Debunking Internet Rumors" webpage refers to the email as "malicious, misleading and factually inaccurate."

"As someone who has devoted more then twenty-five years of my life to Jewish communal service, a strong and secure Israel, the US-Israel relationship and the Jewish people, I am proud to serve as Co-Chair of Howard Dean's presidential campaign," adds Grossman, a former president of Aipac. "I have worked closely with him for many years, including when I chaired the Democratic National Committee. I believe that as President, Howard will consistently stand with the Jewish community on issues of mutual concern."

Grossman appends the following Dean statements to his letter:

Israel is not just an ally, but a beacon of hope for people who were
abandoned 2,000 years ago and who are afraid of being abandoned again. I
WILL NOT ABANDON ISRAEL, EVER. [Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Oct. 20,
2003]

The United States must remain committed to the special, longstanding
relationship we have with Israel, including providing the resources
necessary to guarantee Israel's long-term defense and security.
Maintaining Israel's security is a key U.S. national security interest.
[Letter to Abraham Foxman, ADL, Sept. 12, 2003]

I will follow in the footsteps of Bill Clinton from day one of a Dean
Administration and make every effort to bring peace to this troubled
region. I believe the United States is the only intermediary that can
bring the parties to the peace table, and that playing the role of a
fair and honest broker is consistent with the special relationship that
the U.S. has with Israel. [Ibid.]

I deplore violence of any kind, especially violence perpetrated by
terrorists against innocent civilians. THE U.S. AND ISRAEL ARE PARTNERS
IN THE WAR ON TERROR. As long as that war continues, members of Hamas,
who are enemies in that war, are going to be casualties if they continue
to target innocent civilians with terrorist acts. [Ibid.]

OUR ALLIANCE WITH ISRAEL IS AND WILL ALWAYS BE AND MUST REMAIN
UNSHAKEABLE. And so, too, will be my commitment every day of our
administration to work with the parties for a solution that ends decades
of blood and tears. [Fulfilling the Promise of America, Dec. 15, 2003]

Since Harry Truman's historic decision to make the United States the
first nation to recognize the Jewish state, Americans have been united
in their commitment to the State of Israel. I will not allow a crack to
emerge in that important national consensus. [Letter to Abraham Foxman,
ADL, Sept. 12, 2003]

People ask me about the Middle East conflict all the time and ask me
what I would do. I ALWAYS TALK ABOUT STOPPING THE TERROR BECAUSE WE'RE
NOT GOING TO GET ANYWHERE AS LONG AS WE HAVE TERROR. [Arab American
Institute, Oct. 18, 2003]

The first thing I'm going to do if I get to be president of the United
States is call Bill Clinton and ask him to go to the Middle East and
represent me so we can have the presence of an American president trying
to bring peace to that region. [Hardball with Chris Matthews Dec. 1,
2003]

Only an American president can ever be the catalyst for peace between
the Israelis and the Palestinians, and the truth is that most people on
both sides of the green line would very happily settle for a two-state
solution if they could only guarantee the security of their borders.
[Ibid.]

Having spent some time there, I now understand what this is all about.
Israeli mothers have no idea if their children are coming home in one
piece from school. Eighty percent of the Palestinians live now below the
poverty line. Both people cry out for peace and the question is how to
get the leadership to deliver it to them. [Fulfilling the Promise of
America, Dec. 15, 2003]

The first thing we have to do is have an American president pay full
attention to it, which this president did not do for the first 18
months. Dean expressed strong reservations about giving the United
Nations a bigger role in Mideast peacemaking. [NY Jewish Week, Oct. 3,
2003]

Dean blasted recent anti-Semitic remarks by Malaysia's prime minister,
called for U.S. efforts to curtail Saudi Arabian incitement and support
for terrorism, and urged pressure to prevent Iran from getting nuclear
weapons. [Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Oct. 20, 2003]

ONLY THE PALESTINIANS AND THE ISRAELIS THEMSELVES
CAN MAKE AND KEEP THE PEACE AND WORK OUT THE
SPECIFICS OF A LASTING AGREEMENT. Peace cannot be
imposed by outside parties. [Letter to Abraham Foxman, ADL, Sept. 12, 2003]

We must stop the terror. We must stop the terror. You are not going to
get the Israelis to withdraw from the West Bank if they think that by
staying there they can protect their children. And when a bomb goes off
in Jerusalem and kills 26 children, the Israelis will do whatever it
takes to protect their children. We can't fix the Israeli-Palestinian
problem without stopping the terror. [Fulfilling the Promise of America,
Dec. 15, 2003]

Both parties have acknowledged that Israel will have to remove a
number of settlements. How many and which those are will have to be
determined as part of a final agreement negotiated by the parties.
[Letter to Abraham Foxman, ADL Sept. 12, 2003]

Posted by E. J. Kessler at December 23, 2003 11:09 AM

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