Debate Mentions Israel 34 Times

Jerusalem Post

US President Barack Obama said on Monday he will stand with Israel should Iran attack, whilst GOP candidate Mitt Romney added that he’ll stop a nuclear-capable Iran.

The presidential candidates debated in Lynn University, Florida for the third and final presidential debate, devoted to foreign policy, ahead of the November 6 elections.

A CNN poll conducted among undecided voters determined President Barack Obama won the debate overall, with 48 percent of those polled voting for him. 40 percent said GOP candidate Mitt Romney came out on top.

Both candidates affirmed their friendship with Israel, after mentioning the country 34 times during the debate.

Obama stated: “Israel is a true friend, [our] greatest ally,” and says the work the US did with respect to sanctions now “offers Iran a choice. They can take the diplomatic route and end their nuclear program or they will have to face a united world and a United States president, me, who said we’re not going to take any options off the table.”

Obama cited the upcoming joint US-Israel military exercise as evidence of the close relationship between Israel and the United States, stating the drill was evidence of the “strongest military cooperation in history.”

Romney countered by attacking the President for damage done to ties with Israel. He said Iran looked at the current President and saw weakness. He commented that Iran has noticed “daylight” between the US and Israel too.

Discussing the Iranian nuclear program and possibility of a preemptive attack, both candidates promised their administration would stand by Israel in the event of an attack.

The president commented: “Premature military action [on Iran] would be a mistake. That is the last resort, not the first.”

He then emphasized: “As long as I’m president, Iran will not get in the way.”

Obama added: “We have a sense of what is going on…the clock is ticking, if they do not meet demands of the international community, we will take all options necessary.”

Romney countered: “If Israel is attacked, we have their back, not just diplomatically, not just culturally, but militarily. That’s number one.”

The GOP candidate remarked that a nuclear-capable Iran is unacceptable to America: “It presents a threat not only to our friends, but ultimately a threat to us to have Iran have nuclear material, nuclear weapons that could be used against us or used to be threatening to us.”

Romney added: “We are four years closer to a nuclear Iran,” and said he wished those years had not been wasted. He went on to accuse Obama of “skipping Israel” during his tour of the region.

Obama quickly countered the accusation, stating: “I went to Israel as a candidate. I didn’t take fundraisers. I went to Yad Vashem the Holocaust memorial. I went to Sderot and saw families who showed me where missiles had fallen from Gaza. We funded Iron Dome. That’s how I’ve used my travels.”

The debate was the last major opportunity for either candidate to appeal directly to millions of voters – especially the roughly 20 percent who have yet to make up their minds or who could still switch their support at the November 6 election.