By COLlive reporter
Photos by Yossi Percia / COLlive
President Barack Obama spent a great deal of this past week publicly defending Israel as a Jewish state among enemies and is gathering support to block the Palestinian statehood bid at the United Nations.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, ignoring past friction and tension with Obama, went as far as saying that the president’s stance was “a badge of honor.”
Well, that ain’t impressing Mike Huckabee. The Fox News host and former Republican presidential candidate told a crowd of 200 businessmen and philanthropists that Obama is “like one who starts a fire, then comes to help put out the blaze.”
Obama is “incredibly naive,” and must recognize the impossibility of negotiating with those who say “accept my way, my system of thought – or I will destroy you,” he said and suggested that if the Palestinian vote is presented, the U.N. should be told “you will not see one more American dime.”
Huckabee didn’t mince words when describing the current slate of 2012 GOP presidential hopefuls when he spoke Friday at a breakfast benefiting the Algemeiner newspaper and the Gershon Jacobson Foundation, which took place at the offices of global asset management firm Alliance Bernstein in Manhattan.
The former Arkansas Governor said the Republican Party was suffering from “a toxic atmosphere. Instead of having a sense of ‘how do we govern?’ the concern has been more about let’s beat the other guy – whoever that guy might be.”
He said he was not sure that among the prospective names a definitive candidate had emerged. “Rick Perry should realize that he is not running for President of Texas and must expand his message and revise his position on social security or it would be his downfall,” he said about one of the two front-runners.
About Congressman Ron Paul, Huckabee found his “understanding of the Middle East dangerous,” and his attitude toward Iran “naïve.”
HUCKABEE THE MACCABEE
Huckabee was introduced by Dovid Efune, Director of the Algemeiner, by saying, “I can only offer you the greatest Jewish accolade, you are a mensch.” Huckabee returned the volley, humorously noting the similarity of the name “Huckabee” to the famed Maccabee.
Before his talk, a video presentation highlighted the Algemeiner’s recent resurgence and detailed plans for the future. It featured the paper’s Advisory Board chair Elie Wiesel as well as Malcolm Hoenlein, Rabbi Arthur Schneier and PR guru Ronn Torossian.
Some of the topics regularly covered on Algemeiner’s news and opinion pages were addressed by Huckabee.
“The conflict in the Middle East is not just a conflict between Jews and Arabs,” he said. “It is a conflict between freedom and slavery, between seeing children as in need of a better life and strapping a bomb to their belly.”
How can there be peace, asked the former governor, when children are taught that it is alright to kill Jews? “Although Israelis have exercised extraordinary patience in the face of continuing provocation, the creation of a peaceful environment will not be done by capitulation to those who do not admit Israel’s right to exist.”
An ordained Southern Baptist minister, Huckabee said “there is a deep kinship between the Evangelical community and the Jewish people. One cannot be Christian without having absolute Jewish roots. Israel, for me, is holy land. What is sacred to my Jewish friends is sacred to me.”
“The United States must be more vigilant and diligent in getting the American people to understand that the threat of Islamic jihad is a threat to all who believe in individual freedom,’ he said.
“What happens to the Jews will one day happen to me.”
The next GJCF/Algemeiner event is on Monday Oct 3, hosting Senator Joe Lieberman who will talk on “Religion and Politics.” Free entrance but space is limited. RSVP required: 718-774-7610 or lecture@gjcf.com.
Dovid! Dovid! Dovid!
Dovid Efune is doing great things for the Jewish community.
This is showing the huge turn within in the not yet frum community and its relationship with Obama my guess his support will drop tremendously