World

An Iran-Iraq Strategy

Cheney defends
the war in AIPAC
speech.

Ron Kampeas
Jewish Telegraphic Agency

Washington

D

ick Cheney's message to AIPAC
was typically blunt: You want to
take on Iran? It's a package deal
with Iraq.
"My friends, it is simply not consis-
tent for anyone to demand aggressive
action against the menace that is posed
by the Iranian regime while at the same
time acquiescing in a retreat from Iraq
that would leave Israel's best friend, the
United States, dangerously weakened,"
the vice president admonished the 6,000
delegates attending the American Israel
Public Affairs Committee's largest-ever
Policy Conference held March 11-13.
Cheney's appeal is part of Bush admin-
istration efforts in recent months to shore
up support for the Iraq war in quarters
it once took for granted: Republicans in
Congress, the Christian right and now the
pro-Israel community.
His message was not received enthu-
siastically: Only about one-third to
one-half of the audience in the cavern-
ous Washington Convention Center hall
applauded politely.
It's not just that three-quarters of
American Jews — more than any other
religious group — now think the Iraq
war was a mistake. That's partly due to
perceptions that the war's failure has
emboldened Iran and its nuclear ambi-
tions, which AIPAC considers the gravest
challenge to Israel.
Cheney's speech was jarring because
the tone of this year's meeting was
to have been emphatically bipartisan
— even more than normal for AIPAC, the
powerhouse lobby that prides itself on
crossing party lines.
The March 12 gala dinner drew half
the U.S. Senate and more than half the
House and featured addresses by Sen.
Harry Reid, D-Nev., the Senate majority
leader, and Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.,
its minority leader.
The keynote speeches March 13, before
delegates ascended to the Capitol to
lobby for tough sanctions against Iran,

Vice President Dick Cheney

Greg Aronin led Adat Shalom's delegation.

were delivered by Speaker of the House
Nancy Pelosi, D-California, and Rep. John
Boehner, R-Ohio, who otherwise agree on
little.
The sanctions are part of the Iran
Counter-proliferation Act of 2007, pro-
posed by Reps. Tom Lantos, D-Calif.,
and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla., the top
Democrat and Republican on the House
Foreign Affairs Committee. It would
expand existing sanctions against third
parties that deal with Iran and restrict
the president's ability to waive the sanc-
tions by citing national security consid-
erations.
"Chairman Lantos' legislation prohibits
Iranian-owned state banks from using
the American banking system:' Pelosi
said in her remarks. "In terms of diplo-
macy, it proposes that we use our influ-
ence with Russia and China to encourage
them to join the world community in
opposing Iran's nuclear program."
The legislation is an AIPAC priority.
"Stiff sanctions and targeted divestments
— these will be our focus as we work
to keep the pressure on Iran;' AIPAC
Executive Director Howard Kohr said.

of AIPAC in June 2008, was one of 105
Michigan delegates at the conference, up
from 60 last year.
An additional 36 state students were
among the 1,200 student delegates which
included 164 student body presidents.
State student body presidents included
those from Michigan State University
in East Lansing, University of Michigan
in Ann Arbor, Calvin College in Grand
Rapids and Frankel Jewish Academy of
Metropolitan Detroit in West Bloomfield.
Victor says bi-partisan support for
Israel was the hallmark of this conference
as it has been in the past.
"AIPAC is a victim of its own success;'
he said. "Because we work so closely with
both Republican and Democratic admin-
istrations we seem to be a part of them:'
explaining why many believe AIPAC sup-
ports one party or the other.
He said the group's relationship with
Congress that switched from Republican
to Democratic leadership has been
seamless!'
The Iraq issue was also addressed by
Israeli leaders who have expressed sup-
port for the Iraq intervention as a means
of showing Bush and Cheney gratitude.
Addressing the crowd by satellite
March 12, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud
Olmert called on U.S. Jews to back a con-
tinued U.S. presence in Iraq.
"When America succeeds in Iraq, Israel
is safer:' Olmert said in a live address
from his Jerusalem home. "The friends
of Israel know it; the friends who care
about Israel know it. They will keep the
Americans strong, powerful and convinc-
ing.
Olmert's plea was greeted with polite
applause.

Support For Israel
To be sure, AIPAC delegates deeply appre-
ciate the unprecedented support the Bush
administration has shown Israel. The
administration's high marks — isolating
the Hamas-led Palestinian Authority, the
steadfast support for Israel during last
summer's war against Hezbollah and the
tough U.S. posture against Iran — were
noted by AIPAC President-elect David
Victor of Bloomfield Hills, who intro-
duced Cheney.
Victor, who will become president

((

While some Democrats said they were
stunned by what they considered Israeli
intervention in the U.S. political process,
AIPAC was circumspect.
The organization sees the Iran issue
"differently" than does Olmert, spokes-
man Joshua Block said.
The conference featured more than 100
different breakout sessions where confer-
ence delegates heard from Middle East
experts, scholars and statesmen about the
various issues affecting the U.S.-Israel
relationship.
Marc Weinbaum of Bloomfield
Township who chairs AIPAC's Michigan
Council, was particularly impressed by
AIPAC's success in connecting to African-
American, Hispanic and Evangelical
Christian pro-Israel advocates.
"Their deeds and words in support
of Israel are for all of the right reasons:'
Weinbaum says, noting they understand
the Jewish connection to the land, sup-
port freedom and democracy and recog-
nize the common threat posed by Islamic
extremists.
Weinbaum says the Christian support
— particularly the speech by Pastor John
Hagee of Christians United For Israel,
which he called "by far the most remark-
able of the entire event" — "made most
of us recognize that we are cousins in a
larger Judeo-Christian world of shared
values and common interests in the
spread of freedom!'
"Everyone was there for the love of
Israel and the United States," said Greg
Aronin of Farmington Hills who co-
chairs Adat Shalom Synagogue's Israel
Advocacy Committee and led his 14-per-
son synagogue delegation.
The state government affairs director
for Johnson & Johnson, he was impressed
by a session on Israel technology.
"There was a great program on the
tremendous things that are happening in
Israeli in the life sciences," he said. "It's
incredibly important for Israel's economy,
but they are bringing great things to the
world!'
He found the conference to be very
empowering, encouraging and appreci-
ated how it brought focus to the advocacy
efforts that are so important to Israel and
the U.S.
"What we do for Israel is something
everyone can do. We really make a differ-
ence with our elected officials!'

Don Cohen contributed to this story.

March 22 • 2007

25

