Senator Hillary Clinton speaks before the AIPAC policy conference about the rights and responsibilities that the American people have to stand by Israel. (0:31)

 

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Senator Barack Obama describes his first and current understanding of the Jewish people during his address at the AIPAC Policy Conference. (1:10)

 

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Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama speaks before the AIPAC conference about the contributions of Hillary Clinton, a leader whose contributions he described as “extraordinary.” (1:05)

 

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AIPAC, American Israel Public Affairs Committee, held the last day of its annual conference today in Washington D.C. With a week of speakers that has seen Republican candidate for President Senator John McCain and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, today was capped off with Republican Leader of the House John Boehner (R-Ohio), Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), and Majority Leader of the Senate Harry Reid (D-Nev.) - and those were just the warm up speakers. Senator Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) and presumptive democratic nominee Senator Barack Obama (D-Ill.) closed out the day with extended speeches. (more…)

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) says that Iran is clearly a serious threat and those that disagree lack common sense. (0:44)

 

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Emphatic US support for the State of Israel was reiterated by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice at the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) Policy Conference. Secretary Rice declared that the United States’ special relationship with Israel stems from a mutual appreciation of ideals like a free press, democracy, and tolerance, saying that conspiracy arguments concerning the US, Israel, and AIPAC are entirely inaccurate. Rice firmly said that Israel has no better friend than the United States.

Though she admitted it to be an ambitious goal, Rice said the she hopes agreements reached at the peace summit held in Annapolis, Md. will lead to the establishment of a Palestinian state by the end of the year. For this to occur, Rice said that Hamas must relinquish its fundamentalist actions while the US and Israel support the growing number of Palestinians that, according to Rice, are acting in the true interests of the Palestinian people. Rice added that a sovereign, peaceful Palestine is in the policy interests of both the United States and Israel.

Rice spoke at length about the need to engage in productive diplomacy , a gathering with means and incentives, with Iran. Rice restated the Bush administration’s stance that no effective diplomacy can take place until Iran disbands its nuclear research program. Rice said a state that denies the Holocaust and sponsors fundamentalist organizations cannot have access to a nuclear arsenal. Rice said she would be willing to meet with Iranian officials, including her Iranian counterpart, if this occured and questioned Tehran’s resistance to act.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) preceeded Secretary Rice’s statements. Sen. McConnell said that Iran must cut its ties with “murderous non-state actors” if it wants to be respected within the international community. Eli Amir spoke via satellite from Jerusalem about his experience as a Jewish refugee from Baghdad and urged AIPAC to consider in greater detail the experience of Jewish refugees from Arab countries. Amir said that after Israel’s independence, nearly the same number of Palestinians left Israel for Arab countries as the number of Jews who came to Israel from Arab countries, adding that both sides of refugee crises must be considered

At an American Israel Public Affairs Committee conference, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) says that the state of Israel is a “singular achievement” as a great democracy of the Middle East, and that critics of the U.S.-Israeli alliance perhaps “do not fully understand the love of liberty and the pursuit of justice.” He said they should know, however, that “those ties will not be broken,” because the two nations were brought together by “shared ideals and shared adversity.” He said that the U.S. and Israel “are the most natural of allies and trusted partners in the quest for peace,” and like Israel itself, “that alliance is forever.” (0:54)

 

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At an American Israel Public Affairs Committee conference, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) says that the U.S. “must apply the full force of law to prevent business dealings with Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps.” He says he was “pleased” to back an amendment that called for the designation of the Revolutionary Guard as a terrorist organization “responsible for killing American troops in Iraq.” He says that while over three-quarters of the Senate supported this “obvious step,” Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) did not because he thought it would send the “wrong message” to the world and to the region. McCain says that he is “mistaken,” and that holding Iran’s influence in Iraq in check and holding a terrorist organization accountable “sends exactly the right message” to Iran, the region, and the world. (1:03)

 

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At an American Israel Public Affairs Committee conference, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) says that when the U.S. and Israel join in saying “never again” to violence, it is not just a request or plea to the enemies of Israel, but a promise that the U.S. and Israel will honor against any enemy. (0:20)

 

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In response to Sen. John McCain’s address to The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), the Obama campaign held a conference call where Senior Foreign Policy Adviser Denis McDonough says that Sen. Barack Obama was a co-sponsor of the Iran Counter-Proliferation Act, which included a provision designating the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corp (IRGC) as a terrorist organization, and that his support for the bill continues today. He says that Obama did not support amendments of the bill that would have added a mission of countering Iranian influence inside of Iraq. He says that this would have given President Bush, and presumably McCain, additional rationale to keep the troops in Iraq. (0:54)

 

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