National Christian Leadership Conference for Israel
Tel. (248) 557-4540 · Fax. (248) 557-4527 · E-mail: NCLCI@MSN.COM

Speeches from the 2002 Pro Israeli Washington Rally 

Washington Mall, April 15, 2002

Sister rose thering

GOV. GEORGE PATAKI

Elie Wiesel

BILL BENNETT

Benjamin Netanyahu

MORTIMER ZUCKERMAN and REP. DICK GEPHARDT

Natan Sharansky

Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz

MARK SOKOLOW and other victims of terrorism

JANET PARSHALL, Robert Goldberg and Sen. Harry Reid

RABBI MICHAEL MELCHIOR

REP. DICK ARMEY

Rudolf Giuliani

SEN. ARLEN SPECTER

Senator Barbara Mikulski

MC: I'm pleased to introduce, representing the House Republican leadership this afternoon, House Majority Leader Richard Armey, an avid proponent of the cause of religious freedom, both domestically and across the globe. His efforts have been indispensable in the passage of the International Religious Freedom Act. And he has been a powerful congressional voice in support of the president's war against global terrorism.

I'm honored to be able to introduce Congressman Dick Armey. (Applause.)

REP. ARMEY: Thank you. It's an honor for me to be here today with my House colleagues, Ben Gilman from New York, Dave Weldon from Florida, and Eric Cantor from Virginia. (Applause.) And let me say, we dare to speak with one voice. And I'm here to say that America must stand solidly beside Israel in our common fight against terrorism. (Applause.)

Ladies and gentlemen, I'm from Texas. And in Texas, we've got a reputation for straight talk. We don't believe in ambiguity and we believe in clarity. So let me make this as clear as possible. A deliberate attack on innocent civilians is terrorism. (Applause.) It is terrorism when it happens in New York City. It is terrorism when it happens at the Pentagon across the river. It is terrorism when it happens in the skies over Pennsylvania. And it is terrorism when it happens in the heart of Jerusalem. (Applause.)

And let me also say this. If a person deliberately attacks innocent civilians or if he actively supports deliberate attacks on innocent civilians, then he is, by definition, a terrorist. (Applause.) And he is a terrorist whether he's operating in Afghanistan, hiding in Pakistan, or training homicide bombers in the West Bank. (Applause.)

We reject any theory of moral equivalence that would compare a homicide bomber with her victim. (Applause.) That confuses an act of self-defense with the act of terror that provoked it and that can't distinguish between a democratically-elected government trying to protect its people and a corrupt, self-appointed regime that rules by gunpoint and stands ready to use any means to achieve its end. (Applause.)

And let me be clear about one more thing. Israel is a democracy. (Applause.) In fact, it is the only democracy in the Middle East today. (Applause.) Israel is a good friend to the United States, one of the best friends we will ever have. (Applause.)

We know that if Israel were to succumb to the tactic of the homicide bomber, then that same tactic would be turned against democracies around the world. It will again be used against us, just as it was on September the 11th. And it is for all these reasons that the United States stands with Israel as we fight together against terrorism.

Thank you. (Applause.)