With the selection of Senator Joe
Biden as Senator Obama's vice president, the Democrat's ticket has now become an
even greater gamble for the Jewish community.
Like Obama, Biden fundamentally misunderstands the threat posed
by an Iran determined to obtain nuclear weapons. Biden has continuously demonstrated
poor judgment on Iran. He has voted against significant legislation that would pressure
Iran to stop pursuing nuclear weapons. Biden has failed to recognize the serious
threat that Iran poses to Israel and the US and its allies in the Middle East.
Biden Votes Wrong on Iran:
•November 2007, Kyl-Lieberman Resolution, 76-22: Like Obama, Biden was
one of the few senators to oppose the bipartisan 2007 Kyl-Lieberman Amendment
labeling the Iranian Revolutionary Guard a terrorist organization. Democratic
Senators who supported the bipartisan resolution included Sen. Clinton (D-NY),
Sen. Reid (D-NV), Sen. Durbin (D-IL), and Sen. Levin (D-MI).
•June 2004, Letter Urging the President to Highlight Iran’s Nuclear Program
at the G-8 Summit, 66 Signers: Senator Biden did not sign this important
letter which had 66 co-signers.
•May 1998, Iran Missile Proliferation Sanctions Act, 90-4: In 1998, Sen.
Biden was one of only four senators to vote against the Iran Missile Proliferation
Sanctions Act, a bill that punished foreign companies or other entities that
sent Iran sensitive missile technology or expertise.
Biden’s Inconsistent Record on Israel:
•June 2008, Landrieu/Collins Letter to President Bush Supporting Israel’s
Quest for Peace, 77 Signers: Sen. Biden did not sign this pro-Israel letter
which had 77 signers.
•December 2005,Talent/Nelson Letter Urging Pres. Bush to Press Palestinian
Leadership to Bar Terrorist Groups from Participating in Palestinian Legislative
Elections, 73 co-signers: Sen. Biden did not sign this letter barring terror
groups from participating in Palestinian elections which ultimately had 73 co-signers.
•March 2004, Schumer-Hatch-Clinton-Smith Letter Urging Kofi Annan to Reverse
Support for ICJ Hearings on the Security Fence, 79 Signers: Sen. Biden did
not sign this letter urging Kofi Annan to reverse support for the International
Court of Justice Hearings on the Security fence which ultimately had 79 signers.
•November 2001, Bond/Schumer Letter Urging President Not to Meet with Arafat
until the Violence Ends, 89 Signers: Sen. Biden did not sign this letter
urging President Bush not to meet with Arafat until Palestinian violence ceased.
The letter had 89 signers.
•March 1998, Mack/Lieberman Letter Urging the Clinton Administration Not
to Pressure Israel, 82 Signers: Sen. Biden did not sign this pro-Israel
letter that had 82 signers.
•May 1993, Kennedy/Grassley Letter Urging President to Press Syria let Syrian
Jews Leave, 73 Signers: In 1993, Sen. Biden refused to sign this letter
which called on Syria to allow Syrian Jews to leave Syria. Ultimately, 73 signers
approved.
Joe Biden Threatens to Cut Off US Aid to Israel in 1982
(Commentary Magazine, Aug. 26, 2008 citing the Jerusalem Post, March 13, 1992)
“In a conversation with Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan, after a sharp confrontation
in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on the subject of the settlements,
Begin defined himself as ‘a proud Jew who does not tremble with fear’ when speaking
with foreign statesmen. During that committee hearing, at the height of the
Lebanon War, Sen. John Biden (Delaware) had attacked Israeli settlements in
Judea and Samaria and threatened that if Israel did not immediately cease this
activity, the US would have to cut economic aid to Israel. When the senator
raised his voice and banged twice on the table with his fist, Begin commented
to him: ‘This desk is designed for writing, not for fists. Don’t threaten us
with slashing aid. Do you think that because the US lends us money it is entitled
to impose on us what we must do? We are grateful for the assistance we have
received, but we are not to be threatened. I am a proud Jew. Three thousand
years of culture are behind me, and you will not frighten me with threats. Take
note: we do not want a single soldier of yours to die for us.’ After the meeting,
Sen. Moynihan approached Begin and praised him for his cutting reply. To which
Begin answered with thanks, defining his stand against threats.
Joe Biden on John McCain and Barack Obama
(From National Review Online, Jim Geraghty, August 20, 2008)
Biden, on a post-debate appearance on MSNBC, October 30, 2007: “The only
guy on the other side who’s qualified is John McCain.”
Biden appearing on The Daily Show, August 2, 2005: “John McCain is a personal
friend, a great friend, and I would be honored to run with or against John McCain,
because I think the country would be better off, be well off no matter who...”
Assessing Obama’s Iraq plan on September 13, 2007: “My impression is [Obama]
thinks that if we leave, somehow the Iraqis are going to have an epiphany” of
peaceful coexistence among warring sects. “I’ve seen zero evidence of that.”
Also from that Observer interview: “But — and the ‘but’ was clearly inevitable
— he doubts whether American voters are going to elect ‘a one-term, a guy who
has served for four years in the Senate,’ and added: ‘I don’t recall hearing
a word from Barack about a plan or a tactic.’”
Around that time, Biden in an interview with the Huffington Post, he assessed
Obama and Hillary Clinton: “The more people learn about them (Obama and Hillary)
and how they handle the pressure, the more their support will evaporate.”
.