Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) delivered a rousing, well-received address to the Israeli Knesset (parliament) on Monday, touching on Biblical themes and the enduring strength of the U.S.-Israel alliance.
“Peace be upon Israel, as David has written,” McCarthy said, tracing the origins of Israel to the Bible.
It was, he noted, his first international address as Speaker of the House, underscoring his affinity for the Jewish State, and Congress’s strong support for Israel — even with a White House less inclined toward cooperation.
McCarthy also stressed the danger of China — not just to the U.S., but to Israel as well — as it attempts to expand its economic power worldwide. He praised Israel for taking steps to review Chinese investment.
McCarthy led a bipartisan delegation of 19 members of Congress, including Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-MD), to Israel on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of Israel’s independence. He was welcomed by all parties in the Knesset.
The Times of Israel — typically left-leaning, and skeptical of Republicans — noted McCarthy’s success:
In an effusive and enthusiastic speech to the Knesset plenum, Speaker of the US House of Representatives Kevin McCarthy pledged Monday that the US would continue to fully fund Israel’s security needs, while denouncing Iranian aggression in the Middle East, as well as efforts to isolate Israel internationally.
In a speech replete with both praise for Israel and biblical quotations, McCarthy lauded Israel as the birthplace of the Jewish people, described the country as a “modern miracle,” and insisted on its right to defend itself from attack.
And he spoke of the importance of bipartisan support for Israel from both Republicans and Democrats as crucial for the relationship between the two countries.
McCarthy’s message was particularly timely, as President Joe Biden has sought to isolate Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over his proposed judicial reforms — many of which mirror existing practice in the U.S.
Biden has also worried Israelis — of all parties — by continuing to pursue a nuclear deal with Iran, which is using terror proxies to attack Israel and is thought to be nearing the development of a nuclear weapon.
Biden’s stance, and the Israeli opposition’s explicit outreach to Democrats, has widened the partisan divide in the U.S. on Israel — a gap that McCarthy has done his best to close since arriving in the country.
On Sunday, McCarthy promised to invite Netanyahu to Washington, if Biden persisted in refusing to meet with Israel’s democratically-elected leader.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre declined to comment on McCarthy’s statement when asked about it by the press corps during her usual briefing on Monday.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of the new biography, Rhoda: ‘Comrade Kadalie, You Are Out of Order’. He is also the author of the recent e-book, Neither Free nor Fair: The 2020 U.S. Presidential Election. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.