The Obama administration justified its foreign aid spending late Monday, days
after Republican presidential candidates promised that if elected, they would
reconsider all foreign aid packages – including Israel’s.
During a press
briefing held in Honolulu, Hawaii, a White House official said that “there are a
number of countries where the United States directly benefits from having a role
in those countries, and that we can certainly help – that the provision of
civilian assistance is critical to the success of promoting American interests
and serving American interests in countries around the world.”
Deputy
Press Secretary Josh Earnest said the Obama administration had “strengthened our
ties with [Israel], and provided significant assistance in the form of the Iron
Dome project and others that are critical to Israel’s security.”
Israel
rocket defense systems have received over $250 million in American
funds.
Speaking at the Republican presidential foreign policy debate over
the weekend, Texas Governor Rick Perry said he would start all foreign aid –
including Israel’s – at zero. Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney agreed
with Perry.
Although Perry later said that Israel was a “special ally”
and would receive “substantial” funding, he stopped short of committing to
maintain aid to Jerusalem at its current levels.
Following the debate,
Democratic National Committee chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz said she was
“aghast that the leading Republican contenders for president tonight, including
Mitt Romney, pledged to zero out the foreign aid budget, including the
traditional and vital support the US has provided the Jewish State of Israel for
its security.”
She declared that “I cannot think of a more irresponsible,
risky or deplorable position toward our most important friend and ally. That
Mitt Romney and these candidates would sacrifice the security of the State of
Israel for an applause line at a debate and to appeal to the far-right-wing Tea
Party faction of the Republican base, shows that not a single one of them has
what it takes to be commander-in-chief.”
Wasserman Schultz added that
“Mitt Romney and the rest of the Republican field clearly do not understand the
vital need for the US to consistently stand by our friend and ally, Israel, and
not only when it’s politically popular.”
Democrats cited the Obama
administration’s decision to authorize the sale of bunker-buster bombs to
Israel, which former president George W.
Bush had previously denied, as
well as a total aid package of approximately $3 billion.
Shortly after
the debate, during a weekend appearance in the Detroit Jewish community, Vice
President Joe Biden said that “America’s support for Israel is not just an act
of friendship.
It’s an act of fundamental national selfinterest on the
part of the United States – a key component of our broader effort to secure the
region and the wider world.”
He emphasized that “the president, with the
help of Congress, has secured $3b. in annual assistance for Israel, the most
ever.”
Arguing that the Obama administration had supported Israel in the
face of a “sustained, aggressive attempt to delegitimize” the Jewish state,
Biden told his audience that “the bond between the United States and Israel is
unshakeable, and that is why, ladies and gentlemen, as my dear grandfather used
to say, ‘Keep the faith.’”