Bookstore Glossary Library Links News Publications Timeline Virtual Israel Experience
Anti-Semitism Biography History Holocaust Israel Israel Education Myths & Facts Politics Religion Travel US & Israel Vital Stats Women
donate subscribe Contact About Home

2012 U.S. Presidential Campaign: Rick Perry

Learn More about Republican Challenger Rick Perry
AICE does not rate or endorse any candidate for political office. This page is for informational purposes only.

Connection to Israel

In an August 2009 interview with The Jerusalem Post, Perry affirmed his support for Israel, saying “I’m a big believer that this country was given to the people of Israel a long time ago, by God, and that’s ordained.”
- The Jerusalem Post, August 14, 2009.

In 2009 Israel awarded Gov. Perry with the prestigious Defender of Jerusalem Award, given to public figures that support the Jewish state.

Iranian Threat

"We need to overthrow the repressive regime in Iran. We need no longer to lead from behind. This president has been begging for the drone back. We should either have destroyed or retrieved it and Obama did nothing."
- Republican Presidential Debate in Iowa, December 15, 2011

"We need to sanction the Iranian Central Bank. That would be one of the most powerful ways to impact that. As a matter of fact, Congressman Paul, that is what we need to do before we ever start having any conversations about a military strike, is to use every sanction that we have.

"And when you sanction the Iranian Central Bank, that will shut down that economy. At that particular point in time, they truly have to deal with the United States. And it's one of the reasons that I call for the -- there is an area over there, of all of them working together -- and I'm talking about Syria -- and bringing them into the mix as well.

"As I called for, one of the options is to have a no-fly zone over Syria at the same time you're putting those types of sanctions against Iran. And in that moment, they will understand that America is serious. This President refuses to do that, and it's another show of lack of leadership from the President of the United States."
- Republican Presidential Debate in Washington, D.C., November 22, 2011

"This country can sanction the Iranian Central Bank right now and shut down that country's economy. And that's what this president needs to do and the American people need to stand up and force him to make that stand today."
- Republican Presidential Debate in South Carolina, November 13, 2011

"Today, the greatest threat to the security of Israel and, by extension, a threat to America, is the Iranian government developing a nuclear arsenal. One thing is clear: we must stop Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. Economic sanctions must be tightened and increased and all options must remain on the table to stop a brutally repressive regime from acquiring a nuclear capability."
- RickPerry.org, September 20, 2011.

"Iran pursues nuclear weapons its leaders vow to use to annihilate Israel."
- The Jerusalem Post, September 15, 2011.

Regarding President Obama's May 2011 Speech

Gov. Perry criticized President Obama’s May 2011 speech suggesting that Israel withdraw to the pre-Six Day War lines, because it "continues a misguided policy of alienating our traditional allies, in this case Israel, one of our strongest partners in the war on terror. As someone who has visited Israel numerous times, I know that it is impracticable to revert to the 1967 lines."
- The Economist, May 31, 2011.

Regarding President Obama's Policies about Israel

"Unfortunate errors by the Obama administration have encouraged the Palestinians to take steps backward away from peace. It was a mistake to inject an Israeli construction freeze, including in Jerusalem, as an unprecedented precondition for talks...When the Obama administration demanded a settlement freeze, it led to a freeze in Palestinian negotiations. It was a mistake to agree to the Palestinians’ demand for indirect negotiations conducted through the United States. And it was an even greater mistake for President Obama to distance himself from Israel and seek engagement with the hostile regimes in Syria and Iran."
- The Jerusalem Post, September 15, 2011.

Gaza Flotillas

Perry wrote a letter to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder strongly dissuading Americans from participating in the Gaza-bound flotillas and Perry has also called on the Justice Department to prosecute Americans who take part in the Gaza flotilla because U.S. bans taking part in naval expeditions against states that are allies of the U.S.
- Houston Chronicle, June 29, 2011.

Texas-Israel Cooperation

In 2007, Perry told Israel's Chamber of Commerce: "Of special interest are your innovative partnerships between universities and entrepreneurs, funded by investment from the public and private sectors. Texas also is making great strides: since the creation of our Emerging Technology Fund in 2005, we have invested $95 million in young start-up companies and to bring world-renowned experts to our institutions of higher learning. With it, we are investing in great ideas and the people who have them. I hope that ideas incubating in small Texas companies today will someday become products sold in Israel, through relationships forged in this new Chamber of Commerce.”

Gov. Perry wants Texas to become the preferred location for Israeli companies’ in business with the U.S. He reiterated that expanding commercial activities between the two nations will lead to greater economic strength which in turn will lead to increased freedom.
- Office of the Governor Rick Perry, September 25, 2007.

On Palestinian Statehood

Gov. Perry's statements at a press conference in New York in September 2011 included what he things must happen before a Palestinian state becomes a reality:

"First, Palestinian leaders must publicly affirm Israel’s right to exist, and to exist as a Jewish state; Second, President Abbas must persuade all factions including Hamas to renounce acts of terrorism and release kidnapped Israeli Gilad Shalit, and; Third, Palestinian statehood must be established only through direct negotiations between the Palestinian leadership and the nation of Israel."
- RickPerry.org, September 20, 2011.

"The Palestinian plan to win that one-sided endorsement from the UN this month in New York threatens Israel and insults the United States. The US and UN have long supported the idea that Israel and its neighbors should make peace through direct negotiations... In refusing to deal with the recognition of Israel as a Jewish state, and taking this destabilizing action in the UN, the Palestinians are signaling that they have no interest in a two-state solution...The United States – and the United Nations – should do everything possible to discourage the Palestinian leadership from pursuing its current course."
- The Jerusalem Post, September 15, 2011.

U.S. Aid to the Palestinians

"We should encourage Palestinians who are more interested in building a prosperous future than in fueling the grievances of the past. Our aid is, and must remain, predicated on the commitment of the Palestinian leadership to engage honestly and directly with the Israelis in negotiating a peace settlement...The United States must not condone and legitimize through our assistance a regime whose actions are in direct opposition to a peace agreement with our ally Israel, and in direct opposition to our own vital interests."
- The Jerusalem Post, September 15, 2011.

General Foreign Policy

"Every country would start at zero. Obviously, Israel is a special ally. And my bet is that we would be funding them-- at some substantial level. But it makes sense for everyone to come in at zero and make your case. As a matter of fact, we oughta try that-- doin' that with some of those agencies that I was tryin' to think the name of the other night.

"Starting at zero, zero-based budgeting, and Newt will share with you, is we've gotta go there. And everyone has to come in and make your case."
- Republican Presidential Debate in South Carolina, November 13, 2011