WASHINGTON — GOP presidential hopefuls took turns lambasting President Barack Obama’s policy toward Israel on Wednesday, accusing him of being timid in the face of Iran’s attempt to build nuclear weapons.
In speeches that resembled auditions before Jewish activists and donors, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and Rep. Michele Bachmann promised to move the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to a controversial site in Jerusalem, and Texas Gov. Rick Perry pledged he would increase military aid to Israel.
Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney said that the president, by his actions, has “emboldened Palestinian hard-liners who now are poised to form a unity government with terrorist Hamas and feel they can bypass Israel at the bargaining table.”
All of the Republicans stressed that Iran must never be permitted to gain a nuclear weapon, raising the possibility of a pre-emptive military strike.
Obama is expected to speak next week to a conference of the Union for Reform Judaism.
The Associated Press
