Speech to B'nai B'rith
(September 6, 1984)
Thank you. Max Fisher, if I'd be really smart, I'd
just sit down and leave your introduction do it, and I wouldn't speak.
I thank you very much. He's a longtime friend.
And I thank all of you. It's a deep honor for me to speak to you, the
members of one of the oldest and largest Jewish organizations in America.
For more than 140 years, B'nai B'rith has sponsored religious, cultural,
and civic programs, conducted studies of vital issues, combated bigotry,
and worked tirelessly to advance the cause of tolerance and humanity.
And because of your efforts, today our country has a bigger heart, a
deeper sense of the generosity of spirit that must always define America.
And on behalf of all Americans, I thank you.
Four years ago, as a private citizen, I argued that the strength and
well-being of the United States and Israel are bound inextricably together.
``No policy,'' I asserted, ``no matter how heartfelt, no matter how
deeply rooted in the humanitarian vision we share, can succeed if the
United States of America continues its descent into economic impotence
and despair.''
Well, today, as President, I come before you to report on the progress
that we've made together during these past 4 years. Once again, I want
to talk about American policy toward Israel -- today's new policy of
deepened friendship and strengthened support. But first, permit me to
share with you my view of how working together the American people have
replaced our own nation's descent into impotence and despair with the
rebirth of freedom, prosperity, and hope.
Four years ago, we saw the first years of back-to-back, double-digit
inflation since World War I. The prime interest rate was rising sharply,
and in December 1980 it reached a point not seen since the Civil War.
In just 4 years, taxes roughly doubled, and average monthly mortgage
payments more than doubled, and the real after-tax income of the average
American actually began to decline. It all added up to the worst economic
crisis our country had faced since the Great Depression.
In foreign affairs we had lost the respect of friend and foe alike,
and our willpower had grown weak and soft, undermining commitments to
allies like Israel. Our leaders seemed to have lost faith in the American
people and in America's future. They spoke of a national malaise. On
television, we saw the Stars and Stripes being burned in foreign capitals.
And from Afghanistan to Grenada, the Soviets were on the march. Seldom
in all its proud history had the United States of America reached such
a pathetic state of apparent impotence.
Well, today, just 4 years later, we're seeing not humiliation but well-justified
pride -- pride in our country, our accomplishments, and ourselves. On
the economic front, from New York Harbor to San Diego Bay, a vast and
vigorous economic expansion is taking place. Inflation has plummeted
to just 4 percent, and the prime interest rate has fallen by almost
9 points.
Productivity is up, consumer spending is up, housing starts are up,
and take-home pay is up. Our tax rate reductions have restored incentives
to the American people, and when tax indexing goes into effect this
January, they'll get more help in the form of long overdue protection
against the unfairness of bracket creep.
The best news of all: During the past 19 months, 6\1/2\ million men
and women have found jobs that we've created -- on an average, each
month, more jobs than all the Common Market countries combined created
in the last 10 years. Europe is calling our success the American miracle.
Well, as we've worked to promote economic growth we've made certain
that the safety net for the truly needy has remained in place. Indeed,
after correcting for inflation, under our administration average food
stamp payments, medicare payments, medicaid payments, have all risen.
We can and are promoting economic vitality, while showing the disadvantaged
genuine compassion.
On civil rights, we have enforced the law with new determination. The
Justice Department, since we took office, has filed more criminal charges
on civil rights violations, brought more violators to trial, and achieved
more civil rights convictions than ever before. So, let no one doubt
our commitment. As President, I will enforce civil rights to the fullest
extent of the law.
Yet, at the same time, we remain unalterably opposed to an idea that
would undermine the very concept of equality itself -- discriminatory
quotas. Ours is a nation based on the sacredness of the individual,
a nation where all women and men must be judged on their own merit,
imagination, and effort; not on what they are, but on what they do.
Now, you know, I can remember a time -- I'm old enough to remember a
time -- when America did have quotas, and they were used in an attempt
to make discrimination legitimate and permanent, keeping Jews and other
targets of bigotry out of colleges, medical schools, and jobs. And I
can't state it too forcefully: This type of thing must never happen
again.
To combat crime, our administration has increased the law enforcement
budget by more than 20 percent, established 12 regional drug task forces
around the country, and hired more than 1,900 new investigators and
prosecutors. We've also reasserted some very basic values -- values
that say there is such a thing as right and wrong, that the innocent
victim is entitled to as much protection under the law as the accused,
that individual actions do matter, and that, yes, for hardened criminals
preying on our society, punishment must be certain and swift.
And now that we're getting back to these fundamentals of our Judeo-Christian
tradition, the will of the people is at last being done. In 1982 reported
crime dropped 3 percent -- the first decline since 1977. And last year
reported crime dropped 7 percent, and this is the first time the serious
crime index has ever shown a drop for the second year in a row, and
the sharpest decline in crime statistics since 1960.
In the Armed Forces, our troops have newer and better equipment, and
their morale has soared as we've begun to give them the pay, the training,
and the respect they've always deserved. And in foreign affairs, our
country is being respected again throughout the world as a leader for
peace and freedom. We've strengthened our relations with Asian allies
like Korea and Japan, deepened our friendship with China. In Europe,
we and our NATO allies went through months of Soviet attempts to divide
us and emerged more firmly united than ever. And in Central America,
we're supporting the free nations of the region against the threat posed
to them by the Sandinista regime in Nicaragua.
In July of 1983 it was my privilege to meet a brave refugee from Nicaragua,
Isaac Stavisky. He told me about the 50 Jewish families who had emigrated
to Nicaragua from Eastern Europe since the 1920's, and about the tragedy
that befell them. But let me read you Isaac's own words:
``Nicaraguan Jews never encountered anti-Semitism until the Sandinistas
started their revolution . . . Graffiti by Sandinistas was widespread,
with attacks on Jews and their religion. One was, `Death to the Jewish
pigs.' In 1978 the Sandinistas sent a strong message to the entire community
when the synagogue was attacked by five Sandinistas wearing face handkerchiefs.
They set the building on fire by throwing gasoline in the main entrance
doors, shouting PLO victory slogans and anti-Jewish defamatory language
. . . Once the Sandinistas came to power . . . they moved swiftly against
Jews. Jewish-owned properties were among the first to be confiscated
and Jews were forced into exile.''
Permit me to add that on the first anniversary of the Sandinista revolution,
Yasser Arafat visited Nicaragua and spoke these words: ``What the Nicaraguan
people did in Nicaragua will be done by the Palestinians.''
Well, today some in our national life would have America take a position
of weakness in Central America or, through callous indifference, withdraw
from that region altogether. These politicians would give free reign
to Marxist-Leninists who would persecute Central American Catholics
and Jews, leaving them defenseless against Sandinista intolerance.
We stand foursquare on the side of human liberty. And I pledge to you
that we will maintain that stand as long as I am in this office.
Anyone who has contemplated the horror inflicted on Jews during World
War II, the deaths of millions in Cambodia, or the travail of the Mesquito
Indians in Nicaragua must understand that if free men and women remain
silent in the face of oppression we risk the destruction of entire peoples.
I know that B'nai B'rith has been among the most concerned of the groups
advocating American support for the Genocide Convention. With a cautious
view, in part due to the human rights abuses performed by some nations
that have already ratified the documents, our administration has conducted
a long and exhaustive study of the convention. And yesterday, as a result
of that review, we announced that we will vigorously support, consistent
with the United States Constitution, the ratification of the Genocide
Convention. And I want you to know that we intend to use the convention
in our efforts to expand human freedom and fight human rights abuses
around the world. Like you, I say in a forthright voice, ``Never again!''
Now, there's one final aspect of our national renewal that I must mention:
the return that millions of Americans are making to faith -- faith as
a source of strength, comfort, and meaning.
This new spiritual awareness extends to people of all religions and
all beliefs. Irving Kristol has written, ``the quest for a religious
identity is, in the postwar world, a general phenomenon, experienced
by Jews, Christians, and Muslims alike. It does not seem, moreover,
to be a passing phenomenon, but rather derives from an authentic crisis
-- a moral and spiritual crisis as well as a crisis in Western, liberal-secular
thought.''
In our country, Kristol asserts, ``Ever since the Holocaust and the
emergence of the state of Israel, American Jews have been reaching toward
a more explicit and meaningful Jewish identity.'' And according to Rabbi
Seymour Siegel of the Jewish Theological Seminary, this trend among
American Jews is illustrated by a growing interest in Jewish history
and the Hebrew language, and by the rise of -- and I hope I get this
right -- Baal Teshuva movement -- a powerful movement of Jews, young
and old, Orthodox, Conservative, and Reformed, returning to the ancient
ways of the faith.
As Americans of different religions find new meaningfulness in their
beliefs, we do so together, returning together to the bedrock values
of family, hard work, and faith in the same loving and almighty God.
And as we welcome this rebirth of faith, we must even more fervently
attack ugly intolerance. We have no place for haters in America.
Well, let me speak plainly: The United States of America is and must
remain a nation of openness to people of all beliefs. Our very unity
has been strengthened by this pluralism. That's how we began; this is
how we must always be. The ideals of our country leave no room whatsoever
for intolerance, anti-Semitism, or bigotry of any kind -- none. The
unique thing about America is a wall in our Constitution separating
church and state. It guarantees there will never be a state religion
in this land, but at the same time it makes sure that every single American
is free to choose and practice his or her religious beliefs or to choose
no religion at all. Their rights shall not be questioned or violated
by the state.
During the dark days of World War II, legend has it, an event took
place that I believe is a timeless symbol of regard for our fellow men
that true tolerance and brotherhood demand. Soon after the Nazis invaded
Denmark in 1940, they published an edict that all Jews identify themselves
by wearing an armband showing the Star of David. Well, the next day
the Christian King of Denmark appeared in public. He was wearing a Star
of David. I was told on my one visit to Denmark there, that after he
had done that every citizen of Denmark, from then on, appeared in the
streets wearing the Star of David.
We in America have learned the lesson of the Holocaust; we shall never
allow it to be forgotten. Oppression will never extinguish the instinct
of good people to do the right thing.
In America, Jew, Christian, Muslim, believers of all kinds, and nonbelievers,
too -- as George Washington wrote to a Jewish congregation in Rhode
Island -- each ``shall sit in safety under his own vine and fig-tree,
and there shall be none to make him afraid.''
A renewal of faith and confidence, a resurgent economy, a rebirth of
strength and purposefulness in our foreign relations -- yes, we Americans
have made a new beginning, just as 4 years ago I said that we must.
And this new beginning is good not only for us but for our allies. And
now, it is to our relations with Israel that I would like to turn.
The first step in understanding American-Israeli relations is to recognize
our common values, aspirations, and interests. This has fundamental
consequences for our diplomacy in an environment of widespread hostility
to Israel. Nowhere does this hostility appear more clearly than in that
international institution that should be a citadel of good will, but
that all too often becomes a platform for propaganda -- the United Nations.
From the 1970's on, the United Nations has too often allowed itself
to become a forum for the defamation of Israel.
In 1975, for example, the United Nations Third Committee proposed an
anti-Semitic resolution that condemned Israel as racist. The American
delegate, Leonard Garment, objected forceably, arguing that the resolution
used the word racist not as a term for ``a very real and concrete set
of injustices, but merely an epithet to be flung at whoever happens
to be one's adversary.'' Those were his words.
Nevertheless, the resolution passed by 70 votes to 29, with 27 abstentions.
The resolution then went to the United Nations General Assembly which
ratified it by a vote of 72 to 35. The words that our Ambassador to
the United Nations, Daniel Patrick Moynihan, spoke at that moment of
shame were forthright and courageous. ``The United States rises to declare
before the world that it does not acknowledge, it will not abide by,
and it will never acquiesce in this infamous act.''
Well, sadly, in the years thereafter the United States did not always
give Israel such steadfast support. American policy toward Israel was
often weak and muddled. It reached a low point on March 1, 1980. That
day the American delegate to the United Nations actually voted in favor
of a resolution that repeatedly condemned Israel. Some 48 hours later,
President Carter disavowed the vote and announced to the press that
it had all been a mistake -- a bad mistake. And it certainly had.
Well, since taking office our administration has used every effort
to reaffirm before the world our unwavering support for the State of
Israel. And in the United Nations, our stand has been made unmistakable
by our Ambassador and your good friend, Jeane Kirkpatrick. Just 3 weeks
ago at the United Nations Population Conference in Mexico City, we joined
Israel in opposing and voting against a resolution that attacked the
State of Israel. And let me make it plain to the friends and enemies
of Israel alike that what Max Fisher just told you is absolutely true
and still the policy of this Government, and that if ever expelled,
yes, Max, and all of you, we walk out together with Israel.
In concrete terms, our administration has strengthened the American-Israeli
alliance in three crucial ways. First, we have upgraded and formalized
our strategic cooperation. For the first time in history, under our
administration, the United States and Israel have agreed on a formal
strategic relationship. The American-Israeli Joint Political-Military
Group has already begun regular meetings. Together, we're developing
plans for joint efforts to counter the Soviet threat to our mutual interests
in the Middle East.
Recently, we renewed an American-Israeli memorandum of agreement that
provides for cooperation in military research and development, procurement,
and logistics. Under the terms of the agreement, the United States has
already purchased Israeli-manufactured radios, remotely piloted vehicles,
antitank weapons, and components for sophisticated aircraft. We, in
turn, are making available the latest technology for the development
of the Israeli-designed LAVI fighter aircraft and for a new class of
missile attack boat, the SAAR 5.
Second, we've markedly increased our economic assistance to Israel.
From 1981 to 1984, we provided Israel with aid amounting to nearly $9\1/2\
billion, more than has been provided by any previous administration
over a comparable time. Just as important, we have restructured the
form of our assistance. Indeed, in 1985 our entire $2.6 billion in aid
to Israel will take the form not of loans, but of grants.
And third, we have begun formal negotiations with Israel for a free
trade area agreement. When signed and ratified, this agreement will
allow the duty-free entry of Israeli products into the United States
and will at the same time completely open the Israeli market to American
goods. Over the past 5 years, our trade with Israel has been growing
at an average annual rate of some 10 percent. This free trade agreement
will enable that vital economic partnership to grow even more quickly
in years to come.
These measures have made our relations with Israel closer and our friendship
stronger than at any time in the history of our two nations. Indeed,
Prime Minister Shamir recently described American-Israeli relations
as having never been better. And that warm relationship is crucial as
we strive together for peace in the Middle East. So, let me outline
our work in this regard.
America's peace efforts still stand on the foundation of the Camp David
accords. Those accords, which established peaceful relations between
Israel and Egypt, led to the return of the Sinai to Egypt by Israel
in April of 1982, and the United States was proud to play a central
role in achieving this step of the Camp David process. Then on September
1st of 1982, I set forth a set of fair and balanced positions on the
key issues -- issues which the negotiating parties must deal with to
achieve a lasting peace. The positions I outlined included our firm
opposition to the formation of any independent Palestinian state. Today
those positions remain fully valid, and they represent the foundation
of our continuing labors.
And let me assure you, we will never attempt to impose a solution on
Israel, nor will we ever weaken in our opposition to terrorism by the
PLO or by anybody else. As I said when I addressed you in 1980, terrorists
are not guerillas or commandos or freedom fighters or anything else.
They're terrorists, and should be identified as such. We will go on
working with all our hearts to help the people of the Middle East achieve
a just and lasting settlement -- a settlement that agrees, in the words
of my statement of September 1982, that Israel ``has a right to exist
in peace behind secure and defensible borders, and it has a right to
expect its neighbors to recognize this.''
When I spoke to you 4 years ago, peace was eluding the Middle East.
It still does. But now we and the State of Israel have far greater cause
for hope.
Today the United States is rebuilding its defenses, and that is restoring
confidence in our leadership and making the parties more willing to
take risks for peace. Today the United States has re-energized its vast
and productive economy, and that will help to make Israel more prosperous.
And today the United States has stopped wringing its hands apologetically
and once again begun to play its rightful role in the world with faith,
confidence, and courage. And that means Israel can depend on us.
We who are friends of Israel may differ over tactics, but our goal
remains always unchanged -- permanent security for the people of that
brave State. In this great enterprise, the United States and Israel
stand forever united. And as we approach the Jewish holiday of Rosh
Hashanah, let us pray that the new year will be a Shanah Tovah Umetukah
-- a good and sweet year for both America and Israel.
For make no mistake: In a world where so many are hostile to freedom,
where millions live in poverty and oppression, those few nations who
share the light of liberty must stand together. If we do not, we take
the awful chance that the darkness will overwhelm us one by one. But
standing together, we can pierce the darkness and shed our light over
all the Earth.
Thank you. God bless you all.
Sources: Public Papers of the President |