President Mike Pence and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo both addressed a Christian pro-Israel group on Monday, lifting up the US ally as a bastion of inclusivity and railing against Iran.
Pence and Pompeo delivered their remarks at the annual summit of Christians United for Israel, a conservative Christian organization led by Rev John Hagee, which claims more than six million members.
Both politicians used the opportunity to defend the administration and champion what they argued were President Trump’s successes.
Pence spoke first, taking time to push back against recent comments by Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez comparing detention facilities used to house undocumented immigrants to concentration camps.
“To compare the humane work of the dedicated men and women of Customs and Border Protection with the horrors of the Holocaust is an outrage,” Pence said. “This slander was an insult to the six million killed in the Holocaust, and it should be condemned by every American of every political party everywhere.”
Pence also framed the United States’ support for Israel in theological terms.
“We stand with Israel because we cherish that ancient promise that Americans have always cherished throughout our history: that those who bless her will be blessed,” Pence said.
The Vice President was followed later in the day by Pompeo, who, like Pence, championed the Trump administration’s various actions on Israel, such as recognising Israel’s annexation of the Golan Heights and moving the US embassy to Jerusalem.
Read the article by Jack Jenkins in Sight Magazine.