Contact: Bob Sturm, 703-392-7676 ext 1144

MANASSAS, Va., Dec. 9, 2013 /Christian Newswire/ -- Following is the statement of conservative author and direct mail pioneer, Richard A. Viguerie:
 

"Barack Obama has squandered the trust that American Presidents built-up over the past 224 years, and the world is a much more dangerous place for his cowardly and feckless behavior.

"During a recent trip to Israel with two of my grandchildren I had the opportunity to meet with a number of Israeli political leaders.

"It was an eye opening experience.

"One of the leaders with whom I met was Gila Gamliel, Deputy Speaker of Israel's Parliament, the Knesset.

"Gila Gamliel is one of the real stars of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud Party. In 2009 when she was first elected to the Knesset, Gamliel became the youngest member of the government of Israel when, at age 30, Netanyahu appointed her to be his Deputy Minister for Agriculture and Rural Development.

"As might be expected from a member of the strongly nationalist Likud Party, Gila Gamliel is an Israeli patriot and had strong views on the political situation in the Middle East.

"But here's what she said that was the real eye opener.

"Our conversation was supposed to be 'off the record,' meaning it couldn't be reported publicly, but what she said was so important that I asked her to clarify the ground rules and she said 'I feel strongly about this and I want it out.'

"'I don't trust Obama.'

"Deputy Speaker Gamliel went on to say, 'We may need to look around to find another friend,' because 'It looks like America does not want to be the dominant leader of the free world.'

"Think of it friends, the President of the United States is not trusted by the Deputy Speaker in the parliament of the only democratic nation in the Middle East and arguably our most reliable ally in that troubled region.

"Whether you agree with my old friend Dr. James Dobson 'that Israel is covenant land,' and that Christians should support Israel in a battle between good and evil, or you agree with another old friend, Pat Buchanan, that Israel has too much influence in American domestic politics and that 'Capitol Hill is Israeli-occupied territory,' I'm sure you will agree that the American President must be trusted by our allies -- and especially by our foes.

"Think of what Deputy Speaker Gamliel's assessment means for our foreign policy and America's ability to lead in an increasingly dangerous Middle East.

"Even the failed Jimmy Carter was trusted by Egyptian President Anwar Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin (founder of Gamliel's Likud Party) to broker the Camp David accords that ended the state of war between Israel and Egypt and established a workable peace between the two countries.

"Trust is the foundation of all human interaction. To be successful both your friends, and your opponents, must trust that you will do what you say you will do. Barack Obama has squandered the trust that American Presidents built-up over the past 224 years, and the world is a much more dangerous place for his cowardly and feckless behavior."

 
NOTE TO EDITORS: Richard A. Viguerie pioneered political direct mail and has been called "one of the creators of the modern conservative movement" (The Nation) and one of the "conservatives of the century" (Washington Times). He is the author of Conservatives Betrayed: How George W. Bush and Other Big Government Republicans Hijacked the Conservative Cause and the forthcoming book, Takeover.