Washington D.C. – Today, House Foreign Affairs Committee Lead Republican Michael McCaul (R-TX) spoke at the Christians United for Israel (CUFI) summit during a sit down interview with Michelle Makori, Editor in Chief of i24 News. Lead Republican McCaul discussed the United States-Israel relationship, Iran’s destabilizing activities, securing peace in the Middle East, and the dangers of anti-Semitism. To access the full video, click here or on the photo below. Key highlights below: 

 

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On Iranian aggression…

“The president above all wants to use diplomacy first, and so Secretary Pompeo was dispatched to the region to get the coalition partners together, and we’re seeing that now… His red line is that there will not be a nuclear Iran, and if there is we have 100,000 tons of diplomacy called the USS Lincoln sitting there in the Persian Gulf.

“… I do think they’re being crippled with the sanctions, I do think that we are getting the world community rallied behind us now. And I think if we’re ever going to get a better deal with Iran, now is the time to do it… Under the JCPOA they’d be guaranteed a nuclear bomb. I’ve talked to Prime Minister Netanyahu extensively about this. They would be guaranteed. Now, that is off the table. And now, they have a choice to make with the world community – do they go forward with their nuclear program and ruin their country or do they stop and have a better one.

“… I think that’s the goal, to dismantle the JCPOA, the Iran Deal, once and for all and that’s where it’s going. And once that document has been put on the ash heap of history, then we have an opportunity to negotiate a better deal with Iran, otherwise the military option is very clearly on the table. Not one the president would like to make but let’s be honest this president is not bashful in hitting back, and he certainly will.”

On peace in the Middle East…

“This is a very interesting and great historic opportunity between Israel and the Arab nations. I never thought I’d see it in my lifetime, but I’ll never forget meeting with Prime Minister Netanyahu in his office two years ago, and I asked him the question point blank: ‘Are the Saudis and other Emirate countries allies?’ And he said yes. He said – I want to work with them because the enemy of my enemy is my friend. And Iran is the enemy. He said you all are so focused on ISIS, and that’s a problem, but he said the bigger threat is of the regime of Iran and the threat of the Shia crescent from Iraq, Syria, into Lebanon with 150,000 rockets pointed at Israel. And out of the Gaza, through Hamas and Hezbollah in the north, the Iron Dome cannot sustain this kind of assault.”

On Turkey…

“Chairman Engel and I met with the Foreign Minister of Turkey and the Ambassador and said you know we let you into NATO because of the Soviet Union threat to Turkey, it makes no sense for you to purchase S-400 capabilities from Russia that actually are in direct contradiction to the F-35. So we passed a resolution in the House condemning Turkey and offering them the Patriot missiles as opposed to the S-400, which is Russian, and we were holding up the F-35 sales until they changed their behavior. They claim they have purchased these, this missile system, they still have time to stop this decision… That’s a course I think Turkey does not want to go down, being a historic ally.”

On why the U.S. should continue to support Israel…

“We are tied to Israel and the Jewish people. They are the beacon of hope and democracy in what is a very bad neighborhood… They are our strongest ally in the Middle East, and we cannot forget that. And it is in our national security interest to strongly support them.”

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