House GOP Conference Chair Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., will blast President Biden as she seeks to reassure Israel during a speech at the Knesset, the Israeli parliament, Sunday morning.
Her prepared remarks were obtained by Fox News Digital ahead of the address. Stefanik will be the highest-ranking House member to visit Israel since the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks. She will be introduced by the Israeli speaker, according to her office.
The New York Republican is also planning to meet with high-level government officials and pay her respects to locations attacked by Hamas in October. She plans to tout her decades-long support for the Jewish state as a senior member of the House Armed Services and House Intelligence committees.
In her speech, Stefanik calls herself “a lifelong admirer, supporter and friend of Israel and the Jewish people.”
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Rep. Elise Stefanik reaffirmed her support for Israel and criticized President Biden during a speech at the Knesset. (Getty Images)
“I am lucky to have had the privilege of traveling here many times before, but I must confess that this time feels different,” Stefanik’s speech states. “The stakes feel higher. Our sense of moral, patriotic duty feels heightened, renewed.”
In the remarks, Stefanik praises former President Trump for his relationship with Israel during his administration, and she criticizes Biden for his administration’s controversial measures during the Israel-Hamas war. In November 2023, the Biden administration extended a waiver that allowed Iran to access $10 billion previously in escrow, prompting widespread criticism.
The White House recently paused a weapons shipment to Israel out of concern about an invasion of Rafah, before deciding to move forward with the sale earlier this week.
“There is no excuse for an American president to block aid to Israel, aid that was duly passed by the Congress, or to ease sanctions on Iran, paying a $6 billion ransom to the world’s leading state sponsor of terror, or to dither and hide while our friends fight for their lives. No excuse,” the speech states. “Full stop.”
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U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., left, and Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., during a news conference outside the U.S. Capitol in Washington May 16, 2024. (Allison Robbert/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
The Republican leader’s address to the Knesset will express support for “every measure to aid Israel that has come before the U.S. Congress,” and tout her history as “a leading proponent and partner to President Trump in his historic support for Israeli independence and security.”
“If I leave you with one message today, it’s this: The majority of Americans support you, and we always will since President Truman’s recognition of Israel 11 minutes after David Ben-Gurion declared Israel’s independence 76 years and 5 days ago,” the address says. “America stands with Israel.”
Before concluding her speech, the politician will take aim at Ivy League universities for their responses to chaotic protests and anti-Israel encampments.
Republican House Conference Chair Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., joined by fellow House Republicans, speaks on the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians May 20, 2024, in Washington, D.C. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
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“We must not let the extremism in ‘elite’ corners conceal the deep, abiding love for Israel among the American people,” the speech adds. “Most Americans feel a strong connection to your people. They have opened their hearts to you in this dark hour.”
