Steve Rothman: “I want to first congratulate and thank my friend, the gentleman from California (Mr. Tom Lantos), and the gentleman from…”

“I want to first congratulate and thank my friend, the gentleman from California (Mr. Tom Lantos), and the gentleman from New York (Mr. Ben Gilman), two leaders in this Congress who we look to on regular occasions for their inspiration as well as their wisdom. We are here to honor a nation of hard-working people, a country that is a thriving democracy of freedom and human rights, a land that has contributed to the world's economy and a sense of moral well-being, yet a state that, on its 50th birthday, still has to fight its neighbors for respect and, yes, for its right to exist. Israel was founded after World War II, not by war, not by force, but by the United Nations. The Jewish people's ties to the region goes back more than 3,000 years. Every major country in the world supported Israel's creation, just like they supported the creation of other countries, Iraq, Lebanon, Jordan, Syria and Saudi Arabia, all of which nations were created after World War I. The only difference between Israel and these other countries, none of which existed before the 20th century, is this: Israel is the only western-style democracy in the Middle East, and it is the only nonIslamic state.”