Of course, our Congress is afraid to challenge Israel, too. Was it Pat Buchanan who once referred to Congress as "Israeli-occupied territory"? It's encouraging that more and more Jews, here and in Israel, seem to be waking up to the fact that there will not be reconciliation in that part of the world until Israel stops building more and more settlements on the West Bank (helped by our tax dollars) and stops treating Palestinians like dirt. I have made four pilgrimages to the Holy Land and have witnessed the shabby treatment of Palestinians.
The fact that Hagee will be at the prayer breakfast is disappointing, but you can't smear Perry with the anti-Catholic brush because of that. It's obviously intended as an ecumenical and interfaith event.
My impression, by the way, is that the large majority of indigenous Christians in the Middle East oppose the Israeli occupation. Didn't the bishops who met with Benedict XVI some months ago make that case? Sadly, as in Iraq, US policy has worked to the detriment of Christians who have been killed there in large numbers, with many tens of thousands fleeing to Syria, Lebanon and elsewhere. Israel, of course, won't accept refugees who are not Jewish. So much for Israeli democracy. How democratic would we be if we only accepted, say, Protestants from other countries?
God bless Christians, Jews and people of every creed, color, culture and country. Religion should serve as a bridge and not a barrier.