A voice of Christian Zionists in the U.S., Beck is staging a rally in Jerusalem this week to “restore courage,” specifically the courage of ordinary Americans to publicly champion Israel. At a time when the Israeli government is feeling especially besieged—by armed attacks, a Palestinian initiative at the U.N., and economic protests at home—the event is a welcome show of support. Members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud Party have signed up to attend, and Israel’s chief Ashkenazi rabbi will deliver an opening prayer.
But Beck is a problematic ally for Netanyahu. Twice in the past year, his on-air tirades have been criticized as anti-Semitic (the Anti-Defamation League said his comments “distort and trivialize the Holocaust”). His underwriters for the Jerusalem rally include a revisionist historian whose views on Christian preeminence would make most Jews c
U.S. politicians Liberman and Cantor will be no-shows at Glenn Beck Jerusalem rally