Interview With Former House Majority Leader Dick Armey and Radio Talk Show Host Dennis Prager

Fox News Network
SHOW: YOUR WORLD WITH NEIL CAVUTO 4:14 PM EST
July 19, 2006 Wednesday

HOST: Neil Cavuto

GUESTS: Dick Armey, Dennis Prager

NEIL CAVUTO, HOST: Meanwhile, Israeli troops moving into Lebanon, what
are the implications, if this is a start of a major ground offensive?

With us now, former House Majority Leader Dick Armey and radio talk
show host and syndicated columnist Dennis Prager.

Dennis, to you first.

What’s the implication here?

DENNIS PRAGER, RADIO TALK SHOW HOST: Israel is trying to do what the
— what the West most needs: destroy one of the biggest terrorist
organizations.

This is truly of world significance. This is no longer an Arab- Israeli
dispute. This is the free world vs. the Islamic terror world. And much
of the world recognizes this, from India, to Europe, to the United
States. That is why this is the most muted criticism of Israel ever,
since 1967, in any battle with any Arab country. It is why even some
Arab countries have come out against Hezbollah and not against Israel.

CAVUTO: All right.

PRAGER: There is a real…

CAVUTO: Dick, Dick Armey, do you think the administration tacitly
recognizes, maybe supports, what Dennis is saying, that there’s no rush
to get to the peace table here; let Israel keep pounding Hezbollah?

DICK ARMEY, FORMER HOUSE MAJORITY LEADER: Well, I believe, within
the overall conflict of the war against terrorism, the administration
recognizes, there’s a nasty job to be done. Israel, in their own self-
defense, have undertaken that — this task.

At this point, the situation is what it is, and the administration
could do very little to change things over there. So, the — I think,
right now, everybody is pinning their hopes on the proposition that the
Israeli army, with its efficiency, can clean this nest out, to such
a sufficient level, in a short period of time, that you can maybe,
at that point, get some kind of a cease-fire, reestablish some kind
of order, and have some hope for maintaining it.

But until you thin this group out, I don’t think that’s possible. To
some extent, what the Israelis need to do is win a war of attrition
and just get this band reduced to a — a little bit less of a gang
that takes courage from one another.

CAVUTO: Well, there must be something to what you say, Dick, and —
and — and, tangentially, Dennis, to you as well, because the markets
were sensing — and many a trader were telling me exactly what both
of you have said — that there’s growing confidence that this will
be resolved, and maybe sooner than later.

But what if you guys and the markets indeed have it wrong? It wouldn’t
be the first time — maybe not for you guys, but for the markets.

(LAUGHTER)

CAVUTO: So, Dennis, what’s the fallout then?

PRAGER: You’re right.

If — if, in fact, Israel cannot prevail here, then, it’s a huge
victory for our generation’s form of Nazism. And that’s — that’s
a big problem. It doesn’t mean that the war is all over, and we —
we just go with our tail behind our legs — or between our legs,
but — but Israel has to prevail.

The question really is, how long will the — quote, unquote — "world
community," which has never been a force for good in the history of
the world — ask the Armenians — ask the Jews — ask the Rwandans —
ask the Cambodians — world community has always been a force for
bad. At the very — every time I hear "international community,"
I know, uh-oh, bad will prevail.

So long as the international community can stay out of this, Israel
will prevail.

CAVUTO: But I’m not…

PRAGER: It is not…

CAVUTO: You know, Dennis, I’m not so sure of that.

I — and, Dick Armey, it’s a point I want to take up with you.

We already have gotten some European criticism, Jacques Chirac and
others saying, about this disproportionate use of force on Israel’s
part. So, is there going to be ill will following all of this,
hopefully, when all of this is behind us…

(CROSSTALK)

CAVUTO: … that Israel, already persona non grata in the U.N. in
vote after vote after vote, but especially so after this?

ARMEY: Well, I don’t be facetious, but it seems clear, history says
time and time again, that Israel has always better understood the
need to defend itself than the French have.

(CROSSTALK)

ARMEY: And the French, I don’t think, culturally, are quite able to
comprehend the sense of imperative urgency that the Israelis realize
in facing this threat to the freedom and safety of their citizens.

The other thing you have to understand is, again, history tells
us that, when the Israeli military sets its mind to something, it
generally has, historically, accomplished what it — what it set out
to do. So…

CAVUTO: OK.

ARMEY: … we have, I think, historically, good reason to put our
confidence that the Israeli troops can resolve this in quick order.

CAVUTO: OK, Dick, final word on the subject.

Dennis, good seeing you.

PRAGER: Thank you.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM
AND MAY BE UPDATED.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress