Paul Findley
US Congressman
Previously Aired On: July 25, 2007 - Listen to this Show!
Paul Findley is a former Republican United States Representative from Illinois, representing its 20th District. He was first elected in 1961. Findley lost his seat in 1982 to current United States Senator Dick Durbin. He is a cofounder of the Council for the National Interest, a Washington advocacy group.
Paul Findley is a frequent critic of U.S. foreign policy regarding Israel. In 1989, Findley wrote the best selling book “They Dare to Speak Out: People and Institutions Confront Israel’s Lobby” in which he claims that the pro-Israel lobby, notably AIPAC, has vast undue influence over the United States Congress. He refers to the lobby as “the 700-pound gorilla in Washington”. The Washington Post said “former congressman Paul Findley’s message is straightforward and valid: Israeli influence in the United States, including in the inner sanctums of government, is very strong.”
A year after the September 11 attack, Findley published an article saying that this attack would never have occurred were it not for uncritical U.S. support of Israel. In that same article, he wrote that “U.S. policy on the Mideast is made in Israel, not in Washington,” and that “once beloved worldwide, the U.S. government finds itself reviled in most countries because it provides unconditional support of Israeli violations of the United Nations Charter, international law, and the precepts of all major religious faiths.”
Findley blames the Israeli lobby for contributing to his defeat in 1982: “But, in seeking gains for Israel, they rigorously stifled dissent and intimidated the entire Congress. They still do. They defeat legislators who criticize Israel. Senators Adlai Stevenson and Charles Percy, and Reps. Pete McCloskey, Cynthia McKinney, Earl F. Hilliard, and myself were defeated at the polls by candidates heavily financed by pro-Israel forces. McKinney alone was able to regain her seat in Congress.”
Findley has claimed that the 2003 invasion of Iraq was launched primarily to benefit Israel, at the behest of pro-Israeli U.S. interest groups.
Findley has supported the efforts of CAIR, the Council on American Islamic Relations to improve the image of Muslims in America. He authored another book “Silent No More” which dispells many of the false conceptions and fears that Americans have regarding Muslims and Islam since 9-11.
