Rep. John Anderson (R.III.), who is running as an independent candidate for the Presidency, told representatives of the Jewish community here that he was mistaken when in 1961 and 1963 he sought a Constitutional amendment to declare the United States to be a “Christian nation,” Al Erlick, editor and David Gross, news editor, of the Jewish Exponent report.
Anderson cited his opposition to the school prayer amendment, which he said former California Gov. Ronald Reagan, the likely Republican candidate, supports, as representative of his views on church-state issues.
The Republican Congressman, who was here to gain a place on the Pennsylvania ballot by mounting a petition drive, met with representatives of the Jewish community and the two Jewish Exponent editors during his two-day visit. He sought to assure them that he is not a “spoiler, “but a serious candidate for the Presidency.
FAVORS QUIET DIPLOMACY
Turning to the search for peace in the Middle East, Anderson said he favors “a quiet diplomatic effort rather than public proclamations. We must keep are-election theatrics out of Middle East diplomacy,” he said.
Anderson, who has spoken critically of Israel’s settlement policy in the past, asserted that no purpose is served by a noisy media debate about its merits. This too he would relegate to the realm of quiet diplomacy.
On the question of Jerusalem, Anderson said moving the U.S. Embassy there from Tel Aviv must wait for the completion of the peace negotiations. The candidate’s position on a possible Palestinian state is that “A Palestinian state in the traditional seems would simply be a precursor to another war. There must be a new diplomatic formulation under which the Palestinian people can enjoy their rights, can feel in charge of their own destiny, but without an army and without an independent foreign policy. There is no right to start another war.”
Turning to the latest request for U.S. arms by Jordan and Saudi Arabia, Anderson said, “Flooding the area with arms is not the way to peace. To simply give in to Saudi Arabia and Jordan on arms without exacting a price — their cooperation in the peace effort — makes no sense.”
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
