Reflecting on 10/7 with Speaker Johnson
On October 7, 2024, we were honored to host a national webinar and a live event with House Speaker Mike Johnson.
Reflecting on 10/7 One Year Later:
Honoring the Fallen and Looking to the Future
See the recorded webinar here.
After the webinar, Speaker Johnson addressed hundreds of people, in person, at the Young Israel Aish synagogue in Summerlin, Nevada, a suburb of Las Vegas.
House Speaker Mike Johnson speaks at the RJC's October 7 commemoration in Las Vegas.
RJC CEO Matt Brooks addresses the crowd.
Rabbi Wyne of Young Israel Aish synagogue welcomes the attendees.
The Jewish Insider reported on the virtual event:
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) said on Monday that the Oct. 7 Hamas terror attacks serve as a cautionary tale against appeasing Iran and other U.S. adversaries funding terrorism.
Johnson made the comments while offering his reflections on the one-year anniversary of the attacks and the lessons he had since learned during a virtual event organized by the Republican Jewish Coalition. The discussion came ahead of Johnson's appearance at an RJC event in Las Vegas, Nev., to commemorate the anniversary.
"The first lesson is that we can never let our guard down. We cannot take antisemitism and terrorism lightly. We know that there are barbarians who will do terrible things, and they have to be met with an appropriate level of force because we have to defend what is good and right," Johnson told RJC CEO Matt Brooks and former Sen. Norm Coleman [RJC National Chairman].
… "The other thing we've learned is that we know that our enemies will exploit weakness by America. This is the problem; you cannot appease terrorist regimes. You cannot play this halfway as some of the leaders have been doing here over the last year. You have to call a spade a spade. You have to speak with moral clarity, conviction, and consistency about this because we have to stamp this out," he continued. "That's a really important lesson to remember."
Afterward, Speaker Johnson addressed hundreds of people, in person, at the Young Israel Aish synagogue in Summerlin, Nevada, a suburb of Las Vegas. CBS News Channel 8 reported:
The Republican Jewish Coalition event on Monday inside Young Israel Aish HaTorah included community leaders, rabbis, and elected officials. With standing room only, [Speaker Mike] Johnson was welcomed to speak in front of the crowd assembled to observe the Oct. 7 attacks anniversary.
"This is a very important moment for America and for Israel," Johnson said. "I am so comforted to know that we're in it together and that we are on the right side of history."
The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported:
"I am brokenhearted," Republican Jewish Coalition CEO Matt Brooks said. "I am broken. I am angry. I am not OK, and I suspect many of us sitting in this room today, we are not OK. But we are here together."
House Speaker Mike Johnson also spoke about the anniversary and called for unity against antisemitism.
"There are barbarians in this world, and they will do evil things, and they have to be met with an appropriate level of force," Johnson said, receiving applause from the crowd.
The Nevada Independent reported:
Republicans such as Johnson — the most powerful person in the GOP-led House of Representatives — have criticized Biden for insufficiently supporting Israel.
In his remarks Monday, Johnson said Biden has shown weakness on the global stage — something Trump would restore.
"Our adversaries fear Donald Trump," Johnson said. "When America shows weakness on the world stage, our adversaries, the enemies of freedom, take advantage of this."
He also strongly condemned protests that took over some college campuses this past spring, specifically the one at Columbia University in New York…
Other speakers at Thursday's event include Las Vegas Rabbi Yitz Wyne and RJC CEO Matt Brooks.