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5 Surprising Things Scott Walker Revealed About his Trip to Israel

Recently back from a trip to Israel, Wisconsin Governor and Republican presidential hopeful Scott Walker took to to share some of his thoughts about the Holy Land. Here are the highlights:

1. Visiting Israel has helped him decided whether to run for president.

Walker told the Israeli newspaper “Israel Hayom”(conveniently owned by Republican mega-donor Sheldon Adelson, who is on the board of the Republican Jewish Coalition that paid for Walker’s trip) that “trips like this past week to Israel are very formative toward where our decision might be.”

2. Speaking about his visit to Jerusalem, a city famously torn by conflict, he found that “the sense of peace is indescribable.”

Walker wrote: “I was blessed to have such an opportunity, to visit Israel and to marvel at the sites of the Holy Land — from the Church of the Holy Sepulchre to the Via Dolorosa. The feeling you get, the sense of awe and the sense of peace, is indescribable.”

3. He learned that “the most dominant threat in the region and in the world right now is Iran.”

4. He slammed “Western Europe,” also U.S. allies, for attempting to delegitimize Israel.

“Nor is it a time to dismiss the rise of anti-Semitism around the world and an increasing effort in places like Western Europe to delegitimize Israel,” Walker wrote.

5. He didn’t mention Palestinians or Muslims at all.

Walker’s “Reflections on My Recent Trip to Israel” included a lot about Israel’s Christian and Jewish history, as well as observations about the vibrancy of Israel’s democracy and the threats it faces from neighbors. But he did not make a single mention of the Palestinians — or even any Muslim religious or historical ties to the land.

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