Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee was honored on Sunday night by a group of Israel activists and Jewish and Christian friends of Israel for his steadfast support for the Jewish state over the past five decades.
The Israel Allies Award was bestowed upon Huckabee by the Israel Allies Foundation at a gala Miami event attended by hundreds of Christian Zionists, and a group of legislators from around from the Americas.
The 67-year-old conservative evangelical pastor, TV host and two-time Republican presidential candidate has visited the Holy Land scores of times and led thousands of participants on solidarity tours over the past half-century since his first trip to Israel right out of high school, just before the 1973 Yom Kippur war.
Huckabee said that he felt “absolutely right at home” from his very first visit, and after each trip the only question he had on the flight back to the United States was how and when he be back.
A long-time champion of Israel’s cause based on biblical beliefs, he has been a staunch supporter of the relocation of the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem, and has worked to fight the BDS movement.
“Till my last breath I shall speak out for my second home,” Huckabee said. “We need to proclaim, not edit, the word of God.”
Many evangelical Christians believe that the return of the Jews to the Holy Land is foretold in the scriptures and heralds the coming of the messianic era.
Huckabee was succeeded by his daughter Sarah Huckabee Sanders as governor, in the first such father-daughter succession in the same state.
He expressed his great satisfaction that she shares his values and stalwart support for Israel.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who was originally supposed to speak at the event as well, congratulated Huckabee on the award in a recorded video message aired in his absence.
“The most important weapon in Israel’s arsenal is faith-based diplomacy,” said Josh Reinstein, president of the Israel Allies Foundation.
Mobilizing support for Israel worldwide through faith-based diplomacy, the Israel Allies Foundation has emerged as a powerhouse with its network of more than 50 parliamentary caucuses encompassing over 1,200 legislators around the world based on shared Judeo-Christian values.
