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Looking frail and drawn much of the time, he seemed dwarfed by his entourage, which included the ever-present cardiologist, a ring of Israeli security agents and swarms of U.S. Secret Service men and police who manned sniper posts, rode shotgun in helicopters and stood at alert on fireboats. Yet the Premier's presence transcended all such hindrances. There was an incantatory tone to his cadenced, ritualistic speeches; when he spread his arms with open palms, the gesture seemed almost papal.
Begin's trip got off to a cheerful start at the White House—in contrast to his chilly reception last March. He spent two hours with Vance, then half an hour with Carter. Afterward, in a ceremony on the White House lawn, the President pledged "total, absolute American commitment to Israel's security." In response, Begin called Carter's speech "one of the greatest moral statements ever." He acknowledged that no hard bargaining had been attempted. "The changes for the better are only in atmosphere," he said.
"But in my experience, atmosphere is quite important."
From Washington, he flew to Los Angeles aboard an Israeli Boeing 707 —dubbed by American reporters the Bagel One. On Tuesday evening he addressed a cheering crowd of 11,000, who had paid $2 each to hear him, in the Los Angeles Forum. As usual, he struck a historical theme: "After we suffered persecution, humiliation, discrimination, deportation, burning, drowning, ultimate physical destruction, we draw the only proper conclusion. We must fight for our liberty because if we do not, no one will give it to us." Once again he stated his conviction that a greater Israel is justified by the Bible and that the nation can never return to its pre-1967 borders. Nor would Israel ever tolerate a Palestinian state ruled by a "bloodthirsty enemy who kills women and children and enjoys and promises to continue it." He did offer one small joke: "I have sensational news for you. I spent the whole day in Washington and nobody asked me to resign."
Whenever Jimmy Carter's name was mentioned, the crowd booed lustily, but California Governor Jerry Brown, a prospective Carter rival in 1980, was wildly cheered when he embraced Begin and said that he was "trying to send a message that peace will not come from making concessions before you even sit down at the bargaining table." Not even Begin's cardiologist stayed closer to him than Brown, who showed up the morning after the rally to escort the Premier around Los Angeles. Noted a Begin aide: "We were expecting a party of four and he came with ten, and half of them were campaign workers."
In Chicago the next day, Jewish leaders presented Begin with checks for Israel totaling $10 million. Chicago Mayor Michael Bilandic made him an honorary citizen of Chicago, and Illinois Governor Jim Thompson made him an honorary citizen of the state. Northwestern University awarded him an honorary doctor of laws degree. At the ceremony, Governor Thompson echoed President Kennedy by saying: "May you never fear to negotiate, but may you never negotiate out of fear."