"Israel Suspends Contact With Pat Robertson"

You can do that? Can we do it here?

From the Associated Press:

Tourism Minister Abraham Hirchson said he gave instructions to "stop all contact" with groups associated with Robertson. Last week, Robertson implied Sharon's massive stroke was a blow for "dividing God's land" with the withdrawal from Gaza and four West Bank settlements.

But Hirchson said the order did not apply to "all the evangelical community, God forbid."

Robertson is leading a group of evangelicals who have pledged to raise $50 million to build the Christian Heritage Center in Israel's northern Galilee region, where tradition says Jesus lived and taught.

Under a tentative agreement, Robertson's group was to put up the funding, while Israel would provide land and infrastructure. Hirchson had predicted it would draw up to 1 million pilgrims a year, generate $1.5 billion in spending and support about 40,000 jobs.

But the fate of the project is now in question, said Ido Hartuv, spokesman for the tourism ministry.

"We will not do business with him, only with other evangelicals who don't back these comments," Hartuv said. "We will do business with other evangelical leaders, friends of Israel, but not with him."

Couldn't we do that here? After all, it's not like he hasn't offended our country repeatedly.