|
WASHINGTON, D.C. —President Obama met with leaders of 14 Jewish organizations at the White House on Monday. The conference lasted between 45-minutes and an hour and dealt with Israel and with Iran among other topics. Jewish participants who issued press releases immediately following the meeting were generally positive about President Obama's understanding of the issues facing Israel.
Here are statements from the participants:
White House press briefing
At his regular press briefing on Monday, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs had this exchange with reporters about the meeting:
Q And also, there are some meetings today with Jewish leaders. I was wondering if you could tell us a little bit more about that.
MR. GIBBS: We will give you a readout off of that. I know a number of people, many of whom the President has known for quite some time -- Lee Rosenberg, Alan Solow, and others -- are in to talk about issues that they're concerned about, particularly long-term peace in the Middle East. But we'll give you a readout of who is in there and what they discussed.
*
Q Robert, this is on the meeting at 3:00 p.m. with the American Jewish leaders. This is the first time that Obama has met with this group of presidents of major organizations. And some, but not all -- there's a division there about the President's urging Israel to end settlements. So my question is, what is the message he's trying to -- what is he trying to accomplish in that? Does he want to just -- does he feel he needs to explain more? By chance, if this subject matter is so sensitive, could there be a transcript of what happens made available to us? And --
MR. GIBBS: I could -- go ahead, I'm sorry.
Q And this meeting, for some reason, was left off the White House schedule. It was just added on later in the day, though the people were invited last week. Is there a reason for that?
MR. GIBBS: Not that I'm aware of. Obviously, I think the President will use this opportunity to have a discussion with major Jewish leaders about the progress that he believes we're making toward comprehensive Middle East peace. And what he has asked each side in this process, the hard decisions that he's asked each to evaluate as we seek to make more of that progress.
Obviously, this is a very influential group, and I think he looks forward to discussing with them how these efforts are ongoing, the progress that he sees that has been and what he thinks has to be addressed in order to see more progress. We won't have a transcript, but we'll certainly give you a readout.
And I know you know both Rosy and Alan Solow's cell phone number. So I will check repeatedly your blog in order to find out as close to an official transcript as one might need.
White House 'Readout' (Statement) on Meeting with leaders from the Jewish community.
The President met with more than a dozen leaders from the Jewish community today for approximately 45 minutes. They had a substantive discussion, ranging from Middle East peace efforts and Iran, to reforming our health care system and policies to address global hunger. The President reiterated his unshakeable commitment to Israel’s security, and reiterated his commitment to working to achieve Middle East peace.
Participants
Alan Solow, Chairman, Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations
Lee Rosenberg, President-elect, AIPAC
David Victor, President, AIPAC
Malcolm Honlein, Executive Vice Chairman, Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations
Abraham Foxman, National Director, Anti-Defamation League
Jason Isaacson, Director of Government and International Affairs, American Jewish Committee
Nancy Ratzan, President, National Council of Jewish Women
Kathy Manning, Chair, Executive Committee, United Jewish Communities
Andrea Weinstein, Chair, Jewish Council for Public Affairs
Marla Gilson, Washington Director, Hadassah
Stephen Savitsky, President, Orthodox Union
Rabbi Steven Wernick, Executive Vice President and CEO, United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism
Rabbi Eric Yoffie, President, Union for Reform Judaism
Ira Forman, Chief Executive Officer, National Jewish Democratic Council
Debra DeLee, President and CEO, Americans for Peace Now
Jeremy Ben Ami, Executive Director, J STREET
Jason Isaacson, American
Jewish Committee
WASHINGTON, DC, July 13 (Press Release)- The American Jewish Committee praised President Obama for the unequivocal commitment to Israel’s security that he expressed to U.S. Jewish leaders in an hour-long White House meeting today.
“The President could not have been clearer that his primary motivation in seeking to re-energize an Israeli-Palestinian peace process is Israel’s long-term security,” said Jason Isaacson, AJC director of government and international affairs, who participated in the Roosevelt Room session. “Nor could he have been clearer in the priority he assigns to building international unity against Iran’s drive for nuclear weapons capability.”
AJC said Obama focused the bulk of his remarks on Israel’s security, emphasizing the right of Israel to defend itself, the close U.S.-Israel relationship, obligations of the Palestinian Authority and the Arab states, and his administration’s efforts to offer Iran an opportunity to engage – while at the same time preparing for further international sanctions should engagement prove fruitless. He also spoke of the administration’s economic agenda, its efforts to advance energy security, health care policy and the fight against hunger in the U.S. and abroad.
In today’s discussion, the President observed that news coverage of his expectations for Israeli action on settlements has overemphasized just one aspect of the messages his administration has been sending to Israeli, Palestinian and Arab state leaders, and may leave the impression that Washington exerts little pressure to combat anti-Israel incitement and urge regional normalization with Israel. He said his calls for action by the Palestinian Authority and Arab states have been firm and under-reported, and will continue.
Go to the top of right column
|
|
“President Obama said he understood the difficulty Prime Minister Netanyahu faces on the issue of settlements, as well as on other policy questions that carry profound security and political implications,” Isaacson said. “His message today was that, while important action has been taken on checkpoints and on security cooperation, there are hard decisions that have been avoided for too long and must be taken – for what he sees as the future well-being of Israel – and that as the Israeli government takes the difficult steps he asks, the United States will stand beside it.
Isaacson pointed out that President Obama was urged to underline the obligations of Israel’s neighbors. “Many states and key institutions throughout the region consistently deny Israel’s legitimacy and pose the most fundamental obstacle to peace. That must be urgently addressed,” Isaacson said.
Debra DeLee, Americans
for Peace Now
APN President and CEO Debra DeLee was part of a small group of Jewish leaders who were invited to the White House.
Immediately following the meeting, DeLee said "President Obama and his team are doing all the right things to generate progress towards peace for Israel. We will continue to support these efforts."
"I know that I speak for most American Jews when I wholeheartedly embrace President Obama's clear position on settlements," DeLee added.
Americans for Peace Now is the leading group advocating in Washington for peace for Israel. Our Government Relations program has been called "second to none" in Capitol Hill's Roll Call newspaper.
Jeremy Ben-Ami, J Street
I just left an extraordinary meeting with President Barack Obama, which he called to meet with the leadership of the American Jewish community.
A dozen organizations - including J Street - were at the table.
It was made clear to the President and his team the strong support that exists among American Jews and the broader public for a strong push to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, for a two-state solution, and for a regional and comprehensive approach to the peace process.
The President said such a resolution was in Israel’s interests. In the interests of the Palestinian people. And clearly in the interests of the United States.
Afterward, the President expressed his gratitude, as did many of his aides, for our attendance.
You should feel great. After little more than a year - and through your online advocacy and donations - J Street has arrived. We are your political voice when it comes to Israel and the Middle East - representing you in Washington and in the national political debate.
In recent days, much has been made in Jewish media of supposed concerns and reservations in the Jewish community about President Obama and his approach to the Middle East.
And today I had the opportunity to take our message of support directly to the White House - that there’s a big difference between the views expressed by a vocal minority on behalf of the Jewish community - and what that community really thinks and supports.
Ira Forman, National Jewish Democratic Council
WASHINGTON, DC (Press Release)- Ira N. Forman, CEO of the National Jewish Democratic Council (NJDC), released the following statement:
During President Barack Obama’s meeting with Jewish community leaders this afternoon, he illustrated a masterful command of policy and showed that he is in touch with the pulse of American Jewry. As in the past, Obama made clear that the long standing and mutually beneficial U.S.-Israel relationship will not be violated. The meeting’s participants, from many different ideological backgrounds, were comforted by the President’s words and poise.
No one could have walked away from the White House meeting without being anything less than impressed with the President’s deep understanding of the issues that matter to our community.
Kathy Manning, United Jewish Federations of North America
President Barack Obama met this afternoon in the White House with the top leadership of U.S. Jewish organizations. Kathy Manning, chair of the Executive Committee of UJC/Jewish Federations of North America and nominee for chair of the UJC Board of Trustees, participated in the meeting.
“It was a good, frank discussion with open dialogue,” Manning said. “The President listened very carefully to the concerns and opinions expressed by the meeting participants. The President made it very clear that Israel’s security is paramount and that no action will be taken by his administration that will impede Israel’s right or ability to defend itself.”
Other organizations represented included the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, AIPAC, the American Jewish Committee, Americans for Peace Now, the Anti-Defamation League, the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, Hadassah, J Street, the National Council of Jewish Women, the National Jewish Democratic Council, the Orthodox Union, the Union for Reform Judaism, and the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism.
The meeting, held in the historic Roosevelt Room in the White House’s West Wing, covered a wide range of issues, including the U.S.-Israel relationship, creating an international framework to thwart Iran’s nuclear ambitions, other major issues in the Middle East, the economy, hunger, homelessness, and health care reform.
“As the umbrella organization of North America’s Jewish Federations, UJC represents Jewish communities from coast to coast, so it is fitting that we had a prominent seat at the President’s table,” Manning said.
“It is always humbling to be in the presence of the President of the United States, and I am honored to have had the opportunity to discuss issues that are of critical importance to American Jews. Our inclusion in the meeting is further recognition of UJC’s vibrant presence in the halls of power and in the public policy debates in Washington.”
In April, UJC/Jewish Federations of North America hosted a two-day summit where a select group of top UJC and Jewish Federation leaders met with White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD), and more than 24 U.S. Senators and Representatives from both political parties.
|
