Michael Oren — New Israel Ambassador to US

Monday,
Israel Ambassador to the U.S. Michael Oren presented his credentials to President Obama at the White House, after writing the following in the White House Guest Book:

As the grandson of Jewish immigrants who found shelter from oppression in this promising land; as the son of a World War II veteran who fought for freedom from Normandy to the Rhine; and as a scholar who studied and taught at some of America’s premier institutions, I am honored to represent my ancestral homeland, the State of Israel, to the country of my birth.

For more than two hundred years, since the Founding Fathers considered making Moses and the Exodus the Great Seal of the Republic, the revival of the Jewish state has been a cherished American dream. John Adams, Abraham Lincoln, Woodrow Wilson, Theodore Roosevelt, and, of course, Harry Truman — all were champions of Jewish statehood in the
Land
of
Israel.

This legacy is now yours, Mr. President, and I pledge my paramount efforts to join you in upholding the historic United States-Israel alliance.