Oren: ‘The legacy is now yours, Mr. President’

New Israeli ambassador to the United States Michael Oren presented his credentials to President Obama on Monday and also left behind an emphatic message in the White House guest book, noting that Obama had inherited a great legacy of upholding the U.S.-Israel alliance:

”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.”

Now that Oren is officially in place, he’s also outlining how his ambassadorship may be different that that of his predecessor. He told Hilary Leila Krieger of the Jerusalem Post that he would like to meet with some groups the embassy has previously ignored:

"I’m going to make it a priority to reach out to different groups, Jewish and non-Jewish, that have not felt a close attachment to the embassy in the past," said Oren, who took up his post earlier this summer. …

Until now, the 15-month-old J Street has not been invited to a single Israeli Embassy event or even had its phone calls returned, according to founder Jeremy Ben-Ami, who attributed the treatment largely to the group’s new status.

Now that the self-described "pro-Israel, pro-peace" lobby is more established, Ben-Ami hopes that posture will change, and he has been pleased by the message he’s heard that Oren is trying to figure out how to "open the door to the progressive community."

"I highly commend him on that attitude," said Ben-Ami, who hasn’t met with Oren but hopes to. "There are things we are going to disagree on, but we have a lot more that we agree on."

The full press release from the Israeli Embassy on Oren’s presentation of his credentials to Obama is after the jump:[[READMORE]]

WASHINGTON – Earlier today, Ambassador of Israel to the United States Michael Oren presented his credentials to President Barack Obama at the White House. He was accompanied by his parents, wife and children.

Ambassador Oren thanked President Obama for his friendship and support for the State of Israel, and expressed optimism that the strong ties between Israel and the United States can be further strengthened.

Just prior to presenting his credentials, Ambassador Oren wrote the following entry into 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.”