Minnesota 2nd District Congressman John Kline
This conference is going to be the largest in its history, hosting over 7,500 delegates from all across the United States, including one of Minnesota’s largest-ever delegations, at over 70-strong!
The conference is going to feature Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Israeli Opposition Leader Tzipi Livni, Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, and House Minority Whip Eric Cantor, among many other American and world leaders.
As the ONLY press attending from Minnesota, we will be offering as much coverage of the conference and the major speeches as two young women armed with laptops and running on no sleep possibly can, but for those who would like to experience it right along with us, you can catch all of the major speeches LIVE here. In case you just can’t handle all the excitement live as it’s happening (or have a life, unlike Leora and me, or have simply gotten too spoiled by DVR!), videos and full transcripts of all the speeches will also continue to be available here for your on-demand viewing pleasure.
Aside from covering the conference, Leora and I will also try to get interviews with as many members of the Minnesota Congressional delegation that we can corner and convince to speak to us!
To give you just a taste of how important this conference is to the national conversation on the US-Israel relationship, and just how our legislators see it, I would like to leave you with the statement that I got from Minnesota 2nd district Congressman John Kline:
“This year’s AIPAC conference comes at a critical time in the U.S.-Israel relationship. Despite a long history of strong and mutually beneficial ties between our two nations, recent statements by the Administration have cast doubt as to their support for Israel’s efforts to protect and defend herself from her enemies.
Israel cannot unilaterally achieve stability in the Middle East– a stability that ultimately bolsters the security of the United States. We must be unequivocal in communicating to Israel – and the world – that the United States remains a steadfast ally and partner in peace.
I welcome the discussions this conference will bring to the forefront of the national dialogue and pledge my continued strong support for a strong U.S.-Israel relationship.”
Feel free to begin those discussions right here in the comments! (Whoever said a conference had to actually start before we could start discussing it?)
Gotta run – they’re illuminating the seat belt sign again…
[Photo: Wikipedia]
Jenna,
Thank you very much your post and for relaying the positive message from Congressman Kline.
Best of luck at the conference,
Dmitry
I am interested to hear if there are any Democrats willing to stand up for Israel. Please keep us posted.
Jenna, you and Leora provide an important service, but please do not confuse yourself with the press. You are bloggers who report your opinions mixed in with some observations.
Thanks for the comment. That’s an interesting distinction. What makes bloggers different from the press? We wear our opinions on our sleeve, while the rest of the media hides their opinions, or includes opinions in their pieces that are more subtle (like choosing not to use the word “terrorist” when describing those Palestinians who bomb Israeli shopping malls).
I definitely think we need traditional news media, don’t get me wrong, but at today’s AIPAC conference I was able to meet two bloggers who write for the JTA whose work is both opinionated and absolutely brilliant. Many times I feel like I learn more from their articles about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict than from those about the same subject in traditional news media.
Excellent response! Intelligent opinions are important to those of us unable to attend these historic events.