With A Presidential Candidate in Maaleh HaZeitim

I was, this evening, a guest at a reception for some special guests visiting Israel, and specifically the new areas of Jewish residency in Jerusalem's newer neighborhoods on Mount Scopus, at the Beit Orot compound, and on the southern slope of the Mount of Olives, in a building complex known as Maaleh HaZeitim where over 60 families already live and where there is room for more.

The occasion was another visit of former Governor Michael Huckabee. (Here's a post from August 2009).

He was earlier in the Knesset and then over at Beit Orot for a cornerstone-laying ceremony..

Here's one news report:

Potential 2012 U.S. presidential candidate Mike Huckabee told Jewish settlers residents Monday that attempts to prevent them from building in east Jerusalem are as outrageous as housing discrimination in the United States.

"I cannot imagine, as an American, being told I could not live in certain places in America because I was Christian, or because I was white, or because I spoke English," he said.

Huckabee dismissed the notion that Jewish settlements communities on land the Palestinians want for a future state are obstacles to peace. Instead, he backed the settlers' residents view that they have the right to build anywhere in "the place that God gave them."

And here is an expanded version:

"It is inconceivable in many ways that we would have to even argue and debate whether or not Israelis could live in Israel, not just in parts of Israel but anywhere in Israel they wished to live," Huckabee added. "I cannot imagine as an American being told that I could not live in certain places in America because I was Christian, or because I was white, or because I spoke English. I would be outraged if someone told me that in my country, I would be prohibited and forbidden to live in a part of that country, for any reason."

At this evening's reception, sponsored by Ateret Kohanim and Dr. Irving and Cherna Moskowitz, at whose home I spent a few days a goo dfew years ago (Cherna addressed us via a video clip), Huckabee made the important point that American settlers, when they arrived in North America, had no ancestral heritage connection with the land unlike the Jews who have had a 3500 year link, based on religious, cultural and historical elements, with this Land.

There were many people there I have known for decades and it was a pleasure to be invited.

Some photographs:

a) Mike Huckabee addressing the guests - that's Effie Eitam to the left

b) Jon Voight is in the center, Yoran Ettinger to the right and Moshe Saperstein front left -

c)  the guests

d)  Dassie & Arthur Marcus of the Cedntral Fund for Israel with me, old and dear friends -

Arutz 7 has a clip.


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