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American Jewry kicks off annual conference, but guest star Obama cancels
By Sara Miller, Haaretz Correspondent
Tags: Jewish GA, Jewish World 

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The annual General Assembly of the Jewish Federations of North America kicked off this year in an autumnal American capital with the disappointing news that the guest star, President Barack Obama, canceled at the last minute to attend a memorial service for the victims of a shooting at an army base in Texas last week. The president's chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, will be taking his place as keynote speaker on Tuesday.

Some 3,000 delegates from across the U.S., Canada and Israel have been arriving since Friday, filling the Marriott Hotel with called greetings, gossip, schmoozing and smatterings of Hebrew.
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The security at the event was high even before the delegates arrived. With 24 hours to go, towering security guards with soft voices and imposing weaponry restricted access to the conference hall to delegates only.

The fundamental essence of the conference can be summed up quite simply: What on earth are we going to do now that the crash has taken a huge chunk of our money and Madoff has stolen most of the rest? But all is not lost.

The banners adorning the entrance to the conference all carry the same optimistic message: Anything is possible. Peace for Israel? Yes. Cohesion in the Jewish World? Absolutely. Saving the world? Sure, why not? There are discussions and debates with titles such as "Successful Management in Lean Times," and "Applying Business Skills to Jewish Work." The message: however hard the times are, there is a way ahead.

The meet also focuses on the usual topics concerning the largest and most influential Jewish community in the world: Iran, Israel's image in the world and, of course, the Goldstone commission report on the Gaza conflict and its allegations of war crimes.

Interestingly, there is a panel on Sunday on the role of Jews in Washington. This is a hot topic, given the central role played by Jews in the Obama administration - Emanuel and Obama's key aide David Axelrod are both of the faith - and the range of responses garnered by his immediate engagement with the settlement issue, both inside Israel and in the U.S. corridors of power.

Unlike the J Street conference in the same city last week, this one is pulling all the heavy hitters. Of the triumvirate of stars on the billing, Michael Oren, the Israeli ambassador to the United States, is the least impressive. He is the warm-up for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who would in turn have been upstaged by Obama. Instead, delegates will have to make do with Emanuel, and what he will tell the delegates is the subject of much speculation here.


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      1.   The "least impressive"--a sly slam? 17:58  |  HPL 08/11/09
      2.   Face saving 18:05  |  Annon 08/11/09
      3.   Obama Cancels 18:13  |  Barry Zornberg 08/11/09
      4.   No Presidential Photo Op for Bibi 18:18  |  Mark Lincoln 08/11/09
      5.   Jesus stop walking on water ! 18:40  |  Akram Zekaria 08/11/09
      6.   Mark Lincoln and his `brilliant` [NOT] observation. 18:46  |  flyingdoc57 08/11/09
      7.   @HPL 18:47  |  Lucy (in the sky) 08/11/09
      8.   Texas "incident" 19:00  |  Kati 08/11/09
      9.   President to miss conference 19:16  |  John Roberts 08/11/09
      10.   JOhn Roberts hates Jews so much he can`t stay away from a Jewish 19:36  |  newspaper 08/11/09
      11.   To Lucy (in the sky)--with or without diamonds. 19:37  |  HPL 08/11/09
      12.   flyingdoc57 6 19:45  |  potobac 08/11/09
      13.   Obama`s cancelletion 20:07  |  Rigoletto 08/11/09
      14.   to flyingdoc57 it`s a $hitstorm all around 20:11  |  ghostoflutherblisset 08/11/09
      15.   Potobac (# 12)......"Observation". 20:13  |  flyingdoc57 08/11/09
      16.   shooting 21:12  |  Hirz 08/11/09
      17.   Not Face Saving 21:40  |  Wafa 08/11/09
      18.   OBAMA NOT SEEKING ELECTION NOW 21:44  |  Ian 08/11/09
      19.   Kati 22:10  |  j 08/11/09
      20.   Bibi ignored Obama 22:19  |  Suzy 08/11/09
      21.   Who wants to listen to the drip called Rahme 22:52  |  Alan SA 08/11/09
      22.   Good for Obama 22:56  |  Galahad 08/11/09
      23.   Obama`s absnce 22:59  |  rob 08/11/09
      24.   Obama no-show 23:19  |  Green Baron 08/11/09
      25.   Would they have refused to reschedule if 01:31  |  Mark Lincoln 09/11/09
      26.   Heavy hitters unlike J Street????? 19:13  |  Hanna 09/11/09
      27.   People can live in peace without religion 19:18  |  Antonio da Silva 09/11/09
      28.   Amazing how Mark Lincoln can twist anything into a rightwing rant 19:19  |  Jacob Blues 09/11/09
      29.   People can live in peace without religion 19:20  |  Tony Silver 09/11/09
      30.   J and Obama 00:33  |  Kati 11/11/09
      31.   flyingdoc- you got non-thinkin-Lincoln`s # 14:28  |  sz 11/11/09
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