From the BBC:
“Jack Lew confirmed as new US Ambassador to Israel”
(Jack Lew held a number of senior roles in the Obama and
Clinton administrations)
The US Senate has confirmed former treasury secretary Jack
Lew as the new US Ambassador to Israel. President Joe Biden nominated Mr Lew,
an Orthodox Jew who held top posts in prior administrations, in September. The
White House urged Congress to confirm him quickly after Hamas's attack, as
"high-level diplomatic representation" is "critical". The
Senate voted largely on party lines, with Democrats and two Republicans backing
Mr Biden's choice. Mr Lew needed a simple majority in the 100-member Senate for
his appointment to be confirmed.
Who is Jack Lew? Raised in an observant Jewish family in New York, Mr Lew, 68,
has maintained a low profile in Washington, D.C., despite a career that boasts
several important postings. Under Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack
Obama, the longtime civil servant led the Office of Management and Budget,
which oversees the president's budget requests. Mr Lew later served for
a year as President Obama's White House chief of staff, one of the most
influential cabinet positions. A budget expert, he was then appointed as
treasury secretary in 2013 and served in that post until 2017. That
appointment process was memorable for the criticism of his illegible loopy
signature, as it would appear on American currency if he became secretary. He
quickly adopted a more traditional sign-off. Mr Lew began his career in
politics in 1973. He worked for eight years as the primary domestic adviser to
House Speaker Tip O'Neill, an iconic and powerful Democrat.
Lew's view of Israel and Palestinians Mr Lew has previously spoken in
support of a two-state solution. He openly criticised Israel and its
conservative prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, while working under President
Obama. He also defended the US's 2016 decision not to veto the UN
Security Council condemnation of Israeli settlements on occupied land. During
his recent nomination hearing, however, Lew said he has "worried deeply
about the survival of the State of Israel" throughout his life. Growing
up, he said, his family believed deeply in the creation and defence of a Jewish
homeland. That background and Hamas's attack informed Mr Lew's view of
the post's important responsibility, he said. "At this moment,
there is no greater mission than to be asked to strengthen the ties between the
United States and the State of Israel and to work toward peace in a region that
has known so much war and destruction," he said in his opening statement
to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
Mr Lew said that as ambassador he would work "to end the
horrific attacks by Hamas" and make sure Israel has all "it needs to
defend itself". He said he would strive to help American captives return
home. He also said he would do everything in his power to stop the conflict
from expanding, aid innocent Palestinians trapped in Gaza, and stymie the
influence of Iran, which he called "a threat to regional stability and to
Israel's existence".
The hearing and Republican opposition Senate Democrats had stressed their
desire to get Mr Lew into the ambassador's post, which was vacated in July, as
quickly as possible. Republicans, however, expressed reservations and in
some cases hostility to the appointment. Mr Lew sparred with Republicans
during his hearing over his work on the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action,
commonly known as the Iran Nuclear Deal. The agreement, which included
the UK, the US and several European countries, limited Tehran's nuclear
programme. In return, Western countries and the UN agreed to eventually lift
sanctions and unfreeze Iranian funds. Jim Risch, the top Republican on
the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said he had "reservations"
over Mr Lew because of his involvement in the deal as President Obama's
Treasury Secretary: "Holding hands with Iran under the table doesn't work
for me." Republicans have long opposed the Iran Nuclear Deal,
arguing it did not do enough to ensure Tehran would not develop a nuclear
weapon and gave the government too much financial support. Donald Trump
famously pulled the US out the agreement early in his administration. Other
Senate Republicans claimed the deal had allowed Iran to fund groups like Hamas.
A few also suggested Mr Lew had misled Congress when testifying about the
agreement as secretary. Mr Lew disputed the claims, arguing that all
Iran gained was access to "their money that we had frozen". Iran
agreed to the terms but was unhappy with the outcome, he said.
^ It’s important for the United States to have an Ambassador
in every Country we have an Embassy in. It is even more important now for the
US and for Israel to have a US Ambassador at the US Embassy in Jerusalem. The
US is working with Israel to punish Hamas for their Terrorist Attack that
killed American Citizens and where American Hostages were taken. ^
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