White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough to Keynote J Street’s Fifth National Conference
MEDIA ADVISORY
March 19, 2015
CONTACT: Jessica Rosenblum, 202.448.1600 or 202.279.0005 (c), [email protected]
White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough to Keynote J Street’s Fifth National Conference
WASHINGTON – J Street announced today that White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough will address more than 3,000 J Street conference attendees just six days after the Israeli election and as nuclear negotiations with Iran near a climax.
McDonough will offer the keynote address to the pro-Israel, pro-peace movement’s fifth national conference during the policy plenary on Monday, March 23 at 1:30 p.m. at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center.
Media coverage is welcome and credentialed members of the media must pre-register here.
Having held several roles in the administration and served as a senior advisor to President Obama since the 2008 campaign, McDonough will share a unique perspective on the evolution of the politics and policy behind the Obama administration’s approach to diplomacy. He has served as Deputy National Security Advisor, Chief of Staff of the National Security Council staff and Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communications.
“At this pivotal moment, we couldn’t be more excited to have White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough joining us at the largest pro-Israel, pro-peace gathering in the United States,” said J Street President Jeremy Ben-Ami. “As the new governing coalition forms in Israel, we are eager to hear how the White House plans to set the diplomatic agenda and continue to work towards a two-state solution.”
The conference, which comes at an important phase of the U.S.-Israel relationship, nuclear negotiations with Iran, and the future of the two-state solution, will take place at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center from March 21-24.
Confirmed speakers also include former Secretary of State James A. Baker, III, PLO Chief Negotiator Saeb Erekat, Israeli Labor Party Secretary General Hilik Bar, Representative Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), Representative Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), Member of Knesset and former director of the Shin Bet Yaakov Peri, President of the Union for Reform Judaism Rabbi Rick Jacobs, and many others, including representatives from more than five major Israeli political parties.
The conference will also feature a gala dinner on evening of Monday, March 23, with a keynote address by Secretary Baker and remarks by special guest Randi Weingarten, President of the American Federation of Teachers.
The conference will culminate in an Advocacy Day on Tuesday, March 24, when J Street participants will take their pro-Israel, pro-peace message to Capitol Hill.
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