From left to right: Ambassador Michael Oren, Defense Minister Ehud Barak, Vice President Dick Cheney, Senator Joe Lieberman, Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta
Ambassador Michael Oren and Mrs. Sally Oren held a reception at their residence last Thursday celebrating the longtime friendship of Senator Joe Lieberman, who is retiring in January. A stalwart supporter of the State of Israel in Congress, Sen. Lieberman has been tireless in his efforts to promote the U.S.-Israel relationship.
The couple was joined in bidding farewell to Senator Lieberman and his wife, Hadassah, by Washington notables, including former Vice President Dick Cheney and Second Lady Lynne Cheney, Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano, White House Chief of Staff Jack Lew, Senators Michael Bennet, Chris Dodd, Jon Kyl, Mary Landrieu, John McCain, and Fred Thompson; House Majority Leader Eric Cantor; and former Israeli Prime Minister and current Defense Minister Ehud Barak.
After dinner, Ambassador Oren spoke of his appreciation for Sen. Lieberman's infallible support, a sentiment shared by everyone in the room. The senator was greeted with thunderous applause as the ambassador presented him with a gift: a personalized bible. "I've already read it," Lieberman quipped, to which the ambassador playfully replied, "But this is a signed copy."