STUDENT SENATE BILL 2013-XXXX TITLE: Resolution Thanking President Obama for Visiting Israel and For His

Continued Commitment to the U.S. Israel Relationship AUTHORS: Former Senator Shelley Greenspan, Senator Sydney Kaplan, Former Senator Nicole Krassner, Former Senator Taylor Parker, Hadar Arazi, Melanie Miller, Avia Gridi SPONSORS: Chairman Cayman Weimer, Chairwoman Jamie Lowstetter, Chairman Dylan Fisher, Senate President Pro Tempore Cory Yeffet, Chairman Joey Michaels, Senator Davis Bean, Senator Jake Schiff, Senator Bruna Bouhid, Senator Nancy Nguyen, Senator Megan Huynh, Senator Abe Carryl, Senator Hanne Staertzel, Senator Ford Dwyer, Senator Leah Miller, Senator Nick Dilts WHEREAS, there are over 8,000 Jewish students at the University of Florida, the largest population of Jewish students at any single campus outside the State of Israel; and WHEREAS, under President Barack Obamas Administration, the U.S.-Israel relationship based on shared values of democracy, human rights, and freedom of religion and speechis flourishing; and WHEREAS, President Obama has supported and funded the Iron Dome missile defense system, which has saved countless Israeli lives and revolutionized Israels defense strategy; and WHEREAS, President Obama has approved more than $11.4 billion in foreign aid to Israel over four years and requested a record $3.1 billion in military assistance to Israel for the 2013 fiscal year alone; and WHEREAS, Israel and the United States face challenges in the Middle East, including an increasingly belligerent Iran, an increasingly aggressive Egypt, and an unstable Syria; and WHEREAS, it is now more critical than ever that the United States and Israel continue to foster and enhance a strategic relationship; and WHEREAS, on March 20, 2013 President Obama arrived in Israel for his first visit as President of the United States, marking the first foreign trip of his second term in office; and WHEREAS, the Israeli government has named President Obamas trip the Unshakable Alliance due to his strong support for the Jewish State; and WHEREAS, Democratic National Committee Chair and Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz (FL-23), a University of Florida alumna and former Student Senate President, accompanied President Obama on his trip to Israel and has been a champion of the U.S.Israel relationship; and WHEREAS, during his visit, in front of Israeli students at the Jerusalem Convention

Center, President Obama said, I want to tell you particularly the young people that so long as there is a United States of America, [ atem lo levad, you are not alone]; and WHEREAS, President Obama was awarded Israel's Presidential Medal of Distinction during his trip, becoming the first sitting U.S. president to receive the honor; and WHEREAS, during the presentation of the medal, Israeli President Shimon Peres said to President Obama that this award, speaks to your tireless work to make Israel strong and to make peace possible. Your presidency has given the closest ties between Israel and the United States a new height, a sense of intimacy, a vision for the future; THEREFORE, LET IT BE RESOLVED that the students of the University of Florida thank President Obama for his trip to Israel and for his continued support of a strong U.S.Israel relationship. Proviso: Signed copies of this resolution will be sent to President of the United States of America Barack Obama, Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schulz, Secretary of State John Kerry, United States Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro, and Israeli Ambassador to the United States of America Michael Oren