NOVEMBER 28 • 2019 | 19

so we can work together to 
attract more businesses and jobs 
to our state,
” said the governor’
s 
spokesperson Tiffany Brown.
During her trip, Whitmer 
spoke at the WATEC confer-
ence in Tel Aviv, highlighting 
her dedication to protecting 
the Great Lakes.
According to the Times 
of Israel, at the conference 
Whitmer said, “We’
re working 
with our partners and other 
states to secure our Great 
Lakes because we cannot 
afford to sit back and watch 
these problems get worse. The 
ecological economics and the 
health risks are too high. And 
time is not on our side. We 
must act now; we must act 
together. We must form part-
nerships with leaders around 
the world to do this.” 
While in Israel, Whitmer 
visited Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and 

Bethlehem. In Bethlehem, she 
planned to visit the Church 
of the Nativity and meet with 
Vera Baboun, representative of 
the Palestinian Authority and 
former mayor of Bethlehem. 
According to her official 
statement, the trip was con-
ducted at the invitation of the 
Israeli government and hosted 
by the Jewish Federation of 
Metropolitan Detroit in coor-
dination with the Michigan 
Economic Development 
Corporation. 

MICHIGAN’
S ARAB-
AMERICANS UPSET
Whitmer’
s decision to travel 
to Israel angered some Arab 
Americans in Michigan, 
according to an Arab American 
News presss release. 
Arab American community 
leaders met Monday during 
her trip to formulate a response 

to Whitmer’
s “insensitive and 
offensive trip to the apartheid 
state of Israel.” Her trip took 
leaders by surprise, says the 
press release, which added that 
many in the Arab American 
community in Michigan con-
sidered it “a slap in the face.”
According to the Detroit 
News, the Dearborn-based 
American Human Rights 
Council said in a statement 
that it is “deeply concerned” 
that Whitmer’
s visit to Israel 
will be “perceived as acquies-
cence, if not approval of U.S. 
abandonment of its longtime 
policy and of Israeli repressive 
policies.”
According to Brown, 
“Michigan governors have a 
rich tradition of traveling to 
Israel to strengthen our busi-
ness ties and meet with leaders 
to discuss how we can partner 
to attract more businesses and 

jobs to our state. The governor 
is hopeful that we’
ll accomplish 
these goals on this trip, and 
she’
s excited for future oppor-
tunities to work with more of 
our international partners.”
Previous governors to lead 
economic development trips 
to Israel include Gov. Jennifer 
Granholm in 2008 and Gov. 
Rick Snyder in 2017. 

NO PRESS TIME 
Though the Jewish News had a 
reporter on the ground in Israel 
all week, repeated requests each 
day for access to the governor 
to cover her activities in the 
country were denied. The JN 
was granted a five-minute con-
ference call with Whitmer on 
Friday, Nov. 22, but the call was 
canceled at the last minute. 

JN Contributing Writer Adam Finkel 

reported from Tel Aviv. 

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