Governor O'Malley From Israel

Writing The Next Chapter

Having just returned from my second trip to the hopeful and enduring land of Israel, I wanted to take a moment to share with you some of my reflections.

As old friends, tied together from the very beginning, Maryland and Israel have a great deal in common, including our enormous economic assets, our historic commitment to freedom and security, and our unshakeable belief that we can build a better future. 

Nowhere is the promise of our special relationship more evident than the healing potential of our strong and growing bio-science and high-tech sectors. Indeed, a half century after the Exodus embarked from the Port of Baltimore on a mission to save lives, Maryland and Israel once again have a tremendous opportunity to partner in the research and development of these life-saving technologies – what Dr. Jeffrey Sachs calls “weapons of mass salvation.”

Over the course of the week, our delegation of local Jewish community leaders, Maryland entrepreneurs and industry experts sat down with a number of Israeli business executives to discuss, at length, strategies to expand greater economic opportunities for our citizens. Working together, we were proud to report that two leading Israeli companies will be establishing U.S. operations here in Maryland, while Teva Pharmaceuticals, Israel’s largest bio-science company and the world’s largest manufacturer of generic drugs, plans to continue thriving in Maryland. 

One of the great honors of the trip was sharing the unique advantages Maryland offers to the bio-science industry at the Biomed Conference, a primer gathering of 5,000 people from 40 different countries, who came together to discuss the opportunities created by the ever-growing and exciting Israeli science community. No other state has the same concentration of skills, talents, great institutions, location and competitive cost advantages that we have here in Maryland. 

There have been many proud moments as governor, but none so poignant as when, together, we passed into law one of the toughest Iran divestiture laws in the nation, requiring the Maryland State Retirement and Pension System to divest from its portfolio all stocks of foreign companies doing substantial business with the energy sector of Iran and the genocidal regime of Sudan.

Taken together with other great achievements of the last legislative session – increased funding for our Maryland/Israel Development Center by 50 percent and investment of $75,000 for refugee resettlement – Maryland and Israel are poised to unlock the next great chapter of our special relationship.

For these and other notable accomplishments, special thanks go to The Associated: Jewish Community Federation of Baltimore; Art Abramson and the entire staff of the Baltimore Jewish Council; Barry Bogage and Abba David Poliakoff, director and chairman of Maryland/Israel Development Center, respectively; and Shale Stiller and Rob Kelly of the Weinberg Foundation, among many others.

Maryland is climbing out of this national economic downturn more quickly than other states because we’ve been willing to come together and protect our priorities. Expanding our creative economy through global partnerships is vital to protecting those priorities and ensuring Maryland’s healthy economic future.

It is fitting that our mission to Israel, focused on the expansion of an industry responsible for the life-saving techniques that are revolutionizing the medical community, came during the celebration of the 60th anniversary of that nation’s independence. 

I look forward to a continued partnership with Israel, built not only for greater economic opportunities, but for the healing of our most fragile neighbors, with whom we share this small planet. 

Climbing Masada

Saturday, May 31

Masada

Editor’s Note: Gov. Martin O’Malley is in Israel as head of a May 26 to June 1 Maryland delegation. The trip purposely coincides with the annual Israeli Biomedical Conference, one of the premier international events in that field. He will update this blog frequently during his trip.

It was 105 degrees. The sun rising higher in the sky...and the natural fortress built by Herod the Great in the Judaean Desert sat 1,300 feet above sea level overlooking the Dead Sea.

We came, we climbed… we drank plenty of water…

Today, Masada is one of the greatest symbols of Israeli strength and freedom… and it shall not fall again.

Shabbat In Jerusalem

Editor’s Note: Gov. Martin O’Malley is in Israel as head of a May 26 to June 1 Maryland delegation. The trip purposely coincides with the annual Israeli Biomedical Conference, one of the premier international events in that field. He will update this blog frequently during his trip.

After spending the day at Yad Vashem, we prepared to celebrate Shabbat in Jerusalem.

The Weinberg Foundation and the Baltimore Jewish Council prepared a wonderful Shabbat celebration for the Maryland delegation. They invited us to sing and celebrate with them and it truly was a peaceful and hopeful Sabbath.

I want to thank Shale Stiller and Rob Kelly of the Foundation, and Art
Abramson of the Council for inviting all of us to share the Sabbath with them in Jerusalem.

BioMed, Bibi And The Old City

Editor’s Note: Gov. Martin O’Malley is in Israel as head of a May 26 to June 1 Maryland delegation. The trip purposely coincides with the annual Israeli Biomedical Conference, one of the premier international events in that field. He will update this blog frequently during his trip.

After speaking at the Israel BioMed Conference this morning about the strengths of Maryland’s growing bioscience industry, research institutions and workforce, I had the opportunity to meet privately with Knesset member, Likud opposition leader and former Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu.

We spoke at length about the nature of Maryland’s commitment to Israel and how we could work together to expand the economic opportunities for the people of Maryland and Israel.

While we talked, Mr. Netanyahu and I quickly agreed that the key to expanding opportunity for more people rather than fewer is continuing to invest in our system of higher education and research institutions to make sure that our workforce and business climate in Maryland continue to rank among the best in the nation.

We also spoke about making our government work again for the people that we serve - and to make our governments more efficient and more accountable at the same time. Mr. Netanyahu was very interested in learning more about the system of performance-based government that we instituted in Baltimore with CitiStat and how we are bringing that model of efficiency to Maryland’s state government. Likewise, Mr. Netanyahu shared some of his ideas to expand opportunity for the people of Israel.

At sunset in Jerusalem later in the day, I was able to visit the Western Wall and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre - for Christians this is the place where Jesus Christ was crucified. At sunset, many of the visitors and tourists were already gone, many of the markets had already closed, and I found myself at peace in the Old City. There is a unity to spirit and matter, and what we do in our own lifetime does matter…

Visit To Yad VaShem

Jerusalem

Friday, May 30,
Noon local time

Editor’s Note: Gov. Martin O’Malley is in Israel as head of a May 26 to June 1 Maryland delegation. The trip purposely coincides with the annual Israeli Biomedical Conference, one of the premier international events in that field. He will update this blog frequently during his trip.

This morning the entire Maryland delegation visited Yad VaShem, Israel’s national Holocaust memorial. While we were there, I had the opportunity, on behalf of all Marylanders, to lay a wreath at the Hall of Remembrance in memory of the six million who lost their lives.

To remember those who perished is to remember the responsibility we all share in our lives to stand up against cruelty and injustice in all forms, everywhere.

I quoted Eli Wiesel in brief remarks during the ceremony: “The opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference. The opposite of art is not ugliness, it’s indifference. The opposite of faith is not heresy, it’s indifference. And the opposite of life is not death, it’s indifference.”

While there, we also toured Israel’s Holocaust History Museum, a remarkable structure carved out of the Mount of Remembrance in Jerusalem. We also saw the Children’s Memorial. It is a somber space where memorial candles are reflected infinitely as a tribute to the one and a half million Jewish children who were taken from us during the Holocaust.

This was my second visit to Yad Vashem.

We will always remember.


Gov. Martin O’Malley is briefed by Richard Jones, U.S. Ambassador to Israel.

Visiting Prime Minister Ehud Olmert:

Day 2: Jerusalem

11:05 p.m. Local Time:

Editor’s Note: Gov. Martin O’Malley is in Israel as head of a May 26 to June 1 Maryland delegation. The trip purposely coincides with the annual Israeli Biomedical Conference, one of the premier international events in that field. He will update this blog frequently during his trip.

We have had a very busy and productive day, meeting first with Teva Pharmaceuticals this morning, followed by our meeting with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert in Jerusalem this afternoon.

Before I get to that, I should mention that after we posted our blog yesterday I had the opportunity to meet with President Shimon Peres briefly to discuss Maryland’s commitment to Israel and the opportunities to expand the already strong economic development partnerships between Maryland and Israel. I was grateful that President Peres took the time to talk with me briefly.

This morning we were able to announce Teva’s commitment to remaining in Maryland. Teva currently employees about 70 scientists and professionals working out of a state-of-the-art biotech facility in Rockville, and I am looking forward to continuing to work with this innovative company on new research and development projects – what I referred to in yesterday’s blog as the “weapons of mass salvation” – those cures that give renewed meaning to the Talmudic principle that “the highest form of wisdom is kindness.”

Teva is Israel’s largest bioscience company and the largest manufacturer of generic drugs in the world, and there is tremendous opportunity for Maryland to play a significant role in this life-saving research and development that may one day lower prescription drug costs for our families.

We also spoke to Teva about the strength of Maryland’s workforce and university system, and the embryonic stem cell research program in our State. Working together in Maryland, we have made a significant investment over these last two years – more than $40 million – to partner with leading research institutions and bioscience companies on this critical life-saving research. Delegate Sandy Rosenberg and House Speaker Michael Busch are also in Israel this week, and I want to thank them for their leadership on this issue in the Maryland General Assembly.

We traveled to Jerusalem this afternoon to meet with Prime Minister Olmert, and I was incredibly grateful to the Prime Minister for taking the time to meet with the Maryland delegation. Prime Minister Olmert was a gracious host, and spoke plainly about the ongoing peace process, Israel’s growing and dynamic economy, and his optimism about the future. We also spoke at length about the upcoming presidential election in the United States. The Prime Minister’s Office released the statement below shortly after our meeting and I thought I would share it with all of you.

(Communicated by the Prime Minister’s Media Adviser)
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert today (Wednesday), 28.5.08, met with Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley, who is visiting Israel with a 30-member delegation that includes businessmen interested in deepening commercial ties between Maryland and Israel, especially in the bio-technology field. Gov. O’Malley noted that more than 30 Israeli companies currently invest in Maryland, and pointed out that Teva will acquire CoGenesys for approximately $400 million (see http://tinyurl.com/4pzvwa).

At Prime Minister Olmert’s request, Gov. O’Malley briefed him on recent developments in the US presidential election campaign. The Prime Minister emphasized that, “Whoever is elected will be a friend of Israel.”

Finally today, I was able to meet with the American Ambassador to Israel, Richard Jones, and attend the Israel-American Chamber of Commerce dinner reception at the ambassador’s residence – where former Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu gave the keynote address. Tomorrow morning, I will have the opportunity to meet with Mr. Netanyahu for a one-on-one meeting, and I will share the details of that meeting in tomorrow’s blog.

For tonight, I was proud to have the entire Maryland delegation with me at the Chamber of Commerce dinner. Maryland is truly a blessed State with tremendous opportunities for our families. We have one of the most highly-skilled workforces in the United States. We are home to the highest percentage of professional and technical workers nationwide, and our university system and research institutions are second to none, and working together in partnership and collaboration with our friends like Israel, we are going to continue to expand opportunities for our families.

“Noon Back Home”

Another in the ongoing blog postings of Gov. Martin O’Malley during his ongoing trip to Israel.

Monday, 11:55 p.m. EST: Take off from New York’s JFK Airport.

Tuesday, 5:20 p.m. local time: We have landed safely in Tel Aviv after the ten-hour flight. The service at El Al was warm and friendly. Flight was incredibly smooth, and most of us were able to sleep through the night.

We are a bit groggy as we make our way from the airport to the hotel, but looking forward to the week ahead. There is little down time as we work to expand economic development opportunities between Maryland and Israel.

There is an incredible sense of optimism among the group, and I believe that Maryland and Israel have a tremendous opportunity to partner in the development of life-saving technologies – what Dr. Jeffrey Sachs calls “weapons of mass salvation.”

7 p.m.: After a short stop at the hotel, we have a Maryland delegation meeting this evening to briefly discuss the goals of the trip and the current political climate in Israel.

Tomorrow, I am looking forward to meeting with Teva Pharmaceuticals, Israel’s largest pharmaceutical company and one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world. Just two months ago, Teva acquired CoGenesys in Rockville, Maryland, one of our leading biotechnology companies, for $400 million.

I will also be meeting with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert tomorrow afternoon and attending the Israel-America Chamber of Commerce dinner tomorrow night.

I look forward to sharing some of the details from those meetings with you tomorrow.


From left to right: Baltimore Jewish Council President Jon Laria, State Del. Sandy Rosenberg, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Gov. Martin O’Malley and Baltimore Jewish community leader Abba Poliakoff.

All Smiles: Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Gov. Martin O’Malley are reunited in Israel.

O’Malley’s Message For Israel

Editor’s Note: Gov. Martin O’Malley is in Israel as head of a Maryland delegation of a May 26 to June 1 Maryland delegation. The trip purposely coincides with the annual Israeli Biomedical Conference, one of the premier international events in that field. He will update this blog frequently during his trip. The first entry is his response to questions posed to him before his trip.

BALTIMORE JEWISH TIMES: You’ve been to Israel before. What do you hope to accomplish this time?

Gov. Martin O’Malley: I took my first trip in 2005, while serving as Mayor. During this trip, we learned about homeland security technologies and promoted economic development opportunities with Baltimore city. This trip will focus on healing – the biomedical technologies for which Israel is a world leader.

Israel, as many of your readers will know, exports more life saving technologies per capita than any country on earth. Here in Maryland, we’re also one of the world’s leaders in biotech, and I believe that growing this sector of our economy is one of the keys to unlocking a stronger economic future for our State.

A half century after the Exodus embarked from Baltimore Harbor on a mission to save lives, Maryland and Israel once again have a tremendous opportunity to partner on developing life saving technologies – what Dr. Jeffrey Sachs calls “weapons of mass salvation.”

BJT: What are you most looking forward to?

Gov. O’Malley: There are many reasons why I am looking forward to this trip. I am looking forward to speaking at the Israel Biomed Conference. Last summer, I met the delegation of Israeli life science entrepreneurs who came to Baltimore for the Maryland/Israel Development Center’s MarketReach America program. Many of them talked about how exciting the Biomed conference is, and the wonderful new medical technologies that are being developed in Israel. Over 5,000 people attended last year from 40 different countries, and it is a great opportunity to market Maryland to the Israeli and international biotech and medical device communities as the premier location in the U.S. to do business.

I am also excited about my meeting with the executives of Teva Pharmaceuticals, Israel’s largest pharmaceutical company and one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world. Just two months ago, Teva acquired CoGenesys in Rockville, one of our leading biotechnology companies, for $400 million. I want to make sure Teva keeps those jobs in Maryland and discuss with company management how we can work with them to expand in Maryland.

On a personal level, I am looking to forward to visiting with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert again. As you recall, the Prime Minister visited with us in Annapolis earlier this year. I am also looking forward touring the Jewish Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem once again.

And, with a heavy heart I look forward to making my second visit to Yad Vashem, Israel’s Holocaust museum. With the recognition of Yom HaShoah is month, the haunting memories from my last visit have weighed heavily on me.

We will be sharing many of these experiences with the Jewish community back home through a daily blog.

BJT: Do you hope to strengthen Maryland ties with Israel?

Israel and Maryland have enjoyed a special relationship, dating back to the days of the Exodus, the Chesapeake Bay ship that sailed Baltimore Harbor on its historic journey to rescue Holocaust refugees in Europe and take them to their homeland in Israel. Like the U.S.-Israel relationship, it strong bond based on shared values – values like freedom, democracy, the dignity of every individual, and the desire to work together on cures and life saving technologies.

Both our people and the Israeli people recognize the security threats posed by Iran. When I met with Prime Minister Olmert at Government House last fall, he stressed to me the importance of the Iranian divestiture legislation that at the time was before our General Assembly. I signed this legislation recently, and the Baltimore Jewish Council and others believe it is the strongest of its kind in the nation.

During the past legislative session, we also increased funding by 50 percent for the Maryland/Israel Development Center, our partnership with Israel’s Ministry of Industry and Trade and The Associated Jewish Federation of Baltimore to promote trade and investment between our companies.

We are always striving for ways to strengthen our business, scientific and community ties with Israel. Trips like this with our delegation of 32 Maryland business and Jewish Community leaders demonstrate our continuing support.

BJT: What is the message you bring from Maryland to Israelis?

We bring a message of friendship, partnership and solidarity. Maryland and Israel have a tremendous amount in common; our strengths in high technology, our historic commitment to freedom and security, and our conviction that tomorrow can be a better day for our children.

We believe, as President Kennedy said, that “Israel will endure and flourish. It is the child of hope and the home of the brave. It can neither be broken by adversity nor demoralized by success. It carries the shield of democracy and it honors the sword of freedom.”