Welcoming remarks
by Dale Sprusansky
Good morning, everyone. We’re going to get started now. I am Dale Sprusansky. I’m the assistant editor of the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs. The Washington Report, along with the Institute for Research: Middle Eastern Policy, is sponsoring today’s program. Before we get going with a great first panel to a great day, [I have] just some housekeeping reminders for everyone. Of course, just make sure your phones are silenced and quiet so as not to disrupt the proceedings. We also ask that if anyone would like to have conversations that you take it outside or, better yet, to the Exhibition Hall, which is right by Registration.
There are book signings scheduled today for our speakers who have books. The book signing schedule can be found in your program, and the signings will happen, again, in the Exhibition Hall. You’ll see a big sign that says book signing over there.
Q&A today will be done on the note cards. In the bags you received at check-in, there should be five note cards and a pen. You can use those pens, use those note cards to write questions as the panelists are speaking. Someone will be going around, or multiple people will be going around, to collect the note cards and hand them to the moderator, who then shuffles through them to ask the questions to the speakers. It allows us to keep things fast and stay on schedule.
On the back of the badge that you received, there should be a little red ticket. Just make sure you hold onto that. That will be needed for the reception. That begins at 5:00, after the program. Just a reminder, too, that there is no recording inside of the area unless you have received prior approval. Also, today’s program is being streamed live on C-SPAN and online on various sources. So to our online audience, you can submit questions @israelinfluence on Twitter or e-mail conference@wrmea.org and we’ll make sure your questions get passed on to the moderator.
And finally, we just want to give a big thank you to all of our donors who helped make today’s event possible, because it would not have happened without them. With that being said, I’m going to introduce Grant Smith, who will be moderating and beginning our first panel.
