On Monday, February 20, Dr. Munr Kazmir hosted a dinner event for Congressman Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) at his home in Closter. Gottheimer is serving his first term in Congress after defeating incumbent Rep. Scott Garrett (R-NJ) in the 2016 election. His district encompasses some of the most heavily concentrated Jewish regions in the state, including Bergenfield, Fair Lawn, New Milford, Paramus and Teaneck.

Josh graduated from West Essex High School before attending the University of Pennsylvania, later becoming a Thouron Fellow at Oxford, and then paid his way through Harvard Law School. After finishing college, Josh went on to work in the Clinton White House as one of the youngest presidential speechwriters in history.

At the event, Gottheimer expressed his gratitude in winning the election in a Republican-leaning district. He discussed how integrating and engaging with the community played a large factor in his victory over Garrett last year.

On Israel, he re-stated his pledge to continue voting in favor of the $4 billion per year military aid package. He expressed dismay at the December UN Security Council vote condemning Israel and the administration’s choice to abstain during the ordeal. Although dealing with a Republican majority, he was confident in the ability of the Democrats to work across the aisle on Israel-related issues, but stressed the importance of keeping the community engaged with all Members of Congress to support US-Israel relations.

Josh Gottheimer will be running for reelection in 2018.