Rep. Charlie Rangel smiles as the press conference's attendees gather.

This morning, a small army of elected officials and Jewish advocates amassed on Second Avenue, not far from the United Nations, to press their case that Israel is completely justified in its forceful reaction to the rocket attacks against it. In New York City, of course, support for Israel is an almost universally acknowledged political principle with very few deviations. Indeed, so many elected officials crowded together that they had trouble squeezing into the allotted area.

Naturally, all four of the likely Democratic candidates for mayor were present and more than eager to burnish their foreign policy credentials in light of the burgeoning international controversy. In order to profess their unyielding belief in the righteousness of Israel's military response in Gaza, each pol described personally visiting the Jewish State, three of them to the exact same small town. We decided to simply transcribe their remarks in the order that they spoke.

Comptroller John Liu:

"I think we all hope and pray that peace can be found between Israel and Palestine. I thank the president for engaging in this and wish our Secretary of State Hillary Clinton the best in resolving this matter before it gets any worse. It was just a couple years ago that I had the chance to visit Israel, and among many sites, to spend some time in S'derot. To see the heaps of the remains of rockets that had been launched into that small town. To see where children have to go to school nearby the closest bunker where they are taught that they have seconds to run into those bunkers as soon as they hear those sirens go off. To understand that those children have to live with that kind of state of mind even as they are being educated for their future, and indeed the future of Israel and the world. So as a father, it's just unimaginable that any kids, of any people of any age, have to live under those conditions. Which is precisely why Israel not only has the right, but it has the obligation, to protect its people against this kind of senseless attack and violence. Israel should do what it needs to do. It has our support here in New York City to do what it needs to do to protect its people. That is the way that it should be done and we stand fully in support of Israel's right to defend itself. Long live Israel! Am Yisrael Chai!"

Council Speaker Christine Quinn:

"New York is Israel and Israel is New York. We are bound together as brothers and sisters in our struggle to be free of terror, to be free of being targets, to live in the way we want to live, to practice our lives and our religion in the way that we want to. The issue of Israel becomes complicated at times in the international community and I simply do not understand that. To me it is crystal clear: Israel is the only democracy in this region. Israel is the only beacon of true freedom in the Middle East and she, like every other country in the world, has the obligation to protect her citizens ... On a trip we took, we were in S'derot, and while we were visiting with the mayor, one of those sirens went off and we had those 15 seconds you hear about to get to the place in City Hall that was safest from the rocket that was coming in....Thank God it didn't kill anyone but this is a town that on a regular basis is hit by these rockets. And on far too many days, we aren't as lucky as that day that we were there in that city hall. I've been through this experience once ... Think of what that's like on a regular basis. Think about what that's like for a child. We're here today with a clear message: Israel must protect herself. The international community must rally behind that right of Israel, because without Israel protecting herself, there will never, ever be peace. So, on behalf of all New Yorkers, we stand in the strongest solidarity possible with the people of Israel, who have always stood with us in our darkest hours, and we will never, ever walk away from them."

Public Advocate Bill de Blasio:

"It's this simple: Israel has the right to defend itself. Israel is our closest ally. This is not even grey, it's abundantly clear. I've been to S'derot, I've been to places in Israel that have had rockets raining down on them for years. And they've had to live an unacceptable life. They've had to live with the fear that at any moment, their homes, their schools, their businesses could be attacked. I went to the child play center in S'derot, which is literally built as a bombproof building because it is the only way that children in that community in southern Israel could know that they'd be safe during daytime hours and live any modicum of a normal life. No nation would put up with that. No nation should have to put up with that. Israel must do what it must do to protect itself. We will stand with Israel every step of the way. We hope and pray that somehow peace can be regained here at this moment, but the only way that will happen is if we stand in total solidarity with Israel and Hamas understands that we will be shoulder-to-shoulder every step of thew way."

2009 Nominee Bill Thompson:

"The faces that you've seen at this podium are many different faces, from different backgrounds. But we all have one thing in common: Yes, we're New Yorkers, but we all stand with Israel. We stand with Israel because Israel is our friend. We stand with Israel because Israel stands for principle. We stand with Israel because, again, Israel is under attack. Time and time and time again, we've stood with Israel and the people of Israel. I was with in Israel ... the thing that I remember the most, and it was in the middle of the Intifada in 2002, young people who went about their lives day after day even though they realized--some of the young girls they talked about, when they did sleepovers, taking pictures of each other in case something happened to one, so they'd remember those who might have died. Those who got on buses and went to work each and every day while terrorists blew those buses up. Their resolve never wavered. They went and got stronger and stronger and stronger. Those of us in New York, as Israel continues to come under attack and the missiles rain down, need to continue to show them that our resolve only strengthens, that we will not waver, that our support for Israel will grow. And that more and more and more faces will stand with us, in saying, 'Never back down to terrorists.' Israel needs to be stronger each and every day. So I'm happy to stand here with so many others, as we say, 'We support and stand with Israel and will continue to do that. Forever.'"

(Photo: Getty)

In one of the more memorable exchanges of tonight's final presidential debate, President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney clashed while discussing the focus of our military. After Mr. Romney attacked Mr. Obama over the size of the U.S. Navy and Air Force, Mr. Obama accused his Republican rival of being uneducated about "how our military works," quipping, "The question is not a game of Battleship where we're counting ships."

The discussion began when the candidates addressed military spending and the size of our deficit.

"We spend more on our military than the next ten countries combined," Mr. Obama contended after Mr. Romney went on the attack against the administration's debt accumulation. "What I did was work with our Joint Chiefs of Staff to think about what are we are going to need in the future to make sure we are safe. And that's the budget that we put forward....When it comes to our military, what we have to think about is not just budgets, but we've got to think about capabilities. We need to be thinking about cybersecurity, we need to be thinking about space. That's exactly what our budget does, but it's driven by strategy. It's not driven politics."

Mr. Romney, however, went into consultant mode and delivered a department-by-department critique of the military under President Obama's leadership.

"Our navy is smaller now than any time since 1917," Mr. Romney argued. "The Navy said they needed 313 ships to carry out their mission, we're now down now to 285. We're headed down to the low 200's if we go through the sequestration. That's unacceptable to me. I want to make sure we have the ships that are required by the Navy. Our air force is older and smaller than any time since it's been founded in 1947....This is in my view is the highest responsibility of the President of the United States, which is to maintain the safety of the American people."

In the condescending tone he took at many points during tonight's debate, Mr. Obama went on the counter-attack to say Mr. Romney has a fundamental misconception of how America's military might exert itself.

"I think Governor Romney maybe hasn't spent enough time looking at how our military works," the president said to his electoral foe. "You mentioned the navy, for example, and then we have fewer ships since 1916. Well, Governor, we also have fewer horses and bayonets because of the nature of our military spending. We have these things called aircraft carriers, where planes land on them. Ships that go underwater, nuclear submarines. The question is not a game of Battleship where we're counting ships."

Watch the video below, courtesy of BuzzFeed:

Hakeem Jeffries addressing the crowd.

At a town hall last night in Bed-Stuy, congressional candidates Hakeem Jeffries and Charles Barron gave their pitches and took questions, striking familiar themes: Mr. Jeffries portrayed himself as a serious legislator while Mr. Barron proclaimed his ability to help lead a national movement to change the country.

As the two competitors spoke at different times in different rooms, they never interacted or had the opportunity to have a fiery back-and-forth, as already happened on Inside City Hall. However, both candidates did take identical questions on foreign policy, "especially related around Africa and the Caribbean," and their responses showed an interesting yet unsurprising divergence.

"This is a very diverse district and so there are going to be different parts of the district that have significant foreign policy interests," Mr. Jeffries noted, adding that Africa was dear to the heart of many residents in places like Bed-Stuy, the Caribbean was important to Canarsie and Flatlands, and, unprompted, stressed the importance of Israel as well.

"In the southern part of the district you have people who are rightfully concerned with making sure America continues its strong 60 year partnership and friendship with the State of Israel," he continued. "So there's a variety of foreign policy interests that are going to be important to the next member of Congress."

Israel, of course, has been a topic of high contention in this election. Indeed, yesterday morning, a coalition of elected officials gathered to denounce Mr. Barron's views on the subject in the harshest terms.

Accordingly, Mr. Barron did not bring up the country when asked about Africa and the Caribbean.

"Well that's going to be my Number One," he said. "And I thank you about that because some people want to talk about other countries."

Mr. Barron went on to speak at some length about the problems affecting Africa, while continuing to defend the record of leaders like Muammar Gaddafi and Robert Mugabe, something he's been criticized for in the past as he used to be an outspoken defendant of their regimes.

"The global economy is trouble and it all starts with Africa and the Caribbean and Latin America for me," he concluded.

After the candidate forum, we asked Mr. Jeffries if he felt some of the heavy rhetoric his supporters used against Mr. Barron on the Israel issue was appropriate. Among other things, Mr. Barron was called a "snake," "monster" and "anti-Semite" at yesterday's event.

"He's not a shy, bashful individual, I'm sure he will have the capacity to defend his record," Mr. Jeffries responded, adding, when pressed, "You're going to have to ask Councilman Barron that question."

Watch below:

For example, earlier today, Mr. Lancman held a press conference calling on the U.S. Department of State to change its policies and allow its passports to recognize the country of Israel as a birthplace for citizens born in Jerusalem

"Israel is a key part of this race. A big part of a Congress Member's responsibility is to help shape foreign policy for this country," Mr. Lancman told The Politicker after the event. "Where one stands on Israel, what one's record on Israel has been, and what one's vision is for a strong U.S.-Israel relationship, I think is going to be a big part of the primary and a big part of the general election."

"I think voters who care about Israel -- and many good voters in this district do, of all faiths -- are going to see that I'm someone who has done the hard work and is best positioned to be an advocate for a strong U.S.-Israel relationship," he later added.

Mr. Lancman isn't the only candidate in the race devoting a large portion of their campaign's messaging to the topic of Israel's security. Councilman Dan Halloran and Assemblywoman Grace Meng both declared their strong support for Israel in their campaign announcements.

The focus on Israel is interesting, as the district is more heavily Asian-American than anything else, but foreign policy-minded Jewish voters are considered an electorally significant swing constituency and the race is likely to see more plenty more events held in front of Jewish congregations like today.

Watch Mr. Lancman make his announcement and field questions afterwards below:

Dan Halloran holding a Paul campaign sign. (Photo: Facebook)

Councilman Dan Halloran has an interesting dilemma.

On one hand, he declared his campaign for congress with a laser-like focus on strengthening the United States' relationship with Israel and the Democratic-leaning Queens district's Jewish voters. On the other hand, he's a prominent local supporter of Ron Paul, who opposes foreign intervention.

Mr. Paul's beliefs, of course, are hardly consistent with what pro-Israel American politicians typically advocate. For example, he has said Israel should be left to its own devices if Iran attacks it.

After Mr. Halloran's campaign announcement yesterday, the Queens Tribune's Ross Barkan asked him about this apparent inconsistency. He responded by saying he's on record having opposed Mr. Paul's foreign policy views.

"Ron and I have been at odds about Israel for a long time, it's very public, it's all over my Facebook, I've made numerous comments," he said. "Look, Ron is great on domestic issues, I fully support the notions he has on the domestic agenda."

Mr. Halloran went on to aggressively define the need to defend Israel from Iran.

"Israel is our most important ally in the Middle East, it's the only secure democracy in the Middle East, and more importantly than that, ... Israel stands 1,100 miles away from Iran and the potential for a nuclear threat," he continued. "There is nothing I would like to see more than to make sure Iran is neutralized and will not be a threat to that country who stood with us over the years in every respect."

Watch Mr. Halloran make his comments below:

Assemblyman Rory Lancman announcing his Congressional campaign

Announcing his campaign for an open eastern Queens Congressional seat this afternoon, Democratic Assemblyman Rory Lancman started laying the groundwork for his campaign's messaging. In addition to the standard political stance of fighting for middle class families, Mr. Lancman heavily emphasized issues of counterterrorism and safety, likely an attempt to appeal to foreign-policy minded Jewish voters in the district.

Even the campaign signs being waved by the crowd resembled the Israeli flag.

"As an Assemblyman, I wrote the law that protects authors and journalists, who expose terrorists," he noted early on in his speech.

"I wrote the law that protects citizens 'who see something and say something' from harassing lawsuits," he said as well, later adding, "And I wrote the law requiring the state to focus on the anti-terrorism security needs of New York's non-profit institutions, to keep us all safe, especially communities of faith."

Two other Democratic candidates have also announced their intentions to campaign for the seat: Assemblywoman Grace Meng and Councilwoman Liz Crowley. Earlier today, Ms. Meng received the formal endorsement of the Queens County Democratic Party.

Watch Mr. Lancman announce his campaign below:

"Afghanistan was once the center of the terrorist threat to America. That is no longer the case. ... Our nation has done its duty. After 6,000 lives lost and more than $1 trillion spent, it is time to bring our brave troops home." Mr. Huntsman said.

Mr. Huntsman may be ready to begin the process of  war in Afghanistan, but he seems to be spoiling for a fight in Iran. In his New Hampshire speech, Mr. Hunstman expressed his willingness to make a pre-emptive strike if Iran obtained nuclear weapons.

"I cannot live with a nuclear-armed Iran. If you want an example of when I would use American force, it would be that,” Mr. Huntsman said.

Mr. Huntsman, the former governor of Utah, has made foreign policy experience a cornerstone of his campaign. From 2009 until the end of April, he served as President Obama's ambassador to China. He was the U.S. Ambassador to Singapore during the administration of President George Bush. In a new campaign ad released today entitled "Foreign Policy Experience Matters," Mr. Hunstman touted his experiences abroad, fluency in Mandarin and the daughters he adopted from China and India as evidence of his White House qualifications.

"I think it's gonna be very, very important  to have somebody who understands the complex and confusing nature of our world, because it isn't getting any easier and to have someone who's actually been in the world and understands something of it and knows America's role in it, those three elements I think altogether are gonna be very important in the next leader," Mr. Hunstman said in the ad.

Mr. Huntsman currently ranks dead last in the Republican field according to polls conducted by ABC News and the Washington Post, CBS News, Quinnipiac and Pew Research.