Prime Minister Ehud Olmert told more than 235 new North American new immigrants (olim) several minutes that ago, "You guys come from America, but what you do not know is that America is not there--it is here." He explained that he was referring to the Israeli economy, which he said has grown more than five percent annually the past five years.
He told the crowd that although they did not come home to Israel because of economic prospects, they should discard the image that the United States is more prosperous than Israel.