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[youtube width="624" height="351"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z99flgEyzNc[/youtube] CJPAC held its annual ACTION party lat night at Toronto’s Royal Conservatory of Music and those in attendance were treated to a surprise appearance from Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper. Now in its 5th year, the sold-out party was brimming with more than 800 young Jewish professionals who had the unique opportunity to rub elbows with Canadian politicians of all stripes from municipal, provincial and federal. And while the formula was similar to previous ACTION parties, Prime Minister Harper’s appearance elevated this year’ event to a new level. For CJPAC (Canadian Jewish Political Affairs Committee), an organization with the mandate of educating and involving the Jewish community in political issues, a speaking engagement from the Prime Minister is a major coup. And, as always, when speaking about Israel and other matters of interest to a Jewish audience, Prime Minister Harper did not disappoint. He again showed his support for Israel and his disdain for those who seek its destruction. Along with Harper’s speech, the party itself was another successful event. The ACTION party has become one of the hottest events in Toronto but how well that translates to involvement from the attendees is still unknown. Since its founding 6 years ago by two of Shalom Life’s Top 20 Under 40 Honorees, Jonathan Bloomberg and Bram Belzberg, CJPAC has grown significantly, but with such a strong, positive mandate, one feels that the organization should be heard from more often than once a year. But like politics itself, it’s not what happens in the public that matters, it’s what happens behind closed doors, and hopefully this is where CJPAC is doing its finest work. Article Credit to Shalom Life: http://www.shalomlife.com/eng/14836/Prime_Minister_Harper_Makes_Surprise_Appearance_at_ACTION_Party/ Michael Ignatieff – Leader of the official opposition [vimeo width="652" height="351"]http://www.vimeo.com/21109609[/vimeo] [slickr-flickr tag="CJPAC"]