Reuven Rivlin, the speaker of Israel’s Parliament for the last 10 years, has been chosen by his colleagues in the Knesset to succeed Shimon Peres as Israel’s 10th president. Rivlin is not well known on the international scene, but he has an impressive legislative and political record at home. A native of Jerusalem, Rivlin has been a veteran member of the center-right Likud party. He first was elected to the Knesset in 1988 and rose to the speakership after the 2003 elections.   He is generally regarded as a fair speaker pleasing and displeasing both the left and the right. He didn’t gain popularity by resisting the expulsion of an Arab lawmaker who joined an anti-Israel flotilla that sought to break the siege of Gaza. He also resisted removal of the pension of a former lawmaker who fled Israel and assisted Hezbollah during the 2006 Second Lebanon War against Israel. Rivlin opposed then-Prime Minister Ariel...(Read Full Post)