The president-elect's margin of victory over John McCain in the Jewish community was even higher than Democratic pollsters predicted.
Obama tapped Rahm Emanuel, an Illinois congressman who volunteered in the IDF during the 1991 Gulf War, to be his chief of staff.
"This night is indeed different from all other nights," said the director of the United Jewish Communities Washington office.
In Washington, the pair discussed the possibility of diplomatic outreach to Iran to stall their nuclear weapons program.
In a wide-ranging address that touched upon topics such as America’s history with Muslims, the U.S. wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the need for democracy, Obama identified the Israeli-Arab conflict as a source of major tension in the region.
Joined by German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Elie Wiesel, Obama called the former concentration camp the "ultimate rebuke" to Holocaust deniers.
Some Israelis were insulted by a photo of Obama talking on the phone with his feet on his office table -- since the president was speaking with Netanyahu at the time.
Many pro-Israel groups had issues with Obama's decision to give Robinson, a former UN commissioner who was behind the controversial Durban conference against racism, the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
The chairman of the Nobel committee cited Obama’s push for Mideast peace in awarding him the prestigious honor.
Reports claimed that Netanyahu was forced to enter the White House through a back door and that Obama left their meeting to eat dinner with his family. Israel's ambassador Michael Oren said the reports were completely false.
