Romney courts supporters of Israel

“In pursuit of a peace process, the United States today has exerted substantial pressure on Israel while putting almost no pressure on the Palestinians and the Arab world,’’ Romney told the American Israel Public Affairs Committee national summit in San Diego.

Obama has been pushing for a renewal of negotiations toward a comprehensive peace deal between Israel and the Palestinian Authority - and has been pressuring Israel to stop expanding settlements on the West Bank.

But Romney, possible 2012 contender for the GOP presidential nomination, said US policy should recognize that America and Israel are “bound together by common commitments and shared values.’’

“We can encourage both parties in the conflict, but we must never forget which one is our ally,’’ the former Massachusetts governor said. “Nor must we forget that Hamas, like other violent jihadists, does not have a two-state solution as its objective - it has the conquest and annihilation of Israel as its objective.’’

Romney also urged a hard line against Iran’s nuclear ambitions and warned against negotiating too freely.

“The Iranian regime is unalloyed evil, run by people who are at once ruthless and fanatical,’’ he said. “Stop thinking that a charm offensive will talk the Iranians out of their pursuit of nuclear weapons.’’ -- GLOBE STAFF

A White House report said preliminary data show that money from a $787 billion stimulus package has helped states fill budget gaps that would have cost teachers their jobs in school districts and public universities across the country.

The 250,000 figure is significantly higher than the 30,000 jobs the administration said last week were created or saved by businesses that won federal contracts under the stimulus law. It also represents an early preview of jobs numbers being announced in two weeks associated with education spending and federal grants awarded under the stimulus effort. -- ASSOCIATED PRESS

Obama and his wife, Michelle, made an early-morning trip yesterday to the private Sidwell Friends School for parent-teachers conferences. It was at least the fourth time that he has visited the school since moving to Washington in January.

Malia, 11, is a sixth-grader at the school’s District of Columbia campus. Sister Sasha, 8, attends third grade at the Bethesda, Md., campus.

Later yesterday, the president visited a Maryland school to congratulate the students and teachers on their hard work. Obama stopped by Viers Mill Elementary School outside Washington, which receives federal poverty aid and has been celebrated for closing the achievement gap between minority children and other students. Obama said he came to Viers Mill because it is “a great example of how much improvement a school can make.’’ -- ASSOCIATED PRESS

Join The Impact announced yesterday that the protest will focus on the “don’t ask, don’t tell’’ policy that bans gays from serving openly in the military and the Defense of Marriage Act, which defines marriage as between a man and a woman.

Obama campaigned on overturning both, but has taken little substantive action as he focuses on health care and other issues.

Gay-rights advocates are urging the president to sign an executive order to halt the discharge of gay service members, and are calling on him to stop defending the marriage law in court, as it is doing in a Massachusetts case.

“We’ll be sending a strong message to President Obama that his self-proclaimed title of ‘fierce advocate’ for the LGBT community actually requires advocating on our issues,’’ Paul Sousa, co-chairman of Join The Impact, said in a statement. -- GLOBE STAFF