The purpose of this study was to describe, analyze and evaluate the rhetorical strategies within Golda Meir's address to the Council of Jewish Federations on January 21, 1948. Using a critical construct that combined Kenneth Burke's concepts of rhetorical strategy and identification, the study provided insight into how Meir created bonds with her audience that heightened her rhetorical effectiveness. Three rhetorical strategies and two intrinsic factors which promoted identification were evident. Based on the success of these strategies to overcome the many obstacles presented by the rhetorical situation, and the response of her audience, it seemed that Meir's rhetoric motivated the Council to move from apathy to advocacy.