He should not have asked to hold a lighting ceremony which would have turned it into a religious celebration. The airport wanted to avoid a costly legal battle.
We should all pause and put ourselves in the position of the Airport Chief. Any kind of lawsuit...is a bad position to be in. To have some idiot threaten a Xmas tree lawsuit...in December...makes your position and your airport a very open target. After a pause of 24 hours to reflect upon the situation...I would have came to the very same conclusion. I don't need a unnecessary lawsuit...I don't need negative press...and I don't need a Xmas legal battle. End of the story.
The rabbi...now looks like a huge fool...and the holiday gestopo legal police...can't find any position to stand on because this won't be discussed till after January. It is a sad day when this kind of event occurs...and the best position...is to take down the trees. But we'd all arrive at the same position.