Good Tuesday morning. In today's Daily Kickoff, we report on last night's meeting between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Donald Trump, and cover the National Education Association's recent passage of a measure banning coordination with the Anti-Defamation League. We look at concerns from Jewish community security groups and congressional Democrats over plans to shrink the Department of Homeland Security's Office of Intelligence and Analysis, and spotlight Pepperdine University's new Middle East policy graduate program, which is being launched in partnership with The Washington Institute for Near East Policy. Also in today's Daily Kickoff: Sam Altman, Effie Phillips-Staley and Amb. Tom Barrack. Spread the word! Invite your friends to sign up.π |
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- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Washington trip continues today. He's slated to meet with Vice President JD Vance, and will head to Capitol Hill later this morning for meetings with House and Senate leadership, including Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD), Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA).
- Elsewhere on the Hill, the Senate Armed Services Committee's subcommittees continue their markups of the NDAA.
- In Sun Valley, Idaho, the annual Allen & Co. gathering formally kicks off today. Look out for the paparazzi photos of vest- and fleece-wearing tech and media moguls arriving at the Sun Valley Lodge.
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A QUICK WORD WITH JI'S MARC ROD |
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's third visit to Washington since the start of the Trump presidency kicked off Monday with closed-door meetings with President Donald Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff. Trump and Netanyahu were on warm terms during remarks to the press ahead of their dinner. Netanyahu offered effusive praise for Trump for the U.S. strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities and said he nominated Trump for a Nobel Peace Prize, as well as following Trump's lead in expressing openness to the new Syrian government. Trump, for his part, deferred to Netanyahu on a question about a two-state solution. "We'll work out a peace with our Palestinian neighbors, those who don't want to destroy us," Netanyahu said. "I think the Palestinians should have all the powers to govern themselves, but none of the powers to threaten us. That means that certain powers like overall security will always remain in our hands. Now that is a fact and no one in Israel will agree to anything else because we don't commit suicide." White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters earlier in the day that Trump's "utmost priority … is to end the war in Gaza and return all of the hostages" and that Trump and Netanyahu would discuss "peace in Gaza and ending that conflict." But that agenda item saw little discussion in Trump and Netanyahu's public remarks. Asked about talks with Hamas, Trump instead spoke about Iran. A senior Israeli official in Netanyahu's delegation told reporters following the Trump-Netanyahu meeting that a deal to end the Gaza war is not on the table because "Hamas is not responsive to the conditions that would allow a comprehensive agreement," such as demilitarization for Gaza and exile for remaining Hamas leaders, the senior official explained. Without those conditions, "Hamas could do [the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks] again." More on this from JI's Lahav Harkov here. At the same time, the differences between the two leaders' comments on potential further strikes on Iran indicated a possible point of friction in the future. Asked about further strikes, Trump said he "can't imagine wanting to do that" and maintained that Iran's nuclear program had been "knocked out completely." Trump added, "I think they want to make peace and I'm all for it," while also suggesting that there is no need for negotiations or a deal, saying "What's the purpose of talking?" He said that the U.S. is "ready, willing and able" if further strikes are necessary, "but I don't think we're going to have to be." Read the rest of 'What You Should Know' here. |
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Trump-Netanyahu bromance returns with Nobel Peace Prize nomination |
ANDREW HARNIK/GETTY IMAGES |
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu greeted President Donald Trump in the White House Monday evening with effusive warmth, expressing the "appreciation and admiration" of Israel, the Jewish people and "the leadership of the free world" for the U.S.' recent bombing campaign against Iran's nuclear facilities. He also offered Trump an avenue toward his elusive goal: receiving a Nobel Peace Prize, Jewish Insider's Gabby Deutch reports. Prize goals: "He is forging peace as we speak, in one country and one region after the other. So I want to present you, Mr. President, the letter I sent to the Nobel Prize Committee," Netanyahu announced, saying it would be a "well-deserved" honor for Trump. "Coming from you in particular, this is very meaningful," Trump said. "It's a great honor." Read the full story here. Notable quotable: U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Thomas Barrack, who is serving as special envoy to Syria, said on Monday that Hezbollah could have a future in Lebanese politics, despite the organization's designation by the U.S. State Department as a Foreign Terrorist Organization, Jewish Insider's Jake Schlanger reports. "Hezbollah is a political party. It also has a militant aspect to it," Barrack said at a press conference on Monday morning in Beirut, following a meeting with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun. "Hezbollah needs to see that there is a future for them, that the road is not not harnessed just solely against them, and that there's an intersection of peace and prosperity for them also." |
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As teachers unions target ADL and oppose antisemitism bill, Jewish educators sound the alarm |
KRISTOFFER TRIPPLAAR/SIPA VIA AP IMAGES |
A grassroots campaign urging educators to stop using teaching materials from the Anti-Defamation League reached the highest levels of K-12 education over the weekend. Inside a packed conference hall in Portland, Ore., the thousands of delegates who make up the governing body of the National Education Association — the largest teachers union in the country — passed a measure that bars the union from using, endorsing or publicizing any materials from the ADL, Jewish Insider's Gabby Deutch reports. School ties: The NEA's adoption of a measure targeting the leading Jewish civil rights organization may be an escalation, but it is only the most recent example of antisemitism — and divisive politics surrounding the war in Gaza — spilling into K-12 education, and teachers unions in particular. Just this week, the largest teachers union in California, a 300,000-person NEA affiliate, published a letter urging state senators to vote against a bill focused on fighting and preventing antisemitism. In May, the state assembly voted unanimously to approve the bill. But the bill's fate is now in jeopardy as senators face pressure from one of the state's most powerful unions to reject it. Read the full story here. Case closed: Barnard College reached a settlement on Monday in a lawsuit brought by Jewish students which claimed that the school violated Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by failing to address antisemitism, Jewish Insider's Haley Cohen reports. |
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Pepperdine, Washington Institute launch Middle East policy graduate program |
As the federal government continues its battles with dozens of colleges over campus antisemitism, the field of Middle East studies has been particularly scrutinized for advancing a one-sided, anti-Israel curriculum contributing to a rise of hostility towards the Jewish state in the classroom and beyond. Aiming to address that bias, Pepperdine University's School of Public Policy will launch a new Middle East Policy Studies master's program this fall. The tuition-free, fully accredited, two-year master's program on Pepperdine's D.C. campus is a partnership with The Washington Institute for Near East Policy. It will be funded solely by American citizens — unlike many similar university programs that take foreign funds, Jewish Insider's Haley Cohen reports. Seeking balance: The program comes as critics of the field have long alleged that it imparts to students a one-sided history of the Middle East in which Israel is a perpetual villain, particularly since the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas terrorist attacks. "We wouldn't be in these conversations had it not been revealed what's been happening on college campuses since Oct. 7," Pete Peterson, dean of Pepperdine's public policy school, told JI. Read the full story here. |
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Jewish groups, congressional Democrats raise concerns about DHS intelligence cuts |
JIM WATSON/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES |
Jewish community security groups and congressional Democrats are raising concerns about the Department of Homeland Security's plans to slash 75% of the staff for the department's Office of Intelligence and Analysis (I&A), Jewish Insider's Marc Rod reports. What they're saying: I&A plays a role in collecting and disseminating to local law enforcement and private partners intelligence to counter threats including terrorism and foreign adversaries. But the office has also faced criticism from various fronts in recent years. "Hollowing out the office risks leaving the homeland dangerously exposed to these threats, especially at a time when the FBI's budget is being substantially reduced," top congressional Democrats said. A coalition of Jewish groups said, "We are deeply concerned that any wholesale changes to the operations of I&A will have an adverse effect on countering antisemitism and ensuring the safety of the Jewish community in the United States." Read the full story here. | |
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Effie Phillips-Staley plays to progressive base as she targets Rep. Mike Lawler |
Effie Phillips-Staley, running on a progressive platform in the crowded Democratic field looking to unseat Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) in a swing congressional district, is taking a firm stance against the U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran's nuclear program, even as she has expressed concern about Iran's nuclear ambitions, Jewish Insider's Marc Rod reports. Positioning: "For the leader of the free world to decide to strike Iran based on Fox News coverage and without deliberation or the approval of Congress is alarming and unprecedented," she said in a statement to JI on Monday, a position shared by many congressional Democrats. "We cannot have a nuclear armed Iran under any circumstances and Congress must hold this President accountable by upholding the War Powers Act and requiring a full diplomatic process." Despite her criticisms of the Iran strikes, Phillips-Staley has otherwise not embraced elements of the left-wing policy agenda that have alienated Jewish voters. Read the full story here. Blast from the past: Former Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney (D-NY) is mulling entering the crowded Democratic primary in New York's 17th Congressional District after falling short in his 2022 matchup against Lawler. |
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New legal report by Israeli NGO finds systematic use of sexual violence by Hamas on Oct. 7 |
A report released by The Dinah Project on Tuesday that seeks to "set the record straight" on the sexual assaults that occurred during the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks on southern Israel found that the terror group systematically used sexual violence as a tactical weapon of war, acts that the report argues constitute crimes against humanity. The study, which was led by legal and feminist experts and has been compiled into a book, offers a new evidentiary and legal framework to prosecute such crimes as its authors call on international bodies to hold the perpetrators accountable, Jewish Insider's Tamara Zieve reports for eJewishPhilanthropy. The painful truth: The 80-page report, "A Quest for Justice: October 7 and Beyond," is described by its authors as the most comprehensive legal analysis to date of the sexual and gender-based crimes committed during the-Hamas led attacks, and afterwards against hostages in captivity. It argues that the acts of sexual violence committed constitute crimes against humanity and that the acts were not isolated, but deliberate, widespread and systematic. The authors call for the development of a new legal protocol to handle cases of sexual violence in armed conflicts. The report was presented on Tuesday to Israeli First Lady Michal Herzog at a press event at the President's Residence in Jerusalem. "The report presents the truth as it is — shocking, painful, but necessary. On behalf of all those who were affected, we are committed to continuing to fight until their cry is heard everywhere and until justice is done," Herzog said. Read the full story here and sign up for eJewishPhilanthropy's Your Daily Phil newsletter here. |
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Bringing Harvard to Heel: The New York Times' Stephanie Saul and Steven Rich look at how Harvard's fiscal ties to China, which boosted its giving to the school following the 2008 recession that significantly impacted Harvard's financial stability, have contributed to the Trump administration's legal battles targeting the Ivy League school. "Now Harvard's ties with China are coming back to haunt the university. Those connections were forged when Harvard was more financially vulnerable and when much of the foreign policy establishment believed that higher education could play a part in pushing America's democratic ideals to China and the rest of the world. But American foreign policy has turned sharply hawkish against China, and even though Harvard has steadily reduced its ties there, the Trump administration has made the relationship another line of attack in its broader effort to bring the university to heel." [NYTimes] What Mamdani Means: The Wall Street Journal's Gerard Baker considers how New York City Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani's primary success underscores the present political climate that allows more extreme positions and views to take hold. "But while we may mock the radicalism of Mr. Mamdani and his fellow socialists seemingly on the rise in the Democratic Party, I see in the man's appeal, his evident popularity among a certain type of young voter especially, more signs of the continuing crack-up of American politics. Many Republicans like to think that the extremism represented by the likes of Mr. Mamdani and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is a signal of the Democrats' growing irrelevance and unelectability. But his ascent — provisional though it may still be — is more likely a reflection of the fissures that continue to stretch our national cohesion than some proof of the marginalized nature of Donald Trump's opponents." [WSJ] Alarmed in Algeria: The Financial Times' Heba Saleh and Leila Abboud report on how the shifting dynamics and power structures across the Middle East and North Africa — including Israel's warming ties with Morocco — have affected Algeria. "Algerian leaders feel surrounded by hostile forces, with Morocco, Israel and the United Arab Emirates all increasing their influence in the region, analysts say. Algiers has also fallen out with France, the former colonial power and a key partner. … Staunchly pro-Palestinian Algiers has been particularly riled by the Moroccan normalisation deal with Israel, which was the price Rabat paid for US recognition of its sovereignty over Western Sahara. It is also wary of Israeli-Moroccan military co-operation." [FT] |
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President Donald Trump overruled Pentagon policy chief Elbridge Colby in calling for a restoration of weapons to Ukraine, one week after the Defense Department announced a holdup of arms earmarked for the country; "We have to, they have to be able to defend themselves," Trump said in his Monday meeting with Netanyahu... The Senate Foreign Relations Committee will hold a confirmation hearing next week for former National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, the Trump administration's nominee to be U.S. ambassador to the U.N.… The U.S. revoked the Foreign Terrorist Organization designation of Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham, the militant group led by Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa that overthrew the Assad regime last year… Syrian media reports that Syrian President Ahmed al‑Sharaa met an Israeli official on Monday in Abu Dhabi during his official visit to the United Arab Emirates; the reports named Israeli National Security Advisor Tzachi Hanegbi as the official, but Hanegbi is said to be in Washington as part of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's delegation... The IRS, in a new court filing, said it will allow places of worship to endorse political candidates, exempting them from a law prohibiting tax-exempt organizations from engaging in political activity… eJewishPhilanthropy's Nira Dayanim looks at how Jewish organizations in central Texas are mobilizing to assist in relief and recovery efforts following storms and flash floods that have killed more than 100 people across the region… A federal court in Massachusetts heard opening arguments on Monday in a lawsuit brought against the Trump administration by two faculty associations over the government's targeting of noncitizen U.S. residents who have espoused or engaged in anti-Israel activity that could be seen as supporting Hamas… The Wall Street Journal reports on the support that New York City Mayor Eric Adams is receiving from city real estate executives following Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani's victory over former Gov. Andrew Cuomo last month… OpenAI CEO Sam Altman described himself in a recent social media post as "politically homeless"; addressing Mamdani's recent suggestion that billionaires shouldn't exist, Altman said he would "rather hear from candidates about how they are going to make everyone have the stuff billionaires have instead of how they are going to eliminate billionaires"... Mubadala Capital, a subsidiary of Abu Dhabi-based sovereign wealth fund Mubadala Investment Company, hired Ophir Shmuel as its new head of business development, The Circuit reports… U.K.-based American stand-up comic Reginald Hunter appeared in a London court to face charges for sending offensive, antisemitic messages on multiple occasions to an organizer of the city's hostage-awareness events… Five IDF soldiers were killed and more than a dozen injured when an explosive detonated in the northern Gaza city of Beit Hanoun; four of the soldiers killed were members of the army's Haredi "Netzah Yehuda" battalion… Iran has expelled more than 800,000 Afghans since March, the majority of whom were forced to leave the country in the last five weeks amid a crackdown on undocumented individuals in the Islamic Republic… Two people were injured and two others are missing following a Houthi attack on a Liberian-flagged ship transiting through the Red Sea; the attack came a day after the crew of a second Liberian-flagged vessel was forced to abandon ship following an attack believed to have been conducted by the Houthis… Psychoanalyst Dr. Anna Ornstein, who as a teenager survived the Holocaust and would go on to pioneer a school of thought in her field that prioritized empathy, died at 98… Playwright Ronald Ribman died at 82… |
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MENAHEM KAHANA/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES |
Imams and Muslim community leaders from France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy and the U.K. visited Israel's Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial Museum in Jerusalem on Tuesday as part of a trip focused on coexistence that also included a meeting with Israeli President Isaac Herzog. |
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Israeli film director, producer and researcher, Eyal Boers turns 50... Retired in 2016 after 26 years as executive director of the Baltimore Jewish Council, Arthur "Art" Abramson turns 77... Democratic candidate for president of the U.S. in 2020 and 2024, Marianne Deborah Williamson turns 73... Mayor of Farmington Hills, Mich., until 2023, she is a former member of the Michigan House of Representatives, Vicki Barnett turns 71... Attorney and Democratic politician from Texas, Barbara Ann Radnofsky turns 69... Attorney and a former U.S. ambassador to Belgium in the Obama administration, Howard Gutman turns 69... Partner of the global law firm Dentons, when he was elected attorney general of Georgia in 2010 (and reelected in 2014) he became the first Jewish person to win statewide office in Georgia, Samuel Scott Olens turns 68... Former member of Knesset who had served as Israel's foreign minister, justice minister, agriculture minister and housing minister, Tziporah Malka "Tzipi" Livni turns 67... Retired rabbi at Temple Emanuel in Beaumont, Texas, Rabbi Joshua Samuel Taub... Co-president of Rochester, N.Y.-based Hahn Automotive Warehouse, he is on the board of governors of the Jewish Federation of Greater Rochester, Eli N. Futerman... SVP and COO of New York's Jewish Communal Fund, Marina W. Lewin... Former Washington bureau chief of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Ron Kampeas turns 65... Consultant strategist, policy advisor and writer, he served as corporate counsel to Allstate Insurance for 28 years, Steven Richard Sheffey turns 65... Writer, television producer, ventriloquist and puppeteer, Mallory Hurwitz Tarcher Lewis turns 63... Managing partner at DGA's Albright Stonebridge Group, Dan K. Rosenthal turns 59... Former ice hockey player, her three sons were seventh, first and fourth picks overall, respectively, in the 2018, 2019 and 2021 NHL Drafts, Ellen Weinberg-Hughes turns 57... Higher education reporter for The Wall Street Journal, Douglas Belkin... New York City comptroller, Brad Lander turns 56... Managing director of investor relations for Harbor Group International, Meir Raskas... EVP of the Atlantic Council, Jenna H. Ben-Yehuda... Atlanta-based educator, activist and writer, Robbie Medwed... Sports journalist, known for his coverage of mixed martial arts and professional wrestling, Ariel Jacob Helwani turns 43... Senior legal counsel at Horizons Law and Consulting, Alon Sachar... Policy and communications consultant, Stefanie Feldman... Diplomatic correspondent at the Jerusalem Post and i24NEWS, Amichai Stein... |
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