Shabbat shalom! And a tip of the kippah this week to President Biden, who made a great personal sacrifice by putting the country before politics. More on that later, but what a week!
The news keeps coming hard and fast, as though the whole world is on some kind of cocaine binge and doing a whirling dervish dance that only Hunter Thompson and his attorney, Dr. Gonzo, could begin to appreciate. Let’s just hope we don’t crash too hard when this week’s news party is over.
Here is just a short list of what happened last week:
- On Sunday, the President of the United States issued a statement from his beach house saying he was dropping out of the race, which was a moment right out of William Shakespeare’s King Lear. This is good news for the country, on many fronts, and a relief to know we won’t be subjected to any more of Hunter’s dick pics.
- The same Sunday, by the way, was the hottest day ever recorded on the planet (probably a coincidence?)
- We had the news of what tragically stays the same: The hostages continue to languish in the tunnels of Gaza. The death count of Palestinians in Gaza approaches by most estimates 40,000, although those numbers are squishy at best and do not distinguish between combatants and non-combatants.
- And while the world burns, and a hostage deal finally progresses with the Knesset getting ready to take a fucking vacation, Bibi dithers and boards a plane to Washington.
- Then on Wednesday, Nut-and-yahoo delivers that speech to Congress in the afternoon and Joe Biden, having recovered from COVID, if not from the trauma of facing the reality of confronting his fallen condition politically and mortally, goes before the nation and in a truly emotional speech tells the American people that he’ll step aside for Kamala Harris. Nearly everyone feels the emotional power of that speech except one person, the orange turd, who takes to Truth Social and declares with all the compassion he can muster (none) that Biden’s speech was “barely understandable”. What an a-hole.
I knew the moment Joe Biden staggered onto the debate stage like a hospice patient that couldn’t find his way to the bathroom, that the gig was up. The party hierarchs must have believed they could beat the orange turd with Biden, or as Bill Maher (who we saw last night in Boston) suggested, just Biden’s head in a jar of blue liquid. Then at the debate, even when Trump held a long conversation with himself (“sharks…shower heads…and the late, great Hannibal Lecter”), he still seemed more with it than Joe. Hence, Obama, Clinton and Pelosi sent George Clooney with the hatchet job to let Joe know that the bucks stopped there. And the rest is now history.
But, while I was an early advocate for an open convention to choose a new Dem for the top of the ticket, I am now a proud partisan supporting the coronation of Kamala, who in a short 100 day campaign, should be able to flush the orange turd once and for all!
The early hype and excitement around her candidacy has been palpable, probably helped by pent up demand for any other candidate not requiring hospice care, but, we’ll take it any way we can get it. In the week after Biden’s endorsement:
- Democrats have poured more than $100m in donations into Vice-President Kamala Harris’ presidential bid. And that tally was boosted by what her team calls a record 24-hour period of fundraising – $81m raised. During that timeframe, more than 888,000 people donated sums of up to $200 each, according to progressive donation platform ActBlue. Donors who had pulled back their funding over concerns about Mr Biden’s age have said they now intend to resume their support for the party.
- More than 28,000 volunteers signed up to help Kamala immediately after Sunday’s endorsement by Biden. And that enthusiasm is flowing to the down-ticket races as well. The day after Vice President Kamala Harris entered the race for the White House, Democratic Rep. Dan Kildee’s Michigan campaign office saw 650 people sign up to volunteer. The next night in Nevada, Rep. Steven Horsford had another 600 volunteers register in his Las Vegas-area district. Pennsylvania Rep. Madeleine Dean’s constituents were “fired up.” New Hampshire Rep. Annie Kuster felt “palpable” enthusiasm. And by week’s end, Illinois Rep. Jan Schakowsky’s team had 400 volunteers ready to “get on the bus” to campaign for Democrats in neighboring Michigan and Wisconsin.
Can Kamala win? Can she ride that enthusiasm along with a smile that looks like she could win “Queen for a Day”? I hope so. She showed a lot of political savvy closing her endorsement in short time. As one insider said, “But who knows if she can prevail in a campaign based largely on a letter of reference from the Clintons and all those temper tantrums to the effect that if she’s not given the nomination, she’ll take 100% of the black vote in 2024 and deliver it to Brother West’s Upper West Side revivalist tent, and swing the election to the Trump’s Hole-in-the Condo Gang. In politics, this is know as a ‘moral position’.” Shrewd yes, but it’s the way the game is played and if true, I would say she used her leverage effectively.
In this week’s post from Andrew Sullivan, a Never Trumper and usually clear-headed centrist and sane conservative voice on these matters, he reminded us of some of Kamala’s down sides, which there are clearly many. He portrays her as a “super woke” leftist, noting her positions on DEI, the border, BLM riots, and her pension for saying a lot with little substance. Frankly, let’s hope she can continue to do so, which is why it’s probably a good thing there are only 100 days to go. And personally, I hope she tacks more to the center than capitulating to the looney left in the party, the latter point being one of the contributing factors to the orange turds popularity.
As for Joe, let’s give him credit. Although he took longer to do the right thing, he did the right thing. And he did it with grace and dignity. In the end, Joe Biden’s drama and legacy will be judged based on what happens in November. If Kamala loses, I think Biden will be judged to have waited too long and should have stepped aside and have been, as promised, a bridge to the future and a one-term president. If Kamala wins, he’ll be seen as someone who selflessly stepped aside in the service of the nation, and the nation was rescued. Let’s pray, vote, and contribute for the latter.
Before I move on to Israel and the news for the Jews, a quick call-out to an organization I was introduce to by our cousins Robin and Ari. Right after Sunday’s Biden endorsement of Kamala, I made a symbolic donation to her campaign via a link from one of the countless and annoying text messages and emails I received. The donation was processed by Act Blue, which is the major clearinghouse and processing organization for most Democratic candidates and causes. But going forward, and I recommend this to all who lean Democrat, I will donate via Force Multiplier, a super organization that makes sure your donations are applied to the most optimal races in the country. Their mantra: Flip the House, Hold the Senate, and get out the vote! “Force Multiplier does the research so you don’t have to.”
Now for Bibi. Or as some Israelis refer to him as, “The Republican Senator from Jerusalem”. JNR readers know that I am no fan of Nut-and-yahoo, who has done an abysmal job leading Israel during this war, now taking place on multiple fronts. His policies were a major factor in Hamas committing mass butchery and for someone who is known as a great communicator, he has done an awful job dealing with the international community and social media, which now portray Israel as a pariah nation. His treatment of hostage families has been just awful, as I have heard from many insiders that the families have had little to no access to him and his ministers, some even saying that they had easier and better access to the German Chancellor than to Bibi or anyone in his cabinet in the days and weeks immediately following October 7. Just shameful.
And Bibi got slammed by most of Israel for the timing of his presentation to the joint session of Congress, coming as it did while a hostage deal was on the table, a deal that even the IDF and most of the security chiefs support. But, I give him kudos for delivering a decent speech. This was Bibi’s record-breaking 4th time presenting to this esteemed body, besting Winston Churchill for the honor. And as usual, he used his masterful communication skills effectively, even if most of the content was old tropes he has used many times before. Despite the heavy regurgitation, the major messages, in my humble opinion, were on point, and a history lesson for the younger generations was needed and welcomed.
Tall steel barriers ringed the Capitol leading up to his speech, and police deployed pepper spray as thousands of protesters rallied, denouncing Netanyahu as a “war criminal” and calling for a ceasefire. Netanyahu argued that, “Incredibly, many anti-Israel protesters, many choose to stand with evil. They stand with Hamas. They stand with rapists and murderers.”
Capitol police forcibly removed from the chamber six relatives of hostages who disrupted the speech. “I couldn’t take it anymore,” one told The Times of Israel. Added Jon Polin, the father of Israeli American hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin: “I came here wanting to hear one sentence: ‘Today I announce that the hostages are coming home,’ and I didn’t hear that once.”
Roughly 70 Democrats from the House and Senate boycotted Netanyahu’s speech, based on statements from those doing so and a rough head count of those in the audience. Netanyahu’s last speech to a joint session of Congress in 2015 saw 58 Democrats boycott.
The only bit of news I could garner from the content was the few bits on his view of “the day after” plan, which he has carefully avoided for far too long. To some degree, it seems like what he has in mind for the so-called day after is roughly the “West Bankization” of Gaza, post-Second Intifada, which is to say the neutralization of any fighting force there, despite the fact that some will persist. The day after Hamas is defeated a new Gaza can emerge, he said. “My vision for that day is for a demilitarized and deradicalized Gaza.”
He said Israel “does not seek to resettle Gaza,” but must maintain overall security control for the foreseeable future to make sure Gaza never again poses a threat to it. Gaza should have a civilian administration run by Palestinians who don’t seek to destroy Israel, he said. “That’s not too much to ask.”
Frankly, that sounds reasonable to me, and perhaps a step toward a two state solution, which most Israeli’s think is now beyond comprehension, given recent events and all of history. It will likely take a generation or two to really deradicalize Gaza, but we know it is possible based on the success of Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries that have done so.
What about the rest of the news for the Jews across the Jew S of A and the rest of the world? Here is your skillfully selected sampling of semitic stories taken from the likes of The Forward, Haaretz, Kveller, Jewish Boston, Times of Israel, and other fine Jewy journals:
- The latest on the war…
- The Israel Defense Forces on Saturday morning issued fresh evacuation orders to Palestinians in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, including in sections of the Israeli-designated humanitarian zone, citing intelligence that Hamas terrorists were operating in the area. Shortly following the orders, the IDF said a jet had targeted a Hamas command center in a school in central Gaza’s Deir al-Balah. Hamas said at least 31 people had been killed in the strike.
- Israel’s military said it discovered evidence of the polio virus in sewage in Gaza, “a reminder that nine months of war have unleashed threats beyond bombs and bullets,” reports The Wall Street Journal.
- A survivor of the Hamas massacre at the Nova music festival said he was raped during the attack, the first time a male victim has publicly described such sexual crimes.
- “Several major labor unions on Tuesday called on President Joe Biden to halt all military aid to Israel,” reports Jewish Insider.
- Hamas has detailed dossiers on thousands of Israeli soldiers and their families — including phone numbers, social media profiles and bank details, according to a trove of documents leaked online this week.
- With Netanyahu away, his far-right security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, said he would allow Jews to pray on the Temple Mount, a holy Muslim site where it was agreed long ago to not allow Jewish prayer, where conflict could escalate. A fellow Knesset member called Ben-Gvir a “pyromaniac interested in igniting a Third Intifada.” Netanyahu immediately announced the policy will not be changed despite Ben-Gvir’s pronouncement.
- Israeli special forces recovered the bodies of five Israelis who were killed on Oct. 7 and dragged into Gaza. (Times of Israel)
- The latest on the hostage deal …
- Israel is seeking changes to the current proposal for a cease-fire/hostage dealwith Hamas, complicating a final agreement, a Western official, a Palestinian official and two Egyptian sources told Reuters.
- Israel wants to screen displaced Palestinians as they return to northern Gazawhen the cease-fire begins, retreating from an agreement to allow civilians who fled south to freely return home, the four sources said. Israeli negotiators “want a vetting mechanism for civilian populations returning to the north of Gaza, where they fear these populations could support” Hamas fighters who remain entrenched there, said the Western official.
- Hamas rejected the new Israeli demand, according to the Palestinian and Egyptian sources. Another sticking point, the Egyptian sources said, was overIsrael’s demand to retain control of Gaza’s border with Egypt. “Netanyahu is still stalling. There’s no change in his stance so far,” said Hamas senior official Sami Abu Zuhri, who did not comment directly on Israel’s demands.
- U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris said at a press conference that she had a “frank and constructive meeting” with PM Netanyahu and reiterated her “unwavering commitment” to Israel’s security. “It is time for this war to end and end in a way where Israel is secure, all the hostages are released, the suffering of Palestinians in Gaza ends, and the Palestinian people can exercise their right to freedom, dignity, and self-determination,” Harris told reporters after the meeting, adding that “Israel has a right to defend itself. And how it does so matters…I made clear my serious concern about the dire humanitarian situation…I will not be silent. We cannot look away.”
- A senior Israeli official slammed VP Harris for calling for a quick end to the war, saying that “it’s to be hoped” that her comments would not be interpreted by Hamas as suggesting daylight between the U.S. and Israel, “which would make a deal less likely.” The comments came a day after Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, who will host Netanyahu at his Mar-a-Lago estate on Friday, told Fox News that he wants the PM “to finish up [the war] and get it done quickly, he’s got to get it done quickly, because they [Israel] are getting decimated with this publicity.”
- Fire in the Olympic hole – In addition to the rain in Paris, security was stepped up again after arsonists set fire to 3 high speed train lines, delaying the arrival of thousands for the opening ceremonies. Despite the threat, the Olympics kicked off with a cultural tour de force opening ceremony, featuring a parade of boats, Lady Gaga, Beyonce, and a host of rain-soaked performances tied into the themes of “Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité. The NBC hosts had no clue of what was going on, but despite their lack of any meaningful analysis, the show was tres entertaining. Oui, Oui!
- Israel’s 88 Olympic athletes arrived this week in Paris amid heightened security threats. Israeli officials said they doubled the security budget since the Tokyo Games. “Aside from security concerns,” reports the Times of Israel, “many of the athletes are also bracing themselves for an angry reception, including protests outside games, boos inside stadiums, opponents’ refusing to shake their hands or other staged provocations.”
- Kamala Harris says she ‘will not be silent’ about plight of Palestinians after meeting Benjamin Netanyahu – In her first statement on Israel as a presidential candidate, Kamala Harris struck a markedly different tone than President Joe Biden, saying after a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that she “will not be silent” in the face of what she called the “devastation” in Gaza. Frankly, not much she said after her meeting demonstrated any daylight or difference between her and Biden’s position. Her empathy for Palestinians was probably a bit stronger. By the time she becomes President, the Gaza war will probably be over, so IMHO, she should try and stay clear of this issue to avoid pissing off the lefties and keep the pressure on Hamas to surrender themselves and the hostages.
- Actor Jon Voight said in a new interview that his daughter, actress and activist Angelina Jolie, has been exposed to “propaganda” because she supports Gaza.“She’s been influenced by antisemitic people,” he said. “Angie has a connection to the U.N., and she’s enjoyed speaking out for refugees. But these people are not refugees.” (Variety)
- Couple who lost legs on Oct. 7 walk down the aisle together – A couple who both lost their right legs during the Hamas October 7 attack on southern Israel were married on Thursday after spending months in rehabilitation together. Ben Binyamin and Gali Segal’s journey of recovery was originally reported upon by Channel 12 in November, and the network revisited the couple as they embarked on their special day. In November, Segal told Channel 12, “We want to come to the wedding walking. Only then will we get married.
Let’s call it a wrap. Enjoy your weekend everyone, and remember, let’s be careful out there.
Brad out.
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