Civil and Human Rights Coalition Statement on Shooting at California Synagogue
Vanita Gupta, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, issued the following statement on the reported hate crime shooting at the Chabad of Poway synagogue in Poway, California:
“We cannot allow acts of anti-Semitism and hate, particularly those targeting people because of their faith, race or ethnicity, to become a common occurrence. They are a cruel violation of the fundamental freedoms that define our country and they must stop. We all share the responsibility to continue to speak out against them— above all, those in positions of power, influence, and leadership.
“This shooting is particularly tragic as it happened at the end of the holy days of Passover, a time of peace, and after the horrific mass shooting tragedy at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh six months ago. Our thoughts are with the victims’ families and their community.”
The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights is a coalition charged by its diverse membership of more than 200 national organizations to promote and protect the rights of all persons in the United States. The Leadership Conference works toward an America as good as its ideals. For more information on The Leadership Conference and its member organizations, visit www.civilrights.org.
Civil and Human Rights Coalition Statement on Shooting at California Synagogue
An Open Letter to My Fellow Americans
We are living in a new era, a time when added security is needed in places where it was previously not considered essential. We need to ask how society got to this point. I believe too many observers are addressing symptoms and not the root of the caustic violence occurring across this country.
On the one hand, we see violent and deadly acts from extremists on all sides of the political spectrum. However, from my perspective and experience, I have come to the conclusion that American society is on the wrong path.
While hate emerges from both sides of the aisle, a feeling of acute helplessness causes violence. The rancor of the left – pundits and politicians – the bullying and demonizing, the denunciations of alternate political views as immoral and untenable, has pushed many buttons on unstable haters all over country.
We should not point fingers. However, the identity politics being pushed constantly by the Southern Poverty Law Center, the Forward newspaper and website, the ACLU, the NY Times, and similar organizations, create an environment in which hatred has become the dominant cultural theme of our day. By denouncing political opponents as haters, they isolate and demonize whole swaths of this country, whose fringes are driven further into extremism and even violence.
Those trafficking in the narrative of identity politics are the fascists of the left, ironically and inadvertently partnering with the hateful alt-right nationalists leading our commonwealth to a roiling state of discomfiture and enmity.
Our country is in big trouble when irresponsible leaders, who refuse to take responsibility for their overheated rhetoric, lead national human rights organizations. They see hate everywhere and suspect every opinion that does not reflect their own. Their overactive defensiveness causes untold damage by vilifying those outside their political circles.
I do not mean to assign blame for shootings to leftist leaders. The blame lies only in those who undertake these heinous attacks. I refer to the climate that encourages hatred to blossom into full-fledged violence. The would-be defenders of freedom of the left cause the real purveyors of violence and hatred to gain many fellow travelers. As dialogue disappears and responsible figures refuse to lead, chaos and loathing bubble uncontrollably.
Being a mensch means adhering to standards, boundaries, goals, respect for oneself and respect for all of G-D’s creations. Western society, and particularly the United States, used to have a culture of faith, responsibility, respect and ethics.
The leftists have replaced this culture of faith, responsibility and boundaries with one lacking definitions of ethical human activity and morality to the point that “thou shalt not murder” bears little meaning for too many people in this society. Those who disagree are labeled haters, shouted down and forced out of the public square. Many who could act and lead with sound moral and logical strength have been weakened by this culture of leftist shaming and denouncing.
Strength of character comes from following a clear path in life based upon a “higher” reality called the Creator, G-D, or in Hebrew, Hashem.
Over the past decades, nearly every civil rights organization in America has acquired the cultural high ground by abandoning a strong foundation in G-D and faith. These organizations have failed, yes failed miserably, in creating a more just moral and tolerant society. The absolutist demands for diversity have caused a profound lack of diversity. As reverence for G-D has decreased, so has reverence for humanity. As abortions and cases of euthanasia increase, so do suicides. Without G-D, we cannot build a better society.
My fellow Americans of all ethnicities and communities let us all return to our divinely bestowed responsibilities as individuals and not put our faith in the many failed organizations that collect so ably our financial support and destroy the moral fabric and strength of our society.
The time for a paradigm shift for every American is now. We need to restore dignity, self-respect and faith in the Al-mighty.
May the Creator of us all allow us to regain the sense of brotherhood and sisterhood of all humanity, recognize that we are all children of One Creator, and direct our activities to wholesome and true unity with recognition of the One who has mercy on His Creations.
With love and respect and with sincere blessing rooted in the Source of all blessings,
Agudath Israel of America Statement on San Diego Attack
Yad Vashem reaction to the shooting in the Poway Synagogue in California
Yad Vashem is appalled and saddened at the shooting attack
at the synagogue in Poway, California yesterday. We express our deepest condolences to
the family of Lori Gilbert Kaye, and stand united with all the victims of this shooting
and the entire San Diego Jewish community.
Yad Vashem strongly condemns the actions of the antisemitic white supremacist at this
house of worship. As we approach Holocaust Remembrance Day, which is dedicated to
commemorating the memory of the six million men, women and children murdered for
being Jewish, we shall gravely consider the dangers of unchecked antisemitism.
We are also troubled by various forms of incitement featured in the media – print, digital
and social. The world must act to combat such forms of hate speech by leaders and
laypersons alike. Yad Vashem has been creating educational tools to counter this alarming
phenomenon.
In recent months, we have witnessed a distressing resurgence in incidents of antisemitic
attacks," says Yad Vashem Chairman Avner Shalev. On every continent, violence against
Jews, merely because they are Jews, occurs. The time has come for world leaders to speak
out and condemn antisemitism in all its expressions, and immediately implement legal,
moral and educational measures, both to protect the lives of their Jewish citizens, and also
to fight against the outbreak of antisemitism that we have witnessed lately. In our post-
Holocaust global society there is no room for antisemitism or any other kind of racism or
xenophobia.
President of All India Christian Council condemns shooting at synagogue in Poway, California
Most Rev. Joseph D’Souza releases the following statement condemning the Saturday shooting at the Congregation Chabad in Poway, California.
“There is no worse form of terrorist extremism than an attack on a place of worship — whether it be arson at churches in Louisiana, mass shootings at mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, or this weekend’s attack on a synagogue in Poway, California. This evil must be confronted by all of us, especially faith leaders who at times have to overcome threats from within their own community to speak up against extremism. We cannot be bystanders in this war against the right of any community to worship in peace. Enough is enough”
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Most Rev. Joseph D’Souza is widely considered one of the most influential voices of global Christianity. He is a justice and peace campaigner, civil rights advocate, interfaith peacemaker and Christian theologian.
Rev. D’Souza is the founder and international president of Dignity Freedom Network, a multinational advocacy and humanitarian aid alliance dedicated to restoring human dignity to the poor, marginalized and outcastes of South Asia. He also presides as moderator bishop and primate — or archbishop — over the Good Shepherd Church of India. He is a sought-after international speaker, a thought leader on religious freedom and human rights issues and a regular contributor at publications such as The Hill, The Washington Times and Newsmax, among others.
Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America, Rabbinical Council of America Express Sympathy to Families of Woman Murdered in San Diego Synagogue AttacK
The Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America and the Rabbinical Council of America express their deepest sympathy to the families of the woman murdered in the horrific attack that took place during Shabbat and Passover prayer services Saturday morning at the Chabad of Poway synagogue in southern California. We pray for the speedy recovery of the rabbi and other congregants injured in the shooting.
“This senseless act of anti-Semitic violence was not only a heinous attack on the Jewish community, but an attack on the very foundation of civil society and our collective democratic values,” said Allen Fagin, the Orthodox Union’s executive vice president.
“Our hearts break for the senseless murder and injury of our fellow Jews and all victims of vicious hate crimes,” said Mark (Moishe) Bane, president of the Orthodox Union. “We condemn the dangerous rhetoric that foments such senseless violence and we stand with the Chabad of Poway community and entire southern California Jewish community at this terrible time.”
Rabbi Elazar Muskin, president of the Rabbinical Council of America, stated: “As a nation, committed to freedom and rights for all, we must commit to protect not only those who are like us in their places of worship, but also those who worship differently from us as well.”
Said Rabbi Mark Dratch, executive vice president of the Rabbinical Council of America, “One of the most fundamental rights of citizens of the United States is the freedom to worship as we believe and to live in safety and security. We need to come together as a nation to protect these precious gifts for all members of all faiths.”
Nathan Diament, the Orthodox Union’s executive director for public policy, stated: “We are deeply grateful for the rapid response of law enforcement officers and their apprehension of this terrorist. The Orthodox Union will continue to work with federal, state and local officials across the nation to provide the necessary resources to ensure the security of our synagogues and other houses of worship.”
Bolton: US Ignored $2 Million Bill from North Korea
The U.S. signed a document agreeing to pay North Korea $2 million for the medical care of American Otto Warmbier who had been detained by Pyongyang, U.S. national security adviser John Bolton said Sunday, but then ignored the bill and never paid it.
By: Ken Bredemeier
“It is very clear to me from my looking into it in the past few days that nobody was paid,” Bolton told Fox News Sunday. “That is clear.”
Bolton was confirming news accounts in recent days that North Korea demanded the money when it released Warmbier, a comatose college student, to U.S. authorities nearly two years ago so he could be returned to the United States. He died days later.
Warmbier was a University of Virginia student visiting North Korea when he was jailed in January 2016, sentenced to 15 years for trying to steal a propaganda banner from his hotel.
The mainland China travel company that arranged Warmbier’s trip, Young Pioneer Tours, specializes in “destinations your mother would rather you stay away from,” according to its website. It describes itself as “safe and fun.” Photos from the company’s website and Facebook page show selfies of happy, smiling, young Westerners in Pyongyang.
North Korean officials said Warmbier fell into a coma the night he was sentenced in March 2016, The Washington Post reported. Doctors have not identified the cause of his brain damage, and say they did not see evidence of him being beaten.
At their last meeting in Hanoi in February, President Donald Trump said he accepted North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s claim not to have known what had happened to Warmbier in prison, despite the case being extraordinarily sensitive.
“I will take him at his word,” Trump said.
Following Warmbier’s sentencing, the North Koreans did not tell U.S. officials until June 2017 that he had been unconscious for 15 months. The Washington Post said news of Warmbier’s condition sparked a frantic effort to get him home. The effort was led by the State Department’s point man on North Korea at the time, Joseph Yun, who signed the agreement to pay the money.
Trump has sought to get Kim to agree to end North Korea’s nuclear weapons development program, but talks between the two leaders collapsed in Hanoi after Kim agreed at a summit in Singapore a year ago to move toward denuclearization. Bolton said Trump is willing to meet a third time with Kim. (VOA News)
Cuomo Gives Push for Construction of Church at Ground Zero to Be Completed
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is apparently calling in some favors in order to light a fire under the delayed construction of a Greek Orthodox church at Ground Zero.
By Clark Savage, Jr.
“He wants the church finished,” supermarket tycoon John Catsimatidis, one of the seven, told the New York Post.
What was once called the Cedar Street church was destroyed during the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. The St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church and National Shrine project ground to a virtual halt in December 2017 when the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese ran out of funds for what has been called an $80 million project.
The church is under construction as part of the World Trade Center in Manhattan. It is being developed by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and was designed by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava. Originally scheduled to be completed in 2017, the church’s construction has stalled.
The church is located in Liberty Park, overlooking the National September 11 Memorial & Museum. Its dome is inspired by the world-famous Byzantine Church of the Savior in Edirnekapı, Istanbul. It will contain a meditation/bereavement space and a community room housed in the upper levels above the Narthex “to welcome visitors and faithful.” According to its official website, the new “Saint Nicholas would welcome all and be a House of Prayer for all people.”
According to reports, it will replace the original church of the same name located at 155 Cedar Street, which was destroyed on September 11, 2001 when the South Tower of the World Trade Center collapsed after being struck by United Airlines Flight 175.It was the only building not part of the World Trade Center complex to be completely destroyed as a result of the attacks, although the Deutsche Bank Building next door was later demolished due to severe damage and contamination.
According to the Archdiocese, another $40 million, give or take, is still need in order to finish work on the church. Questions have been asked about some of the money already raised, which some claim has been used by the church for other matters. An investigation is said to be underway.
It was last December that the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America released a statement saying that it has resumed construction of Saint Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church and National Shrine in Manhattan. The Archdiocese then hired PricewaterhouseCoopers Advisory Services LLC (PwC) to investigate the project’s finances. The ensuing PwC report confirmed that all expenditures from St. Nicholas funds were indeed used for the rebuilding of the church, and donor restrictions had been followed to the letter.
Aide to Former NJ Gov Christie Sentenced to 13 Months for Role in Bridgegate Scandal
Bridget Kelly, a former aide to New Jersey Governor Chris Christie was sentenced to 13 months in prison on Wednesday for her role in the infamous Bridgegate scandal.
By: Harry Cherry
Mrs. Kelly, while being sentenced in a federal courtroom in Newark, Delaware, asked the judge presiding over her case to consider the impact that a prison term would have on her children — adding that Judge Susan Wigenton should sentence her to home confinement.
“I do ask you today to consider what my four children have been through over the past five years,” Mrs. Kelly said Wednesday to Judge Wigenton.
Bill Baroni, a former aide to Governor Christie, who federal prosecutors said was a co-conspirator in Bridgegate — where certain officials tried to cause traffic jams near a bridge, in an attempt to damage a local mayor who refused to endorse Mr. Christie’s re-election bid.
Michael Critichley, an attorney to Mrs. Kelly, asked Judge Wigenton to consider to “emotional and psychological effects,” imposed on Mrs. Kelly and her family, according to The Associated Press.
“The shrapnel of Bridgegate that affects the Kelly family is embedded,” Mr. Critichley said on Wednesday. “It’s gonna be there forever.”
Mr. Critchley also questioned why former Governor Chris Christie was not indicted in the scandal.
“The boys of Bridgegate are doing fine,” he said, adding that “reputationally, they’re doing fine.”
“In August 2013, after Kelly confirmed that Mayor Sokolich would not be endorsing Gov. Christie for re-election in November 2013, Baroni, Kelly, and Wildstein decided to punish the mayor by deliberately causing significant traffic problems in Fort Lee under the false pretense of a traffic study,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Vikas Khanna said recently in a statement. “From the morning of Sept. 9, 2013, to Sept. 13, 2013, they caused the local access lanes to be reduced so that only one toll booth, instead of the usual three, was accessible to the approach to the bridge for local traffic traveling through Fort Lee.”
“To maximize the congestion and the punitive impact on Mayor Sokolich, Baroni, Kelly and Wildstein caused these lane and toll booth reductions to start on the first day of the school year without any advance notice to Mayor Sokolich, the Fort Lee chief of police or borough residents,” Mr. Khanna continued. “The lane and toll booth reductions resulted in significant traffic in Fort Lee, for motorists intending to access the George Washington Bridge from local lanes and for residents, whose streets were choked with traffic.”
After Being Shot, Chabad Rabbi Comforts Poway Congregation & the Country
Perhaps the greatest lesson to take from Saturday’s grisly shooting at the Chabad of Poway Synagogue near San Diego is how ordinary Jews’ love and compassion for each other — and courage even under the most horrifying circumstances – inevitably seem to shine through.
By: Howard Riell
More than the shaky mental snapshots of destruction and grief caused by demented gunman John T. Earnest, 19, what remains in the hours and days following such an incident are the inspiring stories.
One is of a courageous rabbi who tended to his flock even after he had been shot. Those who were under fire told the Los Angeles Times that Rabbi Yisroel Goldstein never stopped trying to help even after suspected killer John T. Earnest shot him in the hand.
Congregationist Minoo Anvari told CNN that Goldstein “did not leave his congregation until he was finished speaking to them, calming their fears and pledging resilience.”
Dr. Roneet Lev told The San Diego Union-Tribune that the woman had gone to the synagogue to say Kaddish dead, for her own mother who had recently died. “The irony is people will be saying it for her now,” Lev told the newspaper. “God picked her to die to send a message because she’s such an incredible person. He took her for a higher purpose to send this message to fight anti-Semitism.”
Jews around the world are also talking about the near “miracle” that, according to the rabbi of the Poway synagogue, might well have saved dozens of lives. The Chabad of Poway Synagogue was about to begin the Yizkor service in memory of the dead when the gunman entered and began shooting. Because those who parents are living traditionally leave the room where Yizkor is recited, the synagogue’s population of children were nowhere in sight when the bullets began to fly.
Friend Audrey Jacobs, wrote an emotional Facebook post in the wake of the attack, calling her late friend “a jewel of our community.” She added, “Your final good deed was taking the bullets for Rabbi Goldstein to save his life,” and added that she “leaves behind a devastated husband and a 22-year-old daughter.” Israel’s minister of diaspora affairs, Naftali Bennett, released a statement in which he referred to Gilbert-Kaye as a “hero who will be remembered in Jewish history.”
“She sacrificed her own life, throwing herself in the path of the murderer’s bullets to save the life of the Rabbi,” Bennett told the Jewish Press. “She has been described by those who knew her as an ‘Eshet Chayil,’ a ‘Woman of Valor,’ and I would add, a true Hero of Israel. Our thoughts and prayers are with her husband and daughter, may they find great comfort in Lori’s tremendous example and courage.”
NYC Measles Outbreak Raises Questions About Immunity in Adults
With the largest measles outbreak since the disease was deemed eliminated in 2000, vaccinated adults are questioning if they’re protected against the disease.
By: Mike Morrison
Federal guidelines since 1989 required 2 doses of the MMR vaccine (Measles, Mumps, Rubella) but anyone born before then may only have 1 dose or even an inactivated version of the virus. Adults born before 1957 are not required to have the vaccine as they are considered immune via being exposed directly to the virus.
The CDC (Center for Disease Control) states the 1 vaccine of the MMR is sufficient for an adult unless they are:
Students in post high school education
Healthcare personnel
Travelers
People who public health authorities determine are at increased risk for getting measles during an outbreak.
Of the 695 confirmed measles cases currently in the US, about 70 of them have occurred in people who have been vaccinated against the disease according to the CDC. The measles vaccine is considered 93% effective with 1 dose and 97% with 2 doses. Despite the 3% risk, a person that is properly vaccinated against measles will likely have a milder illness according to the CDC.
According to the CDC measles could become endemic (constant presence of a disease in an area) in the United States again, especially if vaccine coverage levels drop. This can happen when people:
Don’t get vaccinated on time
Think they’re immune when they’re not, and can’t find documentation of their vaccine status (this is most common among adults)
Delay or refuse vaccines for religious, philosophical or personal reasons.
Research shows that there is clustering of people who delay or refuse vaccines in certain communities. When measles gets into communities with pockets of unvaccinated people, outbreaks are more likely to occur. These communities make it difficult to control the spread of the disease. And these communities make us vulnerable to having the virus re-establish itself in our country.
High sustained measles vaccine coverage and rapid public health response are critical for preventing and controlling measles cases and outbreaks. According to the WHO (World Health Organization) the only way to effectively combat the deadly virus is with 95% of a population vaccinated against it to create “herd immunity.”
All member states in the six World Health Organization regions have adopted goals to eliminate measles by the year 2020. Once every country eliminates a disease, health officials consider the disease “eradicated” from the world.
NYT: ‘Error of Judgment’ to Publish Anti-Semitic Cartoon Featuring Netanyahu as Guide Dog for Trump
The New York Times announced Saturday it was deleting an anti-Semitic cartoon from its international edition featuring Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a guide dog leading a blind Donald Trump.
By: David Rutz
Netanyahu is depicted with a Star of David collar, while Trump holds his leash and is depicted as blind by wearing sunglasses. The Times said in a statement from its opinion page’s Twitter account that it was an “error of judgment to publish it” and admitted it “included anti-Semitic tropes.”
“A political cartoon in the international print edition of the New York Times on Thursday included anti-Semitic tropes, depicting the prime minister of Israel as a guide dog with a Star of David collar leading the president of the United States, shown wearing a skullcap,” the Times said. “The image was offensive, and it was an error of judgment to publish it. It was provided by The New York Times News Service and Syndicate, which has since deleted it.”
The newspaper said the note would appear in Monday’s international edition. The Times responded to a request for comment by directing the Free Beacon to the above statement. At the time of publication, it had not disclosed who the cartoonist was.
Trump and Netanyahu have forged a strong alliance since Trump took office. The Trump administration moved the U.S. embassy in Israel to Jerusalem and recognized the city as Israel’s capital, and it also has recognized Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights. Netanyahu won a fifth term as prime minister in part by campaigning on his partnership with Trump.
Netanyahu and his right-wing Likud Party have come under fire from liberal outlets, including the New York Times editorial board. An April 10 editorial following his party’s success acknowledged Israel’s economic and technological advances under Netanyahu but panned his campaign strategies and said Trump “inserted himself on behalf of an Israeli leader in ways no previous American president has.” (Washington Free Beacon)
Trump Seeks to Swing Traditionally Democratic Jewish Vote
Shelley Berkley spent 14 years in Congress representing the western swing state of Nevada. The lifelong Democrat is worried about her party’s ability in next year’s presidential election to maintain the traditional support of her fellow Jews.
By: Steve Herman
“Growing up, I didn’t know anybody that was Jewish who wasn’t a Democrat. The two went hand in hand. If you’re Jewish, you’re a Democrat. Things have changed dramatically,” according to Berkley.
The party’s rising left wing is less inclined to reflexively support Israel, while President Donald Trump has decisively aligned with Israel’s right-wing president, Benjamin Netanyahu.
“There’s a lot of folks like Congresswoman Berkeley increasingly concerned about the direction and tone the Democratic Party is taking as it relates to the Jewish community and Israel,” says Matthew Brooks, national executive director of the Republican Jewish Coalition.
Throughout most of the 20th century, Jews were staunch Democrats, traditionally allied with the labor movement and religiously coming out to vote in force.
As important, according to American University professor of history Alan Kraut, “is the influence that Jews wield as opinion leaders, journalists, contributors and activists – as a people basically who are never afraid to raise their voices one way or another.”
Pollster Mark Mellman contends data show that has not changed, with the Jewish community remaining “strongly Democratic to this day, and certainly anti-Trump, even though some are appreciative of some of the things that Trump has done vis-a-vis Israel.”
Both Berkley and Mellman say most Jewish voters detest Trump’s policies in general, as well as his behavior and lack of intellectual curiosity.
But Trump is trying hard to woo them, portraying the Democratic Party as anti-Israel and anti-Jewish.
“The reality is, the American Jewish community is not going to be voting for Donald Trump. … And for him to invest so much time, effort, energy, in trying to create a wedge between the American Jewish community and the Democratic Party isn’t really a very good use of his time,” says Mellman, who heads one of the most prominent Democratic marketing research and polling firms. But he acknowledges “there are some increasing doubts and concern.”
Berkley says her children remain strong Democrats but are concerned about whether they can continue to support their own party.
“Now that doesn’t mean they are embracing the Trump revolution. Hardly. But people like us, pro-Israel moderate Democrats, where do we go?” she asks.
At the RJC, Brooks is looking to lure those disaffected Democrats. He contends the rival party is overconfident about the Jewish vote.
“It’s going to be very hard for any of the Democratic candidates to have, like President Trump, an unvarnished pro-Israel agenda, because the grassroots in the base of the Democratic Party won’t allow it,” Brooks predicts.
“If we move 5% of the Jewish vote in Los Angeles or New York, it’s not going to make a difference,” Brooks says. “There’s no chance we’re winning New York state or California. So, our focus is very strategic and very targeted in the battleground states.”
At the forefront are Ohio and Florida, both with significant Jewish populations. Also seen in play: Arizona and Nevada out West, as well as Pennsylvania and Wisconsin in the Midwest.
“Since Trump has been in office, has he been able to attract and to peel away Jewish support from the Democratic Party? I believe the answer to that is yes,” says Brooks.
The head of the Republican Jewish Coalition says American Jews look not just at a candidate’s stance on Israel, but also at economic issues.
“I think that’s one of the reasons we’ve been able to make these incremental gains,” Brooks tells VOA.
Mellman says Brooks and other Republicans are overly optimistic “when you have a community that has consistently voted Democratic for many years. And right now, even after all these things, hates Donald Trump. Now, could that turn around in 17 months? It’s possible. But there’s never been that kind of wholesale turnaround in public opinion.”
Kraut sees the best opportunity for Republicans with “older Jewish voters, men and women, who lean toward Trump because of Israel. And because he does seem to them to fly in the face of what they regard as the left wing of the Democratic Party that’s taking shape” around congressional first-termers such as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar, according to Kraut.
“They don’t like these people. They don’t trust these people,” says Kraut of the older Jewish voters.
Berkley agrees.
“I’m apoplectic about my party’s response to the comments Omar and others have made,” she tells VOA. “Members of the Democratic caucus have made anti-Semitic statements that were no accident. They actually believe what they’re saying.”
This sentiment likely will be more of a factor prior to the general election as Jews could have an outsized role in selecting the Democratic Party’s nominee.
While early voting states such as Iowa and New Hampshire have negligible Jewish populations, the big and solid Democrat states – New York and California – do.
Former Vice President Joe Biden is viewed by much of the Jewish bloc as stable and predictable with foreign policy, respected around the world, and representing their core social and moral values, according to Kraut.
“If I were a betting man, I would say that if Biden is the candidate of the Democratic Party, the Jews are going to flock to him” in the general election against Trump, Kraut says.
He sees Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont as struggling for Jewish votes, despite him being the only Jew running for president.
Some may find that ironic.
“It’s worse than ironic. It’s very unfortunate, actually,” laments Berkley, who says she opposes Sanders’ candidacy “because of his lack of support for Israel.”
Mellman says Sanders has stated he is “100% pro-Israel, that he believes Israel has every right to exist in peace and security without being subject to terrorism.”
Jewish leaders acknowledge Trump’s embrace of Israel may also be motivated by his desire to retain the support of Christian evangelicals (who believe that Israel must continue to exist as a harbinger for the return of Christ as the Messiah).
“Being good to Israel has many, many political advantages in the United States,” notes Kraut. “The Jewish vote alone isn’t going to put Trump over the top.” (VOA News)
Famed Historian Ron Chernow Honors Press at White House Correspondents Association Dinner
Famous historian Ron Chernow delivered a keynote address on Saturday evening at the annual White House correspondents dinner, where he defended journalists who often receive the president’s ire.
By: David Freiberg
Mr. Chernow referenced a play called “an enemy of the people,” adding, “I had no idea the president was a fan of Norwegian literature.”
“We now have to fight hard for basic truths that we once took for granted,” he said at another point through his remarks.
Mr. Chernow said that when President Trump calls journalists the “enemy of the people,” that they should “think of it in the Norwegian sense and wear it as a badge of honor.”
“This is a glorious tradition — you folks are a part of it, and we can’t have politicians trampling on it with impunity,” he added, to which he received a standing ovation from attendees.
He went on to compare President Trump to George Washington, saying that Mr. Washington was “deficient in the art of the deal — the poor man had to settle for being the father of his country.”
Mr. Chernow then talked about Washington’s relationship with the news media.
“Like every great president, Washington felt maligned and misunderstood the press, but he never generalized that into a vendetta,” he said.
Mr. Chernow said that journalists are on “Team USA, not members of enemy camps.”
Last year, the President and senior administration officials slammed Michelle Wolf for making crude jokes.
“I actually really like Sarah. I think she’s very resourceful. She burns facts, and then she uses that ash to create a perfect smoky eye. Like maybe she’s born with it, maybe it’s lies. It’s probably lies,” Mrs. Wolf said last year referring to White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee-Sanders. “And I’m never really sure what to call Sarah Huckabee Sanders, you know? Is it Sarah Sanders, is it Sarah Huckabee Sanders, is it Cousin Huckabee, is it Auntie Huckabee Sanders? Like, what’s Uncle Tom but for white women who disappoint other white women?”
Mrs. Wolf also said last year that reporters assigned to cover the White House had become “obsessed” with President Trump.
“You helped create this monster, and now you’re profiting off of him,” she said last year.
After her speech at the annual dinner, in an interview with NPR, Mrs. Wolf said that she “wouldn’t change a word” regarding her performance.
“I’m very happy with what I said, and I’m glad I stuck to my guns,” she told NPR.
New York AG Opens Investigation Into NRA Finances Amidst Internal Leadership Dispute
New York Attorney General Letitia James has opened an investigation into the National Rifle Association, according to CNN.
By: Harry Cherry
A spokesperson for Mrs. James told CNN that it has issued subpoenas, as part of the investigation.
“As part of this investigation, the Attorney General has issued subpoenas,” a spokesperson for Mrs. James told CNN in a statement. “We will not have further comment at this time.”
Everytown for Gun Safety, an organization which advocates for gun control and regulation, told CNN that it recently filed a complaint with the New York Attorney General against the NRA in regarding to its tax-exempt status.
An official with Everytime for Gun Safety told CNN that a report issued by The Trace and the New Yorker prompted its complaint.
The report alleged that a handful of NRA contractors, executives and vendors “have extracted hundreds of millions of dollars” from the organization’s budget.
“In light of the recent, credible allegations of excessive invoicing and personal enrichment by insiders, it’s encouraging that the New York Attorney General is looking into the NRA, and we renew our call for other state and federal authorities to do the same,” John Feinblatt, the President of Everytown for Gun Safety, told CNN in a statement.
The Wall Street Journal reported within the last few days that the National Rifle Association was dealing with internal turmoil — as its president, Colonel Oliver North, accused the groups longtime Chief Executive, Wayne LaPierre, of financial misdeeds.
Mrs. James’s investigation deals with “related-party transactions between the NRA and its board members; unauthorized political activity; and potentially false or misleading disclosures in regulatory filings,” a source familiar with the matter told the Journal, according to CNN.
“The NRA will fully cooperate with any inquiry into its finances,” William A. Brewer III, an attorney for the NRA and partner at Brewer Attorneys and Counsel told CNN in a statement. “The NRA is prepared for this, and has full confidence in its accounting practices and commitment to good governance.”
In a letter released on Thursday, which was sent to the group’s board of directors, Mr. LaPierre hit back — accusing Mr. North of forcing him to resign and trying to extort him.
Mr. North informed the National Rifle Association’s members on Saturday that he will not serve another term as the organization’s president, and would be resigning in the coming days.
Mr. North accused Mr. LaPierre previously of “charging over $200,000 in wardrobe purchased to a NRA vendor,” according to CNN, which cited a Wall Street Journal report.
The NRA did not respond to a request for comment at the time of publication.
California Synagogue Shooting Leaves One Dead, 3 Injured – Cal State Student Pens Anti-Jewish Manifesto
A 19-year-old man opened fire upon congregants at a Chabad synagogue during services for the last day of Passover on Saturday, in what law enforcement officials say was a hate crime — ultimately taking the lives of one woman and injuring three others.
By: Harry Cherry
The suspect, later identified as John T. Earnest, wrote in his manifest that he is a man of “European ancestry.”
“My name is John Earnest and I am a man of European ancestry,” he wrote in his digital manifest on Saturday, which has now gathered over 38,000 views on the text forum pastebin. “Truly, I am blessed by God for such a magnificent bloodline.”
Saturday’s shooting, which occurred at the Chabad in Poway, California, is the latest in a series of attacks in recent months against Jews around in the world. White nationalist Robert Bowers opened fire on congregants at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh last October, killing 11 people and injuring 7 others.
One woman was pronounced dead, following gunshot wounds and three other synagogue members who were shot are recovering at nearly hospitals, San Diego Sheriff Bill Gore said Saturday at a press conference.
Police Chief David Nisleit said that the shooter called the authorities following the shooting spree, as he attempted to flee the scene.
As he attempted to flee, an off-duty Border patrol agent, in an attempt to neutralize the threat to the local community, opened fire against Mr. Earnest, officials said.
Before entering the Chabad synagogue on Saturday, Mr. Earnest posted an anti-Semitic letter to multiple online forums, including 8-chan, which is frequented by White Nationalists and members of the alt-right.
The hate-filled documented was also posted to Pastebin, an online text-to-paste service, by Mr. Earnest under the username “johntearnest,” and has now been viewed over 38,000 times.
Mr. Earnest, in his letter filled with antisemitic remarks, racial slurs, and conspiracy theories, urged extremists to commit attacks similar in nature, recommending that they use flamethrowers rather than a gun.
“If your goal is strictly carnage and the highest score—I’d highly recommend you look into flamethrowers,” he wrote. “I had my whole life ahead of me. If you told me even 6 months ago that I would do this I would have been surprised.”
The shooter, however, claimed that he was not a supporter of President Donald Trump, citing the president’s support for Israel, and claiming that he is “anti-White” and a “traitor.”
Mr. Earnest also admitted in his letter to committing arson at the Dar-ul-Arqam mosque in Escondido, California.
“I scorched a mosque in Escondido with gasoline a week after Brenton Tarrant’s sacrifice and they never found sh** on me,” he wrote.
President Trump, referencing the attack, told reporters that it was hard to believe.
“Hard to believe, hard to believe,” he told reporters at The White House. “With respect to the synagogue in California near San Diego. We’re doing some very heavy research. We’ll see what happens, what comes up. At this moment it looks like a hate crime. But my deepest sympathies to all of those affected. And we’ll get to the bottom of it.”
During a campaign-style rally in Green Bay, Wisconsin, Mr. Trump weighed in on the attack, saying: “America’s heart is with the victims of the horrific synagogue shooting in Poway, California.”
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., offered her condolences, writing on Twitter that she stands “with the Jewish community” against Saturday’s “act of hate.”
“Coming just six months after the horrific mass shooting at Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, we are confronted with what appears to be another anti-Semitic attack,” she said. “We all stand with the Jewish community against this act of hate.”
Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., who chairs the House Intelligence committee said that the nation should come together to counter the “disturbing rise of violent hatred” across America.
“Another despicable and violent act of anti-Semitism — this time at a synagogue in Poway, California at the end of Passover,” Mr. Schiff posted on Twitter. “We must act to end the scourge of gun violence and come together against the disturbing rise of violent hatred across the U.S.”
Morton Klein, the president of the Zionist Organization of America, condemned the despicable antisemitic attack against congregants at the Chabad synagogue in Poway, California.
“Our hearts go out to their families and to the Jewish people having to endure another synagogue shooting,” he wrote on Twitter. “ZOA urges Congressional leaders to condemn this and Omar/Tlaib antisemitic remarks now.”
In a statement sent to the media, the Rabbinical Alliance of America (RAA) — Igud HaRabbonim, with a membership of over 950 Orthodox Rabbis across the United States and Canada said it “extends its boundless expression of support and solidarity to the victims, their families, and the survivors of the brutal, horrendous terrorist attack that took place this Sabbath, Achron Shel Pesach, the last day of Passover, at the Chabad of Poway in San Diego, California while innocent celebrants were sitting down for a holiday meal. Sadly, the terrorist killed a woman and wounded the rabbi and two others. We condemn the evil carnage perpetrated by a malevolent and hateful individual seeking to murder innocent people gathered in celebration of faith, life and community.”
The RAA/Igud calls upon all people of goodwill to unite in prayer beseeching our Creator for His protection and to increase in acts of charity and loving-kindness to help heal our fractured society. We must gather together in prayer and good deeds to thwart this cowardice and hatred that wishes to destroy all that is good in this world. Rabbi Yehoshua S. Hecht, Chairman of the RAA presidium, asks all member rabbis to call for additional prayers to be recited immediately at all prayer services for the healing of the injured.
Rabbi Mendy Mirocznik, Executive Vice President of the RAA, stated that, “A hate attack on anyone is an attack on all of society. All decent people must come together to condemn such an evil act of anti-Semitism.”