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UPDATE: Stacey James, from the Patriots PR office, emailed us yesterday regarding the omission of the word ‘Israel’ during the tribute to Ezra Schwartz on Monday night: “It was not intentional. The moment of silence was to recognize the hundreds who have lost their lives due to senseless acts of terrorism around the world, including one that hit particularly close to home when a Sharon, Mass. native (the town neighboring Foxborough, Mass.) was gunned down nearly 5,500 miles away. It was Ezra Schwartz who helped humanize and localize a story that has been happening far too often abroad. That was the intention of the moment of silence, to reflect on all who have lost their lives in recent months, including the one who hit closest to home.”
On Tuesday night, Robert Kraft, along with the CJP President Barry Shrage, paid a shiva call to the Schwartz family. [OS]
Imam Abdul Rachman Ahmad, the leader of the Muslim community in Sharon, visited Ari and Ruth Schwartz at their shiva. [Facebook]
A White House official emails… “President Obama spoke by phone yesterday with Ezra Schwartz’s parents, Ari and Ruth. The President offered his profound condolences and condemned in the strongest terms the terrorist attack that took his life. The President also underscored that Ezra’s studies in Israel strengthened the bonds between Israel and the United States, and as we mourn his death, those bonds only grow stronger. Secretary Kerry also spoke to his family yesterday and noted the conversation in his remarks from Jerusalem today.” [JI]
“It seemed that neither the president nor his senior aides appreciate how devastating this particular attack was to the American Jewish community – and their slow, and still insufficient, response proves that,” Nathan Diament, executive director of the Orthodox Union Advocacy Center said in a statement Tuesday after the White House publicized Obama’s call.” [TheHill]
TOP TALKER: “Iranian Hackers Attack State Dept. via Social Media Accounts” by David E. Sanger and Nicole Perlroth: “Four months after a historic accord with Tehran to limit its atomic ambitions, American officials and private security groups say they see a surge in sophisticated computer espionage by Iran, culminating in a series of cyberattacks against State Department officials over the past month.”
“The surge has led American officials to a stark conclusion: For Iran, cyberespionage — and the power it gives the Iranians to jab at the United States and its neighbors without provoking a military response — is becoming a tool to obtain the influence that many in Iran hoped the nuclear program would give the country.” [NYTimes]
“Obama and Hollande Willing to Work With Russia, Iran Against ISIS” by John T. Bennett: “Though experts and U.S. lawmakers had warned in recent days that Hollande might be more willing to coordinate with Russia, the U.S. commander in chief left the door open to including Moscow in counter-ISIS operations — but with a substantial caveat: That Russia’s mission is solely to go after ISIS and not propping up the regime of Bashar al-Assad. “There is a potential convergence” of interests among the U.S.-France coalition and Russian President Vladimir Putin because Islamic groups also are targeting Russia,” Obama said.” [RollCall]
Michael Eisenberg: “Putin Plays Turkey to Ruin Obama’s Thanksgiving” [Medium]
PROFILE: “France’s Ambassador ‘Knows How to Throw an Elbow’” by Julie Hirschfeld Davis and Somini Sengupta: “He can be a strong negotiator, as was the case during intensive talks earlier this year between Iran and six world powers… Mr. Araud criticized the emerging agreement, suggesting it was not tough enough, and publicly questioned whether a deadline at the end of June for striking it was binding. “That was directly contrary to what we wanted to do, and it was unhelpful,” said Philip Gordon, who until March was the top Middle East official at the National Security Council… A former French ambassador to Israel, Mr. Araud’s tenure in Washington has been punctuated by tragedy.” [NYTimes]
HEARD YESTERDAY: “Streisand, Spielberg and Berra among Obama’s Medal of Freedom honorees” by Kevin Liptak: “President Barack Obama bestowed the Medal of Freedom on 17 Americans in a lighthearted, but nonetheless reverent, ceremony in the East Room. “I didn’t know you were Jewish, Barbra,” Obama quipped. “Barbra Streisand attended her first Broadway show at age 14 and remembers thinking, ‘I could go up on that stage and play any role without any trouble at all.’ That’s what’s called chutzpah… “I’m getting all ‘verklempt’ just thinking about it,” Obama said to laughter as he read through Streisand’s list of accomplishments… “Itzhak Perlman was once asked what sound he lives. And his eyes lit up and he replied, ‘The sound of onions sizzling in a pan.’ This is a man with large appetites that knows how to live.” [CNN; JI]
2016 WATCH: “Addressing the Council of Foreign Relations in Washington, DC, Tuesday, Christie said, “It seems like Mrs. Clinton won’t use the term ‘Radical Islamic Terrorism’ because she thinks, somehow, that this would be insulting to the rest of the Muslim world. I think it’s clarifying.” Christie claimed that moderate “Muslim Americans” want that phrase to be used to clarify the differences in Islam’s ideology. “They are not as sensitive as people think”, Christie said, and using the term “Radical Islam” would help differentiate from the moderates. [JI; CSPAN]
“Chris Christie’s Bid Gains New Life as He Invokes 9/11 Amid Fear” by Michael Barbaro: “It is too early to tell how the Paris attacks will ultimately reshape the topsy-turvy Republican presidential race. But this much is clear: It has brought sudden intensity, attention and focus to the once-moribund candidacy of Mr. Christie.” [NYTimes]
“Trump’s Jersey City insult shines spotlight on mayor” by Matt Friedman: “Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop says he was just defending his city. On Saturday night, Donald Trump said “thousands and thousands” cheered in Jersey City as they watched the World Trade Center come down just across the Hudson River. And even though Gov. Chris Christie had a ready-made platform to step up as the state’s highest official and a presidential candidate, he wasn’t the person defending the state. It fell to Fulop, who after 9/11 left his job at Goldman Sachs to join the Marines and is now laying the groundwork for a campaign in what’s shaping up to be a crowded primary for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination.” [CapitalNY]
“After Paris, Sanders sticks to script — and it doesn’t say much about fighting terrorism” by John Wagner: “But by the time the senator from Vermont had wrapped up his speech, which clocked in at 59 minutes, there was one topic that hadn’t merited a single mention: foreign policy.” [WashPost]
Jeb’s Day One Plan — Move the U.S. Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem: “I believe our friends – and Israel is our closest ally – should know that we have their back. And this is not just symbolism when you move the Embassy to the nation’s capital. It is a clear signal that that you’re serious about the existential threat that Iran brings to Israel and to the United States. It would be the most powerful thing you do to say, ‘We are back in business. We’re no longer going to do what the Obama administration did,’ which was turn the cheek left and right all the time – bam, bam, bam, bam… And sending a signal like that is important.” [JI]
INBOX: Jonathan Greenblatt — “Once We Were Strangers Too: The Jewish Responsibility to Welcome Refugees” [Haaretz] • Greg Rosenbaum: “A story the Jews know all too well” [JPost]
Tevi Troy: “Here is my cover story from the December Commentary. It tells the surprising tale of how the Republican Party went from not that sympathetic towards Israel in the 1950s to becoming the pro-Israel party in America today.” [Commentary]
BUSINESS BRIEFS: “Barry Diller’s Business Model Bears Fruit” [DealBook] • “Tisch’s Shopping App Spring Proves to be an Inexpensive Asset for Young Brands” [Fashionista] • “Ghermezian’s American Dream funding may be delayed” [NorthJersey] • “Court upholds $55M settlement between Malkins, ESB investors” [RealDeal] • “Will Israel build offshore nuclear power plant?” [AlMonitor] • “Starbucks’ Howard Schultz is making sure young minority workers find jobs” [Fusion]
SPOTLIGHT: “Gett – new name, new direction for taxi app” by John Reed: “Gett, the Israeli taxi-hailing app company, used the iPhone 6s launch to demonstrate its new business model: offering the fast delivery of a range of consumer goods and services, from groceries to entertainment tickets and repairman visits. The company is expanding its taxi app to offer deliveries such as flowers in Israel, sushi in Moscow and chilled bottles of Veuve Clicquot in London.”
“Shahar Waiser, Gett’s founder and chief executive, was born in Moscow and emigrated aged just 16 on his own to Israel, where his parents joined him four years later. After the military — where he did “computer science-related work” in an unnamed unit — and university, he plunged into Israel’s tech scene, starting companies in Israel and California… In an Israeli context, Gett epitomises a new breed of companies whose owner-founders are choosing to grow and develop rather than sell out early, a famous side-effect of the country’s small domestic market.” [FinancialTimes]
STARTUP NATION: “Tel Aviv, Israel — In a basement wine bar here, hours before wheels up back to Detroit, more than 20 Michigan CEOs huddle one last time to consider the entrepreneurship embedded in the Start-Up Nation. What, if anything, could be extracted and implemented back home? Could the Israeli model of public-private partnership, a shared vision between business, government and aspiring entrepreneurs, stand a chance of being transplanted to a state still prone to competing rivalries and bickering partisans?” [DetroitNews] • “Israel tech tells Aussies to take risks” [TheAustralian]
Joel Wishkovsky Op: “For the last 30 years my parents have belonged to the same synagogue in suburban Philadelphia. It was a huge part of my childhood and helped shaped my strongly held beliefs. Walking into the synagogue now feels a lot like a homecoming. The problem is that I don’t believe in G-d and so going to services is confusing… Most of the time, I can’t even bring myself to do it, arriving late and leaving early. Yet there has been a hole in my life where my parents have slotted in the synagogue. A dynamic community of shared values and spirituality. Finding that without the religious pretext has been the dream. After this past weekend I think Summit Series may have figured it out. A community that shares my belief in entrepreneurship, creativity and the fungible nature of work, love and play.”[LinkedIn]
TALK OF THE TOWN: “Amazon To Pull ‘High Castle’ Ads Suggesting Nazis From NYC Subways” by Brian Steinberg: “A furor appears to have stopped the Führer. Amazon Studios will pull ad signage from New York City subways that used insignia suggesting Nazi control to promote the streaming-video service’s new drama, “The Man in the High Castle.” “Amazon has just decided to pull the ads,” Kevin Ortiz, a spokesman for New York City Transit and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, said by email Tuesday. Executives at Amazon were not available for immediate comment.” [Variety; JI]
HOLLYWOOD: “How one man’s funny business is fueling the growth of streaming comedy specials” by Jared Sichel: “Brian Volk-Weiss is the president of production of New Wave Entertainment and the head of its offshoot, Comedy Dynamics, the nation’s largest independent producer and distributor of one-hour comedy specials, and one of Netflix’s top sources of stand-up comedy shows.”[JewishJournal]
HEADLINES: “Haim Saban, Steve Mosko Raise $3.2M at Charity Fundraiser” [HollywoodReporter; LAMag]
LISTICLE: “The Ten Best Jewish Instagram Accounts” [CJNews]
DESSERT: “Thanksgiving Dinner, With a Side of Cholent” by Leah Koenig: “Across New York City this Thanksgiving, hundreds of soup kitchens will serve thousands of free meals to people in need. Masbia, headquartered in Borough Park, Brooklyn, is no exception—but it does stand apart from the pack. Turkey and cranberry sauce will be on the menu at Masbia, but so will cholent, the bean stew traditionally served on Shabbat.” [TabletMag]
BIRTHDAYS: Ben Stein turns 71… Adam Hasner turns 46… Martin Feldstein turns 76… Melissa Weiss, Director of Communications at ICC, turns 29 (h/t Keyak)… Lauren Sueskind… Arnold Lustiger… Elan Carr turns 47…
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