Daily Kickoff
Welcome to November: Jonathan Pollard is likely to dominate headlines as we get closer to his November 20th release from the Butner Federal Correctional Complex by the U.S. parole board. Pollard’s lawyer Eliot Lauer discussed the upcoming release in YNet’s weekend edition. The interview can be difficult to follow at times as it was presumably translated from English to Hebrew and then back to English.
Lauer rejected the notion that Pollard’s release was tied to the nuclear deal with Iran: “It’s simply not true. According to U.S. law, a life imprisonment ends and is converted into probation, unless the parole board discovers that he committed serious offenses during his imprisonment or that there is a reasonable concern that new crimes will be carried out following his release. If after 30 years the administration had acted differently and had found reasons not to release him, it would have been exposed to extremely harsh criticism and would have faced a public and legal campaign which would have looked into their conduct on the highest levels. They understood that very well.”
Lauer says Pollard has been spending the past few days preparing… He informed the parole board that he had found a proper workplace in the New York area which is willing to take in the released prisoner… Pollard will be subject to the parole board’s conditions but Lauer told YNet.. “We will welcome any gesture on behalf of President Barack Obama in the form of mitigating the sentence in a way which will simplify the process, because there is no reason for Pollard to stay in a supervised early release program. The president has the authority, as a goodwill gesture, to limit the sentence to 30 years and thereby end it completely, allowing Pollard to become a free man and to fulfill the dream he has told me about many times – to make aliyah to Israel.” [YNet]
REPORT: “IDF warns soldiers against CIA recruitment efforts: In the letter, Military Intelligence described a case that took place in 2012 when Israelis who served in sensitive and confidential roles were grilled for hours when they traveled to the United States. American interrogators, presumably CIA operatives, tried to convince the Israelis to join the ranks of the spy agency. A senior defense official told Channel 2 that “any security institution fears the transfer of information one way or the other to another security institution and this is why this was published.” [ToI; i24]
2016 WATCH: Paul Singer Backs Rubio — Singer wrote in a letter sent to dozens of donors on Friday: “There are enormous power vacuums in one hot spot after another. This crisis demands a re-assertion of American leadership in order to avert a catastrophic loss of influence to Russia and China and disastrous destabilization, especially in the Middle East. Senator Rubio grasps this reality in his bones, and… his instincts are excellent, and he knows the terrain and the risks. He will stand with our allies and stand up to our adversaries. He will make it clear to Israel’s adversaries that America stands shoulder to shoulder with the Jewish State.” [JI]
Backstory: “When it looked like the nod was going to Rubio, Jeb Bush offered to meet with Singer again. Because Singer was very interested in strategy, campaign manager Danny Diaz and Sally Bradshaw, Jeb’s closest adviser, flew up to Singer’s office on Oct. 20 and made a very effective case in an hour-plus meeting. Their case – including skills and vulnerabilities of rivals — gave Singer pause. But Wednesday’s debate turned out to be decisive. Singer just couldn’t see such a floundering Jeb beating Clinton.” [Politico]
Jeffrey Goldberg on Face The Nation: “It’s a big deal. I mean Sheldon Adelson is the big fish who hasn’t been caught yet, although he’s leaning Rubio. Adelson is an army of one, in a way. He’s sort of an outlier. Paul Singer is connected into the Republican establishment, the hedge fund, the Wall Street establishment and his signaling this is a signifier. It’s a moment where everybody’s saying, oh, OK, Paul Singer thinks this is a good investment and therefore it becomes a reality that it becomes a good investment.” [Transcript]
Mark Halperin: “One of the party’s most prolific and hard-to-please donors, Singer gave more than $16 million to candidates and political committees in the last four years. Fiscally conservative and socially moderate, the hedge-fund manager has donated to conservative candidates and causes, such as pro-Israel groups, former Ambassador John Bolton, and the Tea Party Patriots, but he has steered many of his contributions to his own super political action committee, American Unity, which supports Republicans who back gay rights.” [Bloomberg]
Donald Trump tweets: “I see Marco Rubio just landed another billionaire to give big money to his Superpac, which are total scams. Marco must address him as “SIR”!” [Twitter]
“Summary of Newly Released Israel-Related Clinton Emails” by Jacob Kornbluh:Highlights — Clinton vents to friend Betsy Ebelingon about dealing with Netanyahu… Sid Blumenthal on Malcolm Hoenlein re: Obama not willing to help Iranian opposition… Hillary asks why the U.S. is not as fast as Israel on Haiti assistance… Hillary wanted her name on the statement against Israel’s demolition of East Jerusalem hotel… [JewishInsider]
“Bernie Sanders Doesn’t Kiss Babies. That a Problem?” by Patrick Healy: “He rarely drops by diners or coffee shops with news cameras in tow, unlike most politicians. He hardly ever kisses babies, aides say, and does not mingle much at fund-raisers. To Mr. Sanders, the independent senator from Vermont, political schmoozing is a phony business, and anathema to his total focus on weighty issues.” [NYTimes]
“Build a wall on the border? No thanks, says San Diego” by Liam Dillon: “While Trump and other GOP presidential candidates push for a giant wall between the United States and Mexico, San Diego is literally building a bridge. In December, an international group of developers, which includes real estate magnate Sam Zell, plans to open a pedestrian walkway that bypasses the regular U.S. border crossings and directly connects San Diego to Tijuana’s international airport… Flights in and out of Tijuana are cheap. The idea is that the bridge would attract travelers willing to pay about $15 to park, go through customs on the U.S. side, and then walk to the airport.” [WashPost]
BUSINESS BRIEFS: “Delshah, Klein Group the latest NYC real estate firms trying to tap Tel Aviv” [RealDeal] • “Silicon Valley’s New Philanthropy” [NYT] • “Silver prosecutors will try to connect speaker and lawyer roles” [CapitalNY] • “Potential Jurors in Sheldon Silver Trial Face Questions About Bias” [NYT] • “Late billionaire’s family feuding ahead of $500M art auction” [NYPost] • “Larry Ellison thinks Michael Dell is ‘brilliant’ for buying EMC and will ‘make billions personally'” [BusinessInsider] • “Eliezer Fishman’s Deep Red Sea: Debts of $1.2 Billion, Assets of $520 Million” [Haaretz] • “Did a Chinese mogul beat a Treasury Dept. ban on doing business in the US? The New York State Division of Corporations’ entity address for AI 23 Wall Street is listed as that of AFI USA, the U.S. subsidiary of Africa Israel Investments.” [AJA]
TALK OF THE TOWN: “Real estate developers Somerset Partners and The Chetrit Group’s celeb-studded party at South Bronx warehouse features burned-out car with bullet holes, trash fires” by Denis Slattery: “A swanky, celebrity-studded art party held to drum up support for two massive luxury towers along the South Bronx waterfront was met with raised eyebrows from critics who said the choice of “art” was in poor taste. “Lack of empathy & basic awareness are signs of an ailing society. Who thought ‘Bronx is Burning’ theme a good idea?” City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito tweeted Saturday.” [DailyNews; RealDeal; Gothamist]
LongRead: “The High-Class Chaos Engulfing One of London’s Wealthiest Neighborhoods” [VanityFair]
STARTUP NATION: “Start-up evangelist Saul Singer tells Australia to ally with Israel” by Tony Boyd: “The author of the most influential book published in the past decade about technology start-ups says Australia has the potential to be the innovation hub of the Asian region – if it allies with Israel.” [AFR]
TALK OF OUR NATION: “‘Nostra Aetate’ Opened Up Catholic, Jewish Relations 50 Years Ago” by Sylvia Poggioli: “Thursday marked the 50th anniversary of the issuance of the most radical document by the Second Vatican Council. It’s called Nostra Aetate, or “In Our Times,” and it opened up relations between Catholicism and non-Christian religions. The landmark document repudiated anti-Semitism and the charge that Jews were collectively guilty for the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.” [NPR]
Noah Feldman: “Violence in the Name of the Messiah” [BloombergView]
SPORTS BLINK: “American Pharoah Ends Career Fittingly: Triumphant and Adored” by Joe Drape: “Let’s tip our hat here to American Pharoah’s owners, Zayat and his family, and the trainer Bob Baffert for keeping him on the racetrack when the risk far outweighed the reward… American Pharoah beat the long shot Effinex by six and a half lengths. He earned a $2.75 million first-place check for the Zayats, pushing his bankroll past $8 million.” [NYTimes]
Viral Watch: Ray Lewis talks David and Goliath in a motivational locker room speech [Facebook]
DESSERT: “Strictly kosher: Jewish slogan tees become a cult fashion fascination” by Sam Wolfson: “Living in Los Angeles and Toronto, I’ve observed it’s “in” right now to self-identify as Jewish,” says Shiran, who says she has noticed who says she has noticed a rise in young Jews holding “trendy shabbat dinners” and the popularity of J-Swipe, the Jewish Tinder. They have even produced one T-shirt for all the gentiles who might wish they were a little more in the club: “Not in the tribe, but I dig the vibe.” [TheGuardian]
BIRTHDAYS: David Schwimmer turns 49… Alan Abbey… Lisa Feldman… David Sirota turns 40…
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