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WHILE WE WERE AWAY — President Donald Trump renewed a presidential waiver yesterday suspending the relocation of the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem for another six months. [Doc]
But in a statement, the White House said — for the first time since January — that the President intends to keep his campaign promise and move the embassy. “No one should consider this step to be in any way a retreat from the President’s strong support for Israel and for the United States-Israel alliance,” the statement said. “President Trump made this decision to maximize the chances of successfully negotiating a deal between Israel and the Palestinians, fulfilling his solemn obligation to defend America’s national security interests. But, as he has repeatedly stated his intention to move the embassy, the question is not if that move happens, but only when.”
Prime Minister Netanyahu: “Though Israel is disappointed that the embassy will not move at this time, we appreciate today’s expression of President Trump’s friendship to Israel and his commitment to moving the embassy in the future.”
Israeli Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz tells the Kafe Knesset team: “We thought Trump would be different and this time the promise would be fulfilled. I think it’s a shame. It’s abnormal that everybody knows Jerusalem is capital of Israel [but doesn’t officially recognize it]… It’s a kind of BDS… and it’s high time to end this and put the embassies in Jerusalem… If Trump were to keep one of two campaign promises, I think it’d be more reasonable and justified to keep the promise about moving the Embassy to Jerusalem and not leave the Paris Accords, rather than vice-versa.” [JewishInsider]
Experts explain Trump’s move — by Rosie Gray: “The Trump White House statement’s repetition of that promise is significant, said former State Department Middle East negotiator Aaron David Miller. “It is significant even though he waived that he made clear in a formal statement that as president he now has committed himself to move the embassy,” Miller said… “It becomes problematic because these negotiations are likely to drag on interminably, assuming they even get started,” Miller said… “By signing the waiver he avoids creating a problem,” [Hussein] Ibish said. “But by saying he still intends to move the embassy, he protects himself, protects Netanyahu, and is still holding out the threat to the Arabs and the Palestinians that look, there’s still something on the other side, so cooperate with me.”
“Trump is not the first friend of Israel in the White House to sign the waiver,” said Shalom Lipner, a Brookings scholar who served from 1990-2016 in the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office… “Israelis are disappointed, but largely unsurprised. But there is a constituency, comprised mostly of Trump supporters, who genuinely believed that he would make good on his promise to move the embassy in his first few months; for them, this is a rude awakening.”” [TheAtlantic]
VIEW FROM JERUSALEM — Israeli cabinet ministers react to Trump’s move — by Peter Baker: “We’ve waited 69 years, we will wait 70 years,” said Yoav Galant, the Israeli minister of housing. Tzachi Hanegbi, another minister, called it a “marginal” issue that had to do with “real estate,” and that Mr. Trump had made a “resonant statement” with his visit to the Western Wall. But Naftali Bennett, a leader of a pro-settlement party within Mr. Netanyahu’s coalition, said delaying the embassy move would actually damage the prospects for peace by fostering Palestinians’ false hope that they would gain control of East Jerusalem.” [NYTimes] • Minister Ze’ev Elkin: “[Trump] is still talking ‘Obamanese,’ on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.” [ToI]
“This Israeli Minister Could Block Trump’s Regional Peace Push by David Wainer and Michael Arnold: “Naftali Bennett, a minister crucial to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition, is threatening to use his party’s seats to topple the government if Palestinians are granted land concessions in negotiations.” [Bloomberg]
“Trump Left the Door Open for a Jerusalem Embassy” by Eli Lake: “White House officials tell me that Trump, for now, believes he can use the embassy issue as leverage. Normally this would mean holding out the prospect of moving the embassy as a carrot to the Israelis in exchange for concessions on settlements. In this case, however, it’s a little different: Trump is using the prospect of an embassy move as a stick with Israel’s Arab neighbors.” [BloombergView]
ON THE HILL — Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said in a statement, “As someone who believes that Jerusalem is the undivided capital of Israel, I am deeply disappointed in President Trump’s decision. Will those who criticized President Obama for not moving the Embassy make their voices just as loud and just as strong when it comes to President Trump’s failure to move the Embassy?”
— On Tuesday, Schumer signed on as a cosponsor of a resolution commemorating the 50th anniversary of the reunification of Jerusalem. The symbolic vote is expected to take place on Monday, which marks 50 years to the start of the Six Day War.
FIRST LOOK: “Trump Officials Studying Obama’s Security Plan in Case Israeli-Palestinian Peace Push Works” by Amir Tibon and Amos Harel: “In recent weeks, there are some signs that the current administration is indeed looking into the security plan prepared by the previous administration. Trump’s National Security Adviser, H.R. McMaster, decided to appoint Kris Bauman, a United States Air Force colonel who was deeply involved in the work over the 2014 security plan, as the National Security Council’s new expert on Israel-Palestine. In addition, the administration has been briefed about two security plans that were created over the last year by former Israeli and American security officials, which both drew on ideas and concepts from the [John] Allen plan. The first is a plan that was written by the Washington-based Center for New American Security, together with former IDF General Gadi Shamni… the second is a plan written by “Commanders for Israel’s Security,” an organization consisting of hundreds of former senior IDF officers.” [Haaretz]
Last December, Gen. John Allen expanded on his security plan, calling it the proper formula for future peace: “I have seen what I believe can be a workable security solution to support the forward movement of peace. It will be hard, and it might even take decades to implement all of the pieces, but for the sake of Israel, there is no other viable option.” [JewishInsider]
“Palestinian leader Abbas admits meeting with Trump in Bethlehem was ‘uncomfortable'” by Jack Moore: “In a meeting this week of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) executive committee, Abbas told members that the meeting a week before was “uncomfortable,” Palestinian sources told the Qatari-owned, London-based news outlet Al-Araby… A PLO source, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Newsweek that… Trump showed video clips to Abbas of him “inciting against Israel,” footage that the Palestinian leader said were taken out of context. “You have the CIA, ask them to examine the videos and to find out how they were taken or fabricated for the purpose of incriminating Palestinians,” Abbas reportedly told Trump.” [Newsweek]
Aaron David Miller:“The Myths About 1967 That Just Won’t Die. Fifty years after the Arab-Israeli war, popular assumptions about its impact are begging to be reexamined.” [TheAtlantic]
ON THE HILL: “Democratic Rep. Mark Pocan Identified as Lawmaker Behind Anti-Israel Capitol Hill Forum” by Adam Kredo: “Rep. Mark Pocan (D., Wis.) has been identified as the anonymous member of Congress who reserved official Capitol Hill space for an anti-Israel forum that is being organized by several organizations that support boycotts of the Jewish state, according to congressional sources.” [FreeBeacon]
“C.I.A. Names New Iran Chief in a Sign of Trump’s Hard Line” by Matthew Rosenberg and Adam Goldman: “He is known as the Dark Prince or Ayatollah Mike, nicknames he earned as the Central Intelligence Agency officer who oversaw the hunt for Osama bin Laden and the American drone strike campaign that killed thousands of Islamist militants and hundreds of civilians. Now the official, Michael D’Andrea, has a new job. He is running the C.I.A.’s Iran operations… Mr. D’Andrea’s new role is one of a number of moves inside the spy agency that signal a more muscular approach to espionage and covert operations under the leadership of Mike Pompeo… Ezra Cohen-Watnick, the [national security] council’s senior director for intelligence — the main White House liaison to intelligence agencies — has told other administration officials that he wants to use American spies to help oust the Iranian government, according to multiple defense and intelligence officials.” [NYTimes]
DRIVING THE CONVERSATION — “Bucking Trump, These Cities, States and Companies Commit to Paris Accord” by Hiroko Tabuchi and Henry Fountain: “We’re going to do everything America would have done if it had stayed committed,” Michael Bloomberg, the former New York City mayor who is coordinating the effort, said in an interview… Bloomberg Philanthropies, Mr. Bloomberg’s charitable organization, is offering to donate $14 million over the next two years to help fund the budget should it be needed, a spokeswoman said. That figure represents the United States’ share, she said.” [NYTimes]
REACTIONS: “Disney CEO Bob Iger quits Trump advisory team as ‘matter of principle'” by Julia Horowitz: “Disney CEO Bob Iger said he will step down from Trump’s business advisory council, protesting the president’s decision to withdraw from the Paris climate deal… He also posted his decision on Twitter, saying he’d resigned from Trump’s business council “as a matter of principle.” [CNNMoney]
Mark Zuckerberg says Donald Trump’s decision on the Paris agreement ‘puts our children’s future at risk [Recode]
Marc Benioff: “Deeply disappointed by President’s decision to withdraw from ParisAgreement. We will double our efforts to fight climate change.” [Twitter]
PALACE INTRIGUE: “Inside Trump’s climate decision: After fiery debate, he ‘stayed where he’s always been’” by Ashley Parker, Philip Rucker and Michael Birnbaum: “Ivanka Trump, the president’s daughter, reached out to chief executives and urged them to call her father to make their pro-business case for staying in the [Paris] accord. She even personally appealed to Andrew Liveris, the head of Dow Chemical, asking him to spearhead a letter with other CEOs — which ultimately ran as a full-page advertisement in the Wall Street Journal in May — directly appealing to Trump to stay in the agreement… But in the end, it was not enough… The fight pit Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt, chief strategist Stephen K. Bannon and White House Counsel Don McGahn — who all pushed for a total withdrawal — against Ivanka Trump, economic chief Gary Cohn and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson… The Paris pact was a particular passion for Bannon, who spent the past two weeks consumed by the climate deal, including working feverishly from the West Wing after returning early from Trump’s foreign trip.” [WashPost]
“After climate loss, Ivanka moves on” by Annie Karni: “Ivanka Trump and her husband, Jared Kushner, have taken the defeat in stride, according to two people familiar with their thinking on the issue. Their view of their roles in the White House is that they’re playing the long game, helping the president to be successful. And they don’t tally their own influence day-by-day or bill-by-bill. But they were notably absent from the row of top aides gathered in front of the podium for the announcement… Ivanka Trump was out of the office observing the Jewish holiday of Shavuot, a White House official said. Kushner walked to the White House after attending synagogue in the morning for a long-standing meeting that was on his schedule before Trump’s remarks were put together, and he also did not attend the Rose Garden event.” [Politico] • Kushner tries to pretend everything’s normal [Politico]
Where Jared and Ivanka spent Shavuot — by Chris Spargo:“A source close to Jared told the Daily Mail that the couple had gone back to shul on Thursday morning, for the second day in a row, as they observed Shavuot, bringing along their two oldest children Arabella and Joseph. The young children, perhaps worn out from having to walk the mile to and from the Friends of Lubavitch of Wednesday, decided to make the trek a bit easier the second time around by travelling on their scooters… Also joining the group was Jared’s brother Josh, dressed down in a pair of form-fitting skinny jeans and a cardigan… After shul, Ivanka and the children headed back home while Jared set off for the White House, walking the mile-and-a-half to work.” [DailyMail]
KAFE KNESSET — Interview with Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz — by Tal Shalev and JPost’s Lahav Harkov: KK: What do you think of Trump taking the US out of the Paris Climate Accord? Steinitz: “I think that it is a sad moment. In my opinion, even if there is no certainty but only 50% probability that we are destroying the climate and the future of this planet, we have to take counter-steps to be on the safe side and do everything in order to reduce pollution and take care of the next generation. In addition to this, I think the Paris Accords were a rare moment that almost all countries in the world, almost all humanity – with only a few exceptions, Syria and Nicaragua. All other 195 countries overcame all their differences and different perspectives to save our planet and the future of our planet. I think it’s important in of itself. That doesn’t happen every day… Therefore I’m very sorry, and I can assure you that as the Israeli Minister of Energy I am fully committed to the Paris Accords and my plan to reduce the use of coal and replace coal with natural gas and renewable energies in our power stations.” Read today’s entire Kafe Knesset here [JewishInsider]
HEARD AT CODE CONFERENCE — Hillary Clinton: “Somebody – probably more than one somebody – will really have the market for clean energy exports. China is moving full speed ahead to be that country. Some of the European countries, particularly when it comes to wind, are already there. Israel, I know, has some great research being done, particularly on solar. There’s a huge market that somebody is going to own and we are giving it up.” [Video]
“Scarborough: Steve Bannon is the real president” by Alayna Treene: “Morning Joe host Joe Scarborough repeatedly called Steve Bannon “President Bannon” on his show Friday… Scarborough also suggested that “President Bannon” was the source behind the negative leaks on Jared Kushner and his ties to Russia, noting that Bannon boasted about having damaging information on Trump’s son-in-law in the days leading up to the reports that Kushner was being looked at by the FBI.” [Axios]
RUSSIA PROBE — “Explanations for Kushner’s meeting with head of Kremlin-linked bank don’t match up” by David Filipov, Amy Brittain, Rosalind S. Helderman and Tom Hamburger: “Before the United States imposed sanctions, VEB sought to extend its international reach to draw more investment to Russia. Among those named by the bank to an advisory board for a new global fund was Stephen Schwarzman, the CEO of the Blackstone Group and now an outside adviser to the Trump White House… [Sergey] Gorkov was named to head VEB in February 2016… Some Russia watchers described Gorkov, who was not seen as being especially close to the Kremlin before his appointment, as an unlikely diplomatic link between the Kremlin and the Trump administration. “I can think of many back channels that one might cultivate to have close, discreet, indirect communications with Putin. VEB’s Gorkov would not make my list,” said Michael McFaul, who was the U.S. ambassador to Russia under President Barack Obama.” [WashPost] • LongRead — Family First: The Trials of Jared Kushner [Time]
Putin tells Megyn Kelly: U.S. officials blaming Russia “reminds me of anti-Semitism and blaming the Jews. This is disinformation.” [NBCNews]
“Former White House press officer Boris Epshteyn to be questioned in Russia probe” by Brian Ross, Matthew Mosk and Pete Madden: “[Boris] Epshteyn, a Trump campaign adviser who briefly served in the White House communications office, confirmed to ABC News that he has received a request for information and testimony from the House Intelligence Committee.” [ABCNews]
TRUMP TEAM: “Kushner’s Rose Garden Hug Ends Lewandowski’s Year-Long Rift With Kushner” by Kevin Cirilli, Shannon Pettypiece and Jennifer Jacobs: “After Corey Lewandowski met with Donald Trump in the Oval Office on Monday… Jared Kushner, the president’s son-in-law and trusted adviser — who had pressed for Lewandowski’s ouster as campaign manager almost a year ago — joined him for a stroll through the White House Rose Garden. Their conversation ended with a hug, according to people familiar with their exchange. It also resulted in a restored relationship and an understanding that Kushner is no longer a barrier between Lewandowski and the White House.” [Bloomberg]
“White House ‘Muslim Ban’ Man Pushes for Even More Power” by Spencer Ackerman: “[Stephen] Miller is trying to take on a second role—a power move known only to a handful people in the White House and across the administration. The nationalist firebrand has elbowed his way into national security and foreign affairs, trying to push the U.S. government to adopt hardline stances on refugees and other international issues… Formally, Miller has no position on the NSC. But the Domestic Policy Council is typically invited to participate in NSC meetings in which its agencies, such as the Department of Health and Human Services, have equity.” [DailyBeast]
“Donald Trump Poisons the World” by David Brooks:“By treating the world simply as an arena for competitive advantage, Trump, [H. R. ] McMaster and [Gary] Cohn sever relationships, destroy reciprocity, erode trust and eviscerate the sense of sympathy, friendship and loyalty that all nations need when times get tough. By looking at nothing but immediate material interest, Trump, McMaster and Cohn turn America into a nation that affronts everybody else’s moral emotions. They make our country seem disgusting in the eyes of the world.” [NYTimes]
MAMILLA HOTEL, WHERE SPICER HANGS WITH THE PRESS — by Matthew Nussbaum, Tara Palmeri and Josh Dawsey: “On the recent trip abroad, he repeatedly showed the strain of the job. At one point, he got drinks with a group of other staffers and reporters in Jerusalem, where he was adamant that the conversation steer clear of work. “The most we’ve seen of Sean [Spicer] was at a rooftop bar in Jerusalem,” said one U.S. journalist on the trip. “But he refused to take work-related questions and said if you asked him a work-related question, then you had to take a shot.” The comment was made in jest, according to people present, and no shots were taken.” [Politico]
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BUSINESS BRIEFS: Why CBS and Viacom didn’t merge, according to Shari Redstone [Recode] • Billionaire Steinmetz recovers from setback in Simandou battle [MiningWeekly] • Houston-based Camber Energy Inc. has appointed a new chairman, Fred Zeidman [BizJournals] • Touting Ties to Trump Is the Only Thing That Unites the Feuding Kushners [Bloomberg] • Jared Kushner’s Observer Lays Off Staffers [WWD] • Porsche to invest ‘tens of millions’ in Israeli auto technology [JNS]
“Trump’s Hebrew translator says she was happier working for Obama” by Rob Gloster: “Merav Rozenblum, a Hebrew teacher at Jewish Community High School of the Bay, is a contract translator for the State Department and has worked with three presidents… “Of course, when it comes to my principles, I would feel better translating for a president that did not offend about half of the American people. But when I work, this should not be reflected in anything that I do.” Rozenblum and a colleague in Washington, DC, were hired to translate Trump’s May 21 speech in Saudi Arabia at the Arab Islamic American Summit… “This president speaks in very short sentences, so it wasn’t a very difficult speech to translate,” Rozenblum said.” [ToI]
“How the World’s Most Interesting Man Befriended the World’s Most Powerful Man” by Jonathan Goldsmith: “[President Barack Obama] and I had met earlier that year at a fundraiser in Vermont when he was just preparing for his reelection campaign. He had impressed me with his encyclopedic recall of the outrageous escapades of my TV character (“The Most Interesting Man in the World”). Still, I was more than surprised when I later got a call from one of his deputies. Would I like to be part of a special surprise for the president’s 50th birthday celebration at Camp David? … The Secret Service picked me up at Reagan National Airport, and a few hours later I was at Camp David, the president’s private retreat…”
“As I waited for the festivities to begin, I was given a private tour of the grounds… I saw the very chairs on which Stalin and Roosevelt sat and the table where the Camp David Peace Accords were negotiated between Israel and Egypt. The sense of history was overwhelming… At one point, I asked if it would be OK to quiz him on some serious issues. “Everybody else does,” he responded gamely, “so go ahead.” I asked what he thought would happen in Syria, where war had just broken out… I asked him why relations seemed to be so strained with Israel. He was honest and direct with his answers, even brutally so. But while I might kiss and tell, what he confided in me I will never reveal.” [PoliticoMag]
PROFILE: “Long Island’s 98-Year-Old Former Congressman Eats Dumplings, Hates Trump, Makes Tweets” by Ross Barkan: “On the walls of [Lester] Wolff’s airy, feng shui–tuned home in Muttontown, a tony Long Island village, are photographs of the presidents and historical figures he has met in his half-century of public life… There, near the bottom of his office wall, is Hillary Clinton. Nowhere is Donald Trump. “He is a fascist. No question in my mind,” Wolff said. “There was Hitler, there was Mussolini. Many of the dictators — he’s following the same route, all over again.” … An observant Jew, he wakes at 6:30 every morning and prays for about an hour. Musing more on his longevity, he said he never drank much and smoked a pipe instead of cigarettes. A trip to Denmark years ago convinced him to eat lox for breakfast… Wolff said he has wondered why God has “allowed me to be here for so long and in good health with good mental ability. Why?” “I feel there’s something, that there’s a mission I’ve yet to perform before I go,” he said. “What is it? I don’t know.”” [VillageVoice]
MEDIA WATCH — Guardian’s Ben Jacobs gets new glasses after assault by Montana congressman: “Guardian reporter Ben Jacobs replaced his glasses on Tuesday, after they were broken when he was assaulted by Republican congressional candidate Greg Gianforte… Jacobs was fitted for a new pair of glasses by optician Russell Byron, settling on a pair of black frames from Banana Republic. The glasses will be ready for pickup next week. Jacobs has said he will pay for them himself with help from insurance. At the request of the Washington DC media museum the Newseum, Jacobs has agreed to donate his broken glasses to the museum for display in their collection.” [Guardian]
HOLLYWOOD: “‘Wonder Woman’ Headed for Big Israel Opening as Country Rallies Behind Gal Gadot” by David Caspi: “Every single print, online and TV outlet has been positively covering the Wonder Woman press tour, with many portraying Gadot as an ambassador for the country… “There is no one Israeli that is non-supportive,” wrote Israel Hayom newspaper columnist Adi Rubinstein this week. “Gadot is the leading Israeli product on TV all over the world right now — no format, idea or Israeli persona can successfully do what Gadot has been doing this past month.” Israeli advertising tech startup Taykey, which tracks internet chatter, says that Gadot mentions online have been 95 percent positive… She also currently outranks Oscar winner and Jerusalem born Natalie Portman on top of IMDB’s ranking of most popular industry people born in Israel.” [THR]
“Why So Many People Care That Wonder Woman Is Israeli” by Ruth Graham: “Gadot’s origins landed in headlines this week when Lebanon banned the film from theaters just days before it was scheduled to premiere… Pressure from the Campaign to Boycott Supporters of Israel–Lebanon prompted the government to pull its approval at the last minute… Jewish and Israeli media outlets, meanwhile, have covered the movie with a sense of hometown swagger… The Forward asked if Gadot is on her way to becoming “the biggest Israeli superstar ever” and a “global feminist torch-holder for decades to come.” “It isn’t just a triumph for women that the new savior of the world is female,” a writer for the Jewish Journal wrote. “It is a triumph for the Jews.”” [Slate]
WEEKEND BIRTHDAYS — FRIDAY: Executive Director of the American Jewish Committee, David Harris turns 68… National Hockey League Commissioner Gary Bettman turns 65… Founder of Newark-based IDT Corp and numerous affiliates and spinoffs including shale energy exploration company, Genie Energy, Howard S. Jonas turns 61… Writer-at-large for New York magazine since 2011, following a 31 year career at the New York Times (1980-2011), he is also an executive producer for HBO’s “Veep,” Frank Rich turns 68… Former member of the British Parliament from Manchester (1983-1997) and then a member of European Parliament from Northwest England (1999-2009), David Anthony Gerald Sumberg turns 76… Political activist, social entrepreneur and city planner; a co-founder of ReelAbilities, a film festival by, or about, people with disabilities, Anita Altman turns 72… Israeli entrepreneur and inventor, founder of Indigo Digital Press (1977) and The Landa Group (2003), known as the father of commercial digital printing, Benny Landa turns 71… Aerospace engineer and a former NASA astronaut, he flew on three shuttle missions, Atlantis, Discovery and Endeavour and took along a memento from the US Holocaust Museum into space, Mark L. Polansky turns 61… Brooklyn-based Hasidic Rebbe of Skulen, Rabbi Yisroel Avrohom Portugal turns 92… Dinorah Cecilia Baroody turns 59… Special counsel focused on land use and zoning at NYC-based law firm Goldstein Hall, Jessica Ashenberg Loeser turns 40… Chief Development Officer for the Obama Foundation, Jordan David Kaplan turns 39… Director of technology at Santa Monica-based Action Network, a tech platform for progressive causes, Jason S. Rosenbaum turns 33… Co-founder and CEO of The Wing, a chain of women’s work space and social clubs, communications strategist Audrey H. Gelman turns 30 (h/ts Playbook)… Business development officer at Neura, Inc. and board member of non-profit Tamid Group, Jared R. Fleitman turns 25… Benjamin Sheridan turns 25… Carla Sanchez…
SATURDAY: Canadian economist who has held both high-level government and academic posts, Sylvia Knelman Ostry turns 90… Italian physician, writer and essayist on a wide range of Biblical and Jewish topics, he served as President of the Union of Italian Jewish Communities (1998-2006), Amos Luzzatto turns 89… Attorney, author, political candidate, law professor, businesswoman and international civil servant, she was awarded both a Ph.D. in political science and a J.D. from Yale, Jan Schneider turns 70… Algerian-born, French citizen, Tel Aviv-based attorney, elected in 2012 to serve as an overseas representative to the French parliament representing the southern Mediterranean region, Daphna Poznanski-Benhamou turns 67… President of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, Eric S. Rosengren turns 60… Chief cantor of Vienna, Austria’s Israelitische Kultusgemeinde since 1992, lyrical tenor, Shmuel Barzilai turns 60… Member of the British Parliament since 2001, Jonathan Djanogly turns 52… Executive Director of the Jewish Federation of the Greater San Gabriel and Pomona Valleys, Jason Moss turns 43… Director of Annual Giving and Alumni Relations at the San Francisco Day School, Lauren Becker turns 31… Israel on Campus Coalition’s Brandon Beigler… Alice Heyman… Rick Munitz…
SUNDAY: Survivor of the Holocaust via the Kindertransport, sniper for the Haganah and renowned sex therapist, Ruth Westheimer (“Dr. Ruth”) turns 89… Billionaire philanthropist, co-founder of Boston Properties, and owner of the NY Daily News and of U.S. News & World Report, Mort Zuckerman turns 8-0… Emeritus Professor at New Jersey Institute of Technology, David Kristol turns 79… Attorney who served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives (1969-1973) and the Massachusetts Senate (1973-1983), Alan Sisitsky turns 75… Professor of Organic Chemistry at the Weizmann Institute of Science and winner of the 2012 Israel Prize, David Milstein turns 70… Beverly Hills attorney, Marlene Diane Greenly turns 69… Justice of the Michigan Supreme Court since 1999 and Chief Justice starting in 2017, Stephen J. Markman turns 68… Longest tenured member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives (42 years from 1974 to 2016), Mark B. Cohen turns 68… Offensive lineman for the NFL’s Miami Dolphins (1973-1984), which included 3 Super Bowl appearances and 4 Pro Bowls, Ed Newman turns 66… British journalist, author of 9 books and socially conservative columnist for The Times (London), The Jerusalem Post and The Jewish Chronicle, Melanie Phillips turns 66… First-ever Jewish governor of Hawaii (2002-2010) and then Chief Operating Officer of Illinois (2015-2016), Linda Lingle turns 64… French-Israeli entrepreneur, angel investor in hundreds of start-ups, Jeremie Berrebi turns 39… Lead anchor of the Washington Post’s “Inspired Life” blog, Colby Itkowitz turns 34… Israeli supermodel, Bar Refaeli turns 32… Legislative assistant and press secretary for Congressman Ted Deutch, Jason Hillel Attermann turns 29… Ken Moss… Judah Gross…
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