Daily Kickoff
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SCENE LAST NIGHT — LOS ANGELES EDITION: Leslie Moonves, the Chairman and CEO of CBS, was honored at the Simon Wiesenthal Center’s 2018 National Tribute Dinner at the Beverly Hilton.
Jeffrey Katzenberg, a member of the Wiesenthal Center’s Board of Trustees, delivered the opening remarks: “This dinner has been going on for many years, and is really kind of a family affair. In fact, I like to think of it as [Rabbi] Marvin Hier’s annual bar mitzvah dinner, except that at this bar mitzvah party we have really really big checks (laughter). It’s actually a record setter, more than $2.6M has been raised tonight and that is a testament to the man we’re honoring, Les Moonves.”
Simon Wiesenthal Center founder Rabbi Marvin Hier, who also delivered the prayer at President Trump’s inauguration, delivered remarks at last night’s dinner: “We have an obligation to speak out beyond our zip codes. To speak out when our values are threatened like in Charlottesville, the bigots of Charlottesville, by the Russians, by the North Koreans, the Ayatollahs in Iran, or when assault rifles are used to murder and maim our children in broad daylight.”
James Corden, the host of CBS’ The Late Late Show, served as Master of Ceremonies: “It’s an honor to be here as I know how difficult it is to find a Jewish comedian in Los Angeles (laughter). If you don’t know me, my show is on at 12:37am on CBS so this actually the biggest audience I’ve ever performed for.” (laughter)
The evening’s other honorees included Raheel Raza, a Pakistani-Canadian anti-extremist activist, and David Ben-Gurion who was honored posthumously and whose award was accept by his grandson Alon Ben-Gurion. Later in the evening, Moonves revealed that David Ben-Gurion was actually his great-uncle. “David Ben-Gurion’s wife was my grandfather’s sister. My grandfather and Alon’s grandmother were brother and sister.”
FROM L-R: SWC Co Chair Dawn Arnall, Television host & SWC trustee Mary Hart, James Corden, 2017 honoree & Vice Chairman of NBCUniversal Ron Meyer, Rabbi Marvin Hier, Jeffrey Katzenberg, Carol Mizel, SWC Chairman Larry Mizel, Janice Prager, Rabbi Abraham Cooper. [Pic] • Film producer Brian Grazer posted: “97 year old, healthy, happy Herman Moonves, father of Les Moonves! Both here to celebrate Les for his Simon Wiesenthal Award tonight!” [Instagram]
Other notables in attendance included: Cal Ripken Jr., Showtime CEO David Nevins, Pat Riley, Producer Burt Sugarman, Viacom’s Bob Bakish, Lions Gate’s Jon Feltheimer, Paramount’s Jim Gianopulos, Warner Bros. CEO Kevin Tsujihara, Sony Pictures CEO Tony Vinciquerra.
FIRST LOOK: “After a Year in Washington, Ivanka and Jared Are Isolated on Kushner Island” by Emily Jane Fox in the April issue of Vanity Fair: “In the fall of 2017, Josh Kushner, Jared’s younger brother, was in touch with The Charlie Rose Show. Throughout the campaign, many in the media speculated about what Josh, a venture capitalist who runs Oscar, a health-care company predicated on the Affordable Care Act, might think of the fact that his brother was working in an administration that intended to dismantle Obamacare. Now Josh seemed ready to answer the question. According to people familiar with his thinking, Josh Kushner was set to sit down with Rose to come out as a Democrat… In November, however, Rose was fired after several women came forward alleging sexual harassment and workplace misconduct. Josh Kushner’s sit-down had yet to be taped.”
“Initially, after Charlottesville, many friends expected that Trump and Kushner would pack up and return to New York before the 2017 school year. By the fall, an idea was floated within their circle that Ivanka might soon return for an honorary job at the U.N. and Jared could assume a position on the re-election committee… Now the current bet is that the Trump-Kushners will stay through May or June, until school wraps up, if they can make it that far. “What are they coming home to here?” the old friend told me recently. “A bunch of people who haven’t exactly been counting down the seconds since they’ve been gone.” … According to one former Trump adviser, the president is keeping Kushner around, in part, because he fears letting him out of his sight—particularly if he gets indicted.” [VanityFair]
PROFILE — “Sam Nunberg Is Still Talking” by David Freedlander:“What drew Nunberg to politics, and to Trump, was Roy Cohn… The person sitting across from me appears to be the opposite of the diminutive, tightly focused Cohn… Cohn was a killer; Nunberg, as former Trump campaign aide Michael Caputo put it, “is not a backstabbing soulless climber in an arena where that is almost required.” (One friend of Nunberg’s described him more as “a yenta,” someone who thrives on political gossip, true or not, calling friends in the political world dozens of times a day to find out the latest.) … “I have never, nor would I ever, lie to [Washington Post reporter Robert] Costa or to my Magela.” I’m sorry—your who? “My Magela. I call Maggie Haberman [of The New York Times] my Magela. You know, like Mamela. Maggie is like my aunt.” He shrugged. “I don’t know if she feels that way, actually.”” [PoliticoMag]
TRANSITION — “Trump Chooses Bolton for 3rd Security Adviser as Shake-Up Continues” by Mark Landler and Maggie Haberman: ” President Trump named John R. Bolton… as his third national security adviser on Thursday, continuing a shake-up that creates one of the most hawkish national security teams of any White House in recent history… General [H. R.] McMaster will retire from the military… He had discussed his departure with Mr. Trump for several weeks… but decided to speed it up because questions about his status were casting a shadow over his exchanges with foreign officials.” [NYTimes]
Aaron David Miller tells us…“You could argue that Jim Mattis stands to be isolated because there’s no more McMaster and [Rex] Tillerson. It’s [Mike] Pompeo and Bolton. But the reality is that in a situation like this, Jim Mattis’s stock, his influence, his prestige goes up. He becomes even more of a balancer because the President, no matter if he fashions himself a military general, I think understands he’s out of his depth when it comes to military matters and military options. If you look at Trump’s record last year, when it comes to the projection of military force, it’s a very proportionate, risk-averse one. You have a very odd situation in which Trump becomes the least ideological, the least hawkish, and the most pragmatic and unprincipled member of his team. That’s why Mattis’s role, in my judgment, becomes so important.”
Elliott Abrams emails us… “I’m delighted. John is a friend and former colleague. He’s extremely smart and he is an excellent and forceful bureaucrat. I think the combination of Pompeo and Bolton will serve the president and the country very well.”
ZOA’s Mort Klein, who led an aggressive campaign to oust McMaster last year, tells us… “ZOA called for the ouster of McMaster because of his hostility toward Israel, because of his support of a Palestinian terrorist state, frankly, and his sympathy for radical Islam. When I wrote my op-ed and press release calling for his ouster, I got calls from some of my friend in the White House, who told me Trump saw this and because he was already thinking this way, this has motivated him to move in that direction. I was told several months ago that sooner or later he’s going to be gone. Now, Trump is putting together the most pro-Israel team that I can remember in my lifetime. This is great news for America and for our fight against radical Islam, and great news for Israel. This is the beginning of a new era in the Trump Administration.”
Rep. Adam Schiff tweets: “John Bolton once suggested Russian hack of DNC may have been a false flag operation by Obama Admin. He joins Joe diGenova, another Fox contributor, who thinks the FBI conspired to frame the President. Glad to see POTUS surrounding himself with rational thinkers. Heaven help us.”
HOW IT PLAYED — With Bolton, Trump Creates a Historically Hard-Line Foreign Policy Team [NYTimes] • Bolton may herald rightward shift in Trump’s foreign policy [AP] • With John Bolton, Trump’s White House gets a ‘bad cop’ for foreign policy [YahooNews] • War hero McMaster bows out after mostly unsuccessful bid to curb Trump [ToI] • Eli Lake: John Bolton Has His Chance to Kill the Iran Deal Trump Tried to Fix [BloombergView] • ‘Zionist hawk’, ‘stalwart friend’: strong words greet Bolton nomination [Reuters]
— “There are two views on Bolton among the Israeli security establishment,” said Ofer Zalzberg, an analyst with the International Crisis Group. “There is a concern that he’s primarily an ideologue and there’s a risk to stability, and others who say he has decades of experience.” [WashPost]
“Bolton bombshell: the clashes to come” by Jonathan Swan: “Sources who know Bolton expect he will stare down [James] Mattis, tell him when he’s wrong, and will be a Henry Kissinger-type presence in the room.” [Axios]
REPORTED EARLIER IN THE DAY — “John Bolton’s Curious Appearance In A Russian Gun Rights Video” by Tim Mak: “Former U.N. ambassador John Bolton recorded a video used by the Russian gun rights group The Right to Bear Arms in 2013 to encourage the Russian government to loosen gun laws… Bolton, who… has reportedly been considered as a replacement for national security adviser H.R. McMaster, is a curious pick for The Right to Bear Arms… After all, Bolton is one of the most hawkish, anti-Russia figures in Republican Party foreign policy circles.” [NPR]
LATEST ON TRUMP’S PEACE PLAN — “Kushner and Greenblatt wrote to Palestinian PM after assassination attempt” by Barak Ravid: “Jared Kushner and U.S. special envoy Jason Greenblatt sent letters last week to Palestinian Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah and to the director of Palestinian intelligence General Majid Faraj after they survived an assassination attempt in Gaza… Hamdallah and Faraj haven’t sent a letter in response. A senior White House official told me, “We didn’t send the letters to get a response or in order to get them back to the table. The goal was to show we sympathize.”
“The White House official said Kushner and Greenblatt continue to work on the administration’s Middle East peace plan, and discussed it with length this week with Saudi crown prince Mohammed Bin Salman… The White House official told me Abbas’s verbal attacks against U.S. ambassador to Israel David Friedman do not change the Administration’s thinking. The White House official added: “We are keeping our heads down and trying to be professional throughout the process… We need to finish the plan and determine what the right conditions are to release the plan.”” [Axios]
“Palestinians call to put US ambassador David Friedman on ‘global terror list’” by Khaled Abu Toameh: “In a report titled “Friedman, the Ambassador of Settlements and Lawyer of Extremism,” the PA Ministry of Information in Ramallah called for placing the US envoy on the terrorism list “for violating international law, supporting terrorism, and promoting ethnic cleansing and black racism.”” [ToI]
HEARD YESTERDAY — Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir at the Brookings Institution in Washington, DC: “Our advice to the Trump Administration is the same advice we gave to the Obama Administration and the same advice we game to the George W. Bush Administration, which is Incrementalism and confidence-building measures don’t work. We know what a [peace] settlement looks like… Our argument was put it all in one package and say, ‘Here is what we believe is a fair deal,’ and then see how we can get the parties across the goal line… The Trump administration has been looking at coming up with a different approach to see how they can get to that point, and they have been consulting with countries and partners in the region and seeking advice, and we have offered them the advice.”
Al-Jubeir on Trump’s Jerusalem move: “We believe that the issue of Jerusalem, declaring it as Israel’s capital, was not helpful. It was a setback. We warned about it. We expressed our position on it publicly when it was announced, but now we want to see how we can move this process forward.”[Video]
“Israel-Bound Airliner Enters Saudi Airspace for First Time” by Jonathan Ferziger: “Air India flight 139 took off from New Delhi and passed over Oman before traversing the border into Saudi airspace… The flight comes 10 months after U.S. President Donald Trump flew directly from Riyadh to Tel Aviv aboard Air Force One in a demonstration of his intention to resolve the 70-year-old conflict between Israel and its Arab neighbors.” [Bloomberg]
“Saudi prince denies Kushner is ‘in his pocket’” by Karen DeYoung: “Speaking in a meeting with Washington Post editors and reporters, Mohammed [bin Salman] denied U.S. media reports that he had claimed Kushner was “in his pocket.” … While “we work together as friends, more than partners,” Mohammed said, his relationship with Kushner was within the normal context of government-to-government contacts. He noted that he also had good relations with Vice President Pence and others in the White House.”[WashPost]
ON THE HILL — The Senate passed the Taylor Force Act last night by a 65-32 vote as part of the $1.3 trillion omnibus spending bill. The bill now heads to Trump’s desk for his signature. The spending bill also contains a total of $705.8 million for U.S.-Israel missile defense cooperation and $47.5 million for U.S.-Israel anti-tunnel cooperation.
ON THE HILL — The Senate passed the $1.3 trillion omnibus spending bill, which included the Taylor Force Act, last night by a 65-32 vote. The bill now heads to Trump’s desk for his signature. The spending bill also contains $3.1 billion, the first installment of the new $38B MOU (memorandum of understanding), along with $705.8 million for U.S.-Israel missile defense cooperation, and $47.5 million for U.S.-Israel anti-tunnel cooperation.
Trump tweets this am: “I am considering a VETO of the Omnibus Spending Bill based on the fact that the 800,000 plus DACA recipients have been totally abandoned by the Democrats (not even mentioned in Bill) and the BORDER WALL, which is desperately needed for our National Defense, is not fully funded.”
TRUMP TUMULT — “Bannon: If Kelly leaves the White House, I don’t think there will be another chief of staff” by Maegan Vazquez:“Former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon said Thursday that if John Kelly, the current White House chief of staff, were to leave, he does “not believe there will be another chief of staff.” … Bannon said he thinks President Donald Trump will instead choose to have “five or six direct reports” from key members of his staff, similar to how business was conducted at Trump Tower.” [CNN]
“A Jubilant Trump Prepares for War with Mueller” by Gabriel Sherman: “Sources also said that Trump is considering hiring back Marc Kasowitz to serve on his defense team. “They’re talking a lot,” one Republican briefed on the conversations said… Bringing back Kasowitz would be a sign of how rattled Trump is by the looming prospect of being interviewed by Mueller… Sources also said Kasowitz’s return would be a signal that Trump is willing to put his own survival ahead of his family. A month before Kasowitz was ousted, a former White House official told me, he had told Trump that Jared Kushner needed to leave the White House.” [VanityFair]
BUZZ ON BALFOUR — “How the Strike on the Syrian Nuclear Reactor Plays Into Netanyahu’s Hands” by Yossi Verter: “At least in the short term, with the police investigations against Netanyahu sidelined in the media, the story of the reactor’s destruction plays into the Prime Minister’s hands. In the collective consciousness, it strengthens the feeling that as long as the threats against Israel haven’t ceased, the person leading the country must be someone with defense and diplomatic experience. Yair Lapid and Avi Gabbay, both of whom are running for prime minister, aren’t even on this court.”[Haaretz]
“Israel finally admitted it destroyed a Syrian reactor in 2007 — and set off a battle of egos” by Ruth Eglash: “Since Israel’s confirmation of its role in the airstrike, an intense battle has played out on Israeli television, radio and online, pitching two former Israeli prime ministers, Ehud Olmert and Ehud Barak. Interviewed by Israeli media throughout the day, he called his former boss “delusional” and said Olmert was “apocalyptic” and the government in hysteria at the time… The revelation about the airstrike also highlighted rare public disagreement between former Mossad director Tamir Pardo and former military intelligence chief Amos Yadlin. Speaking at a conference on Wednesday, Pardo… said it was only because of the Mossad’s work that the army was certain “there was a reactor in Syria in the first place.” “It was not at all by luck but through outstanding intelligence work,” Yadlin responded.” [WashPost]
SCENE LAST NIGHT — in NYC: The Israel Policy Forum hosted a discussion, “Israeli Leadership: Past, Present and Future,” featuring biographers of past prime ministers David Ben Gurion, Menachem Begin and Yitzchak Rabin at the Harmonie Club. Professor Anita Shapira, Daniel Gordis and former Israeli Ambassador Itamar Rabinovich discussed how the three leaders shaped the future of the Jewish State. The panel was moderated by Nathan Sachs, Director of the Brookings Institution’s Center for Middle East Policy. [Pic]
Discussing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Shapira — pointing to Ben Gurion and Begin’s tragic ends — said, “The question of a when a leader should retire is very relevant today. I wish that PM Netanyahu would know when to retire.”
Gordis: “I agree that he should have retired last year, but Netanyahu has convinced himself that he’s Israel’s savior. He believes that when he gets into bed at the end of the day, that there is nobody else in the state who can negotiate with Trump and India and keep Israel safe, which, by the way, so do a lot of Israelis.”
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BUSINESS BRIEFS: Steve Wynn Sheds Entire Stake in Casino Giant He Co-Founded [WSJ] • Singer Wins Telecom Italia Round as Bollore’s Chairman Resigns [Bloomberg] • Skyline AI, an Israeli startup that uses machine learning to help real estate investors identify promising properties, announced today that it has raised $3 million in seed funding from Sequoia Capital [TechCrunch] • Tel Aviv’s Architectural Treasures Are Being Reborn Thanks to This Enterprising Duo [ArchitecturalDigest]
MEDIA WATCH — “Jeff Zucker Hits “Propaganda Machine” Fox News: “It Is Really State-Run TV” by Jeremy Barr: “CNN President Jeff Zucker lashed out at competitor Fox News at an industry conference on Thursday afternoon, saying that Fox News “is really state-run TV. It is a pure propaganda machine and I think does incredible disservice to this country.” … Zucker said that Trump’s negative comments about the press have potentially dangerous real-world consequences. “He has created an atmosphere in this country that has resonated around the world in a very unhealthy way that has whipped up anti-media sentiment that is dangerous and frankly harmful and potentially incredibly dangerous,” he said.” [HollywoodReporter] • Tucker Carlson Hits CNN’s Jeff Zucker For Fox News ‘Propaganda’ Slam: He’s an ‘Agent of Foreign Governments’ [Mediaite]
“Israel Opens Probe Into Facebook on Possible Privacy Breach” by Yaacov Benmeleh: “Israel’s Justice Ministry “will investigate whether personal data of Israeli citizens was illegally used in a way that infringes upon their right to privacy,” the statement said. According to Israeli privacy laws, personal data may only be used for the stated purpose, with the individual’s consent, the statement said.” [Bloomberg] • House committee will summon Zuckerberg to testify [Politico]
TALK OF THE TOWN — “Orthodox Teens Prepare To March For Gun Control On Shabbat” by Shira Hanau: “About 40 teens will gather for an early service this Saturday morning at The National Synagogue in Washington, D.C… But instead of following services with the usual Shabbat lunch, these teens will spend the rest of their Shabbat at the March For Our Lives in downtown D.C. rallying for gun control… “I think that if anything this is a good thing to be doing on Shabbat,” said [Noah] Mamane. “You can break Shabbat when it’s a matter of life or death, and honestly, this is a matter of life or death. If we don’t do something about this, there will be more deaths.”” [JewishWeek]
“Charity sues after high bidder fails to pay for Trump portraits” by Jane Musgrave: “Timothy Lane, 70-year-old CEO of the Hong Kong-based Everest Advisors, “is in breach of his agreement with The Truth About Israel to allow it to charge his American Express credit card for the purchase of the two paintings,” attorney Jonathan Bloom wrote in the lawsuit filed last week in Palm Beach County Circuit Court. But Lane… said he became suspicious when the organization couldn’t give him its federal tax identification number so he could write off the purchase as a charitable deduction… Boca Raton businessman Steven Alembik, who organized the Feb. 25 benefit for The Truth About Israel, insisted the group is a legitimate nonprofit. “The tax ID has been provided to him,” Alembik said.” [PalmBeachPost]
REMEMBERING — “Charles P. Lazarus, Toys ‘R’ Us Founder, Dies at 94” by Michael Corkery: “Mr. Lazarus’s death comes one week after Toys “R” Us announced that it would start liquidating its stores in the United States… Mr. Lazarus opened his first store, Children’s Bargain Town, which sold furniture, in 1948, seeking to cash in on the post-World War II baby boom… He decided to go into baby furniture after watching servicemen return from World War II, marry and start having children.” [NYTimes]
DESSERT — “Behind the Matzah: Tales From the Pesach Lecture Circuit” by Rachel Kohn: “Being a Passover speaker is a lot of hard work,” said Tevi Troy, a presidential historian who served as a senior White House aide and Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services under George W. Bush. “You have to prepare four to six one-hour lectures and engage with a high-level, well-informed audience.” … His lectures explore Jewish involvement in American politics, with a focus on the presidency. “I also talk about my experiences in politics and how lucky we are as frum Jews to be able to engage in government at the highest levels,” he said… “I tend to talk more about history and try not to get caught up in current partisan disagreements,” said Tevi Troy, but “one year, for reasons unconnected to anything I was talking about, two people in the audience started screaming at each other about their different views on climate change.” [KolHabirah]
“Beyond Meat, And How Radical Wins” by Paul Earle: “The company was founded by CEO Ethan Brown in 2009 as a plant-based protein alternative to answer what he felt were growing challenges in the meat business, ranging from changing consumer tastes and nutrition preferences to supply and production issues… [Seth] Goldman—who was actively looking for what’s next and initially made contact with the company by simply writing to the general email address—said he was attracted by the degree to which the Beyond product bested the existing meat substitutes at the time.” [Forbes]
“Want to Pull a Viral PR Stunt? Take a Lesson From a Company Best Known for Kosher Wine” by Cameron Albert-Deitch: “[Manischewitz] launched a PR campaign on Monday asking [Adam] Sandler to write a Passover song. It would match the comedian and movie star’s famed “Hanukkah Song,” which debuted on Saturday Night Live 25 years ago. The incentive: a “dream hotel suite” stocked with multiple guitars and plenty of Passover food, and a lifetime promise of free Manischewitz products… The company is already calling the operation a success, even though Sandler hasn’t actually responded to the offer yet. Manischewitz’s social-media engagement skyrocketed on the first day of the campaign.” [Inc]
WEEKEND BIRTHDAYS — FRIDAY: Actor and director Mark Rydellturns 89… Former National Football League referee for 23 seasons, Jerry Markbreit turns 83… Of counsel at Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, served as White House counsel for President Clinton (1993-1994), Bernard W. Nussbaum turns 81… Mandolinist and composer of acoustic, instrumental, bluegrass and newgrass music, David Grisman turns 73… Writer and producer of television series, creator of “Deadwood” and co-creator of “NYPD Blue,” summa cum laude graduate of Yale University, David Milch turns 73… Los Angeles-based psychologist and author, whose first book is “The Blessings of a Skinned Knee: Using Jewish Teachings to Raise Self-Reliant Children,” Wendy Mogel turns 67… Designer Kenneth D. Cole turns 64… Mayor of Austin, Texas, Stephen Ira Adler turns 62… Investor Peter Schiff turns 55… French actress who has appeared in more than 30 films and whose Holocaust survivor grandparents changed their name from Goldreich, Judith Godrèche turns 46… Member of the Maryland General Assembly since 2011, initially as a delegate and since 2016 as a state senator, Craig Zucker turns 43… Tax counsel for the House Ways and Means Committee, Aharon Friedman turns 42… Israeli stage and screen actor, Itay Tiran turns 38… Israeli singer-songwriter Riff Cohen turns 34… Beth Millstein… Yehuda Hausman…
SATURDAY: Award-winning classical pianist, Byron Janis (family name Yankilevich) turns 90… Beverly Hills-based estate planning attorney, self-described as a former young leader, Ronald M. Kabrins turns 80… Member of the House of Lords and star of the UK’s version of The Apprentice, Alan Sugar turns 71… Former CEO of Microsoft, owner of the Los Angeles Clippers, Steve Ballmer turns 62… Retired NASA astronaut and a veteran of four space shuttle missions, Scott Jay “Doc” Horowitz turns 61… Poet and professor of art history at Hofstra University, having earned a Ph.D. in 1990 in art history from the University of California at Berkeley, Martha Hollander turns 59… Professional wrestler under a series of ring names including “The Star of David,” his wrestling career spanned from 1979 until 2000, Barry Horowitzturns 58… Former President of the Newseum, he was previously president of Colgate University, Jeffrey Herbst turns 57… Actor who is best known for his portrayal of Dr. Chris Taub on the Fox medical drama series “House,” currently starring on the USA Network science fiction drama “Colony,” Peter Jacobsonturns 53… Political strategist, fundraiser, media spokesperson, he was a producer at i24 News, Fred Menachem turns 46… Director of marketing at Window Nation, Eric Goldscher turns 39… Senior editor at Bloomberg, formerly a writer for the WSJ’s Metropolis blog, Aaron Rutkoff turns 38… Famed NYC photographer, known for wearing vintage suits and hats daily, worked for the NY Daily News and now MTA New York City Transit, Marc A. Hermann turns 36… Pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals who was a major contributor to Team Israel’s surprising run in the 2017 World Baseball Classic, Josh Zeid turns 31… Venezuelan-born featured celebrity chef on NBC’s “Food Fighters,” consultant for cooking TV shows and private chef in Los Angeles, Deborah Benaim turns 30… Competitive pair skater who with a partner were the first pair representing Israel to qualify for an Olympics, the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Andrea “Anya” Davidovich turns 21… Josh Cohen… Tami Wolf… Deborah Rudy…
SUNDAY: Member of the Board of Governors of the Jewish Agency for Israel, Chairman of Eastern Savings Bank, Chair of Community Planning at the Associated Jewish Community Federation of Baltimore, Beth H. Goldsmith… Film and book critic Gene Shalit turns 92… Pulpit rabbi, historian Rabbi Berel Wein turns 84… Feminist, journalist and social activist, Gloria Steinem turns 84… Actor and director, Paul Michael Glaser turns 75… Mayor of Las Vegas, Nevada since 2011, her husband had been Mayor from 1999 until 2011, Carolyn Goodman turns 79… Norman Goldberg turns 74… Vice President and Middle East Program Director at the Wilson Center since 2006, after 24 years at the US Department of State (1978-2003), Aaron David Miller turns 69… Glyn Gerber turns 65… Senior reporter for climate and related issues at ProPublica, Andrew C. Revkin turns 62… Columbus, Ohio-based business consultant focused on dental practice management and marketing, Cynthia S. Levy turns 61… Communications and non-profit consultant, previously executive director of the Pittsburgh Area Jewish Committee (an independent affiliate of AJC), Karen Hochberg turns 61… Author, freelance journalist and the eHealth editor for Politico Pro, Arthur Allen turns 59… IDF Major General, since 2014 he has served as the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories, Yoav (Poli) Mordechai turns 54… Emmy Award-winning actress, producer, and designer, best known for her leading role on the HBO television series “Sex and the City” (1998-2004), reprised in two later films, Sarah Jessica Parker turns 53… Israeli special forces soldier turned software entrepreneur turned political leader, leader of the Bayit Yehudi (Jewish Home) party, Minister of Education, Naftali Bennett turns 46… Attorney and President of Mizel Financial Holdings, Cheston David Mizel turns 43… Principal at DC-based Mehlman Castagnetti Rosen & Thomas, focused on health care policy, Lauren Aronsonturns 39… Boston-based director of media and public relations at Oxfam America, previously at BBC World Service and CNN, Alissa C. Rooney turns 38… VP at Chicago-based Resolute Consulting since 2016, previously DC-based for seven years at Politico, Roll Call and Yahoo News, Meredith Shiner turns 31… Congressional staffer for Representative Lois Frankel (D-FL-21), Grant C. Dubler turns 29… Jordan Rossman turns 28… Regional Director for New Jersey and Rockland County in the Orthodox Union’s Department of Community Engagement, Rabbi Avi Heller… Managing editor for content at CNN Politics, Steven Sloan… Pamela Snyder…
