Daily Kickoff
Good Friday morning.
In today’s Daily Kickoff, we spotlight efforts by families of the children who are being held hostage by Hamas to secure their release, and report on a bipartisan call from Congress for the U.N. to take action against Hamas. Also in today’s Daily Kickoff, Dr. Ruth Westheimer, Fred Guttenberg and Barry Sternlicht.
For less-distracted reading over the weekend, browse this week’s edition of The Weekly Print, a curated print-friendly PDF featuring a selection of recent Jewish Insider, eJewishPhilanthropy and The Circuit stories, including: South African Jews sound the alarm as government reaches out to Hamas; Israel grapples with country’s biggest internal displacement in history; The retired Navy admiral making the case for Israel in the White House briefing room. Print the latest edition here.
New polling shared exclusively with Jewish Insider’s Matthew Kassel on Thursday indicates that Rep. Summer Lee (D-PA) could be in trouble as she gears up for a competitive primary next year.
The survey, conducted by Embold Research between October 21-23, shows Lee’s approval ratings currently underwater, with a plurality of voters in the Pittsburgh area — 43% — holding an unfavorable view of the freshman Squad member. Just 38% of the poll’s 860 respondents, a majority of whom identified as Democrats, had a favorable view of Lee.
Madison Campbell, a political activist and entrepreneur in Pittsburgh who commissioned the poll, told JI that she found Lee’s numbers “very surprising” and “didn’t expect for them to be that low.”
But Campbell, the founder of a new political action committee, Survivor PAC, focused on rising crime, said the low approval ratings “make sense” due to Lee’s positions on the Israel-Hamas war, including her recent vote against a House resolution backing Israel and condemning Hamas — now the subject of attack ads from an AIPAC-affiliated super PAC.
Lee’s views on Israel, Campbell surmised, “do not represent the general population of the district,” which is heavily Jewish. “You can see that in my polling,” she explained. “This isn’t just anecdotal.”
In one section of the poll, which was done to assess voter sentiment on a range of issues and candidates in advance of last Tuesday’s elections in Allegheny County, more than 80% of voters said that they were concerned about the safety of the local Jewish community in the wake of Hamas’ Oct. 7 terror attack.
Lee is facing a formidable primary challenge from Bhavini Patel, a borough councilwoman who has sharply criticized her approach to Israel and lack of engagement with Pittsburgh’s Jewish community. Patel’s campaign said on Thursday that it had raised more than $200,000 since she entered the race early last month. By contrast, Lee pulled in only $175,000 last quarter, entering October with just over $250,000 on hand.
The new poll did not include any data on Patel. But Campbell predicted that Israel would be a salient issue for voters in next year’s primary. “I think we are going to see voters care about Israel,” she told JI, “and the Squad’s rhetoric will not work.”
Thursday marked a day of retirement announcements on Capitol Hill, none more significant than Sen. Joe Manchin’s decision not to run for re-election. The West Virginia Democrat’s decision all but guarantees his Senate seat will flip to the Republicans, giving them a valuable pickup in a cycle where they only need to net two seats to claim the majority.
Manchin teased the possibility of a third-party presidential run, which he will be mulling over in the coming months.”What I will be doing is traveling the country and speaking out to see if there is an interest in creating a movement to mobilize the middle and bring Americans together,” Manchin said in a video announcing his decision.
Manchin’s retirement will remove one of the most hawkish Senate Democrats from the caucus, including one of the few who opposed the Iran nuclear deal.
On the House side, three veteran House lawmakers announced they’re leaving Congress: Reps. Derek Kilmer (D-WA), Brian Higgins (D-NY) and Brad Wenstrup (R-OH). All three represent safe seats, but hail from the pragmatic wing of their parties.
bring them home
In Israel, every parent’s worst nightmare is playing out in real life
Four-year-old Uriah Brodutch loves to play with toy tractors in the mud. A soccer fan, he supports Paris Saint-Germain. Until Oct. 7 — when he was taken hostage by Hamas — he still slept in his parents’ bed. Now Uriah’s face can be seen smiling on an installation of large colorful flowers outside the Tel Aviv Museum of Art, alongside his elder brother, Yuval, and sister, Ofri; on each flower hangs a picture of a missing child. Sweet and innocent faces from a happier time peer out beneath large white and red letters calling to “Bring him/her home now!” Tuesday marked one month since 239 people were abducted from Israel, 40 of them children, according to the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, Jewish Insider’s Tamara Zieve reports.
Wife and kids in Gaza: The Brodutch siblings were kidnapped from their home in Kfar Aza along with their mother Hagar; their father Avichai was separated from them during the attack when he went out to help, and he remained in Israel. The Israeli government, Brodutch tells JI, must “do everything they can to release the hostages, keep my family safe… which obviously, they failed miserably, keeping my family safe. And now they have to do everything they can to correct this miserable thing that they haven’t done.”
The youngest hostage: Kfir Bibas was nine months old when he was kidnapped from his home in Kibbutz Nir Oz, along with his four-year-old brother Ariel, and their parents Shiri and Yarden. Kfir only recently started eating solids, still heavily reliant on formula. Shiri’s cousin, Yifat Zailer, is concerned for his well-being. “I truly think that he probably is not receiving it there. So I hope he is being nourished enough. I don’t know,” Zailer tells JI.
Ripped down posters: Zailer has been active on social media, trying to get the family’s message out to the world. “But then I see people ripping out the signs of the kidnapped children, saying it’s fake news,” she says. “This is my family. This is my blood. Those are real children that I haven’t seen in a month and I don’t know how long it’s going to take. It took five years to bring back Gilad [Shalit]. Kfir is going to have his first birthday in captivity in two months.”
Q&A
Gun control activist Fred Guttenberg raises concerns over left-wing antisemitism
After his 14-year-old daughter Jaime was murdered alongside 16 of her classmates and teachers at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., on Feb. 14, 2018, Fred Guttenberg emerged from the tragedy as one of the nation’s most vocal gun control activists. Guttenberg, who is Jewish and has long been a supporter of Israel, has also emerged in the last month as a leading voice calling out hard-left politicians and activists who failed to denounce Hamas’ terrorist attack and criticized Israel’s military response in Gaza. In an interview with Jewish Insider’s Tori Bergel, Guttenberg said: “I’m extremely concerned, I’m extremely upset and I’m extremely offended. I am concerned, because I spent the past five-plus years fighting with these people for safety in America — and maybe this hits to why I’m offended — and I’m realizing it’s not the same when we’re talking about Jewish people.”
Party approach: “Listen, when I think of the party, I still think of the work that our president is doing, and he’s been terrific, and he’s been strong,” Guttenberg said. “I think of former Speaker Nancy Pelosi just, I think, a day or two ago, having a chance to respond to this and being very strong. I think of members all across the party, of [House Minority] Leader Hakeem Jeffries, of so many who have stood strong for Israel and against antisemitism. This isn’t the party, this is a radicalized group that have chosen to run in this party, but they don’t represent this party.”
Hate speech: “I see not just what’s happening in the U.S., but across the globe, and I’m worried about Israel’s future security, but as a U.S. citizen, I am truly worried about the level of discourse, the way we talk to one another, and the amped-up rhetoric and hate that comes from it,” Guttenberg said. “I’m worried about the incitement to violence on college campuses and in communities. I worry that a Jewish man was killed [earlier this week] in California, and how that might drive more Jewish people to feel this need to defend themselves, and that’s only going to bring more violence. I’m worried.”
sanders’ step
Bernie Sanders declined to call hearing on campus antisemitism, GOP senator claims
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), who chairs the Senate’s Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, declined a Republican request to hold a full-committee hearing on the explosion of antisemitism on college campuses, the committee’s ranking member, Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA), told Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod yesterday.
No hearing: Committee Republicans had sent a letter to Sanders last week requesting a hearing on the subject; they instead called their own roundtable on Thursday, which was attended by some Democrats. “We asked that there be a formal hearing. Senator Sanders chose not to. Obviously there is interest on the Democratic side of the aisle but he just decided this was not one of his priorities,” Cassidy told JI.
What Sanders said: Sanders, for his part, said in a letter to Senate leadership on Wednesday that he is concerned about the growth in antisemitic, Islamophobic and racist incidents on college campuses since Oct. 7. “These acts of hatred are unacceptable and have no place in this country,” Sanders said. He requested emergency supplemental funding for the Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights. Sanders said in a statement that he met with the official who leads OCR, and also requested a classified briefing on the rise in hate crimes, both on campus and nationally.
Kaine’s concern: During the roundtable yesterday, Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) said he was “a little bit sad about the setup of the discussion,” suggesting that the Republicans were ignoring the difficulties being faced by Muslim and Arab students. “I’m hearing about the 400% increase in antisemitism since Oct. 7 on my [state’s] campuses,” Kaine said. “But I’m also hearing from students who are Arab American or Muslim American or Palestinian American or who express any support for Palestinians — that they’re being targeted too… They’re afraid for their safety, they’re afraid for their livelihood and we’re not including them in this discussion.”
Bonus: Israel’s announcement yesterday of a daily four-hour pause in fighting in northern Gaza isn’t satisfying vocal skeptics of its military campaign on Capitol Hill. Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR), an early supporter of humanitarian pauses, told JI that the move was not “sufficient.” He said the breaks should last at least three days and, “they need to start a real conversation about whether the current campaign is simply resulting in destruction that sustains a cycle of despair and violence.” The move was met with praise from mainstream pro-Israel Democrats.
call to action
Senators call for United Nations action against Hamas
A third of the Senate wrote to U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas Greenfield on Thursday urging her to bring a resolution before the United Nations Security Council designating and sanctioning Hamas as a terrorist organization, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
Sanctions: The letter, led by Sens. James Lankford (R-OK) and Jacky Rosen (D-NV), comes amid criticism within the U.S. of some top U.N. officials for failing to strongly and unequivocally condemn Hamas and its attack on Israel on Oct. 7. The U.N., the letter notes, has previously sanctioned other terrorist groups such as Al Qaeda and ISIS — although the prospect of sanctioning Hamas is likely to be difficult in the current geopolitical environment, given the apparent ties between Hamas leadership and Russia, which holds veto power on the Security Council.
Implications: The letter argues that Hamas’ “actions, tactics, and stated goals are in many ways indistinguishable” from those of U.N.-sanctioned groups, and that failing to sanction Hamas “risks eroding the U.N.’s credibility in response to one of the worst terrorist attacks in history.” The letter argues that the lack of global sanctions allows Hamas to avoid U.S. sanctions, access the international financial system and solicit charitable donations, as well as allows Hamas to misappropriate humanitarian aid meant for civilians in Gaza.
survey says
Poll: 70% of U.S. Jews feel less safe than they did before the Israel-Hamas war
More than two-thirds of American Jews — 70% — feel less safe than they did before the Israel-Hamas war and none feel safer, a poll released Thursday by the Jewish Federations of North America found. Seventy-two percent of American Jews polled said that they thought antisemitism was increasing in their own community — in contrast to the 32% of respondents who said so from the general population. For the first time in years, respondents noted that they view antisemitism as more widespread than discrimination against other minorities. Nearly a third of those surveyed said there had been some violence or hate against Jews in their community – using words such as “tense,” “uncomfortable” and “scary” to describe their broader communities, eJewishPhilanthropy’s Haley Cohen reports.
In support of aid: The findings also indicate that support for military aid to Israel is largely popular, with 59% of the general population supporting it, echoed by 87% of U.S. Jews.
Ahead of the march: The results were released days before tens of thousands of Israel supporters are expected to turn out for what is being dubbed as the March for Israel, which will be held on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday, just over five weeks after Hamas’ deadly rampage in Israel and while some 240 Israelis are still held captive in Gaza. “We believe that knowledge is an important prerequisite to action, which is why this data is so powerful as our community mobilizes to march on Washington,” Mimi Kravetz, JFNA’s chief impact and growth officer, said in a briefing on Thursday.
Read the full story here and sign up for eJewishPhilanthropy’s Your Daily Phil newsletter here.
Worthy Reads
DEI Doomsday:The Free Press’ Bari Weiss calls for the end of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) efforts, which she says threaten the Jewish community. “The Jewish commitment to justice — and the Jewish American community’s powerful and historic opposition to racism — is a source of tremendous pride. That should never waver. Nor should our commitment to stand by our friends, especially when they need our support as we now need theirs. But DEI is not about the words it uses as camouflage. DEI is about arrogating power. And the movement that is gathering all this power does not like America or liberalism. It does not believe that America is a good country — at least no better than China or Iran. It calls itself progressive, but it does not believe in progress; it is explicitly anti-growth. It claims to promote ‘equity,’ but its answer to the challenge of teaching math or reading to disadvantaged children is to eliminate math and reading tests. It demonizes hard work, merit, family, and the dignity of the individual.” [FreePress]
On the Ground: The New York Times’ Bret Stephens travels to Israel to report on how the country is responding to the Oct. 7 attacks and ensuing war with Hamas. “There’s an asymmetry in this conflict, but it’s not about the preponderance of military power. Israel’s goal in this war is political and strategic: to defeat Hamas as the reigning power in Gaza, even though there will be unavoidable cost in innocent lives, since Hamas operates among civilians. But Hamas’s goal is only secondarily political. Fundamentally, it’s homicidal: to end Israel as a state by slaughtering every Jew within it. How can critics of Israeli policy insist on a unilateral cease-fire or other forms of restraint against Hamas if they can’t offer a credible answer to a reasonable Israeli question: How can we go on like this?” [NYTimes]
Thiel’s Theory: The Atlantic’s Barton Gellman interviews Peter Thiel about his refusal to again back former President Donald Trump. “But the days when great men could achieve great things in government are gone, Thiel believes. He disdains what the federal apparatus has become: rule-bound, stifling of innovation, a ‘senile, central-left regime.’ His libertarian critique of American government has curdled into an almost nihilistic impulse to demolish it. ‘“Make America great again” was the most pessimistic slogan of any candidate in 100 years, because you were saying that we are no longer a great country,’ Thiel told me. ‘And that was a shocking slogan for a major presidential candidate.’ He thought people needed to hear it. Thiel gave $1.25 million to the Trump campaign, and had an office in Trump Tower during the transition, where he suggested candidates for jobs in the incoming administration. … ‘Voting for Trump was like a not very articulate scream for help,’ Thiel told me. He fantasized that Trump’s election would somehow force a national reckoning. He believed somebody needed to tear things down — slash regulations, crush the administrative state — before the country could rebuild. He admits now that it was a bad bet.” [TheAtlantic]
Horseshoe Theory: For MSNBC, attorney Karen Dunn, who served as co-counsel in a case against neo-Nazis in Charlottesville, Va., explains that white nationalists are spreading antisemitic propaganda at anti-Israel rallies. “While white supremacists target all nonwhite groups and their allies, the unifying animus is a hatred of Jews. One of the organizers of Charlottesville had a day job as an exterminator; he told his girlfriend he would rather be killing Jews than cockroaches. Another organizer said that when his newborn son opened his eyes for the first time, his first thought was of Adolf Hitler. And on the day before James Alex Fields drove his Dodge Challenger into a crowd of peaceful counterprotesters, he responded to his mother’s texting “be careful” with a picture of Hitler saying, ‘We are not the ones who need to be careful.’ White supremacist leaders know the power of antisemitism, and they use it tactically to fuel the movement. [MSNBC]
Around the Web
Talking Tlaib: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised Congress’ censure this week of Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), accusing the Michigan legislator of calling for “policide and genocide.”
Mideast Visit: Former N.J. Gov. Chris Christie is traveling to Israel this weekend, becoming the first 2024 Republican presidential hopeful to make the trip since the start of the Israel-Hamas war.
Fetterman’s Flag: Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA), who has emerged as a vocal pro-Israel voice among progressives, was filmed waving an Israel flag as he exited a Senate building to a crowd of protesters calling for a ceasefire.
Security Ask: Sens. Jon Ossoff (D-GA) and Lindsey Graham (R-SC) are seeking $10 million in emergency funding for the U.S. security coordinator for Israel and the Palestinian Authority.
Hamas Resolution: The Senate passed by unanimous consent a resolution condemning Hamas’ attack on Israel and calling on the terrorist group to immediately release all hostages.
Haranguing Hamas: Semafor reports on a plan led by Barry Sternlicht to spend up to $50 million — of which he has already raised several million — on an ad campaign targeting Hamas; potential partners include CNN’s David Zaslav and Endeavor’s Ari Emanuel.
NYT Response: The New York Times issued a statement following the release of a report from an NGO suggesting that its freelancers in Gaza had advanced knowledge of the Oct. 7 terror attacks, calling the allegations “reckless.”
Offboarding: Talpion Fund Management founder Henry Swieca resigned from the board of Columbia University’s business school, saying the university was no longer safe for Jewish students.
DSA Departures: In The New Republic, 24 former Democratic Socialists of America members explain why they left the organization, citing among other things the DSA’s “inability to distinguish between acts of resistance to unjust and oppressive rule and acts of terror against civilians.”
Campus Concerns: In USA Today, a Northwestern student raises concerns about college students, including on her campus, who have voiced support for Hamas’ attacks on Israel.
UPenn Projection: Antisemitic slogans, including “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” and “Zionism is racism” were projected onto buildings on campus.
Quad Goals: Harvard President Claudine Gay announced a series of measures the school is taking to address antisemitism, including the creation of an advisory board whose members include Rabbi David Wolpe and Dara Horn.
Brasilia Bust: Police in Brazil, working with the Mossad, arrested two individuals linked to Hezbollah who were plotting attacks on Jewish institutions around the South American country.
Restituted Art: Switzerland’s Museum Langmatt sold a Paul Cézanne work for $39 million at auction, with a portion of the proceeds going to the heirs of the Jewish collector who sold the painting under duress in 1933.
Hamas’ MO: In The Wall Street Journal, Ed Husain explains the “theology” driving Hamas.
Diplomatic Dance: American diplomats posted in the Middle East are cautioning the Biden administration that its support for Israel in the war against Hamas is eroding the public’s approval of the U.S. in some Arab countries.
Brussels Block: The European Union is resisting pressure from the U.S. and Israel to impose new sanctions on Hamas.
Tehran’s Take: Iran’s foreign minister said that a regional expansion of the Israel-Hamas war was “inevitable,” as Tehran’s envoy to the U.N. continued to deny the Islamic republic’s involvement in the Oct. 7 terror attacks.
What’s Next: The Palestinian Authority told Biden administration officials that it is open to a role in governing a post-Hamas Gaza if the U.S. commits “a comprehensive political decision that would include the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and East Jerusalem.”
Drone Demand:The Wall Street Journal looks at Israel’s efforts to acquire thousands of drones, regardless of where they were manufactured.
The Doctor is In: Dr. Ruth Westheimer was named New York’s first honorary ambassador for loneliness, after petitioning Gov. Kathy Hochul for the job.
Honoring Mulroney: The World Jewish Congress honored former Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney at its annual gala in New York last night.
Coming Soon: Barry Manilow’s first Broadway show, “Harmony,” is slated to open in New York on Monday.
WeWork-ing It Out: Under the terms of a deal inked with SoftBank, WeWork founder Adam Neumann could potentially keep hundreds of millions of dollars loaned to him by the company, which bailed out WeWork in 2019; WeWork filed for bankruptcy this week.
Remembering: Former New York State Comptroller Alan Hevesi died at 83. Lawyer, activist and historian Linda Hirshman died at 79. Financial analyst Byron Wien died at 90.
Wine of the Week
JI wine columnist Yitz Applbaum reviews the Yatir Forest 2020:
“I have been a long time devotee of Yaakov Ben Dor’s Yatir Winery. Yatir, like the Israeli wine industry as a whole, blossomed from meager beginnings to world-class producers in the blink of an eye. I called up Yaakov on Thursday assuming he would be dejected working out of his southern Israeli facility, but to my delight, he is optimistic and hard at work running full-time programming for communities displaced by the war. He was too busy delivering wine to communities in need that he did not have time to be sad.
“The Yatir Forest 2020 is a blend of four expressive grape varietals: cabernet, petit vedot, merlot and cabernet Franc. In this wine, each of these grapes is experienced on different parts of your palate. The opening is cherry-filled and puckery, the mid-palate is of wood fibers from the oak, and the finish is like a ride in a sports car. This wine will last for 18 years, but purchase enough of it to also enjoy now. As a bonus, if you go to the winery in the near future, ask Yaakov for a bottle of a 2005 Port called Yitro that is a delightful dessert to have after the 2020 Yatir Forest.”
Pic of the Day
Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff meets with students at Cornell University to discuss their recent experiences with antisemitism on the campus.
Birthdays
Erik S. Lesser/Getty Images
Former CNN news anchor whose first day on the job was September 11, 2001, Aaron Brown turns 75…
FRIDAY: Manager of the Decatur, Ga.-based Connect Hearing, Murray Kurtzberg… Former NBA player in the 1960s who became a lawyer and then a New York State judge, Barry D. Kramer turns 81… One of the four deans of Beth Medrash Govoha in Lakewood, N.J., one of the largest yeshivas in the world with more than 7,500 students, Rabbi Yerucham Olshin turns 80… Professor emeritus at the University of Nebraska at Omaha, he is a cofounder of the Nebraska Jewish Historical Society, Oliver B. Pollak, Ph.D. turns 80… Former executive director of the Pat Brown Institute for Public Affairs at California State University, Los Angeles, Raphael J. Sonenshein, Ph.D. turns 74… Journalist at Holaro and The Muck-Rake, after 30 years at CBS’s “60 Minutes,” Howard L. Rosenberg… Israeli journalist Elli Wohlgelernter turns 70… Chief administrative officer at the Legacy Heritage Fund, Elaine Weitzman… ESPN’s longest-tenured SportsCenter anchor, Linda Cohn turns 64… Rabbi at Temple Beth Kodesh in Boynton Beach, Fla., Michael C. Simon… Bar-Ilan University Professor and social historian, Adam Ferziger turns 59… Senior rabbi of Leo Baeck Temple in Los Angeles, Ken Chasen turns 58… Former MLB right-fielder for 14 seasons, he founded Greenfly, a software firm for sports and entertainment organizations, Shawn Green turns 51… National security editor at the Washington Post, Benjamin Pauker… Co-founder in 2004 of Yelp, where he remains the CEO, Jeremy Stoppelman turns 46… Executive director of the Ruderman Family Foundation, Shira Menashe Ruderman… Chief investigative reporter at ABC News, Josh Margolin turns 44… Official on the public health team at Bloomberg Philanthropies, Jean B. Weinberg… YouTube personality, Josh Peck turns 37… Actress and producer, Zoey Francis Chaya Thompson Deutch turns 29…
SATURDAY: Retired psychiatric nurse now living in Surprise, Ariz., Shula Kantor... Retired television and radio sports broadcaster, Warner Wolf turns 86… Former Democratic U.S. senator from California for 24 years, Barbara Levy Boxer turns 83… Author, best known for her 1993 autobiographical memoir Girl, Interrupted, Susanna Kaysen turns 75… Television personality (former host of “Double Dare”), known professionally as Marc Summers, Marc Berkowitz turns 72… Founder of Sierra Nevada Brewing Company, Ken Grossman turns 69… Founder and president of the D.C.-based Plurus Strategies, he served as the principal deputy assistant secretary for energy efficiency at the DOE during the Clinton administration, David Leiter… President at American Built-in Closets in South Florida, Perry Birman… Aish HaTorah teacher in Los Angeles, author and co-founder of a gourmet kosher cooking website, Emuna Braverman… Talk show host and president and founder of Talkline Communications, Zev Brenner turns 65… Founder of NYC-based alternative investment firm Portage Partners, Michael Leffell… Professor of philosophy at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Steven M. Nadler turns 65… Former U.S. ambassador to the Czech Republic, he served as a counsel for the Democrats during the first Trump impeachment, Amb. Norman Eisen turns 63… Venture capitalist and physicist, Yuri Milner turns 62… Founder and executive director of Los Angeles-based IKAR, Melissa Balaban… Israel’s commissioner of police, Kobi Shabtai turns 59… Emmy Award- and People’s Choice Award-winning television producer, Jason Nidorf “Max” Mutchnick turns 58… Former member of the Knesset for the Likud party, she was previously a television anchor, Orly Levy-Abekasis turns 50… Tel Aviv-born actor and screenwriter, he is best known for his roles in “The Young and the Restless” and “NCIS,” Eyal Podell turns 48… Defender for the LA Galaxy in Major League Soccer, Daniel Steres turns 33… Finance director at the campaign for U.S. Representative Matt Cartwright (D-PA-8), Shelly Tsirulik… Survivor of the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, he has become an advocate against gun violence, Cameron Kasky turns 23…
SUNDAY: Co-founder and dean of the Talmudical Yeshiva of Philadelphia, Rabbi Shmuel Kamenetsky turns 99… Professor emerita of history at Columbia University and expert on Japan, Carol Gluck turns 82… Author and senior fellow at USC’s Annenberg School, Morley Winograd turns 81… Accountant in Phoenix, Ariz., Steven M. Scheiner, CPA… Recent board member of the New York State Thruway Authority and former state senator, he is a descendant of Rabbi Shmuel Salant, the former Ashkenazic chief rabbi of Jerusalem, Stephen M. Saland turns 80… Sportscaster for “Thursday Night Football” on Prime Video, after more than 50 years at NBC and ABC, Al Michaels turns 79… U.S. senator (D-RI), Jack Reed turns 74… Attorney in Brooklyn, Bernard C. Wachsman… Member of the New York State Assembly since 2006, her district includes Manhattan’s Upper West Side, Linda B. Rosenthal turns 66… Author of young-adult fiction and winner of the 2015 National Book Award for Challenger Deep, Neal Shusterman turns 61… Author, journalist and former political advisor to Al Gore and Bill Clinton, Naomi Rebekah Wolf turns 61… University of Chicago professor, he won the 2019 Nobel Prize in Economics, Michael Kremer turns 59… Mayor of Oakland, Calif., until earlier this year, Elizabeth Beckman “Libby” Schaaf turns 58… Rabbi of the Dohány Street Synagogue in Budapest, Róbert Frölich turns 58… Partner in the Chicago office of Kirkland & Ellis, Sanford E. (Sandy) Perl turns 58… White House chief of staff since earlier this year, Jeffrey Zients turns 57… British journalist and political correspondent for BBC News, Joanne “Jo” Coburn turns 56… SVP and general manager of MLB’s Minnesota Twins, Thad Levine turns 52… Member of the Knesset until 2019 for the Yisrael Beiteinu party, Robert Ilatov turns 52… Restaurant critic and food writer for the Boston Globe, Devra First turns 51… Israeli fashion model and actress, Nina Brosh turns 48… Former member of the Knesset for the United Torah Judaism party, Eliyahu Hasid turns 47… Campus support director at Hillel International, Aviva Zucker Snyder… Actress best known for her roles on “The Young and the Restless” and “The Bold and the Beautiful,” Kelly Kruger turns 42… Partnerships at Mayfair, Dave Weinberg… Assistant professor of Jewish studies at Oberlin College, Matthew D. Berkman, Ph.D. turns 39… Director of strategic talent initiatives at the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, Spencer F. Lucker… N.J.-based primary care physician known as Doctor Mike, Mikhail Varshavski, DO turns 34… Activist in the fight against antisemitism on college campuses throughout the U.S., Adela Cojab…
