Daily Kickoff
Good Friday morning.
In today’s Daily Kickoff, we look at how the Israel-Hamas war is factoring into an open-seat Democratic primary in Arizona, and take a closer look at the Biden administration’s executive order sanctioning four Israeli settlers. Also in today’s Daily Kickoff: Gil Troy, Ali Rogin and Maurice Sendak.
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: The White House knows Iran is behind the deadly attacks on its troops, but how will it respond?; Qatar’s two-faced approach to hostage diplomacy divides Israeli officials, American Jewish leaders; Dept. of Ed. civil rights chief ‘astounded’ by antisemitic incidents at U.S. schools, universities. Print the latest edition here.
Challengers to anti-Israel lawmakers affiliated with the Squad generally raised a lot of money in the most recent fundraising quarter, but the embattled incumbents have also significantly amped up their fundraising pace, Jewish Insider Editor-in-Chief Josh Kraushaar reports.
The latest round of fundraising reports offers a sign that both pro-Israel groups and hard-left donors are stepping up their political activity in what’s likely to be a heated slate of primary campaigns this year.
The one closely watched race where the challenger outraised the sitting incumbent is in New York, where Westchester County Executive George Latimer raised $1.42 million since announcing his campaign, and banked $1.3 million at the end of the year. He easily outpaced scandal-plagued Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY), who also raised a sizable $735,000 but only has $631,000 in his campaign account.
The other significant showing for a Squad challenger was in Missouri, where St. Louis County Prosecutor Wesley Bell nearly matched the fourth-quarter fundraising of Rep. Cori Bush (D-MO), who is now under a Department of Justice investigation. Bell raised $492,000 in the fourth quarter of 2023, and has $409,000 cash-on-hand, while Bush raised $495,000 and only has $216,000 in her account.
Reps. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) and Ilhan Omar (D-MN) were among the Democrats’ top overall fundraisers of the quarter, in a sign that playing to the anti-Israel extremes is also lucrative in winning over small-dollar, left-wing donors. Tlaib raised a whopping $3.7 million in the quarter, expanding her cash-on-hand by more than sixfold in the last three months. Tlaib currently has no serious primary opposition in her Dearborn-based district.
Omar also increased her fundraising, bringing in a sizable $1.63 million and banking $1.46 million at the end of the year. Her leading opponent, former Minneapolis City Councilman Don Samuels, raised a respectable $355,000 and has $346,000 cash-on-hand.
The weakest fundraising challenger against a Squad-aligned lawmaker was Edgewood Borough Councilwoman Bhavini Patel, running against Rep. Summer Lee (D-PA) in Pittsburgh. Patel brought in $311,000, and banked $238,000. That’s a far cry from Lee’s $1.02 million tally, with $1.17 million cash-on-hand.
All told, based on the latest financial reports and on-the-ground developments in these races, it’s looking like Bowman and Bush are deeply vulnerable, while the other Squad lawmakers facing contested primaries start out as clear favorites.
A few other nuggets from the latest round of campaign finance reports: Sen. Kyrsten Sinema’s (I-AZ) fundraising has begun to dry up, amid a looming deadline for her decision whether to run as an independent. Sinema only raised $595,000 in the fourth fundraising quarter, compared to Rep. Ruben Gallego’s (D-AZ) $3.3 million and Republican Kari Lake’s $2.1 million.
In the closely watched New Jersey Democratic Senate primary, Tammy Murphy brought in a healthy $3.2 million, topping Rep. Andy Kim’s (D-NJ) $1.8 million. Ethically embattled Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ), still running for reelection, brought in just $104,000. (A new poll from Fairleigh Dickinson University out today found Kim leading Murphy 32-20%.)
And the Pennsylvania Senate race, in one of the nation’s biggest battlegrounds, is poised to be one of the most expensive contests in the country. Businessman Dave McCormick outraised Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA), bringing in $5.4 million and supplementing that total with a $1 million personal loan. McCormick ended the year with $4.17 million in his campaign account. Casey raised $3.65 million and has $9.4 million cash-on-hand.
phoenix politics
Pro-Israel groups assessing foreign policy credibility of Arizona Democratic congressional contenders
As an open-seat House race in Phoenix coalesces around two upstart progressives, the ongoing war in Gaza is fueling curiosity about their views on the conflict — which pro-Israel groups are closely scrutinizing for points of contrast that could invite outside engagement, Jewish Insider’s Matthew Kassel reports.
Degrees of caution: The August primary election is pitting Yassamin Ansari, the vice mayor of Phoenix, against Raquel Terán, a former state legislator and party chair, who have each approached the Israel-Hamas war with varying degrees of caution in recent months, raising some questions about their positions on a key issue.
Transparency trouble: While both candidates have forcefullycondemned Hamas’ Oct. 7 attacks, Ansari has shown a greater interest in sharing her Middle East policy views with pro-Israel activists, even as her statements have not always remained consistent. By contrast, Terán, who likewise has held discussions with pro-Israel groups, has drawn scrutiny for avoiding questions on the war — which she has yet to clarify in depth.
Awaiting a verdict: It remains to be seen if pro-Israel groups will engage in the race to succeed Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), who is running for Senate. A spokesperson for AIPAC said the group has “not yet made decisions,” even as it has met with both candidates. For its part, Democratic Majority for Israel has spoken with Ansari, according to a person familiar with the discussion, who said that “she seems to be a strong pro-Israel candidate.” The group, which hasn’t made an endorsement, declined to confirm if it had also met with Terán.
settler sanctions
Biden issues sweeping sanctions targeting ‘extremist’ Israeli settlers
President Joe Biden on Thursday signed an executive order sanctioning Israeli settlers who have committed violence against Palestinians, the strongest punitive action ever taken by a U.S. administration against Israeli settlers, a move that was swiftly condemned by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The White House described the move as an attempt to “address actions that undermine peace, security and stability in the West Bank,” Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch reports.
Riot ringleader: The White House announced four Israelis who will face financial sanctions, including the alleged ringleader of a 2023 riot in the Palestinian town of Huwara. Three of them have already faced criminal prosecution in Israel.
Politics at play: The executive order comes amid fears from some Biden campaign officials that the president’s support of Israel following the Oct. 7 Hamas terror attacks could jeopardize his reelection chances. The policy was announced just before Biden flew to Michigan, home to the country’s largest Arab American population, for campaign events. Earlier this week, Biden’s campaign manager met with Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), a Palestinian American who has attacked Biden for his stance on the war in Gaza.
Other applications: The executive order could also target Palestinians in the West Bank who attack Israeli civilians, officials said. But the four people targeted by the sanctions are all Israeli. A spokesperson for the National Security Council declined to say whether any Palestinians would also be targeted. “I would just emphasize also this [executive order] is non-discriminatory. It applies to Israelis and Palestinians alike. It applies to foreign nationals and those who are engaged in acts of violence on the West Bank and undermining stability there,” a senior Biden administration official said.
war authorization
Biden should seek congressional war powers for Iran proxy campaign, Cardin says
Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD), the chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said on Thursday that the Biden administration should ask Congress to authorize military force for its ongoing campaign against the Houthis and other Iranian proxy groups in the Middle East — but said it’s likely that won’t happen, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
No appetite: “It seems to me this is a more permanent challenge,” Cardin told reporters. “The administration would be in a stronger legal position, and stronger international position, if we could get an [Authorization for Use of Military Force] agreed to between Congress and the administration.” But, he continued, “I see no willingness from any executive branch people” to seek such authorization.
Iran strategy: Amid growing pressure from insideand outside Congress to increase pressure on the Iranian regime following the proxy attacks, Cardin told JI he’s working with colleagues and the administration to develop legislation to counter the regime including strengthening sanctions. “I want to send a clear message: We will be taking up legislation that will impose the strongest message and action against Iran’s nefarious activities as we can,” Cardin said. But he indicated that he favors putting together a new, bipartisan Iran sanctions package, rather than picking up sanctions bills that have already passed through the House.
UNRWA’s future: He also praised the administration’s decision to pause aid to the U.N. Relief and Works Agency pending a “full investigation and accountability.” But he also pushed back on calls from some lawmakers to permanently defund and replace UNRWA, saying that “there is no substitute at this particular moment” with the same “capacity” to deliver aid. “In the short term, we need to utilize that network that’s there,” he told JI. But he said that the question of whether UNRWA should be phased out should be part of longer-term discussions about a new governing authority in Gaza.
Progressive concerns: The leaders of the Congressional Progressive Caucus said in a statement on Thursday that the U.S. faces “the most serious threat of regional war” since the killing of Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani, calling for “a renewed focus on de-escalation, diplomacy, and addressing the root causes that have inflamed the region and provoked attacks on U.S. personnel.” They also restated their concerns about presidential war powers authority.
campus crackdown
Manning: Department of Education taking significant action on antisemitism behind the scenes
The Department of Education has taken significant action behind the scenes to combat rising antisemitism on college campuses, Rep. Kathy Manning (D-NC) told Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod on Wednesday following meetings with senior department officials.
Behind the scenes: “They were doing a lot of things that we were just not aware of,” Manning, who co-chairs the House antisemitism task force, told JI. “It seems to me that they are taking the issue very, very seriously and doing everything they can.” Manning and Senate task force co-chair Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-NV) met recently with Education Secretary Miguel Cardona and Deputy Secretary of Education Cindy Marten. Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Catherine Lhamon met with the House task force on Wednesday.
Outreach: Manning said that the department had organized a webinar with 1,000 college presidents and administrators to discuss their obligations to protect Jewish students under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, which Manning described as a “significant step.”
On the ground: Marten has also been conducting site visits at schools — both K-12 and colleges and universities — across the country to evaluate the situations on campus. Manning said that the department has been using Dartmouth University as an example for other schools of best practices in handling discussions on antisemitism and the Middle East, as well as distributing resources and training for schools. The department has also updated its website to provide clearer information and resources for students hoping to file claims, as well as teachers and administrators to understand their obligations.
On the Hill: Hundreds of activists with the Jewish Federations of North America traveled to the Hill this week to advocate for supplemental aid to Israel, nonprofit security grant funding and the Antisemitism Awareness Act, which would codify anti-discrimination protections for Jewish students utilizing the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of antisemitism. JFNA CEO Eric Fingerhut told JI that new lobbying efforts by proponents of the alternative Nexus Definition are “one of the reasons why we feel” that the lobbying campaign is “very important.” He continued, “We’ll address it directly and explain to them why it’s a diversion, and not a substantive response to antisemitism.”
school daze
Transferring kids to nearby districts, parents decry systemic antisemitism in Oakland
Shira and her husband settled in Oakland, Calif. a few years ago, expecting the San Francisco Bay Area would, unlike their previous home in Florida, provide an inclusive educational atmosphere in which to raise their son. “We left Florida because I could see the tide turning there, I could see what was happening in the school boards there in trying to erase historical narratives, and I didn’t want my son to grow up around that,” Shira, who requested her last name be withheld to discuss a sensitive matter, told eJewishPhilanthropy’s Haley Cohen.
Hotbed of hate: Instead, Oakland’s K-12 school district has become a center of anti-Israel sentiment, and is now the target of a Title VI investigation by the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights. Shira’s idealistic view of the city first changed in early fall when her son entered seventh grade in the Oakland Unified School District (OUSD). Now, Shira and her husband are among at least 30 Jewish families transferring their children out of OUSD in the wake of the DOE investigation into Oakland and San Francisco’s school districts about whether an unauthorized teach-in for Gaza by educators last month amounted to discrimination against students on the basis of their shared Jewish ancestry.
“Unprecedented”: Tyler Gregory, CEO of the Jewish Community Relations Council Bay Area, told eJP that there had been “unprecedented” levels of hatred perpetuated by both public school administrators and educators in the wake of the Oct. 7 Hamas terror attacks. “As Jews across the region were reeling from the horrors of Oct. 7, they looked to their neighbors for support,” Gregory continued. “Instead of being met with empathy and compassion, they faced a flood of intolerance, discrimination and hostility that continues today. Over the past four months, there have been few safe non-Jewish spaces in Oakland for our community. Unfortunately, this includes OUSD public school classrooms for even the youngest students.”
Read the full story here and sign up for eJewishPhilanthropy’s Your Daily Phil newsletter here.
Worthy Reads
The Road to Renewal: In The New York Times, Liat Atzili, an educator at Yad Vashem who was taken hostage by Hamas on Oct. 7, reflects on the Jewish concept of tekumah, or rebirth, as she mourns the destruction to her community of Kibbutz Nir Oz and the murder of her husband, whose body remains in Gaza. “Now is the time for the world to demand and secure the release of the remaining hostages in Gaza. I want to be reunited with my neighbors. Then will come the time for mourning what we have lost. Neither of these missions ends our work. Beyond the horizon of our pain, we must recommit ourselves to tekumah with the same determined optimism of the Holocaust survivor generation. I see no alternative. Without tekumah, we will only sink further into the cycle of mutual anger and victimhood that has plagued our relationship with the Palestinians for too long. That is not the approach that the survivor generation chose, and in their spirit I do not seek revenge for what I have been through. I am humbled by how my fellow Israelis put their lives at risk to fight my kidnappers, but I do not feel any catharsis in seeing the destruction of Gaza. Instead, I want to focus on building a better future for my three children — and for the children of Gaza.” [NYTimes]
Clergy in Wartime: In The Wall Street Journal, Alison Leigh Cowan spotlights the work of the IDF’s reservist clergy, whose efforts have expanded in the wake of the Oct. 7 attacks. “Ordinarily, Jewish bodies are washed to sanctify them before they are wrapped inside a shroud. That process, called tahara, seeks to restore the dead to the purity of their birth. Yet when Jews perish because they are Jews — or because they’re seen as representatives of the Jewish people — their deaths have sanctified them. Under Jewish law, their bodies aren’t washed and are buried in their blood-soaked garments along with any blood they have spilled. Even wipes used to clean blood from objects like phones or yarmulkes must accompany the body to the grave, according to Rabbi [Bentzi] Mann. The blood is meant to remind heaven how Jews are sometimes treated on earth. Civilians killed by antisemites are subject to the same rules, which is why the base has handled nearly all 1,200 fatalities from Hamas’s initial strike and those who have died since.” [WSJ]
Oppressors and Oppressed: In Tablet magazine, Gil Troy examines the history of efforts to link Palestinian nationalism and anti-Zionism with the civil rights movement in America and how they are playing out today. “In a way, this trajectory was inevitable, once progressives decided on a vision of social justice in which America would be run according to a sectarian quota system, in which they defined which groups would be worthy of everything from university admissions to political power. According to this logic, success and failure is — and should be — a function of group identity, which pigeonholes individuals as either ‘oppressors’ or ‘oppressed.’ Within this new taxonomy, American Jews have been defined as the quintessential ‘white oppressors,’ since ‘Jew’ is defined as being synonymous with ‘white’ and “successful.’ The Jewish connection to Israel makes the Jews doubly or triply as oppressive as other ‘white people.’ It is no coincidence that at its core the Palestinianization of the U.S. civil rights movement is an anti-American project. The intersection of the Palestinian cult of victimhood with the ‘anti-racist’ progressive ideology being pushed institutionally by DEI regimes, not only declares that Israel is inherently racist, it also maligns America as systemically racist.” [Tablet]
Doha on Fifth Ave: The Real Deal’s Avital Chizhik-Goldschmidt looks at Qatar’s multibillion-dollar effort to buy up top properties across New York City. “The sovereign wealth fund is a black box, its real estate dealings hard to track perfectly. In addition to holding buildings and shares of real estate companies and trusts outright, the fund’s spinoffs and affiliates also quietly back other investors. The Real Deal spoke to brokers, investors, lenders, developers and lobbyists in an effort to paint a picture of how much of the promised investment has gone into New York. Almost all declined to speak on the record. What’s clear is that 20 years after the purchase of the Lycée building, the tiny Gulf state – through its fund, related companies and royal family – has spent tens of billions on American property, amounting to an estimated 10 million square feet in Manhattan, at minimum. ‘The Qataris love to buy trophy assets in very large cities, New York City, Paris and London,’ said Charlie Attias, a Compass agent who leads a team focused on international buyers. ‘They pick the best locations and the best assets. It’s their trademark.’” [TheRealDeal]
Ballot Bluster: In the Financial Times, James Shotter and Neri Zilber report on the factors that are likely to come into play during the next Israeli election. “For now, Netanyahu and his coalition have little incentive to trigger an election, given that most of its constituent parties would lose seats. Analysts also doubt a vote will be held while Israeli forces are fighting in Gaza. But even people close to the government concede that once the fighting reduces in intensity, the clamour for elections will mount. A new hostage deal could accelerate the process. ‘Either Netanyahu secures an achievement on the battlefield and himself initiates snap elections,’ said a person familiar with Netanyahu’s thinking. ‘Or elections will be forced in the coming months, including because of mass demonstrations and the fact that many of the security chiefs will have resigned by then.’” [FT]
Around the Web
Sanaa Slam: Yemen’s foreign minister accused the U.S. and EU of ignoring concerns about the Iran-backed Houthis while they pursued a nuclear agreement with Tehran.
Response Time: Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin hinted at a major U.S. response to attacks by Iranian proxies on American interests in the Middle East.
Sanders’ Stance: New York magazine talks to Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) about his efforts to pressure the Biden administration and Congress to take a harder line against Israel, after he came under criticism from his progressive base for not calling for a cease-fire.
Political Payback:Politicolooks at a push by allies of former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) to recruit and support primary challengers to GOP House members who voted to oust him as speaker last year.
Tale of Two Doctors: The New York Timesspotlights two NYU Langone doctors, one Jewish and one Arab, who were disciplined — to markedly different degrees — for social media posts about the Oct. 7 Hamas terror attacks.
Crime Time: The Lyft driver who was filmed attacking a Washington, D.C., rabbi was arrested and charged with a bias-related crime, as well as an unrelated robbery charge.
Cartoon Controversy: A University of Pennsylvania lecturer is being criticized for drawing political cartoons that invoke blood libel against Jews.
New Investigations: The Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights opened investigations into Binghamton University and the University of Wisconsin-Madison over the administrations’ responses to antisemitism on those campuses.
Voted Down: The student government at Cornell University rejected a nonbinding anti-Israel resolution by a 16-4 vote.
In the Courts: A New Jersey man pleaded guilty to federal hate crime charges tied to a series of attacks in April 2022 in which he tried to kill several Jewish men in Lakewood and Jackson Township, N.J., by running them over with a car stolen from his first victim.
Crypto Crime: A Manhattan woman was convicted of funding terrorism for sending thousands of dollars in cryptocurrency to groups operating in Syria.
Affinity Acquisition: In its first Israeli investment, Jared Kushner’s Affinity Partners will acquire a 15% stake in Shlomo Group’s automotive and credit company, in a deal worth $110 million.
Bloomberg and the Birds: Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is among David Rubenstein’s investment partners in his recent purchase of the Baltimore Orioles.
Message Not Received:The Messenger’s film critic and a senior entertainment writer reflects on the unceremonious shutdown of Jimmy Finkelstein’s digital news startup earlier this week, as former employees file a class-action lawsuit against the media company.
Where the Wild Things Come From: The New York Times visits the Connecticut estate of the late author and illustrator Maurice Sendak, and interviews the heads of his eponymous foundation about his life and legacy.
Workplace Bias: A Canadian governmental task force was found to have rejected requests to create special employment status for Jewish and Muslim public servants ahead of the Oct. 7 terror attacks.
Toxic Tweets: A British doctor appearing on this season of the U.K. edition of “The Apprentice” is under fire for a series of anti-Israel and antisemitic posts, including some praising the Oct. 7 terror attacks.
Across the Pond: U.K. Foreign Minister David Cameron said that London’s recognition of a state of Palestine could occur before Israelis and Palestinians negotiate a two-state solution, but will not happen as long as Hamas is in power in Gaza.
Future of ‘Fauda’: The U.K.’s Jewish News interviews “Fauda” co-creator Avi Issacharoff about the show’s redirection following the Oct. 7 Hamas terror attacks.
Genetic Testing: Britain’s National Health Service loosened criteria for free genetic testing to tens of thousands of people with Jewish ancestry in an effort to identify individuals carrying the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes; Jews are six times more likely to carry one of the genes.
Protest Down Under: Authorities in Australia determined after analyzing video that protesters at an anti-Israel rally in Sydney in October did not chant “Gas the Jews,” as had previously been alleged, but that other “offensive and completely unacceptable” phrases were chanted at the event.
The Hamas-UNRWA Connection: The Wall Street Journal looks at the historical ties — and tensions — between Hamas and UNRWA, the U.N. agency tasked with aiding Palestinians.
News News: Ali Rogin was named a correspondent for PBS NewsHour and PBS News Weekend.
Remembering: Literary scholar Lawrence Langer, who promoted the idea that the Holocaust defied traditional moral frameworks and could not be grasped, died at 94.
Pic of the Day
U.N. ambassadors from Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Liberia, Romania, Ukraine, Malta, Sierra Leone and Slovenia met with former Israeli hostages Maya and Itay Regev, siblings who were kidnapped by Hamas at the Nova music festival on Oct. 7 and released in November. The delegation to Israel was led by Israeli Ambassador to the U.N. Gilad Erdan, and also included visits to the southern Israeli communities attacked on Oct. 7, the Kerem Shalom border crossing and Israel’s northern border with Lebanon.
In the meeting, Maya Regev detailed her first hours in captivity: “The Hamas terrorists tore my clothes,” she told the delegation. “They took my identity and my name from me. The terrorist who was watching over me told me every day that if the army came to save me, then he would shoot me immediately and not die alone.”
Birthdays
First-ever Orthodox basketball player in the NBA G League, Ryan Turell turns 25 on Saturday…
FRIDAY: Chairman of IAC/InterActiveCorp and Expedia, Barry Diller turns 82… Former mayor and current city councilman of Irvine, Calif., he is running for mayor again this year, Larry Agran turns 79… Host of the Food Network program “Barefoot Contessa,” and former OMB staffer for Presidents Ford and Carter, Ina Rosenberg Garten turns 76… Actor, comedian and singer, Brent Spiner turns 75… Journalist, novelist and author, Michael Zelig Castleman turns 74… Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) turns 72… “Washington Secrets” columnist at the Washington Examiner, Paul Bedard… Science fiction publisher and author, Selina A. Rosen turns 64… Rabbi at the Pacific Jewish Center in Venice, Calif., Shalom Rubanowitz… Sportscaster who currently does play-by-play for the NFL, NBA, MLB, and NHL, Kenny Albert turns 56… Movie and theatre actress and screenwriter, Jennifer Westfeldt turns 54… Tony Award-winning actress, Marissa Jaret Winokur turns 51… Head coach for Bnei Herzliya of the Israeli Premier Basketball League, Dan Shamir turns 49… Actress and comedian, Lori Beth Denberg turns 48… Singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist whose stage name is Mayer Hawthorne, Andrew Mayer Cohen turns 45… Assistant professor at Clemson University, Rebecca Shimoni Stoil, Ph.D. turns 44… Managing editor at GovCIO Media and Research, Ross Gianfortune… Sen. (R-AL) Katie Boyd Britt turns 42… Television and radio host, David Pakman turns 40… U.S. deputy special envoy to combat and monitor antisemitism, Aaron Keyak… Actress and musician, Zosia Russell Mamet turns 36… Former Team Israel baseball catcher, he is now a medical liaison at Sandstone Healthcare in Nevada, Nicholas Jay “Nick” Rickles turns 34… Avi Katz…
SATURDAY: Former chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, Arthur Levitt Jr. turns 93… Former CEO of clothing manufacturer Warnaco Group from 1986 to 2001, Linda J. Wachner turns 78… Chairman and president of the Export-Import Bank of the U.S. for almost the full eight years of the Obama administration, formerly president of the Lillian Vernon Corporation, Fred Hochberg turns 72… Partner at Shipman & Goodwin, following 18 years as a Justice of the Connecticut Supreme Court, Joette Katz turns 71… Singer-songwriter Julie Gold turns 68… Retired member of the Utah House of Representatives, Patrice M. Arent turns 68… Former head of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy in the Biden administration, now at MIT and Harvard, Eric Steven Lander turns 67… Former CEO of the Chicago Sun-Times, Edwin Eisendrath turns 66… Steven F. Schlafer… Member of the Knesset for the National Unity party, Michael Biton turns 54… General counsel of the Girl Scouts of the USA, Diana Hartstein Beinart… French actor, Vincent Elbaz turns 53… Founder of Fourth Factor Consulting, Joel Mowbray… Australian actress and author, Isla Fisher turns 48… Record producer and music critic, known by her nickname Ultragrrrl, Sarah Lewitinn turns 44… Senior director at the GeoEconomics Center of the Atlantic Council, Josh Lipsky… Professional poker player, Daniel Weinman turns 36… Senior associate program director at CSS/Community Security Service, Joshua Keyak… One of Israel’s most popular singers, Ishay Ribo turns 35… Account director at NYC’s Brunswick Group, Noam Safier… Director for J Street U at J Street, Erin Beiner…
SUNDAY: Actor, Jerry Adler turns 95… Stowe, Vt., resident, Barbara Gould Stern … Co-founder and Chair of SAGE Publications, Sara Miller McCune turns 83… Attorney, bank executive and philanthropist, donor of the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts of Miami-Dade County, Adrienne Arsht turns 82… Dean of Yeshiva of Telshe Alumni in Riverdale, N.Y., Rabbi Avraham Ausband turns 76… Patrick B. Leek… Senior counsel at Dentons, Evan Wolfson turns 67… Director of English language programming at Herzog College in Alon Shvut, Israel, Shalom Berger turns 64… Actress, best known for her award-winning role in the 1986 science fiction action film “Aliens,” Jenette Elise Goldstein turns 64… Member of the state Senate of Maryland, Brian J. Feldman turns 63… Former mayor of Anchorage, Alaska, Ethan Avram Berkowitz turns 62… Former kickboxing champion, Leah Goldstein turns 55… President and COO of Blackstone Group, Jonathan D. “Jon” Gray turns 54… The first elected Jewish mayor of Los Angeles, now serving as the U.S. ambassador to India, Eric Garcetti turns 53… Television writer and producer, Edward Lawrence “Eddy” Kitsis turns 53… Executive director of the Baltimore Jewish Council, Howard Libit… Special advisor on the Middle East, defense and technology for VPOTUS Kamala Harris, Ilan Goldenberg turns 46… Author, psychotherapist and group fitness instructor, her book is about her genetic disease that has made her almost completely blind and deaf, Rebecca Alexander turns 45… Washington-based economic policy reporter for The New York Times, Alan Rappeport… Executive director of Ennoble Care Maryland, Nelson Weisbord turns 41… Senior manager in the NYC office of Monitor Deloitte, Justin Meservie turns 41… Client operations and legal project manager at Ropes & Gray, Abigail Dana Cable… Professor emeritus at Northeast Forestry University in Harbin, China, Dan Ben-Canaan… Jan Winnick…
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