Daily Kickoff
Good Wednesday morning.
In today’s Daily Kickoff, we report on the antisemitic and pro-Hamas social media posts of the Chicago Board of Education’s newly appointed president and report on Jewish communal concerns in the Windy City over the mayor’s response to an attack targeting a Jewish man in the city. We talk to FDD’s Mark Dubowitz about Israel’s strategy in Lebanon, report on concerns over Twitch streamer Hasan Piker and talk to legislators on Capitol Hill about concerns over International Criminal Court prosecutor Karim Khan, who is facing sexual harassment allegations. Also in today’s Daily Kickoff: Ivanka Trump, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumerand Richard Attias.
What We’re Watching
- Vice President Kamala Harris will visit Harrisburg, Pa., and Raleigh, N.C., today, according to the Harris-Walz campaign, before traveling to the University Of Wisconsin-Madison for a rally and concert with folk rock band Mumford & Sons.
- Former President Donald Trump will be in Rocky Mount, N.C., for a campaign event, and then head to Green Bay, Wis., where he will headline a rally with former Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre.
- Attendees of the Future Investment Initiative Institute are convening for a second day in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Featured speakers today include Saudi Ambassador to the U.S. Princess Reema Bandar Al Saud, S4 Capital’s Sir Martin Sorrell, Eric Schmidt, Liberty Strategic Capital founder and former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, Centerview Partners’ Richard Haass, Stagwell’s Mark Penn, Delphi Capital Management’s Robert Rosenkranz and former PayPal CEO Dan Schulman.
What You Should Know
How do you solve a problem like UNRWA?
It’s a question that has eluded an answer for years — and for much of that time, it was a problem that was largely ignored, precisely because there was no simple resolution, Jewish Insider Executive Editor Melissa Weiss writes.
But that has changed with the Israeli Knesset’s votes this week to ban the U.N. agency from operating in Israel. The participation of UNRWA employees in the Oct. 7 Hamas terror attacks, and other employees’ memberships in Palestinian terror groups, fueled Israeli action, culminating in this week’s Knesset votes.
What could have garnered more international understanding had it been voted on shortly after the revelations surfaced in February became cause for another round of international condemnation as diplomats and world leaders declared their opposition to the UNRWA ban.
Many of the individuals who have condemned this week’s passage of the UNRWA legislation were largely silent earlier this year following the reports — confirmed by UNRWA itself — that its staffers participated in the largest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust.
At several points over the last year, Israel provided UNRWA with the names and ID numbers of staffers confirmed to be members of terror groups. UNRWA followed up with requests for more information from Israel, which went unanswered. The reason, those with knowledge of the communications told JI, is security — Israel is unwilling to share sensitive information that would definitively tie UNRWA staffers to terror groups in Gaza because it does not trust the U.N. with the information amid an active war against those same terror groups.
This distrust partly stems from the U.N.’s historical bias against Israel and the number of high-level diplomats who frequently espouse antisemitic and anti-Israel sentiments. But it’s a catch-22 that leaves Israel marginalized, working to break Hamas’ hold on the enclave as it receives international condemnation for acting in accordance with its security concerns.
UNRWA does not have a vigorous vetting process to ensure new employees do not have terror ties, according to individuals familiar with the agency’s hiring processes. Nor does it enforce its own rules about organizational neutrality among its staffers, evident in the many social media posts cited by U.N. watchdogs of employees who have praised the Oct. 7 terror attacks and backed violence against Jews and Israelis.
The U.S. pulled its funding from UNRWA months after Oct. 7 following the revelation that at least a dozen of the agency’s staffers participated in the attacks. That funding cannot resume before 2025 at the earliest, though the makeup of the next Congress and results of next week’s election could further delay any resumption of funding.
But the European governments that now make up the bulk of funding for UNRWA do not condition their support on the agency being free of staffers who are members of terror organizations. Nor do they pressure the agency to reform from within and purge its ranks of terror affiliates, sending a signal that UNRWA does not need an overhaul.
Diplomats and U.N. officials have long argued that UNRWA is the only agency that can address the needs of Palestinians. The U.N.’s high commissioner for refugees said yesterday that “only UNRWA has the mandate and capacity to deliver” the “vital support” to Palestinians.
Over the last year, rather than reassigning components of its work to other agencies, UNRWA assumed additional duties, essentially becoming the clearinghouse for the majority of aid, fuel and goods going into Gaza. The U.N. essentially greenlit the continued relationship between the aid agency and the terror group.
Hamas is now so deeply entrenched in Gazan society that it would be virtually impossible for any local organization to carry out UNRWA’s mandate in the enclave without the involvement or employment of Hamas members.
The agency’s operations could be split among the nearly two dozen U.N. agencies tasked with dealing with humanitarian and education issues across the world. But the challenge posed by UNRWA in Gaza in particular is that the agency is largely staffed by Gazans, and that even those UNRWA staffers who are card-carrying members of Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and other terror groups are afforded the protections of international aid workers.
Hamas members are employed as teachers, nurses, sanitation workers and other low-profile positions that pay well, have job security and come with international protections. Hamas’ infiltration into even entry-level positions within UNRWA illustrates the degree to which it has embedded itself in Gazan society.
Lt. Col. Peter Lerner (res.), who long served in the IDF’s spokesperson’s unit, was a longtime defender of UNRWA. But in the aftermath of the Oct. 7 attacks, Lerner conceded that UNRWA is “compromised beyond repair.” Lerner attributed some of the blame for this week’s Knesset vote to UNRWA head Philippe Lazzarini, whose “stubbornness to see with clarity the inherent problems of his organization,” eventually “determined the path Israel would take.”
This week’s Knesset vote will not sound a death knell for UNRWA, but it will add a layer of complication to ongoing efforts to continue the flow of aid into Gaza, and will pose challenges in the West Bank and east Jerusalem, where UNRWA also provides basic services. The challenge remains that there is no easy resolution for addressing Israeli security concerns as it relates to UNRWA’s ties with terror groups — and no player on the global stage who is prepared to find a workable solution.
extreme education
New Chicago education board president has history of antisemitic, pro-Hamas Facebook posts
Rev. Mitchell Ikenna Johnson, the newly appointed president of the Chicago Board of Education, has a lengthy history of posting inflammatory antisemitic, anti-Israel and pro-Hamas content on social media, according to a review of Johnson’s public and private Facebook posts following the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks last year, Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch reports.
U-turn: After the 2018 Tree of Life shooting in Pittsburgh, Mitchell added a banner to his Facebook profile picture that said, “Together Against Antisemitism.” But since Hamas’ terror attack last year, which killed more than 1,200 Israelis, he has used Facebook to share dozens of posts praising the terrorist group, justifying the Oct. 7 attacks and slandering Jews who support Israel. “How can a group of people who have suffered from the Holocaust; today join with the Alt Right Community?” Johnson asked in a post last December.
empty words
Jewish community slams Chicago Mayor Johnson after shooting of Jewish man
Chicago’s Jewish Community Relations Council, Anti-Defamation League and American Jewish Committee chapters slammed Mayor Brandon Johnson on Tuesday for failing to “acknowledge the Jewish community” in a statement after a Muslim man was arrested over the shooting of a Jewish man walking to synagogue on Saturday in West Rogers Park, home to one of the city’s largest Orthodox Jewish populations, Jewish Insider’s Haley Cohen reports.
X post: Three days after the shooting, in which the suspect yelled “Allahu Akbar” as he exchanged fire with police officers responding to the initial shooting, Johnson wrote on X, “Our heartfelt thoughts and prayers are with the victim and his loved ones from this weekend’s shooting incident that took place in Rogers Park. All Chicagoans deserve to feel safe and protected across the city. There is more work to be done, and we are committed to diligently improving community safety in every neighborhood.”
streaming hate
Popular leftist Twitch streamer Hasan Piker steps up antisemitic, anti-Israel rhetoric
Hasan Piker, among the most-watched streamers on the platform Twitch, is coming under fire for anti-Israel and antisemitic rhetoric that has escalated in recent weeks, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports. Piker, also known as HasanAbi, has hosted several well-known lawmakers including Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) and Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Ro Khanna (D-CA) on his platform.
Inside the situation: Critics also say his conduct reflects deeper problems with antisemitism at Amazon-owned Twitch, the dominant player in the streaming market. Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY) told JI, “Nobody has been a greater amplifier of antisemitism than the poster child of Twitch, Hasan Piker,” and described Twitch as “systemically antisemitic.” He continued, “if the KKK and the neo-Nazi movement were a social media platform, it would be Twitch. Twitch is a cesspool of antisemitism unlike anything I’ve ever seen.”
Bonus: Torres wrote to Amazon and Twitch leaders on Tuesday about Piker and Twitch’s relationship with him, along with other antisemitic streamers on the platform. “If Twitch feels even the slightest semblance of social responsibility as a corporation — a questionable proposition given the company you [CEO Dan Clancy] keep — then the time has come for Twitch to stop popularizing those who popularize antisemitism.”
political pivot
Mark Dubowitz calls for Israel to pursue political strategy after military successes
Mark Dubowitz, the CEO of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies think tank, is now calling for Israel to wrap up its major ground operations in Lebanon, with a longer-term goal of converting what he praised as significant battlefield successes into political achievements that will help consolidate recent gains, he said in an interview with Jewish Insider’s Matthew Kassel.
‘Diminishing returns’: “There’s a certain point where you hit the law of diminishing returns,” Dubowitz said. From a military standpoint, Israel “has maximized its gains,” he argued, warning that “further fighting without any sort of political strategy is likely to lead to more Israeli troop losses — and not necessarily to greater military advantage.” His assessment marks a turning point in how pro-Israel foreign policy hawks have reckoned with turmoil in the region. But Dubowitz said his conversations with Israeli officials indicate they agree with his push for a strategic pivot.
election watch
The high-stakes battle for the Skver vote
The battle for a key endorsement from a sizable Hasidic voting bloc in New York’s Hudson Valley is reaching a crucial moment in the final days of a closely contested congressional race that could determine the balance of power in the House, Jewish Insider’s Matthew Kassel reports.
New Square spotlight: In an 11th-hour effort to court the Orthodox vote on Monday, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) visited the Hasidic village of New Square, where they met with Rabbi David Twersky to help boost former Rep. Mondaire Jones (D-NY). Meanwhile, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) is expected to make a similar trek on Thursday, sources say, to assist Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY), a vulnerable freshman in New York’s 17th District, home to one of the largest Jewish constituencies in the country.
eye on icc
ICC prosecutor facing scrutiny from Capitol Hill amid sexual misconduct allegations
Karim Khan, the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court who is seeking arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other top Israeli officials, is facing scrutiny from pro-Israel lawmakers on Capitol Hill over newly revealed sexual misconduct allegations, Jewish Insider’s Emily Jacobs and Marc Rod report. Khan is accused of sexually harassing a female colleague for over a year, allegedly trying to coerce her into a sexual relationship and groping her against her will. Khan has denied the allegations.
Seeking answers: Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) told JI on Monday that the allegations against Khan have “put a cloud over” the court’s proceedings against Netanyahu and others. “I wrote a letter to the governing body of the ICC asking for information about the investigation. Was it an honest investigation? Was the person who made the allegations intimidated? He was supposed to come to Israel on May the 20th. I had a phone call with 10 senators – five Republicans, five Democrats – urging him to hear Israel’s side of the story, to invoke complementarity, which is a legal concept under the Rome Statute,” Graham said, referring to the treaty that established the ICC. “The people in Israel were at the airport to meet him. At the last minute, he canceled his flight and he filed the [request for an] arrest warrant. So I’ve always wondered what the heck happened.”
Read the full story here with additional comments from Reps. Ritchie Torres (D-NY) and Brad Sherman (D-CA).
Worthy Reads
Ivanka’s Absence: The New York Times’ Jesse McKinley spotlights Ivanka Trump’s absence from her father’s presidential campaign. “And when asked the chances that she might rejoin the campaign fray in the final stretch of the race, [her husband, Jared] Kushner was blunt. ‘Zero,’ he said. Mr. Kushner, 43, added that Ms. Trump ‘made the decision when she left Washington that she was closing that chapter of her life. And she’s been remarkably consistent.’ He went on to suggest that the outcome in the contest between Mr. Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris may change little for their family. While ‘obviously the world is different for us over the next four years if her father is president,’ Mr. Kushner said, he didn’t see ‘a major shift in terms of what we prioritize.’ … Ms. Trump’s friends counter that these days she is less concerned with being seen, and more focused on quality of life, for her and her children: Arabella, 13; Joseph, 11; and Theodore, 8. They attend a private Jewish day school near their home; the family walks to synagogue for services on Saturday. (Ms. Trump converted to Judaism before the couple married.) ‘Miami really feels like home now,’ said Julie Brawn, who has known Ms. Trump for two decades and lives near the couple. ‘She’s super happy with the lifestyle.’” [NYTimes]
Foreign Interference: In The New York Times, Sheera Frenkel, Tiffany Hsu and Steven Lee Myers explore the influence of Russia, China and Iran in the upcoming presidential election. “Iran in particular has spent its resources setting up covert disinformation efforts to draw in niche groups. A website titled ‘Not Our War,’ which aimed to draw in American military veterans, interspersed articles about the lack of support for active-duty soldiers with virulently anti-American views and conspiracy theories. Other sites included ‘Afro Majority,’ which created content aimed at Black Americans, and ‘Savannah Time,’ which sought to sway conservative voters in the swing state of Georgia. In Michigan, another swing state, Iran created an online outlet called ‘Westland Sun’ to cater to Arab Americans in suburban Detroit. ‘That Iran would target Arab and Muslim populations in Michigan shows that Iran has a nuanced understanding of the political situation in America and is deftly maneuvering to appeal to a key demographic to influence the election in a targeted fashion,’ said Max Lesser, a senior analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.” [NYTimes]
Happy People:Tablet’s Alana Newhouse considers the resurgence in pride and community being experienced across the American Jewish communal spectrum. “It’s worth noting that today’s blackpillers share three things in common: They are angry about or disappointed in America, they don’t like Jews, and they are obviously unhappy. This is as true of people like Ilhan Omar and the Hamas lovers at college encampments as it is of that seemingly endless supply of roided out right wingers like Andrew Tate, Jake Shields, and others. These people may consider themselves on opposite sides of the political aisle, but they are united in misery. By contrast, the happiest, most hopeful people right now are the ones who — again, after looking at reality head-on, acknowledging every real problem, and accepting that there is a lot of work ahead — are determined to see a bright future for America. And every such joyful, optimistic person I know or can think of is, to a one, either Jewish or philosemitic. None of that is an accident: It’s how America was built.” [Tablet]
Word on the Street
Biden administration senior officials Amos Hochstein and Brett McGurk will travel to Israel tomorrow for meetings aimed at ending the war between Israel and Hezbollah; Hochstein was in Lebanon earlier this week…
A new poll from the Associated Press/NORC Center for Public AffairsResearch found that a majority of Americans place “a lot” of the blame on Hamas and Hezbollah, rather than Israel, for the violence in the region; the same poll found that 6 in 10 Democrats believe the Israeli government bears “a lot” of the responsibility, while roughly a quarter of Republicans feel the same…
The Wall Street Journal talks to supporters of former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley about their reluctance to cast their ballots for former President Donald Trump…
In her final major speech at the Ellipse last night, Vice President Kamala Harris branded Trump as “consumed with grievance and out for unchecked power” while she said would govern based on her “lifelong instinct to protect” abused or victimized people…
The White House pushed back on claims that President Joe Biden referred to Trump supporters as “garbage” days after a comedian at a Trump rally in New York set off a firestorm after calling the island of Puerto Rico “an island of garbage”’; the White House said that Biden was referring to the comedian’s remarks, releasing a transcript of the remarks that read: “The only garbage I see floating out there is his supporter’s”…
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) is planning to attach the Antisemitism Awareness Act up to a larger defense spending bill expected to come up for a vote after the election…
Law enforcement officials investigating fires that destroyed ballot boxes — and the ballots inside them — in Oregon and Washington state said that devices marked with the words “Free Gaza” were found at the sites…
The Washington Post reported that at least 250,000 subscribers have canceled their subscriptions following the paper’s decision not to endorse a presidential candidate…
U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield doubled down on criticism of U.N. Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese, whom Thomas-Greenfield called “unfit” to serve in her role over multiple instances of antisemitism…
Adidas settled its ongoing legal dispute with Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, two years after the sportswear company severed ties with Ye over a series of antisemitic rants…
The New York Times spotlights Dayenu, as the Jewish climate advocacy group attempts to implement a climate-focused get-out-the-vote effort ahead of the election…
An appellate court in California ruled unanimously in favor of a group of Jewish parents who alleged that the state engaged in discrimination for not making special education funding available to non-secular private schools…
Time interviewed Future Investment Initiative Institute CEO Richard Attias, who announced at the conference’s opening day yesterday that he is stepping down from his role…
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is considering postponing the upcoming nuptials of his son Avner, over security concerns and potential drone threats at the wedding, slated for late November…
Satellite imagery taken following Israel’s weekend strikes against Iran indicated that the operation likely caused damage to a base in Sharoud, Iran, that was used to build ballistic missiles and fire rockets…
IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi warned that if Iran launched another strike against Israel, Jerusalem would respond “with capabilities that we did not even use” in last week’s strikes on Iranian targets…
Iran is planning to expand its defense budget by 200%…
Germany recalled its ambassador from Iran after the execution of a German-Iranian citizen, who had been a longtime U.S. resident and was kidnapped from Dubai and arrested on dubious charges…
A German naval ship was forced to make an extended detour around the Cape of Good Hope because the vessel lacked the defensive systems necessary to protect against potential Houthi attacks in the Red Sea…
The Iran-backed Houthis in Iran have detained and arrested dozens of Yemenis with ties to the U.S. Embassy and international organizations on charges of spying…
The Wall Street Journal looks at how the Houthis went from a disorganized group with mounting financial issues to a powerful malign actor in the Gulf, where it has disrupted shipping routes and regularly fired at U.S. interests, including Israel, in the region…
SmartAid, the Israeli humanitarian tech relief nonprofit, will begin delivering aid kits to Lebanese civilians displaced by the fighting between Israel and the Hezbollah terror group, through a local Lebanese charity this week, in a rare case of an Israeli organization operating within the country, which does not have official ties with Jerusalem, eJewishPhilanthropy reports…
Pic of the Day
John Ondrasik, also known as Five for Fighting, released a new song yesterday dedicated to the hostages held in Gaza. “In this divisive time, there is one issue all Americans should agree on: That our hostages should not be forgotten. That every ounce of military, political and diplomatic effort be made to secure their release,” he wrote in a Washington Post op-ed. “I wrote ‘Song for the Hostages’ for every hostage and hostage family, for those we pray are still alive and for those whose memory we mourn.”
“I also wrote it to counter voices that inundate us daily from world media, the United Nations, college quads, the halls of Congress and, tragically, even the arts. Voices that echo Hamas propaganda. Voices that rarely acknowledge the hostages,” he added. “Though majorities of Americans support Israel in its fight for civilization, over time, silent majorities might become silent minorities. We cannot let that happen.”
Birthdays
Former president of the University of Minnesota, chancellor of the University of Texas System and president of the University of California, Mark Yudof turns 80…
Winner of two Pulitzer Prizes for his biographies of Robert Moses and Lyndon B. Johnson, Robert Caro turns 89… Actor, best known for his portrayal of “The Fonz” in the “Happy Days” sitcom, Henry Winkler turns 79… NBC’s anchor and journalist, Andrea Mitchell turns 78… South African-born rabbi, now leading Kehillat Bnei Aharon in Raanana, Israel, David Lapin turns 75… Professor of physics at Syracuse University, Peter Reed Saulson turns 70… Former basketball player for five seasons with the NBA’s Phoenix Suns, now a managing director at CBIZ, Joel Bruce Kramer turns 69… Israeli violinist, violist and conductor who appears in concerts around the world, Shlomo Mintz turns 67… Meat packing executive, sentenced to 27 years in prison in 2009 for fraud, his sentence was commuted by President Trump in 2017 after serving eight years, Sholom Mordechai Rubashkin turns 65… Former CEO and later executive chairman of Qualcomm, he is a co-owner of the NBA’s Sacramento Kings, Paul E. Jacobs turns 62… Partner in the DC office of Cadwalader, he previously served as the attorney general of Maryland, Douglas F. “Doug” Gansler turns 62… Partner and co-founder of the Irvine, California law firm of Wolfe & Wyman, Stuart B. Wolfe… Global head of public policy at Apollo Global Management, David Krone… White House correspondent for The New York Times and a political analyst for CNN, Maggie Haberman turns 51… Principal and managing consultant at Korn Ferry, Jeremy Seth Gold… Assistant secretary for investment security at the U.S. Treasury, Paul M. Rosen turns 46… Public information officer of the City and County of Denver, Joshua Eric Rosenblum… Ivanka ‘Yael’ Trump turns 43… Founding director at Tech Tribe and director of social media for Chabad, Mordechai Lightstone… Politico reporter covering races in the U.S. House of Representatives, Ally Mutnick… Managing director at DC-based Targeted Victory, Rebecca Schieber Brown…
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