Trump says Herrera is ‘strongly supported by many Highly Respected MAGA Warriors’
screenshot
Brandon Herrera pictured here in a video about Nazi guns.
Add JewishInsider on GooglePresident Donald Trump on Wednesday announced his endorsement of Brandon Herrera, the far-right social media influencer who is the presumptive Republican nominee in Texas’ 23rd Congressional District.
Herrera has faced condemnation for videos he posted that featured imagery, music and jokes related to the Nazis and the Holocaust. He also spoke on a podcast last year about owning a copy of Mein Kampf, though he said he does not share the views expressed in Adolf Hitler’s manifesto.
Trump previously backed Herrera’s opponent, incumbent Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX), who dropped out of the race last week amid an escalating scandal.
“Brandon is strongly supported by many Highly Respected MAGA Warriors in Texas, and Republicans in the U.S. House,” Trump said on Truth Social on Wednesday. Herrera has been backed by the House Freedom Caucus’ affiliated PAC.
“As your next Congressman, he will work tirelessly to advance our MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN Agenda,” Trump continued. “Brandon Herrera has my Complete and Total Endorsement to be the next Representative from Texas’ 23rd Congressional District — HE WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN!”
Trump’s endorsement of Herrera marks a sharp turnabout for the president. Just a month ago, a lawyer for the president sent Herrera a cease-and-desist demanding he stop using Trump’s image in campaign advertisements, calling the ads misleading in light of Trump’s then-endorsement of Gonzales.
Herrera, who has generally taken an anti-interventionist stance on foreign policy issues, including opposing supplemental aid to Israel in 2024, said at the start of the U.S. strikes on Iran that he hopes that “If there must be military action, let it be QUICK, effective, and please God keep our service members safe.”
He said on X in June 2025, the day before the start of the 12-day war between Israel and Iran, which the U.S. eventually joined, “I don’t want to go to war with Iran. I don’t want to be involved in the Middle East. But if you decide to f*** with us (like they did last time), I wish you a very happy sunk Navy.”
Herrera has faced condemnation and opposition in the past from groups including the Republican Jewish Coalition. Asked last week about Herrera’s comments that resurfaced last week about Mein Kampf, the RJC affirmed its continued opposition to Herrera.
“The RJC has a long-standing policy of speaking out against those who traffic in Nazi ideology, and this is another case,” spokesperson Sam Markstein told Jewish Insider. “The RJC opposed Mr. Herrera in 2024, and he will not get our support now.”
Plus, Israel considers building Somaliland base
Cheriss May/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Ben Rhodes, then-deputy national security advisor to President Barack Obama, participates in an interview with press at the White House in on Wednesday, December 14, 2016.
This P.M. edition is reserved for our premium subscribers — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
The Strait of Hormuz continues to be a key site of conflict in the U.S. and Israeli war against Iran — a spokesperson for the Iranian Armed Forces said in a video statement that the regime “will never allow even a single liter of oil to pass through the Strait of Hormuz for the benefit of America, the Zionists or their partners,” shortly after several ships were struck by missiles while passing through or near the strait…
The International Energy Agency announced its member countries will release 400 million barrels of oil from their emergency reserves in order to blunt the impacts of the war, the largest emergency release in history…
President Donald Trump told Axios that the war will end “soon” because there’s “practically nothing left to target” in Iran. U.S. and Israeli officials are reportedly preparing for at least two more weeks of hostilities…
Jewish Insider’s Matthew Shea speaks to experts and former Trump administration officials about Qatar’s potentially changing calculus on hosting Iranian-backed Hamas leaders as Tehran continues to attack the Gulf state…
A preliminary U.S. military investigation has found the deadly strike on a school in Iran was caused by the U.S. as it was targeting a nearby Iranian base, sources told The New York Times…
The FBI recently warned California police departments that Iran may launch a drone attack in the state, ABC News reports. As of last month, “Iran allegedly aspired to conduct a surprise attack using unmanned aerial vehicles from an unidentified vessel off the coast of the United State Homeland, specifically against unspecified targets in California, in the event that the U.S. conducted strikes against Iran,” the bureau’s alert read…
Israel is considering building a base in Somaliland, which it recently recognized as an independent country, in order to combat the threat of the Houthis, which are based in Yemen just across the Gulf of Aden…
Iran will not participate in the 2026 World Cup after the U.S. “assassinated our leader,” Iran’s sports minister told state media, shortly after Trump said he would still “welcome” the team’s participation. Iran’s national men’s soccer team was set to compete in June in Los Angeles and Seattle; several athletes from the country’s women’s team recently defected to Australia after playing in a match there…
Spain permanently withdrew its ambassador to Israel, as the countries’ already tense relations worsen over Madrid’s opposition to the war in Iran…
House Republican leadership discussed ways to incorporate an expected emergency supplemental for the U.S. military into the budget reconciliation process, Politico reports, rather than attempting to rally support from Senate Democrats for the 60-vote threshold that would otherwise be required in the Senate on a stand-alone vote. The move would also sidestep a vote that could be politically challenging for some House Republicans…
Former Obama administration official Ben Rhodes, a leading Israel critic on the left, said on an episode of his “Pod Save the World” podcast that Democrats who vote in favor of funding for the war with Iran “should be primaried. I don’t want you in the Democratic Party.”
Rhodes and co-host Tommy Vietor referenced the four Democrats who voted against a war powers resolution in the House as ripe for primary challenges. Left unsaid: Three of the four — Reps. Greg Landsman (D-OH), Henry Cuellar (D-TX) and Jared Golden (D-ME) — represent GOP-leaning seats that would likely flip with a more progressive Democratic candidate…
In a sign of the political gulfs between the Israeli and American left, Yair Zivan, who is an advisor to Israeli Opposition Leader Yair Lapid, pushed back on Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) after the senator criticized Israeli operations in Lebanon.
“Senator, I work for the Leader of the Opposition in Israel and I’m writing this from a bomb shelter with my children. Israel is under attack by fanatical terrorists who want to murder us. It never ceases to amaze that your humanity never seems to extend to Israeli lives,” Zivan wrote on X…
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said he called New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani to “check in on him and his wife to make sure they’re doing okay” after the attempted terror attack outside Mamdani’s official residence over the weekend. “As someone who’s had to deal with political violence, I know it can take a toll,” Shapiro said. The governor previously spoke with Mamdani after his win in November to express concerns over his rhetoric about Israel…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye out in Jewish Insider for a look at the far-right ties of the new political director of College Republicans of America.
The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee will hold a hearing on foreign influence in American higher education, including testimony from the Foundation for Defense of Democracies’ Craig Singleton.
The annual weeklong South by Southwest festival kicks off tomorrow in Austin, Texas. Appearing at the summit, whose 300,000 attendees include many film and media professionals, is anti-Israel protest leader Mahmoud Khalil, who will speak about “the system that tried to silence him, and the personal and political stakes of resistance.”
Stories You May Have Missed
PRIMARY PRESSURE
DMFI focusing ire on anti-Israel Democrats running in swing districts
The pro-Israel Democratic group warns that nominating far-left candidates will cost the party winnable seats against GOP incumbents
DEMOCRATIC DIVIDE
John Fetterman again offers scathing criticism of his own party’s foreign policy views
The Pennsylvania senator told JI about the U.S. military operation’s successes: ‘Why can’t a single Democrat agree that this is a good thing for the world and the region?’
Sen. Tommy Tuberville, who also sits on the Armed Services Committee, which was briefed Tuesday morning, strongly denied that ground troops would be necessary
Jemal Countess/Getty Images for Fair Share America
Sen. Richard Blumenthal speaks at a rally at the Capitol on April 10, 2025 in Washington, DC.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), following a classified briefing for the Senate Armed Services Committee on the war in Iran on Tuesday morning, said he’s concerned that the U.S. is headed toward putting troops in Iran — echoing and elevating concerns he voiced following a classified briefing last week.
But other colleagues have, at this point, not affirmed Blumenthal’s view.
“If you look at the administration’s objectives, most especially regime change, there’s no way to accomplish it from 30,000 feet,” Blumenthal told Jewish Insider. “Every military expert seems to agree that it requires troops in Iran, and likely, as well, destruction of the nuclear material that Iran has right now will require some presence of personnel.”
He said that comments by President Donald Trump and administration officials about the future of the campaign and about loosening rules of engagement have further fed into his concerns.
“There is an air of recklessness that leads me to be very fearful — not to mention what I’ve heard in the classified briefings,” Blumenthal said.
Other colleagues on the Armed Services Committee aren’t backing up Blumenthal’s concerns at this point.
“I don’t know,” Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI) said, when asked if he agrees with Blumenthal that ground troops are likely to be deployed.
Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) forcefully denied to JI the idea that the U.S. would put troops on the ground in Iran.
“That’s interesting,” Sen. Mike Rounds (R-SD) said, when asked about Blumenthal’s comments.
Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA), who is not on the Armed Services Committee, said that Blumenthal “is my friend” but he “needs to back off the crank. That’s not going to happen.”
A ground operation would likely be a red-line for at least some lawmakers — on both sides of the aisle — currently supporting the war effort.
Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA), the most vocal Democratic supporter of the war effort, told JI he would not support a ground operation, a position he said he believes most Americans agree with.
“I’m not supporting a boots on the ground thing — the vast, vast, vast [majority of] Americans are there — but I support what’s happened” so far, Fetterman said. “I’ll be the first guy to say, ‘Look, I’m not aware of any single person that would support boots on the ground.’ I just watched [Defense Secretary Pete] Hegseth’s interview where he says they’re never going to make it about nation-building or anything.”
The Pennsylvania senator also said he plans to support any request from the administration for supplemental funding relating to the ongoing operation, adding that he took umbrage with the notion of lawmakers on either side of the aisle voting down aid for U.S. forces in an ongoing combat mission.
“If it comes up, I will vote for it,” Fetterman told JI of a supplemental package. “And I would dare anyone to vote against providing our military what’s required at this point.”
A growing number of Democrats are coming out against such supplemental funding.
“They’re saying they have more than ample resources and munitions right now. I have no idea why they would need a supplemental, so I’m certainly not writing a blank check, and they’ve given us no specificity as to why a supplemental is required,” Blumenthal told JI.
“What’s more, Trump is saying he’s not going to sign any legislation anyway until there’s the SAVE AMERICA Act, which is a preposterous position, but why should we consider a supplemental when he’s going to veto it anyway?” he continued.
Also on Tuesday, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Sens. Jack Reed (D-RI) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) wrote to Trump calling on him to send Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Hegseth to immediately testify publicly on the war effort.
They need to “come and answer for their failures and explain to the American people what the hell is going on,” Schumer said at a press conference. “That’s what people are asking in drug stores and bowling alleys and office buildings: What is going on? No one can understand it from what the Trump administration and Trump himself are saying.”
The Pennsylvania senator told JI about the U.S. military operation’s successes: ‘Why can’t a single Democrat agree that this is a good thing for the world and the region?’
Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images
Senator John Fetterman speaks during the grand opening of The Altneu synagogue.
Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) is criticizing his fellow Democrats over their opposition to President Donald Trump’s decision to launch the U.S. war in Iran, arguing that his party should celebrate efforts to bring down the Iranian regime and its military and nuclear capabilities as a “positive development.”
Fetterman, the most vocal pro-Israel Democrat in the Senate, has been one of the leading advocates for striking Iran directly since Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attacks on Israel. He backed Trump’s decision to strike Iran’s nuclear facilities amid the 12-day war with Israel last year, criticizing Democrats at the time for speaking out against the operation, and has since emerged as one of the staunchest Iran hawks in the Democratic Party.
The Pennsylvania senator said, since leading Democrats have long argued that Iran should never have the ability to get a nuclear weapon, criticism from the party of the joint U.S.-Israel efforts to degrade their military capabilities is hypocritical.
“First, let’s get to history. Every single Democratic presidential candidate or Democratic president all agreed, we can never allow Iran to acquire a nuclear bomb. Everyone has run the gamut: sanctions, treaties, proxies, other kinds of negotiations. It never worked,” Fetterman told Jewish Insider in an interview on Tuesday. “But you know what it actually produced? Nine hundred pounds of just pure, weapons-grade uranium.”
“When the country that wants death to America and wants to destroy Israel could have been months away from developing a nuclear weapon, and every single Democratic candidate for president all agreed we can never allow them [to do so], why can’t we just acknowledge what’s happened?” he asked. “It’s a profound development. I don’t get it. I know what the [Democratic] base demands right now: condemn and criticize.”
He said that Democrats should be able and willing to praise the operation for degrading Iran’s regime and its capabilities.
“Why can’t a Democrat call this a positive development given everything that Iran is responsible for and what their ambitions are?” Fetterman said. “This is effectively us destroying the Nazi regime and Hitler before they could’ve even begun. So, to your readers, whether in Israel or here, I ask: Why is that a problem?”
Fetterman also said that the media and fellow Democrats are ignoring what he characterized as the apparent successes and effectiveness of the U.S.-Israel strikes.
“Iran’s capabilities have been effectively ended. Right now, the missile strikes are down by 90 percent. Their Navy is gone. They can’t even project any force at this point,” Fetterman said. “Why do The New York Times and other left-wing media keep making it seem that the region is on fire when this is the breaking free of Iran? Why can’t a single Democrat agree that this is a good thing for the world and the region?”
Fetterman also blasted recent comments from former Vice President Kamala Harris and California Gov. Gavin Newsom, potential 2028 Democratic presidential contenders, criticizing Trump’s decision to launch the U.S. war in Iran and questioning the future of the U.S.-Israel relationship. The Pennsylvania senator said he was not surprised by the mainstreaming of opposition to Israel within the Democratic Party, predicting that the shift away from supporting Israel would continue.
“I expect at the end that our party is going to continue to back away from the moral clarity of Israel. If you are describing Israel as an apartheid state, or you have people in leadership [doing so], that’s profoundly disappointing but unsurprising,” Fetterman said.
Plus, CNN walks back coverage downplaying NYC terror attempt
JULIEN DE ROSA / AFP via Getty Images
A person points at a page on the Marinetraffic website that shows commercial boats traffic on the edge of the Strait of Hormuz near the Iranian coast, in Paris on March 4, 2026.
This P.M. edition is reserved for our premium subscribers — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
President Donald Trump denied reports that U.S. intelligence has found Iran is taking steps to deploy mines in the Strait of Hormuz, but said if it has been done, “we want them removed, IMMEDIATELY!” If not, he warned, “the Military consequences to Iran will be at a level never seen before,” and if they are removed, “it will be a giant step in the right direction.”
Shortly after, Trump confirmed the U.S. has “hit, and completely destroyed, 10 inactive mine laying boats and/or ships.”
Aramco, the world’s top oil exporter out of Saudi Arabia, warned oil markets will face “catastrophic consequences” if the strait continues to be impacted by the war. “While we have faced disruptions in the past, this one by far is the biggest crisis the region’s oil and gas industry has faced,” CEO Amin Nasser told reporters…
The White House asked Israel not to target any more Iranian energy facilities, Axios reports, citing harm to Iranian civilians, the hope to cooperate with the Iranian oil industry after the war and potential for Tehran to retaliate against Gulf states…
Around 140 U.S. servicemembers have been injured in the course of the campaign against Iran, Defense Department spokesperson Sean Parnell said today, the majority of whom have already returned to service…
After receiving a classified briefing in the Senate Armed Services Committee, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) told reporters, “I emerged from this briefing as dissatisfied and angry, frankly, as I have from any past briefing in my 15 years in the Senate. … We seem to be on a path toward deploying American troops on the ground in Iran.”
Blumenthal continued, “There is also, as disturbingly as anything else, the specter of active Russian aid to Iran … with intelligence and perhaps with other means, and China also may be assisting”…
The U.S. ordered the departure of its diplomats and their families from southern Turkey after two attempted Iranian missile strikes in the area; it’s the first mandated departure of U.S. officials outside of the Gulf and Lebanon since the start of the war…
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a statement to the “people of Iran” hinting at a coming opportunity for a popular uprising. He wrote on X, “We are waging a historic war for liberty. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for you to remove the Ayatollah regime and gain your freedom. … In the coming days we will create the conditions for you to grasp your destiny. … When the time is right, and that time is fast approaching, we will pass the torch to you”…
CNN significantly changed a story and removed a social media post today that downplayed the attempted terror attack outside Gracie Mansion, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s official residence, over the weekend, initially writing that the suspects traveled from Pennsylvania for “what could’ve been a normal day” during the city’s “abnormally warm weather.”
CNN later deleted its post on X and added an editor’s note to its story, saying that the language “failed to reflect the gravity of the incident thereby breaching the editorial standards we require for all our reporting”…
The NYPD evacuated Carl Schurz Park near the mayor’s mansion today after a suspicious device was found in the vicinity; it was determined to be “non-threatening”…
Secure Community Network said there was no known threat to the Jewish community following an active shooter incident Tuesday afternoon near the Agudath Israel of Baltimore synagogue, during which a Baltimore Police officer and a suspect were shot in what appeared to be a domestic incident…
A week ahead of Illinois’ primary election, a new poll conducted by an outside group backing Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL) shows the congressman with a double-digit lead in the race for Senate, up 11 points over his next closest competitor, Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton. Over 87,000 early votes have already been cast in the race, 40,000 votes more than had been cast at the same point in early voting during the 2022 primaries…
Morris Katz, the Democratic strategist who has shaped the campaigns of progressive politicians hostile to Israel including Mamdani and Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner, is now behind the campaign of another populist Democrat: Allison Ziogas, a first-time candidate attempting to unseat Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY). Trump won 61% of the vote in Malliotakis’ Staten Island–based district in 2024, making it difficult for any Democrat to prevail…
The Anti-Defamation League released its 2026 Campus Antisemitism Report Card, which showed a “clear upward trend” in universities taking steps to address antisemitism, the organization said. Almost two dozen schools received A grades.
UCLA Chancellor Julio Frenk celebrated his university’s improvement from a D to a B, but said in a statement, “a grade is a waypoint, not a destination. … While we have made clear progress in addressing antisemitism, we have more to do in our shared goal of eradicating it in its entirety”…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye out in Jewish Insider for a look at a late flurry of spending against far-left social media influencer Kat Abughazaleh in Illinois’ 9th Congressional District, as pro-Israel groups indicate concern that the virulently anti-Israel Democrat could win the seat.
President Donald Trump will host an event in Hebron, Ky., tomorrow, with Republican congressional candidate Ed Gallrein in attendance. Gallrein is challenging Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) with Trump’s endorsement — Massie will not be attending the event, which is taking place in his district.
Fox News’ Bret Baier will speak in conversation with journalist Gary Rosenblatt at Temple Emanu-El’s Streicker Center in New York City.
Stories You May Have Missed
SCOOP
Ann Arbor mayoral candidate featured Hamas supporter in campaign video
Local DSA chair Justin Yuan wrote on social media, ‘Love Hamas. Simple as’
BLUEGRASS BATTLE
Thomas Massie’s opposition to Iran war could cost him reelection
President Trump is set to rally with Massie’s opponent this week
President threatens further attacks if Iran blocks Strait of Hormuz; teases nation-building effort
The White House via X Account/Anadolu via Getty Images
U.S. President Donald J. Trump sits at a table monitoring military operations during Operation Epic Fury against Iran, with U.S. flags visible behind him, in Washington, United States, on March 02, 2026.
President Donald Trump drew two contradictory timelines for the ongoing war in Iran in remarks on Monday, saying that the conflict was both drawing to a close and in its early stages.
In a call with CBS News, Trump said, “The war is very complete, pretty much. [Iran has] no navy, no communications; they’ve got no air force. Their missiles are down to a scatter. Their drones are being blown up all over the place, including the manufacturing of drones. … There’s nothing left in a military sense.”
The war has progressed faster than initially expected, the president added: “We’re very far ahead of schedule.”
Also Monday, the Department of Defense posted on X that “we have only just begun to fight, with a graphic of a missile interceptor and the text: “No Mercy.”
At a news conference after his CBS News interview, Trump was asked whether the war is “very complete” or “just beginning.”
“I think you could say both,” the president responded. “It’s the beginning of building a new country. We could call it a tremendous success right now, or we could go further.”
“And we’re going to go further,” Trump added.
In his interview with CBS, Trump considered further steps, saying that he is “thinking about taking … over” the Strait of Hormuz.
The president later posted on Truth Social: “If Iran does anything that stops the flow of Oil within the Strait of Hormuz, they will be hit by the United States of America TWENTY TIMES HARDER than they have been hit thus far.”
The Strait of Hormuz is the only passage by sea from the Gulf to the open ocean and a critical chokepoint in the global energy market.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, meanwhile, said during a visit to Israel’s National Health Command Center on Monday that “our aspiration is to enable the Iranian people to cast off the yoke of tyranny; ultimately, it is up to them.”
“If we succeed together with the Iranian people, we will bring about a permanent end to the extent that such things exist in the lives of nations,” Netanyahu added. “We will bring about change, and we are already bringing about a massive shift in Israel’s international standing.”
The IDF Home Front Command reported only six missile launches from Iran to Israel in the past 24 hours, a significant slowdown from previous days of the war.
The IDF continued to strike targets in Iran, including a missile launcher, 10 minutes after it fired at Israel.
On Monday night, the IAF completed a wave of strikes against six major Iranian military airfields, destroying Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps aircraft, including combat helicopters.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun reached out to the U.S. to start direct talks with Israel on “permanent arrangements for security and stability on [its] borders.” He called for a “complete truce” ending Israeli military activity, and lamented that Hezbollah — which Beirut had agreed to disarm as one of the terms of its 2024 ceasefire with Israel — “wanted to achieve the fall of the State of Lebanon, under aggression and chaos.”
Israeli strikes on Hezbollah in Lebanon continued, with overnight attacks on command centers and the facilities of the Al-Quard Al-Hassan Association, which funds the Iran-backed terrorist group and works with cash, as well as a cell of Hezbollah terrorists approaching IDF soldiers and a structure in which commanders of the elite Radwan Force were said to be gathering.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar met with U.N. Special Coordinator for Lebanon Jeanine Hennis in Jerusalem on Monday. In his readout of the meeting, he noted that Hezbollah joined the war on Iran’s side “against the interest of Lebanon.”
“Over the past week there have been more attacks against Israel from Lebanese territory than from Iran,” Sa’ar said. “Weakening Hezbollah is a mutual interest of both Israel and Lebanon. I also said that Hezbollah initiated an attack against us and no member of the international community is acting to stop it besides us.”
Sa’ar and Hennis also discussed Israel’s decision not to evacuate residents from its northern border towns, in contrast with October 2023, and said that “the deployment of IDF troops in the border area is critical for preventing an invasion of Hezbollah’s ground forces and attacks against Israeli citizens and communities.”
The IDF estimated in recent days that over half a million Lebanese residents evacuated southern Lebanon.
Magen David Adom emergency services reported treating 76 people as a result of Monday’s missile attacks, two of whom were killed and 18 injured by missile debris.
Since the start of Operation Lion’s Roar, there have been 14 fatalities. MDA reported treating 667 people for injuries resulting from missile attacks, 511 of whom were injured making their way to shelter or in traffic accidents when stopping for a missile alert.
President Trump is set to rally with Massie’s opponent this week
DANIEL HEUER/AFP via Getty Images
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) speaks to reporters at the US Capitol on Washington, DC on November 18, 2025.
President Donald Trump is headed to Kentucky this week to rally with Ed Gallrein, his endorsed candidate to take on anti-Israel and isolationist Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) in the increasingly heated primary between the two men.
The campaign stop comes at a time when Massie has made himself the face of GOP opposition to the war in Iran — among the litany of other issues on which he has also broken with the president. Massie was one of two lead sponsors of a failed effort in the House last week to stop the war in Iran, while Gallrein said in a statement that the war was justified and would prevent further attacks on U.S. servicemembers and the nation.
In a ruby-red district, Massie’s opposition to the war could cost him politically, as polling shows Republicans have rallied strongly behind the administration and its efforts.
But Massie insists that Republicans will come to share his stance. And his district has stood behind him for years even as he broke with Trump throughout his first term. The primary will not be until May 19.
For its part, the Republican Jewish Coalition is taking aim at Massie over his opposition to the war in a significant ad campaign.
“America is at war with a fanatical regime that seeks nuclear weapons. American hero Ed Gallrein stands with President Trump, our country and our military,” the RJC ad states. “Thomas Massie? He stands with Iran and radical leftists in Congress, opposing Trump, just like he did on the border and taxes.”
The RJC has spent at least $2.8 million in the race thus far, in its latest attempt to take down one of the GOP’s loudest critics of Israel. Massie, for his part, is leaning into the attacks to drum up fundraising, reposting the RJC ad and saying the group “wants America to be mired in another forever war.”
A Trump-linked super PAC is also set to spend millions opposing the incumbent; that group’s ads have also highlighted Massie’s breaks with Trump on Iran, focusing on his opposition to the Operation Midnight Hammer strikes last summer.
Massie has framed the primary as a test of “whether the Global Military Industrial Complex and Israel’s government controls the United States” and said “the Israeli lobby has spent $5 million against me because I don’t support sending our troops to fight their war.”
He’s made no secret on the campaign trail of Trump’s antipathy towards him, offering a mocking Trump impression at a campaign launch event last month — apparently betting that his maverick tendencies will help, or at least won’t cost him, among his voting base.
Gallrein’s campaign has leaned into Massie’s perceived disloyalty to Trump, and his decision to side with Democrats and the far-left on a range of key priority issues, making that a central issue of his campaign.
Some Massie supporters are reportedly growing fed up with his breaks with Trump and his focus on high-profile controversial issues, with one Gallrein supporter complaining to NOTUS that Massie’s focus on releasing Department of Justice files on the Jeffrey Epstein case doesn’t help the individual in any way, or bring down costs, and another worrying that Massie’s antipathy toward Trump will deprive the district of essential services.
As of the end of 2025, Massie maintained a significant fundraising lead over Gallrein, $2.5 million to $1.2 million. Massie closed the year with $2 million cash on hand, compared to $933,000 for Gallrein.
Massie’s campaign has spent significantly on an ad blitz that aims to portray the Trump-backed Gallrein as “woke Eddie,” a supporter of diversity, equity and inclusion policies and gender-affirming surgeries for transgender youth.
The president also predicted the operation would be a ‘short-term excursion’
Roberto Schmidt/Getty Images
Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff listens as U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to reporters during a news conference at Trump National Doral Miami on March 9, 2026 in Doral, Florida.
President Donald Trump said repeatedly on Monday that he believed the Iranian regime was going to “take over the Middle East” and would have obtained a nuclear weapon “within weeks” had he not ordered the U.S. military operation against Iran.
Trump made the comments from his Doral, Fla., golf club at a press conference while defending his decision to have the U.S. launch its military operation in Iran, noting that Iran had a “number of missiles they were able to buy and make over the last six months, and those missiles were aimed at various countries.”
“When you look at over 1,000 missiles shot at, like the UAE, they were looking to take over the Middle East,” Trump said. “We got there first. We’re lucky.”
“If I didn’t hit them first, they were going to hit our allies first,” he continued. Had the U.S. not struck Iranian nuclear sites last June, “that was definite, because they would’ve had a nuclear weapon within a matter of weeks.”
Trump said that negotiations between the U.S. and Iran on the latter’s nuclear ambitions had reached a stalemate last year because the Iranians told Special Envoy Steve Witkoff “essentially, in a real nutshell, we want to continue to build nuclear weapons.”
“The situation was very quickly approaching the point of no return, and the United States found it intolerable. In my opinion, based on what Steve and Jared [Kushner] and [Secretary of Defense] Pete [Hegseth] and others were telling me, [Secretary of State] Marco [Rubio] was so involved, I thought that they were going to attack us,” Trump said. “If we didn’t do this at the time we did it, I think they had a mind to attack us.”
Trump, who is in Doral for the House Republicans’ retreat, made similar comments while discussing the ongoing U.S. military operation in Iran earlier Monday in a speech to Republican lawmakers and donors.
“Within a week, they [Iran] were going to attack us,” he told the crowd at the Republican Members Issues Conference.
In comments at the retreat and the presser, Trump touted the progress made in the nine days since the U.S. first struck Iran as evidence that the operation had been a “tremendous success” thus far.
“We’re achieving major strides toward completing our military objective, and some people could say they’re pretty well complete. We’ve wiped every single force in Iran out very completely,” Trump told reporters, adding that “most of Iran’s naval power has been sunk” and the regime’s “drones are way down.”
“We continue to target Iran’s drone and missile capability,” he continued. “We’ve struck over 5,000 targets to date, some of them very major targets, and we’ve left some of the most important targets for later, in case we need to do it. If we hit them, it’s going to take many years for them to be rebuilt, having to do with electricity production and many other things. So we’re not looking to do that if we don’t have to.””
About the future of Iran’s leadership, Trump said, “We want to be involved. We don’t want another president that maybe wouldn’t be willing to do what I’m willing to do, for the good of the world, for the good of our nation, to be stuck with a situation in five years or 10 years.”
Speaking to attendees at the GOP retreat, the president described the U.S. attacks on Iran as a “little excursion” that he expected would “be a short-term” operation.
“We took a little excursion because we felt we had to do that to get rid of some evil,” Trump said. “And I think it’s going to be a short-term excursion.”
Trump also acknowledged the broader differences between himself and Vice President JD Vance on foreign policy matters at the presser, but said that Vance was supportive of his decision to strike Iran.
“We get along very well on this. He was, I would say, philosophically a little bit different than me. I think he was maybe less enthusiastic about going, but he was quite enthusiastic.”
Plus, Trump says Iran operation 'very complete'
Sean Gallup/Getty Images
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) speaks at the 62nd Munich Security Conference on February 13, 2026 in Munich, Germany.
This P.M. edition is reserved for our premium subscribers — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
President Donald Trump praised Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese for assisting the members of Iran’s women’s soccer team, who are in Australia competing in the Women’s Asian Cup, amid fears for their persecution should they be forced to return home.
The president had called for Albanese to grant the athletes political asylum, saying they would “most likely be killed” if they were repatriated to Iran, and later commended him for “doing a very good job having to do with this rather delicate situation,” with five athletes “already taken care of, and the rest are on their way”…
Trump disputed reports that the U.S. is preparing to deploy ground troops to secure nuclear material at the Isfahan enrichment site in Iran, telling the New York Post, “We haven’t made any decision on that. We’re nowhere near it.” He also told CBS News that “the war is very complete, pretty much,” and the U.S. is “very far” ahead of his initial four-to-five-week timeline…
Trump has communicated to aides that he would support the assassination of Mojtaba Khamenei, Iran’s new supreme leader, if Khamenei does not acquiesce to U.S. demands, including ending Iran’s nuclear program, U.S. officials told The Wall Street Journal…
The Lebanese government has requested direct negotiations with Israel, sending the message through U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack, Axios reports. Washington and Jerusalem were reportedly skeptical about the idea, with Beirut thus far failing to disarm or rein in Hezbollah activities as the terror group continues to launch missiles into Israel…
NATO missile defense systems intercepted another Iranian missile heading for Turkey, a spokesperson announced today, the second time Iran has attempted to strike the NATO country’s territory…
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) threatened to impose “consequences” on Saudi Arabia for its unwillingness to join the U.S. campaign against Iran, as the U.S. evacuates its embassy in Riyadh and the kingdom continues to endure Iranian attacks, which have so far resulted in the deaths of two civilians and one U.S. servicemember. “Question — why should America do a defense agreement with a country like the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia that is unwilling to join a fight of mutual interest?” Graham wrote on X…
Talks to advance Trump’s 20-point peace plan in Gaza, including the issue of Hamas’ disarmament, have been at a standstill during the campaign against Iran, Reuters reports, as Gulf countries that pledged funds to help rebuild the enclave have come under fire and flight disruptions have prevented mediators from traveling…
The criminal complaint filed in the Southern District of New York today against the two Pennsylvania men who allegedly hurled improvised explosive devices toward a protest against New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani on Saturday stated that both men explicitly identified ISIS as their inspiration, Jewish Insider’s Will Bredderman reports.
“This isn’t a religion that just stands when people talk about the blessed name of the Prophet [Muhammad],” Emir Balat, 18, told police, according to the charging documents. He also said he had hoped to pull off something “even bigger” than the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing, which he noted had caused “only three deaths”…
The White House moved today to designate the Sudanese Muslim Brotherhood as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist entity and announced plans to impose a Foreign Terrorist Organization designation on March 16, JI’s Matthew Shea reports, in the Trump administration’s latest crackdown against Muslim Brotherhood affiliates…
A new poll from the campaign of Rushern Baker, former executive of Maryland’s Prince George’s County, found him leading the crowded Democratic field seeking to succeed retiring Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-MD). Though a plurality of likely primary voters (28%) said they’re still undecided, Baker polled at 22% compared to former U.S. Capitol Police officer Harry Dunn’s 15% and Hoyer-endorsed state Del. Adrian Boafo’s 3%…
Rep. Kevin Kiley of California officially switched his party affiliation from Republican to independent — he had filed for reelection as an independent, but said today he would leave the party for the rest of his term as well. The move narrows the GOP majority even further, 217-214, but Kiley said he’ll continue to caucus with Republicans, blunting the impact…
Politico looks at the flurry of independent candidates seeking to unseat congressional Republicans in GOP-leaning districts, clashing with local Democratic establishments in the process…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye out in Jewish Insider — we’ll have a profile of Dario Amodei, the Jewish CEO of Anthropic, which sued the Pentagon today over its decision to label the AI company a “supply chain risk.”
The Senate Armed Services Committee is expected to receive a classified briefing on the status of the U.S. and Israeli campaign against Iran.
The Republican Jewish Coalition and conservative magazine National Review will hold a daylong symposium on antisemitism, with remarks from Sens. Jim Banks (R-IN), Tom Cotton (R-AR) and Ted Cruz (R-TX); Noah Pollak, senior advisor at the Department of Education; Kenneth Marcus, founder of the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law; Rabbi Yehuda Kaploun, the State Department’s antisemitism envoy; Leo Terrell, senior counsel to the assistant attorney general for civil rights; and Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick.
Georgia’s 14th Congressional District will hold its special election to fill the seat vacated by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), with more than a dozen candidates on the all-party ballot. The district leans strongly Republican but the GOP field is split among nine candidates, raising the possibility that the Democratic front-runner — retired Army Brig. Gen. Shawn Harris — could slip into the April runoff.
Stories You May Have Missed
SCOOP
Zohran Mamdani’s wife liked social media posts celebrating Oct. 7 attacks
NYC First Lady Rama Duwaji showed support for far-left orgs applauding Hamas rampage
POWER PLAYER
The progressive operative nudging Democrats toward a hostile line on Israel
Ad maker Morris Katz has been instrumental in elevating Israel antagonists into office as part of a move to reshape the Democratic Party
Plus, Gottheimer pans Newsom
Brian Stukes/Getty Images
State Sen. Sharif Street attends a rally outside the Philadelphia Criminal Justice Center on April 16, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
👋 Good Monday morning!
In today’s Daily Kickoff, we report on the latest in the war with Iran, including a missile attack this morning in which at least one person in Israel were killed, and cover a move by Senate Democrats to introduce five additional war powers resolutions after a similar effort last week failed to get enough support. We profile Pennsylvania state Sen. Sharif Street as the pro-Israel Democrat, who is Black and Muslim, mounts a bid for Congress, and report on concerns from members of the House Education & Workforce Committee that Evanston, Ill., Mayor Daniel Biss, who is running for Congress, “severely downplayed antisemitism” at Northwestern University while in a briefing with committee members. Also in today’s Daily Kickoff: Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al Thani, Gov. Josh Shapiro and Alon Penzel.
Today’s Daily Kickoff was curated by JI Executive Editor Melissa Weiss and Israel Editor Tamara Zieve, with assists from Danielle Cohen-Kanik and Marc Rod. Have a tip? Email us here.
What We’re Watching
- Secretary of State Marco Rubio is set to deliver remarks at 9 a.m. ET at a flag-raising ceremony at the State Department commemorating hostages and wrongful detainees.
- House Republicans are holding their annual policy retreat in Doral, Fla., with President Donald Trump slated to address the gathering at 5 p.m. ET. Also slated to speak at the retreat are Ben Shapiro and CNN’s Scott Jennings.
- EU Council President Antonio Costa and EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen are holding a call today with Middle East leaders to discuss the ongoing war in the region.
- Team Israel faces off against the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic at noon ET today in Miami. The Israeli team, which lost 11-3 on Saturday against Venezuela, came back to beat Nicaragua 5-0 on Sunday.
What You Should Know
A QUICK WORD WITH JI’S MELISSA WEISS
Recent days have offered a tale of two New York public officials’ wives and a revealing look at inconsistent standards from some mainstream media outlets on how they scrutinize the families of elected officials depending on the political viewpoints expressed.
The first was a New York Times story focused on the pro-Israel social media posts of Rep. Dan Goldman’s (D-NY) wife. Under the headline “Congressman Faces Questions About Wife’s Social Media Stances on Israel,” the Times wrote of the instances — believed to be 10 in all — that Corinne Goldman, who served as treasurer on her husband’s campaign, liked posts related to the Israel-Hamas war in the weeks after the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas terror attacks, including one comparing “Jews for Palestine” to “Chickens for KFC.”
Days later, Jewish Insider uncovered the social media activity of Rama Duwaji, the Syrian-American wife of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, in the days after the attacks. That activity included liking posts that unambiguously celebrated Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attacks — as they were underway — and included still images from the attacks, in which more than 1,200 were killed and 251 taken hostage.
In his first public statement addressing JI’s reporting, Mamdani said his wife — who less than a month ago was the subject of a cover profile and photo shoot for The Cut — was a “private person.”
It was a response that was unsatisfactory to some. Deborah Lipstadt, the Biden administration’s special envoy to monitor and combat antisemitism, responded to Mamdani’s statement by rhetorically asking, “But Jessica Tisch has to apologize when her brother says something?” — referring to the NYPD commissioner’s recent apology over her brother’s assertion that Mamdani was an “enemy of the Jewish people.”
The Times, which covered Mamdani’s response, changed its headline on the story at least twice after publication, from “Mamdani Says His Wife’s Views on Gaza Are No One’s Business,” to “Mamdani Defends Wife Amid Criticism of her Support for Palestinian Cause,” before eventually landing on “After Social Media Scrutiny, Mamdani Says His Wife Is a ‘Private Person.’”
In response to the second headline, Tel Aviv-based research analyst Daniel Paul Rubenstein wrote on X that he “did not expect to see the New York Times refer to the October 7 Massacre as an expression of the ‘Palestinian Cause’ – but here we are.”
DEATH TOLL RISES
Iranian missile kills two in central Israel as war continues
One person was killed in an Iranian missile attack that struck a construction site in the city of Yehud in central Israel, volunteer emergency service Magen David Adom reported on Monday. MDA pronounced the victim, a man who appeared to be about 40 years old, dead at the scene. Another man, believed to be around the same age, was evacuated to the nearest hospital in serious and unstable condition. Both were foreign workers, Jewish Insider’s Lahav Harkov reports.
Northern front: In Lebanon, two IDF soldiers were killed over the weekend by a missile fired by Hezbollah. The soldiers were retrieving a vehicle from a position in southern Lebanon at the time they were killed, the IDF Spokesperson’s Office said. One soldier, combat engineer Maher Hatar, 38, was the first Druze soldier killed in the war. The second soldier’s identity has not been cleared for publication.
On the bench: President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pushed back on Saturday against reports that they were working with Kurdish leaders to launch a ground invasion of Iran, Jewish Insider’s Lahav Harkov reports.
WORD ON THE STREET
Pro-Israel Muslim Democrat walks political tightrope in Philly primary
Sharif Street is walking a unique political path. The Pennsylvania state senator running for a House seat in the heart of deep-blue Philadelphia is Black and Muslim, and has staked out positions largely supportive of Israel, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
What he said: Street traveled to Israel with the American Jewish Committee in 2017 “to gain some understanding” of the complexities facing Israelis and Palestinians. He has indicated that he would not support conditions on U.S. aid to Israel, saying that the two allies need an “open dialogue,” yet he refers to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a war criminal. Street’s nuances on Israel — he backs a strong U.S.-Israel relationship, while also urging a compassionate approach to the Palestinians — offer a sharp contrast with his most prominent rival in the Democratic primary, a strident antagonist of Israel. Street also argues that media portrayals have flattened the American Muslim community and failed to accurately portray their diverse views on the Middle East and relationships with the Jewish community.
RENEWED SCRUTNIY
Texas GOP candidate Brandon Herrera discussed owning a copy of Mein Kampf on podcast
Brandon Herrera, the presumptive Republican nominee in Texas’ 23rd Congressional District, spoke on a podcast in 2024 — after his first run for the House — about owning a copy of Mein Kampf, Nazi leader Adolf Hitler’s manifesto, earning him a fresh rebuke from the Republican Jewish Coalition, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
Podcast playback: During a 2024 appearance on the “Unsubscribe” podcast, another guest joked that he had been deeply involved in communism until he had read another book, producing a copy of Mein Kampf. Herrera, who appeared to immediately recognize the book when others on the podcast did not, promptly turned to his phone to produce a picture of his own copy of the Nazi manifesto. “That’s my copy at my house next to a bunch of the German stick grenades,” Herrera said. “I got the 1939 edition printed in English just because I thought it was wild that you couldn’t buy it on Amazon but you could buy The Communist Manifesto and Das Kapital,” he added, making a confused face.
ON DECK
Senate Dems introduce series of new war powers resolutions on Iran
Senate Democrats introduced a series of five new war powers resolutions seeking to block military action in Iran on Thursday, a day after the Senate voted along mostly partisan lines to block an effort to immediately halt the operation, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
The latest: Having a series of war powers resolutions already introduced could allow Democrats to continue teeing up a series of votes on the war, or allow them to have several resolutions in reserve to vote on as the situation in Iran evolves. War powers resolutions are subject to a 10-day waiting period between their introduction and when senators can force votes on them.
ON DEFENSE
House Education Committee, in briefing, says Daniel Biss ‘severely downplayed antisemitism’
In a briefing for the House Education & Workforce Committee on his response to the anti-Israel protest encampment at Northwestern University in 2024, Evanston, Ill., Mayor Daniel Biss “severely downplayed” the situation on that campus and antisemitism across the country, the committee said, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
Readout: “In his briefing with the Committee today, Mr. Biss severely downplayed antisemitism at Northwestern after October 7th. He told the Committee that the great majority of his Jewish friends in the Northwestern community had no concerns about it,” a committee spokesperson told JI. “He further stated that Northwestern should not have received an F on the Anti-Defamation League’s college report card. He even accused the Committee of alarmism that is not warranted by the facts when it comes to antisemitism at the university after the October 7th attacks.” Biss, meanwhile, has dismissed the committee’s questioning of him as a smear campaign. “From the start, this ‘briefing’ was a flimsy attempt to weaponize the very real threat of antisemitism to attack me and support my opponent. It failed,” Biss said in a statement.
sending signals
Independent Senate candidate Dan Osborn touted endorsement from anti-Israel group
Dan Osborn, a Democratic-aligned independent candidate running for Senate in Nebraska, received and touted an endorsement from a lobbying group that aims to alter U.S. policy toward Israel, in part by electing candidates critical of the U.S.-Israel relationship, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
What happened: A New Policy PAC was founded by Josh Paul, a former State Department official who left government in protest of U.S. support for Israel after Oct. 7, 2023, and since joined the anti-Israel group DAWN and become a vocal critic of Israel. A New Policy’s advocacy arm has accused Israel of genocide, urges cutting off and conditioning U.S. aid to Israel; and opposes the Antisemitism Awareness Act and the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of antisemitism.
Worthy Reads
Risky Business: The Financial Times’ Jacob Judah, Bob Haslett and Alan Smith spotlight Iran’s dwindling number of “indispensable” ballistic-missile launchers and the crews who man them. “When an Iranian ballistic missile launcher breaks cover to dash towards a firing site, its tiny cabin suddenly becomes one of the world’s most perilous places. … Iranian ballistic missile crews are among the most ideologically committed within the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. They operate from mountain hide-outs known in Iran as ‘missile cities’ whose cavernous networks of tunnels wind deep underground.” [FT]
Nobel or Not: In The Wall Street Journal, Joshua Muravchik argues that President Donald Trump’s foreign policy legacy could be solidified by his actions against U.S. adversaries, regardless of whether he is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. “Reagan never won the Nobel, but in contrast to Mr. Obama and Carter, he greatly advanced world peace and Americans’ safety by bringing low the Soviet Union’s ‘evil empire.’ Mr. Trump could achieve an analogous triumph if he succeeds in undoing the regime in Iran and perhaps the one in Cuba, too. … The downfall of Iran’s regime would blow a gaping hole in this anti-American coalition. It would weaken radical Islam everywhere. Socialism, an idea that had bounced around for nearly a century, became a serious force only when Vladimir Lenin turned Russia into the world’s first socialist state.” [WSJ]
Beijing’s Bad Bet: In The Washington Post, the Hudson Institute’s Miles Yu posits that Beijing’s strategy of investing in Iran for more than a decade as it seeks to gain a foothold in the region has “collapsed” amid the U.S. and Israeli war against Tehran. “[Iran’s] capacity to destabilize the region on China’s behalf has been curtailed. Belt and Road projects tied to Iranian ports, rail corridors and energy infrastructure now face heightened instability and security risk. The vision of a secure overland energy corridor insulated from U.S. naval power has been reduced to uncertainty. China had bet on a confident, defiant and nuclear-ambitious Iran. Instead, it is left with a battered partner whose utility has sharply diminished.” [WashPost]
Word on the Street
In his first comments to the media since the start of the war with Iran, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al Thani said that Tehran’s decision to strike Arab countries was a “dangerous miscalculation” and that he felt “a big sense of betrayal” by the move…
In a leaked Telegram message, former Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif said that Israel and the United Arab Emirates are “one and the same” and that Tehran’s strategy should be to “focus on destroying the bridge between Saudi Arabia and Bahrain in order to create real deterrence against mischief in the island”…
Russia is reportedly providing intelligence to Iran to target U.S. troops in the Middle East…
Azerbaijan said it foiled an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps plot to sabotage a number of sites in the country, including the Israeli Embassy in Baku, a synagogue, the leader of a group known as the “Mountain Jews” and the country’s Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline…
Two ships owned by an Iranian company under U.S., European and British sanctions departed the Chinese port in Zhuhai known for its storage of chemicals used to make rocket fuel…
The New York Times looks at the concerns of Western officials and nuclear experts over the location and fate of 18-20 canisters of enriched uranium that are believed to still be intact and in Iran…
A Pakistani man was convicted in a U.S. federal court of plotting with Iran to assassinate U.S. officials, including President Donald Trump…
The U.S. began evacuation flights of U.S. citizens from Israel on Friday, Jewish Insider’s Haley Cohen reports…
Sens. Brian Schatz (D-HI), Patty Murray (D-WA), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Jack Reed (D-RI), Mark Warner (D-VA) and Chris Coons (D-DE) released a statement calling on the Department of Defense to “fully and impartially” investigate a strike on an Iranian school on the first day of the war in which more than 100 people, including students, were killed…
The move comes as satellite images and footage increasingly indicate that the U.S. struck the school, which was located near an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps installation, despite Trump’s claim that Iran was responsible for the strike…
Rep. Greg Meeks (D-NY), the ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, again criticized the administration for bypassing normal congressional review processes to approve a $650 million sale of 20,000 bombs to Israel…
Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) and 17 Democratic co-sponsors, mostly progressives, introduced legislation requiring stronger oversight of and regular reporting to Congress and the public on the food supply for Palestinians in Gaza…
A group of House Democrats —Reps. Jared Moskowitz (D-FL), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), Val Hoyle (D-OR), Mike Thompson (D-CA), Norma Torres (D-CA), Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Sara Jacobs (D-CA), Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA) and Sam Liccardo (D-CA) — called on House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) to cancel the House’s recess this week as long as the war in Iran is ongoing…
Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) called out California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a leading 2028 presidential contender, for recent comments characterizing Israel as an apartheid state and questioning future military aid, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports; “Is it really worth throwing Jews under the bus to advance your political ambitions?” Gottheimer said on X this weekend…
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro wrote a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi urging her office to investigate the death of a 19-year-old Palestinian American man who was killed last month in a confrontation with Israeli settlers in the West Bank…
A federal judge nullified a number of actions taken by the U.S. Agency for Global Media, which oversees Voice of America, ruling that Kari Lake was unlawfully serving as the agency’s head when the decisions, which included mass layoffs, were made…
Federal officials will lead the investigation into an incident at a weekend demonstration outside Gracie Mansion in which a homemade explosive device was flung into a crowd of protesters, allegedly by at least once person who told officials they were an ISIS sympathizer…
Two Toronto-area synagogues were damaged by gunfire late Friday and early Saturday following an earlier shooting at another area synagogue last week, Jewish Insider’s Haley Cohen reports…
Police in Liège, Belgium, are investigating an explosion that occurred at a local synagogue this morning, in what a local official called a “violent act of antisemitism”…
The U.K.’s Luton Airport apologized and will institute antisemitism awareness training after an incident in which Israeli author Alon Penzel, who was traveling back to Israel, encountered a member of airport security who made disparaging comments to him…
Authorities in the U.K. are investigating a report of antisemitism during a soccer match in which supporters of the Thorpe St Andrew School allegedly jeered the players from JFS, the U.K.’s largest Jewish school…
Pic of the Day
Team Israel bested the Nicaraguan national team 5-0 on Sunday in its first-ever shutout game at the 2026 World Baseball Classic in Miami. Former Red Sox infielder Kevin Youkilis (center) is serving at the team’s bench manager.
Birthdays
Rhodes scholar, Harvard Law graduate, author and political journalist, Michael Kinsley turns 75…
President at Adelson Family Foundation since 2007 and a board member of Prizmah, Michael Bohnen turns 79… Sag Harbor, L.I.,-based painter, sculptor and printmaker, Eric Fischl turns 78… Host of Public Radio International’s “Science Friday,” Ira Flatow turns 77… Member of the Knesset from 1989-2021, he has served in many cabinet roles and as chairman of Israel Aerospace Industries, Amir Peretz turns 74… President and CEO of NYC’s flagship public TV station WNET, Neal Shapiro turns 68… Professor emeritus of economics at NYU, nicknamed “Dr. Doom,” Nouriel Roubini turns 68… Susan Liebman… NYC-based attorney, Gordon Platt… Private equity and venture capital investor, Howie Fialkov… Founder and head of the Chabad house at Harvard University, Rabbi Hirschy Zarchi… Former Canadian minister of mental health and addictions, Ya’ara Saks turns 53… VP and head of global communications and public affairs for Meta / Facebook, David I. Ginsberg… Senior fellow at Harvard University’s Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government, Matthew Vogel… Former CEO of the Trevor Project, now CEO of the Malnutrition Advocacy Fund, Amit Paley… Co-founder and CEO at ImpactTechNation, he is also a co-founder of the political party Wake-Up Jerusalem (Hitorerut B’Yerushalayim), Hanan Rubin… Israeli-born singer, now one-half of the world music duo Shlomit & RebbeSoul, Shlomit Levi turns 43… News editor in the U.S. bureau of Jewish News Syndicate, Menachem Wecker… Partner in the Los Angeles law firm of Bocarsly Emden, Rachel Rosner… Political strategist for the Democratic Party, she is a co-host of “The Five” on the Fox News Channel, Jessica Tarlov turns 42… Senior advisor to North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein, Alissa “Sadie” Weiner… CEO at New Orleans-based QED Hospitality, Emery Whalen… Pitcher for Team Israel at the 2017 World Baseball Classic, he now plays in the Mexican League, Jared Lakind turns 34… Founding partner of Mothership Strategies, Jacob “Jake” Austin Lipsett… Manager of education and outreach at inSIGHT Through Education, Marla Topiol… First-round pick in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft, now playing for the NHL’s Nashville Predators, Ozzy Wiesblatt turns 24… Stephen Lent…
In Lebanon, two IDF soldiers were killed over the weekend by a missile fired by Hezbollah
Magen David Adom
The site of a missile strike in central Israel, March 9, 2026
One person was killed in an Iranian missile attack that struck a construction site in the city of Yehud in central Israel, volunteer emergency service Magen David Adom reported on Monday.
MDA pronounced the victim, a man who appeared to be about 40 years old, dead at the scene. Another man, believed to be around the same age, was evacuated to the nearest hospital in serious and unstable condition. Both were foreign workers.
“It was a difficult scene,” MDA paramedic Liz Goral said. “The two casualties were lying unconscious and suffering from severe shrapnel injuries to their bodies. After performing resuscitation efforts, we had to pronounce the death of a man, approximately 40 years old, and we evacuated the second casualty in serious condition.”
The Hatzalah volunteer emergency services reported three additional injuries in the area.
Missile strikes on Israel caused significant property damage over the weekend in Tel Aviv and Rishon LeZion, a large city in central Israel. Overnight Sunday, a woman in the Rishon Lezion area was treated for a head injury after being hit by flying rocks.
Since the beginning of Operation Lion’s Roar, there have been 13 fatalities. Emergency service Magen David Adom has treated 622 injured people, the majority of whom were injured making their way to shelter or in traffic accidents related to stopping suddenly for missile sirens.
IDF International Media Spokesperson Nadav Shoshani said in a briefing on Monday that though “the amount [of missiles] in each barrage is going down, they are still dangerous. We have seen what one missile can do … some of them carry warheads that weigh a ton. We have seen Iran use weapons that constitute war crimes – cluster munitions – almost on a daily basis.”
Saudi Arabia had its first two fatalities from the Iranian attacks over the weekend: an Indian national and a Bangladeshi national, both of whom were in residential areas when they were killed. The State Department ordered diplomats at the U.S. Embassy in Riyadh, which faced several attacks by Iran last week, to leave the Gulf state.
In Lebanon, two IDF soldiers were killed over the weekend by a missile fired by Hezbollah. The soldiers were retrieving a vehicle from a position in southern Lebanon at the time they were killed, the IDF Spokesperson’s Office said. One soldier, combat engineer Maher Hatar, 38, was the first Druze soldier killed in the war. The second soldier’s identity has not been cleared for publication.
Shoshani said that in the week since Hezbollah joined Iran’s attacks on Israel, they have launched hundreds of rockets and UAVs at Israel.
“Hezbollah is present in southern Lebanon,” Shoshani said. “The IDF is standing between the terrorists and [Israeli] civilians. … Hezbollah has spent decades amassing weapons, and even though we spent the last 2.5 years degrading those weapons, they still are able to threaten our civilians.”
The IDF conducted a raid in southern Lebanon on Sunday night, Shoshani said, emphasizing that it was limited and “not the beginning of a ground maneuver.”
The IDF also struck Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Force commanders based in Beirut over the weekend.
Also over the weekend, IDF soldiers unsuccessfully searched a cemetery in Lebanon for the remains of Ron Arad, an Israeli Air Force navigator who disappeared in 1986. The IDF said that there were no clashes with Hezbollah and that soldiers were not fired upon, while Lebanon’s health ministry reported that dozens of people were killed in the operation.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that “the operation … did not yield the findings we were looking for, but the commitment of the state of Israel and my own commitment to complete all the missions regarding our captives and missing is absolute and constant. So it has been and so it shall be.”
Arad’s widow, Tami, expressed misgivings about the operation in a Facebook post: “Our desire to know what happened to Ron stops as soon as there is a risk to IDF soldiers. In our view, the sanctity of life comes before the commitment to return the remains of a fighter for burial. This is our worldview regarding our loved one who disappeared some 40 years ago. … We appreciate the state of Israel’s commitment and at the same time we ask … do not instruct [to begin] operations with even a minimal risk to the fighters.”
White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump’s informal advisor, are set to visit Israel on Tuesday, a Trump administration source confirmed to Jewish Insider overnight. Later, unconfirmed reports on Monday said that the trip was called off.
The scheduled visit comes after Israel bombed Iranian oil facilities over the weekend. Israel notified the U.S. in advance of the strikes, but Washington reportedly misunderstood the extent of the planned attacks, which went further than the White House expected.
Shoshani said that the fuel depot was connected to the IRGC.
Over the weekend, the IDF also struck an Iranian Internal Security command center in Isfahan, as well as a base used by the IRGC, IRGC police and the Basij paramilitary force. In another wave of strikes, the IDF hit the IRGC Space Agency, which included the command-and-control structure for the Khayyam satellite used to monitor Israel.
“The strikes were completed as part of the phase of deepening the damage to the core arrays and foundations of the Iranian regime,” the IDF Spokesperson’s Office said.
In addition, the IDF struck F14 fighter jets at Isfahan airport, along with detection and air defense systems and two major ballistic and cruise missile production sites in Parchin and Shahrud.
The IDF also killed Abu al-Qassem Baba’iyan, head of the military office of the Iranian supreme leader and the chief of staff of the emergency command, who was responsible for coordinating between the Iranian regime’s military groups to attack Israel. His predecessor, Ali Shadmani, was killed by Israel in last year’s war with Iran.
The Islamic Republic officially confirmed on Sunday that Mojtaba Khamenei, a son of assassinated Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, would succeed his father. Trump said last week that appointing the younger Khamenei was “unacceptable,” and that he would play a significant role in choosing the country’s next leader. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has said that “any leader appointed by the Iranian terror regime will be a clear target for elimination.”
This post has been edited to correct the number of fatalities that occurred on March 9.
‘Kurds are in a unique position to become the catalyst for broader change across Iran,’ Iranian Kurdish analyst tells JI
Hawre Khalid/Getty Images
A member of the Komala of the Toilers of Kurdistan, a Kurdish Iranian dissident group, looks toward passing jets on March 6, 2026 in Sulaymaniyah, Iraq.
President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pushed back on Saturday against reports that they were working with Kurdish leaders to launch a ground invasion of Iran.
“We’re not looking for the Kurds going in,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Saturday night. “We’re very friendly with the Kurds, as you know, but we don’t want to make the war any more complex than it already is. … I don’t want to see the Kurds going in and getting killed.”
Trump’s remarks came in response to reporters asking the president about his phone calls with Kurdish leaders at the outset of the campaign against Iran, and a subsequent report that U.S. and Israeli officials said Kurdish Iranian factions are preparing for combat against the Iranian regime.
Many Kurdish factions have long sought an independent Kurdistan, and some of Iran’s neighbors, such as Turkey and Iraq, have historically been concerned about Kurdish separatist factions.
In an apparent reference to such concerns, Netanyahu said in a broader video statement about the war in Iran that Israel and the U.S. “do not seek to divide Iran. We seek to liberate Iran and live in peace with it.”
Netanyahu encouraged the people of Iran to once again rise up against their leaders: “At the end of the day, liberation from the yoke of tyranny, this liberation will depend on you, the brave and long-suffering Iranian people.”
In his first public statement about the war, last Saturday night, Netanyahu called for unity among Iran’s ethnic groups against the Islamic Republic: “The time has come for you to unite for a historic mission. Citizens of Iran: Persians, Kurds, Azeris, Abkhazians and Baluchis. This is your time to join forces, topple the regime and secure your future.”
Hejar Berenji, a Kurdish analyst and commentator, told Jewish Insider: “If you are serious about a free and democratic Iran, the door runs through Kurdistan.”
Berenji called on the U.S. to “protect Iraqi Kurdistan and support Iranian Kurds, because they are in a unique position to become the catalyst for broader change across Iran.”
In addition, he said, “it is time for U.S. leadership to [issue] an open call for an uprising to all Iranians.”
Berenji said that “talk about separation is mostly a distraction — something the Islamic Republic has long used, along with some like-minded voices outside Iran, to scare people away from the one force that is already organized, ready and deeply rooted inside the country.”
“This is not about dividing Iran. It is about recognizing where the real capacity, the real will and the real opportunity for democratic change already exist,” he stated.
Harold Rhode, a fellow at the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs and former longtime advisor on the Islamic world in the U.S. Department of Defense, told JI that Kurds “on the one hand, want an independent homeland, but on the other hand, the Kurds in Iran feel very Iranian.”
Invoking a phrase used by Iranian Kurds that loosely means that they are rooted in Iran’s land and culture, Rhode said, “That is the best solution for the Kurds and everybody. [The phrase] evokes something deep in the soul of Iranians.”
With Iran’s many ethnic minorities, “Iranian” is “a political identity and not an ethnic identity,” Rhode said.
Rhode added that one of his contacts among Iranian Kurdish leaders based in Iraq already told him before Trump’s statement that their troops would not be entering Iran.
As to whether Kurdish leadership may be disappointed by Trump’s decision, Rhodes said, “The Kurds are like the Jews. They’re constantly worried that people are going … to say all sorts of positive things and then abandon them. … That’s what really has happened.”
Lt.-Gen. Eyal Zamir said Israel is entering the war’s second phase with ‘additional surprises’ as Trump says he’ll pick Iranian leader – or else
ABIR SULTAN/POOL/AFP via Getty Images
Israel's military chief Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir salutes during the funeral of Lieutenant Hadar Goldin who was killed during the six-week 2014 war in Gaza, at a military cemetery in Kfar Saba on November 11, 2025.
The U.S. and Israel have almost total control of Iranian airspace, IDF Chief of Staff, Lt.-Gen. Eyal Zamir said in a video statement on Thursday.
They “achieved near-complete air superiority over Iranian skies,” and Operation Roaring Lion, as Israel named the war with Iran, is entering its second phase, Zamir said.
The war is moving, he said, from the initial phase — beginning with Saturday’s “surprise strike” and followed by additional sorties to establish air superiority and degrade Iran’s ballistic missile array — to “further dismantle the regime and its military capabilities.”
“We have additional surprises ahead, which I do not intend to disclose. We will pursue our enemies, all of them, and we will overtake them,” Zamir added, paraphrasing Psalms 18:38.
Zamir said he is in “continuous contact with my American counterparts. We are fighting based on shared interests and shared values. We are fighting shoulder to shoulder. Through synchronized action, we are stripping the regime of its military capabilities, strategically isolating them and bringing them to a point of weakness unlike any it has known. This is truly historic cooperation״
The IDF Spokesperson’s Office said on Thursday that the military had struck over 300 of the Islamic Republic’s ballistic missile launchers and advanced defense systems in over 113 waves of strikes in western and central Iran, neutralizing 80% of Iran’s aerial-defense systems and over 60% of its ballistic missile launchers.
CENTCOM chief Adm. Brad Cooper said in a press conference on Thursday that Iranian ballistic missile attacks have decreased by 90% since Operation Epic Fury, the White House’s name for the operation, began on Saturday, with drone attacks declining by 83%.
The U.S. military has bombed nearly 200 targets inside Iran, including dropping 2,000-pound penetrator bombs targeting Iranian ballistic missile launchers stored underground, and sunk over 30 Iranian navy ships.
“We’re not just hitting what they have, we’re destroying their ability to rebuild. And so, as we transition to the next phase of this operation, we will systemically dismantle Iran’s missile production capability for the future, and that’s absolutely in progress,” Cooper said.
President Donald Trump told Politico on Thursday, “We’re taking out a threat to the United States of America, major threat, … and doing it like nobody’s ever seen before.”
Iran has “no navy. They have no air force. They have no detection of air. It’s all wiped out. Their radar is all wiped out. Their military is decimated. All they have is guts,” the president said.
Trump also said he plans to have a decisive influence on the next leader of Iran. “I’m going to have a big impact [on Iran’s future leadership], or they’re not going to have any settlement, because we’re not going to have to do this again,” Trump said. “We’ll work with the people and the regime to make sure that somebody gets there that can nicely build Iran but without nuclear weapons.”
The U.S. plans to “work with them to help make the proper choice,” so that the next Iranian leader will not “lead to having to do this [war] again in another 10 years.”
Trump said that Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed on the first day of the war, was a poor choice: “The reason the father wouldn’t give it to the son is they say he’s incompetent.”
Also on Thursday, the IDF launched its 26th wave of strikes in the Dahieh neighborhood of Beirut —a stronghold of the Hezbollah terrorist militia — hitting over 500 targets, including some in residential buildings in the Lebanese capital that the military said were used for terrorist infrastructure and UAV storage.
“Hezbollah made a strategic error,” Zamir said in his video statement, “[and] despite it directly conflicting with the interests of the Lebanese people, chose to join the campaign. Hezbollah is paying a heavy price.”
Israel killed the head of Hezbollah’s firepower array, known as Fidaa, whom Zamir said was “responsible for the deaths of many Israelis.”
“We will not let up on the objective of disarming Hezbollah,” Zamir added.
Magen David Adom emergency services reported 44 people injured amid attacks from Iran and Lebanon on Thursday through early Friday morning, all while making their way to shelters. MDA treated and evacuated 502 casualties from the start of Operation Lion’s Roar, including 359 injured on their way to shelter and five traffic accidents during sirens; there have been 12 fatalities.
Trump called out the commentator after he characterized the U.S.-Israeli operation in Iran as ‘absolutely disgusting and evil’
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
President Donald Trump shakes hands with Tucker Carlson at the conclusion of a conversation during Carlson's Live Tour at the Desert Diamond Arena on October 31, 2024 in Phoenix, Arizona.
President Donald Trump accused Tucker Carlson on Thursday of having “lost his way” following recent criticism from the commentator of the U.S. military operation in Iran, asserting that the former Fox News host was not representing the views of the Make America Great Again movement.
Trump made the comments while speaking to ABC News’ Jonathan Karl on Thursday afternoon after being asked about Carlson’s characterization of the ongoing U.S.-Israeli operation as “absolutely disgusting and evil” and his broader attacks on the Trump administration’s friendly relationship with Israel.
“Tucker has lost his way,” Trump said. “I knew that a long time ago, and he’s not MAGA. MAGA is saving our country. MAGA is making our country great again. MAGA is America first, and Tucker is none of those things. And Tucker is really not smart enough to understand that.”
In response, Carlson told Status News, “There are times I get annoyed with Trump, right now definitely included, but I’ll always love him no matter what he says about me.”
The president told journalist Rachael Bade on Monday that Carlson’s vocal opposition to his strikes on Iran had “no impact” on him, adding that Carlson “can say whatever he wants.”
“MAGA is Trump — MAGA’s not the other two,” he added, referring to Carlson and Megyn Kelly.
The criticism came less than a day after Carlson dropped a new episode of his podcast in which he accused the Chabad Lubavitch movement of seeking to start a “religious war” to facilitate the destruction of al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem in order to build the Third Temple on top of its ruins.
Carlson claimed in the episode that the goal of the Hasidic sect’s movement is the rebuilding of the Temple, based solely on the fact that Orthodox Jews believe that the Temple will be rebuilt when the Messiah comes, a prophetic vision that has been a part of daily Jewish prayer for two millennia. He failed to mention, however, that no mainstream Jewish denomination, including the Hasidic and the Orthodox, advocates for the destruction of the al-Aqsa Mosque, one of Islam’s holiest sites, in order to build the Temple.
Rabbi Levi Shemtov, executive vice president of American Friends of Lubavitch (Chabad), the D.C.-based Chabad which engages with foreign and domestic political leaders, told Jewish Insider late Thursday that he welcomed Trump’s rejection of Carlson’s embrace of anti-Israel and antisemitic ideas.
“With regard to Tucker Carlson, the president must have come to the conclusion that while difficult and perhaps unpleasant, his own statement earlier today was necessary,” Shemtov told JI. “In a more perfect world, Tucker might recognize that some of his expressed beliefs simply do not coincide with established facts and historic Jewish beliefs. He might also realize that Israel and the Jewish people are merely an appetizer for the voracious hateful appetite of the Iranian regime. America and the West would be the main course.”
Rabbi Shlomo Litvin, a Chabad rabbi in Lexington who leads the Kentucky Jewish Council, told JI that Carlson’s attacks on the Hasidic group had prompted an outpouring of support from Jewish and non-Jewish supporters.
“This is not someone stumbling. These are intentional choices. They are choices that are intended to make Jews around the world feel unsafe, and they had the exact opposite reaction,” Litvin said of Carlson. “There were more positive tweets about Chabad today than there have been since I’ve been on Twitter, which is, I think, 15 years. There has never been as many positive tweets about Chabad in a day as there are right now.”
Plus, Kristi Noem gets the boot
Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images
Reps. Thomas Massie, (R-KY), left, and Ro Khanna, (D-CA), conduct a news conference outside a Department of Justice office in NoMa on Monday, February 9, 2026.
Good Thursday afternoon,
This P.M. edition is reserved for our premium subscribers — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
It’s me again — Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
President Donald Trump announced he’s replacing Kristi Noem as homeland security secretary with Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), after Noem had rankled the president and some Republican members of Congress with her oversight of widespread turmoil at the agency, among other issues. Mullin still needs to be confirmed by the Senate to assume the post.
Mullin, if confirmed, would take the helm of DHS amid its continued partial shutdown, and as it has repeatedly come under fire for its handling of issues related to antisemitism from lawmakers and Jewish community groups. Noem, meanwhile, will become special envoy to a new security initiative for the Western Hemisphere being launched by Trump this weekend…
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and other GOP leadership called on Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX) to drop out of his reelection race, after the lawmaker admitted yesterday to having an affair with a staffer who later committed suicide. Gonzales is headed to a May runoff with his primary opponent, social media influencer Brandon Herrera; if Gonzales does step aside, Herrera, who has a history of antisemitic posts about the Holocaust, is all but guaranteed the GOP nomination in a solidly Republican district…
Trump said he “[has] to be involved in the appointment” of the next Iranian leader, in an interview with Axios, “like with Delcy [Rodriguez] in Venezuela.” He called Mojtaba Khamenei, son of the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei who has emerged as his father’s likely successor, “unacceptable.” The president’s comments seem to widen the administration’s stated war aims, which have thus far focused on eliminating Iran’s naval, air and nuclear assets.
Trump also insisted in the interview that Israeli President Isaac Herzog issue a pardon for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “today,” as he wants Netanyahu “to focus on the war and not on the f**king court case. I want the only pressure on Bibi to be the fighting against Iran”…
Some Democratic lawmakers — including Sens. Jack Reed (D-RI), Gary Peters (D-MI), Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) — told Politico they won’t “rule out” voting in favor of an emergency supplemental funding request to shore up the military should one come from the administration amid the campaign against Iran, despite widespread Democratic condemnation of the White House’s failure to consult Congress beforehand…
A vote on a war powers resolution to stop the military campaign in Iran failed in the House this afternoon 219-212, with two Republicans — Reps. Thomas Massie (R-KY) and Warren Davison (R-OH) — crossing the aisle in support and four Democrats — Reps. Greg Landsman (D-OH), Henry Cuellar (D-TX), Jared Golden (D-ME) and Juan Vargas (D-CA) — breaking with their party to oppose it.
Reps. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) and Jared Moskowitz (D-FL) both changed their positions and voted in favor of the resolution, weeks after Moskowitz told Jewish Insider — before the campaign began — that its sponsors “should just rename [the resolution] the Ayatollah Protection Act because that’s what it does.” Asked by JI about the shift in his stance today, Moskowitz answered, “I didn’t flip at all. Circumstances have changed since my first statement”…
Antisemitic podcaster Tucker Carlson’s latest extreme rhetoric took aim at the Chabad Lubavitch movement, with sweeping conspiratorial language accusing the Hasidic sect of seeking to start a “religious war” amid the U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran, JI’s Gabby Deutch reports.
Carlson argued in an episode of his show that dropped last night that Jews see the war against Iran as an opportunity to feud with Islam and to target Christians. Carlson’s remarks prompted outrage among Chabad’s backers, who pointed out that Chabad emissaries have for decades played a crucial role in connecting American Jews to their faith and to each other…
In a conversation with ABC News, Trump said this afternoon that Tucker “has lost his way. I knew that a long time ago, and he’s not MAGA. MAGA is saving our country. … Tucker is really not smart enough to understand that”…
In a discussion with the New York Post, Trump railed against European countries which have continued to oppose the campaign against Iran, calling Spain “a loser” and the U.K. “very disappointing.” Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, meanwhile, said today that the Iran war is a “failure” of the international order, but would not “categorically rule out” Canada’s participation…
Iran’s indiscriminate attacks are bringing allies together worldwide: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he’s deploying specialists to assist the U.S. after Washington requested “specific support in protection” against Iranian Shahed drones, which Ukraine has been battling for several years as Russia has regularly deployed them, and the European Union and Gulf Cooperation Council held a joint meeting to discuss Iran’s “unjustifiable, unprovoked, and unlawful attacks”…
The New York Times profiles Lt.-Gen. Eyal Zamir, the IDF’s chief of staff, as he helps lead Israel’s efforts in the campaign against Iran…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye out in Jewish Insider for a look at Jack Cocchiarella, the progressive Gen Z podcaster who has made a name for himself hosting high-profile Democratic candidates — including California Gov. Gavin Newsom in New Hampshire tonight — and who has recently taken a turn towards bashing Israel.
Team Israel will play its first games of the 2026 World Baseball Classic on Saturday against Venezuela and on Sunday against Nicaragua.
Also Sunday, AJ Edelman, the Israeli Olympic bobsled team pilot, will speak in conversation with Neil Goldman at Chabad of West Village in New York.
Birthright Israel’s Excelerate26 summit is also taking place in New York this weekend, with keynote speeches on Sunday from Robert Kraft, owner of the New England Patriots; Anne Neuberger, former deputy national security advisor during the Biden administration; and Sheryl Sandberg, former COO of Meta.
We’ll be back in your inbox with the Daily Overtime on Monday. Shabbat Shalom!
Stories You May Have Missed
MILITARY UPDATE
Day 6: Repatriation flights briefly delayed in the air as Iran shoots missiles at Israel
Tehran also attacked Azerbaijan for the first time, launching drones that injured two at Nakhchivan International Airport
ABOUT-FACE
Ruben Gallego transforms from pro-Israel moderate to face of antiwar opposition
The Arizona senator’s outspoken commentary has repeatedly placed blame for the military operation on Israel, leading one Jewish Democrat to pull her support
Protecting the country from terror threats sparked by the Iran war likely to be a major focus for the new homeland security secretary
Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) speaks to reporters as he arrives at the U.S. Capitol Building on March 05, 2026 in Washington, DC.
Amid an increasing storm of controversy, President Donald Trump announced Thursday he was removing Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem from her post, replacing her with Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-OK).
Noem has come under fire for a series of issues, including her handling of immigration enforcement operations, her response to immigration agents’ shootings of two U.S. citizens, an alleged affair with a senior aide and what critics have characterized as self-promotion. Most recently, Noem claimed under oath this week that Trump had personally approved a $200 million ad campaign starring Noem herself, something that Trump has since publicly denied.
Trump said on Truth Social that the switch would take place effective March 31 — though Mullin will still need to face Senate confirmation proceedings.
Mullin could face a contentious path to confirmation. DHS remains without full funding in a partial shutdown — a result of Democratic outrage over immigration operations. Democratic lawmakers will likely grill Mullin during confirmation proceedings, and many would likely vote against him in protest of Trump’s immigration policies. But Mullin’s stature in the Senate and familiarity with his colleagues could give him an inside track to confirmation, as opposed to other potential picks.
Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA), the top Democrat on the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Subcommittee on Border Management, Federal Workforce and Regulatory Affairs, told Jewish Insider on Thursday that he would vote to confirm Mullin. Fetterman, who was one of seven Democrats who voted to confirm Noem last January, publicly urged Trump to consider firing Noem and nominating Mullin in her place earlier Thursday.
Fetterman was the only Democrat to immediately commit to supporting Mullin’s nomination, and expressed skepticism that many of his Democratic colleagues would consider doing the same in a post on X announcing his plan to vote for Mullin.
The sometimes-combative Mullin could face some issues on his own side of the aisle as well — the Senate Homeland Security Committee, which would oversee his confirmation, is chaired by Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), whom Mullin recently called a “freaking snake,” saying he had told Paul he understood why a neighbor attacked the Kentucky senator in 2017, breaking several of his ribs.
Oklahoma Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt similarly cheered the news of Mullin’s nomination, saying in a statement, “Markwayne Mullin has been a fighter for Oklahoma and will fight to keep our nation secure. There isn’t a better choice to lead the Department of Homeland Security..”
Stitt, who is responsible for appointing Mullin’s replacement in the Senate to serve through the next election, added that he “will be looking to appoint a strong, small government conservative voice to support President Trump and protect Oklahomans’ way of life.” Under Oklahoma law, his appointee will not be permitted to run for the seat in the next election.
With the central role of immigration in Trump’s messaging and political agenda, immigration enforcement would likely remain at the top of the priority list for any DHS director he selects. But the war in Iran has raised concerns about homeland threats linked to or inspired by the Iranian regime.
Noem told senators in a hearing this week that the administration was preparing for potential homeland attacks by Iran, including “revetting” individuals who entered the country during the Biden administration.
Mullin, in the Senate, has been hawkish on Iran and its proxies, and is a stalwart supporter of Trump, but has been less involved in discussions related to antisemitism domestically — though he indicated he would have been supportive of the Antisemitism Awareness Act.
He said after a House hearing where three college presidents refused to say that calling for the genocide of Jews would be banned under their policies, “The rise of antisemitism on college campuses was on full display yesterday as Ivy League presidents refused to say whether calling for the mass murder of Jewish people constitutes harassment on their campuses. This vile, hateful, and cowardly behavior is completely despicable.”
The 48-year-old senator took office in 2023, after serving a decade in the House.
“We look forward to working with Mr. Mullin when he takes the helm at DHS to support the security of the Jewish community and all American faith communit[ies],” Nathan Diament, the executive director of the Orthodox Union Advocacy Center, told JI.
Noem is the first Cabinet official to leave her post during the second Trump administration. Observers generally see Trump as less eager to remove top aides during his second term, an effort to counter the perception of chaos that pervaded his first term in office from frequent high-level turnover.
Under Noem, DHS has repeatedly come under fire for its handling of issues related to antisemitism from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle and Jewish community groups, though it’s not clear to what extent Noem was directly involved in those issues.
The department added new conditions to Nonprofit Security Grant Program funding which may compel religious institutions to agree to eliminate Diversity, Equity and Inclusion programs and cooperate with immigration enforcement efforts in order to qualify for funding.
NSGP funding itself has also repeatedly been delayed and waylaid, with unclear deadlines provided to grantees and the state agencies that administer the grant program. Lawmakers have said that they also have not received information usually provided to them about the program. It remains unclear whether grants from the 2025 grant cycle have been awarded yet.
Applications for 2025 grants also opened months late, and funding from supplemental grant rounds that organizations applied for in 2024 was delayed by months, well into 2025.
Noem instituted a policy at DHS that required her personal signoff on any expenditures of more than $100,000, which may have contributed to the slowdowns in NSGP funding.
Mullin, as a member of the House, voted with a majority of Republicans against the bipartisan Nonprofit Security Grant Improvement Act, which proposed increased funding for the program and a dedicated structure at DHS to oversee and manage the growing program, but does not otherwise appear to have been actively involved in discussions around the program.
Separately, DHS has repeatedly come under scrutiny over guidelines issued by the Coast Guard regarding displays of swastikas and nooses. Previous policy had described such displays as banned hate symbols, whereas a new policy first reported in November characterized them instead as “potentially divisive” and mandated a lesser investigation.
The Coast Guard assured lawmakers that the policy would be corrected, but weeks later, the Guard apparently broke that pledge and instituted the “potentially divisive” language anyway. Days later, it again walked back the policy change.
Throughout, Noem and the department denied any wrongdoing and attacked critics.
Noem, a former South Dakota governor, is now rumored to be considering a primary challenge to Sen. Mike Rounds (R-SD), a moderate Republican and pro-Israel stalwart. She is also believed to have presidential ambitions. For now, Noem will become special envoy to a new security initiative for the Western Hemisphere being launched by Trump on Saturday, the president said in his Truth Social post.
Plus, Qatar rebuffs Iranian diplomacy
Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images
Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) speaks with press in the Hart Senate Office Building on April 07, 2025 in Washington, DC.
Good Wednesday afternoon,
This P.M. edition is reserved for our premium subscribers — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
It’s me again — Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
On the fifth day of the joint U.S.-Israeli military campaign against Iran, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth announced the accomplishment of several key objectives, Jewish Insider’s Matthew Shea reports, including that “the leader of the unit” responsible for the assassination attempt on President Donald Trump in November 2024 “has been hunted down and killed.”
Hegseth also revealed that an American submarine sank an Iranian warship by torpedo, the first time such a thing has been accomplished since World War II. Responding to concerns over whether the U.S. will be able to maintain enough munitions throughout the conflict, Hegseth dismissed “stories and speculation,” instead asserting: “Iran cannot outlast us”…
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi called Qatar’s foreign minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, to insist that Iranian drones and missiles attacking Qatar are really directed at U.S. assets and “not intended to target the Gulf state.”
Al Thani “categorically rejected” that claim, according to Qatar’s foreign ministry, “citing the civilian and residential areas inside the country struck by the attacks.” He told Araghchi that Iran’s actions do not “indicate any genuine desire for de-escalation or resolution” and are trying to drag Qatar into a war “that is not theirs”…
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the White House Monday to ask about intelligence that indicated the U.S. might be communicating with Iran, Axios reports, which administration officials told him was false. A New York Times report found that Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence had indirectly sent a message to the CIA attempting to start negotiations to end hostilities…
NATO air defense systems shot down an Iranian missile that was flying through Iraq and Syria on its way toward Turkey, the Turkish defense ministry said this morning. It’s the first attack by Iran on a NATO country’s territory. The U.K. and France, also NATO countries, are sending additional planes and warships to the region after Iran targeted a British base in Cyprus…
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, asked about reports of the U.S. arming Kurdish militias to assist in regime change in Iran, told reporters that Trump has spoken to Kurdish leaders in recent days about the U.S. military base in northern Iraq, but “any report suggesting that the president has agreed to any such plan” about arming the Kurds “is completely false and should not be written”…
Leavitt also said that the U.S. is now coordinating with Spain on the military operation in Iran, after Trump threatened yesterday to cut off all trade with Madrid over its refusal to let the U.S. use military bases on its soil and its lack of defense spending. Spain categorically denied that it is cooperating with the U.S. or has changed its position at all…
Secretary of State Marco Rubio held phone calls with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, Cypriot Foreign Minister Constantinos Kombos and Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani about the campaign against Iran. Turkey and Cyprus have both faced attacks by Iranian projectiles, while Italy summoned its Iranian ambassador to protest the attack on Cyprus…
Trump indicated he’s close to offering his endorsement to Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), who beat expectations by finishing ahead of right-wing Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in yesterday’s primary. While both Republicans are headed to a May runoff, a Trump endorsement would make Cornyn the clear favorite to win the Republican nomination — and alleviate a lot of GOP anxiety over the possibility that a scandal-plagued Paxton could lose to state Rep. James Talarico, the newly minted Democratic nominee…
In North Carolina, Rep. Valerie Foushee (D-NC) holds a narrow lead over her far-left opponent, Durham County Commissioner Nida Allam, who has indicated she will seek a recount. Foushee said in a statement that she would “welcome the opportunity” for a recount and is “confident that the Democratic voters of North Carolina will have nominated me to serve a third term”…
Hegseth will headline a fundraiser next week for Rep. Zach Nunn (R-IA), after four servicemembers who were previously stationed in his district were killed by an Iranian drone in Kuwait on Sunday. Nunn, who has been a staunch ally of Israel in the House, is facing a competitive reelection race as Democrats target his seat in their attempt to take back the chamber…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye out in Jewish Insider for a breakdown of the Senate’s consideration of the Iranian war powers resolution, led by Sens. Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Rand Paul (R-KY), which is currently on track to fail on a procedural vote.
The House Foreign Affairs Committee will hold a hearing on “advancing national security through diplomacy” with Sarah Rogers, the under secretary of state for public diplomacy.
The Muslim World League will host an interfaith iftar gathering on Capitol Hill.
Stories You May Have Missed
IN THE CROSSHAIRS
Day 5: Israel vows to eliminate Khamenei’s successor
Also Wednesday, an Israeli F-35I fighter jet shot down an Iranian YAK-130 fighter jet over Tehran, marking the first time an F-35 jet shot down a manned fighter aircraft, IDF says
PUSHING BACK
After classified briefing, senators reject claims Israel forced U.S. into Iran war
Republicans and some Democrats insisted Trump made the decision, while other Democrats said that the timing of the onset of hostilities was impacted by Israel’s plans
‘If anything, I might have forced Israel's hand,’ Trump said after Rubio’s previous comments were interpreted as placing blame on Israel
Samuel Corum/Sipa/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Friedrich Merz, Germany's chancellor, center left, and US President Donald Trump during a meeting in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, US, on Tuesday, March 3, 2026.
A chorus of senior Trump administration officials, including White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth sought to offer a decisive rebuttal on Tuesday to what they deemed to be a false narrative, which had spread like wildfire a day before.
They were all responding to the political tumult and online furor that erupted after Rubio briefed congressional leaders about the U.S. military operation in Iran on Monday afternoon.
A narrative quickly formed — based in large part on a viral post on X from the White House clipping an excerpt of Rubio’s comments — that Trump decided to strike Iran because Israel was already planning an attack, which would then prompt Iranian retaliation, thus putting American troops at risk.
“The president made the very wise decision — we knew that there was going to be an Israeli action, we knew that that would precipitate an attack against American forces, and we knew that if we didn’t preemptively go after them before they launched those attacks, we would suffer higher casualties,” Rubio told reporters.
The White House shared that sound bite in a post on X that was viewed more than 13 million times in less than a day. Rubio’s Monday messaging about Israel was echoed by House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) after he and other congressional leaders received Rubio’s briefing.
The question that was then posed dozens of times by reporters to policymakers: Had Israel forced America’s hand and dragged the U.S. into war?
Never mind that Rubio also said in those same remarks the U.S. was not “forced” to strike because of an impending Israeli action. “No matter what, ultimately, this operation needed to happen,” Rubio said. The White House shared that sound bite on X Tuesday morning, drawing 500,000 views, a fraction of the visibility of the earlier post. “No, Marco Rubio Didn’t Claim That Israel Dragged Trump into War with Iran,” was the headline Leavitt posted on X. But the damage had already been done.
Fox News host Sean Hannity asked Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the same question in a Monday night interview. “You don’t have to drag him into anything,” Netanyahu said of Trump. “He does what he thinks is right for America.”
Another reporter then posed the question to Trump directly on Tuesday during an Oval Office meeting between the president and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
“No,” Trump said decisively. “I might have forced their hand.” Hegseth then chimed in on X boosting Trump’s message: “This is 100% correct.”
Rubio similarly refuted a reporter who said the U.S. needed to get involved because Israel was going to strike Iran.
“Your statement is false,” he said Tuesday during another visit to Capitol Hill for all-member briefings in the House and Senate. “Somebody asked me the question yesterday, did we go in because of Israel … I told you this had to happen anyway. The president made a decision, and the decision he made was that Iran was not going to be allowed to hide behind its ballistic missile program, that Iran was not going to be allowed to hide behind its ability to conduct these attacks. That decision had been made.”
The question, he said, was “a question of timing, of why this had to happen as a joint operation. Not the question of the intent.”
Some questions remain unanswered. Trump told reporters alongside Merz that Iran was going to attack first, but it was not clear whom he expected Iran to attack, the Israelis or the Americans. A White House spokesperson did not respond to requests for comment.
“We were having negotiations with these lunatics, and it was my opinion that they were going to attack first,” Trump said. “Based on the way the negotiation was going, I think they were going to attack first, and I didn’t want that to happen. So if anything, I might have forced Israel’s hand, but Israel was ready, and we were ready, and we’ve had a very, very powerful impact.”
Even as the White House refuted the narrative that Israel had pulled the U.S. into war and put American servicemembers at risk, Democratic lawmakers and right-wing podcasters turned it into an online rallying cry.
“So Netanyahu now decides when we go to war? So much for America First,” Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) said in a post on X on Monday. Ben Rhodes, the deputy national security advisor to President Barack Obama, argued Trump could not bring himself to say no to Netanyahu: “Donald Trump is so weak that he couldn’t tell Bibi Netanyahu no, so now we are at war,” he said in response to the Rubio clip.
Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA), who was in Monday’s briefing by Rubio, afterward described the strikes as “dictated by Israel’s goals and timelines” and said he opposed them.
On the right, Matt Walsh of The Daily Wire sharply criticized Rubio. “So he’s flat out telling us that we’re in a war with Iran because Israel forced our hand. This is basically the worst possible thing he could have said,” Walsh wrote.
The conservative pundit Megyn Kelly said that the American servicemembers who have so far died in the campaign did not give their lives for the United States. “No one should have to die for a foreign country. I don’t think those four service members died for the United States. I think they died for Iran or for Israel,” she said on Monday.
Now progressive Jewish groups are attacking the White House, saying that pinning the war on Israel feeds into antisemitic conspiracy theories.
“Shifting blame for American military decisions to Netanyahu is an abdication of responsibility and comes with the dangerous side effect of fueling antisemitic sentiment in the United States,” J Street President Jeremy Ben-Ami said Tuesday.
The Jewish Democratic Council of America called Rubio’s language “unprecedented, dangerous and deeply irresponsible.”
“As Jewish Americans, we’re deeply concerned about the consequences of the White House effectively blaming Israel for its decision to launch a war against Iran, which has now spread to the entire Middle East,” JDCA said in a Tuesday statement.
The Republican Jewish Coalition, meanwhile, spent Tuesday reposting messages from the White House, the Senate Republican Caucus and the Pentagon that Israel had not, in fact, dragged the U.S. into war.
Rubio attempted to offer a final rebuttal of the narrative about Israel driving the war when he was back on Capitol Hill on Tuesday. He acknowledged how his comments the day before had spread — although he did not mention that the White House played a role in amplifying them.
“If you’re going to play the statements, you need to play the whole statement, and not clip it to reach a narrative,” said Rubio.
Plus, Alex Soros boosts antisemitic conspiracy theorist
Samuel Corum/Sipa/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Friedrich Merz, Germany's chancellor, center left, and US President Donald Trump during a meeting in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, US, on Tuesday, March 3, 2026.
Good Tuesday afternoon,
This P.M. edition is reserved for our premium subscribers — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
It’s me again — Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
The Trump administration emphatically denied reports, based on partial comments made by Secretary of State Marco Rubio yesterday, that Israel forced the U.S. to launch the operation against Iran.
“If anything, I might’ve forced Israel’s hand,” President Donald Trump told reporters while meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in the Oval Office today. “You see, we were having negotiations with these lunatics, and it was my opinion that they [Iran] were going to attack first.”
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth boosted the president’s comments, saying, “This is 100% correct,” while Rubio insisted his original remarks were misrepresented…
Trump continues to share optimistic assessments of the war’s progress: he told Politico that Iran is running out of missile launchers while claiming the U.S. has “a virtually unlimited supply” of weapons, saying, “wars can be fought ‘forever,’ and very successfully, using just these supplies”…
The Israeli Air Force struck a building where senior clerics had gathered to elect Iran’s next supreme leader, Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter told CNN, “and there’s a very good chance that the electors won’t be readily available for any further meetings”…
Trump is open to backing militias in Iran who will work to mount regime change, U.S. officials told The Wall Street Journal, after he held phone calls with Kurdish leaders who maintain armed groups along the Iran-Iraq border.
Trump has wavered in recent comments on his vision for the future of Iran, saying today that “somebody from within” might be the best option to lead, rather than individuals like exiled former crown prince, Reza Pahlavi. At the same time, Trump told reporters, “Most of the people we had in mind are dead. And now we have another group, they may be dead also. Pretty soon we’re not gonna know anybody”…
Trump ordered the U.S. Development Finance Corporation to provide political risk insurance for all maritime trade traveling through the Gulf, as oil traffic has essentially halted and energy prices have soared. The U.S. Navy will also, if necessary, begin physically escorting tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, Trump said…
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky offered his country’s assistance to the UAE, as the Gulf country has been targeted by over 1,000 Iranian drones and missiles since the operation began Saturday. Ukraine has become particularly skilled in combating Iranian Shahed drones, something the UAE has little experience with, as Russia has regularly used them in its attacks on Ukraine…
The U.S. Embassy in Saudi Arabia was struck with two Iranian drones, with no casualties reported; the embassy was closed, along with U.S. embassies in Kuwait and Beirut. The State Department ordered the mandatory departure of all non-emergency personnel in several countries and has begun “actively securing military aircraft and charter flights for American citizens who wish to leave” the region…
The International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed that Iran’s underground Natanz nuclear enrichment plant was struck in the course of hostilities in recent days. Trump has claimed the site was rendered inoperable during the U.S.’ June 2025 strikes…
Alex Soros, one of the progressive movement’s most influential donors, boosted a social media post today about U.S. casualties in the war with Iran from Max Blumenthal, a prominent anti-Israel conspiracy theorist, Jewish Insider‘s Matthew Kassel reports.
Soros also praised Spain for its refusal to allow the U.S. to use joint bases on its soil, calling Madrid the “leader of the free world” and reprimanding other European countries for not doing the same…
After issuing a statement solely attacking the U.S. and Israel over the campaign against Iran — which provoked backlash from members of the Iranian dissident and diaspora communities — New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani acknowledged the “systematic repression” of the Iranian people by the regime, while declining to criticize the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, JI’s Will Bredderman reports.
Even as he acknowledged Tehran’s bloody suppression of protesters, Mamdani did not directly answer a reporter’s question at a press conference today about whether the Middle Eastern nation was better off without the radical cleric who ruled for nearly 37 years…
Amazon Web Services operations are “significantly impaired” after three of its data centers in the Middle East were struck by Iranian drones — two directly hit in the UAE and one sustaining damage in Bahrain. The strikes “caused structural damage, disrupted power delivery to our infrastructure, and in some cases required fire suppression activities that resulted in additional water damage,” AWS said…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye out in Jewish Insider for a look at the results of today’s high-stakes primary elections in North Carolina and Texas and their implications for pro-Israel voters.
The Heritage Foundation will hold an event to launch its 2026 “Index of U.S. Military Strength” with remarks from Sen. Jim Banks (R-IN) and Reps. August Pfluger (R-TX), Pat Harrigan (R-TX) and Matt Van Epps (R-TN).
The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom will release its annual report tomorrow on Capitol Hill.
Stories You May Have Missed
SQUARING OFF
Mamdani allies, deep-pocketed donors mobilize millions for anti-AIPAC effort
A trio of Mamdani backers united with tech and real estate investors to boost anti-Israel candidates
PARTY PERSPECTIVE
Democrats argue eliminating top Iranian leaders increases dangers to Iranians, Israel, U.S.
Speaking at J Street’s national summit, Sen. Tim Kaine also said ‘virtually all’ Democratic senators now seek the group’s endorsement
Plus, Mamdani allies bankroll a $10M anti-AIPAC effort
Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu via Getty Images
Smoke rises from the area after it was targeted in attacks as a series of explosions are heard in Tehran, Iran on March 01, 2026.
👋 Good Tuesday morning, and happy Purim 🎭
In today’s Daily Kickoff, we report on the latest developments in the Middle East as the conflict with Iran enters its fourth day, and preview the primaries taking place today in Texas and North Carolina. We report on the split on Capitol Hill over the Trump administration’s military moves against Iran, and spotlight the backers of the newly created American Priorities PAC, which has ties to allies of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and is opposing pro-Israel candidates. Also in today’s Daily Kickoff: the Yeshiva University men’s basketball team, Zach Yadegari and Kate Schmier.
Today’s Daily Kickoff was curated by JI Executive Editor Melissa Weiss and Israel Editor Tamara Zieve, with an assist from Danielle Cohen-Kanik. Have a tip? Email us here.
What We’re Watching
- We are monitoring developments across the Middle East as the U.S. and Israel continue to strike Iranian targets, Iran launches attacks against population centers in Israel and Israel strikes Hezbollah targets in Lebanon. Multiple sirens have sounded across central Israel, including Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, throughout the morning as the IDF intercepted the barrages being fired from Iran.
- German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is in Washington today. He’ll meet with President Donald Trump at 11 a.m.
- On Capitol Hill, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, and Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, are expected to brief members of the Senate and House on the war in Iran.
- Elsewhere on the Hill, Elbridge Colby, the Pentagon’s under secretary of defense for policy, is testifying before the Senate Armed Services Committee on the Trump administration’s national defense strategy.
- The Capitol Jewish Forum is hosting its annual Purim celebration on the Hill this afternoon, with more than a dozen Jewish legislators, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), slated to attend.
- The first primaries of the 2026 election cycle are also taking place today. In North Carolina, Rep. Valerie Foushee (D-NC) is facing far-left anti-Israel activist Nida Allam. Read more below.
- In the Texas Senate primary, Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX) faces state Sen. James Talarico; On the Republican side, Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) faces primary challenges from Rep. Wesley Hunt (R-TX) and scandal-plagued right-wing Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. Read more here and here.
- In the state’s 23rd Congressional District, Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX), also plagued by scandal amid allegations he had an affair with a staffer who later died by suicide, faces his second primary challenge from right-wing social media influencer Brandon Herrera. Read more here.
- Rep. Al Green (D-TX), who has become a consistent detractor of Israel in the House, faces newly elected Rep. Christian Menefee (D-TX), who has built solid relationships with the Houston-area Jewish community. Read more here.
- Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-TX), a Republican hawk, faces a serious challenge from state Rep. Steve Toth, who is running to his right. Both candidates have been supportive of Israel.
- And Rep. Julie Johnson (D-TX) faces a difficult renomination fight against former Rep. Colin Allred (D-TX), who vacated the seat to run unsuccessfully for the Senate in 2024.
- It’s also primary day in Arkansas and Mississippi — but there are no major congressional primaries of note in either state.
What You Should Know
A QUICK WORD WITH JI’S MARC ROD
In the closing message of her campaign ahead of the North Carolina Democratic primary today, Durham County Commissioner Nida Allam, a far-left antagonist of Israel, is leaning into criticism of the war against Iran.
“President Trump just used our taxpayer dollars to bomb a school in Iran, killing over 100 elementary school children and starting another endless war abroad. This is reprehensible, and I strongly condemn it, as should every elected official,” Allam said in a direct-to-camera video ad posted on social media on Monday — despite no evidence that the U.S. or Israel were responsible for the strike.
Allam, who is Muslim, vowed that she would never accept support from defense contractors or pro-Israel groups, and said she “opposed these ‘forever wars’ my entire career, and I hope to earn your vote to be your proudly uncompromised pro-peace leader in Washington.”
By contrast, Rep. Valerie Foushee (D-NC), aiming to fend off a primary challenge from Allam, offered a condemnation of the “brutal and repressive” Iranian regime in a statement on Monday, while arguing that its “abuses do not give the president the authority to launch military strikes without Congressional approval.” She said Congress must vote to bring the war to an end.
In an initial statement on X over the weekend, Foushee issued an unequivocal condemnation of the operation, calling it “an unconstitutional escalation that risks dragging the United States into another catastrophic and endless war in the Middle East” that “ignores the will of the American people and recklessly puts our servicemembers in harm’s way” — without making mention of the Iranian regime.
Political observers said the Iran conflict could give late momentum to Allam. Given the leftward lean of the 4th Congressional District and Allam’s positioning to the left of Foushee — particularly on Middle East policy — it could very well make a difference,” Chris Cooper, a political scientist at Western Carolina University, told JI’s Matthew Kassel on Monday. “Thousands of votes have already been cast, but for late deciders, this is exactly the kind of issue that could help tilt a voter to one side or the other. It’s hard to get more salient than war.”
In 2022, Foushee won the seat in the 4th Congressional District against Allam with significant backing from the AIPAC-linked United Democracy Project super PAC, but Foushee has taken a more critical posture towards Israel over the last year. This year, significant outside spending has flowed into the race on both sides.
STATE OF PLAY
Day 4: Decrease in Iranian missile strikes on Israel result of targeting launchers, IDF says
A notable decrease in the number and frequency of Iranian missile strikes at Israel is the result of a focused strategy of hunting and taking out its launchers, Lt.-Col. Nadav Shoshani, the IDF’s spokesperson for international media, said on Tuesday, Jewish Insider’s Lahav Harkov reports. “The missile and launcher hunt is happening in real time,” Shoshani told reporters. “We have been able to narrow [Iran’s] capability to fire missiles toward us. … We are putting our focus on continuing to do so in the coming days.”
Military update: “We were able to take out dozens of launchers,” since the operation began on Saturday, Shoshani said, adding that Iran currently has “a lack of capability to fire in large amounts” and that there is a diminished rate of fire. At the same time, he noted that part of the reduction in missile launchers may be attributed to Iran trying to ensure it can keep the war going over the coming weeks.
SUSTAINED CAMPAIGN
Trump, defense officials keep Iran operation open-ended
President Donald Trump and senior U.S. defense officials laid out an open-ended timeline for the ongoing operation against Iran on Monday, announcing more U.S. forces are headed to the region to carry out the American and Israeli campaign aimed at dismantling Tehran’s long-range strike capabilities and nuclear ambitions, Jewish Insider’s Matthew Shea and Emily Jacobs report.
Trump talk: Speaking to reporters at the White House on Monday morning, Trump said that U.S. forces were “already substantially ahead of our time projections” with their mission in Iran, but added that the American military was prepared to continue the operation beyond his initial four-to-five week timeline. “Whatever the time is, it’s OK. Whatever it takes,” Trump said at a Medal of Honor ceremony. “Right from the beginning, we projected four to five weeks, but we have capability to go far longer than that. We’ll do it.”
Caine’s comments: Adm. Brad Cooper, head of CENTCOM, “will receive additional forces even today,” said Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, during a separate press briefing alongside Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. “This rapid buildup of forces demonstrated the joint forces ability to adapt and project power at the time and place of our nation’s choosing.” Caine also made clear the weekend barrage was only the beginning.
Team effort: In his first interview since the U.S. and Israel launched their joint military campaign against Iran, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu defended the timing of the operation’s launch and rebuffed the notion that he decisively pushed Trump to take action, JI’s Matthew Shea reports.
DUELING NARRATIVES
Congressional leaders split over whether U.S. faced imminent threat from Iran
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and Senate Intelligence Committee Vice Chairman Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) emerged from a classified briefing with Cabinet officials on Monday split over whether the U.S. faced an imminent threat from Iran that necessitated and permitted the president to take military action under U.S. statute and the Constitution, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
Johnson’s takeaway: “The most critical point is that this was a defensive measure, a defensive operation,” Johnson said. “Israel was determined to act in their own defense here, with or without American support. Why? Because Israel faced what they deemed to be an existential threat. Iran was building missiles at a radical, rapid clip, to the point where our allies in the region do not keep up.”
Warner’s worry: Warner said that the war is “a war of choice that has been acknowledged by others [that] was dictated by Israel’s goals and timelines. Israel is a great ally of America. I stand firmly with Israel, but I believe at the end of the day, when we are talking about putting American soldiers in harm’s way, when we have American casualties and expectations of more, there needs to be the proof of an imminent threat to American interests. I still don’t think that standard has been met.”
SQUARING OFF
Mamdani allies, deep-pocketed donors mobilize millions for anti-AIPAC effort
Three figures linked to New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani — two Silicon Valley entrepreneurs and a Brooklyn political operative — have joined forces with a bevy of wealthy business leaders to pump millions into a new political action committee dedicated to battling AIPAC, Jewish Insider’s Will Bredderman reports.
Follow the money: American Priorities PAC has raised $2,050,000 to date and spent a quarter of it so far boosting Democrat Nida Allam, a vocal detractor of Israel, in her bid to oust Rep. Valerie Foushee (D-NC) in North Carolina’s 4th Congressional District. Filings with the Federal Election Commission show another $67,000 has gone toward promoting the candidacy of the Rev. Frederick Haynes III, the pastor of Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX), who is running for her House seat as she seeks the Senate. It’s all part of a plan to spend a minimum of $10 million countering candidates who have received past support from AIPAC, as NBC News previously reported. A spokesperson for the PAC refused to answer questions about its fundraising and decision-making practices, though they denied Mamdani was in any way involved.
Bonus: Politico talks to government watchdogs about Mamdani’s continued use of the messaging app Signal for official business, despite the platform’s encryption protocols and self-deleting capabilities being incompatible with freedom of information laws.
DEMS DEMAND
Democratic lawmakers rally support for war powers resolutions at J Street conference
Democratic members of Congress addressing J Street’s national convention in Washington on Monday used the occasion to rally support for long-shot resolutions coming before the House and Senate this week that will attempt to end U.S. military strikes against Iran, Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch reports.
On the record: “The president’s refusal to pursue consent from Congress, as required by the Constitution, is perhaps his most grievous assault on democracy, and we should not let it stand,” Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) said to the 1,500 activists gathered at J Street’s morning plenary. Rep. Sean Casten (D-IL) told the crowd that he expects to see “very robust, possibly unanimous support” from congressional Democrats on the measures, which would put an immediate end to U.S. operations against Iran.
Read the full story here with additional comments from Rep. Madeleine Dean (D-PA) and Sen. Brian Schatz (D-HI).
More from Murphy: Addressing the conference, Murphy leaned on Jewish history to tailor his case to fight President Donald Trump specifically to American Jews. “The answer to thousands of years of the Jewish people’s faith being decided by emperors and queens and czars is not and cannot simply be the State of Israel. No, the rest of the answer is simple. It’s democracy,” he said.
Also spotted at the conference: Former New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, who is mounting a primary challenge against Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY), and leaning into sharp criticism of Israel as part of his campaign.
Worthy Reads
Theory of Regime Change: In The Washington Post, Rob Satloff, the executive director of The Washington Institute for Near East Policy, considers the history of failed regime-change efforts in the Middle East as President Donald Trump calls for Iranians to rise up against their government. “On one end of the spectrum, will he, like [Franklin] Roosevelt, find an Iranian Delcy Rodríguez, leaving the structure of the regime intact under a new, more pliant leader? Or will he, like the first Bush, content himself with inflicting massive damage to Iran’s offensive military capability and choose an expedient path to end the war? Or, on the other end of the spectrum, will he, like the second Bush, get stuck in the muck of Iranian nation-building, triggering problems that we can’t even imagine today?” [WashPost]
The Warrior Prime Minister: The Atlantic’s Yair Rosenberg posits that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s long-standing reluctance to pursue military options against adversaries ended with the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas terror attacks, as Israel began to more aggressively pursue its enemies. “Before this seismic shift, Netanyahu’s longevity as prime minister was built on a foundation of conflict avoidance. That posture appealed to a risk-averse electorate. Under his premiership, Israeli voters who were comfortable with the status quo could rest easy knowing that their leader would be unlikely to upset it. … With each successful escalation, Netanyahu’s willingness to use force to settle Israel’s scores increased.” [TheAtlantic]
Remembering 1979: The Wall Street Journal’s Matthew Hennessey suggests that support for U.S. military action in Iran is generational, noting that young Americans have little memory of Iran’s years of targeting American interests. “But I was born in the 1970s. I remember the shocking barbarism of the fatwa against Mr. Rushdie. I remember the Iranian-backed Hezbollah terrorism of the 1980s, the 1994 suicide attack on the Jewish community center in Buenos Aires, the 1996 Khobar Towers bombing. … The livestreamers will say this war is about oil. The Substackers will say it started with Mosaddegh. To them, this is an academic debate, something they heard about on a podcast once. Any American over 50 knows who started it.” [WSJ]
Drive for Democracy: In The New York Times, the Hoover Institution’s Abbas Milani considers Iran’s leadership quagmire, arguing that former Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini’s 1979 takeover of the country was done under a “bait-and-switch” that rallied Iranians around the cause of democracy while establishing a radical theocratic regime. “The right question today is: What are the ideas for democratic governance, for fixing the economy, for keeping centrifugal forces at bay and for maintaining sovereignty and good relations with the world around which Iranians (inside the country and out) can unite, and how can they do so in a way that will deliver Iran out of political paralysis and economic morass?” [NYTimes]
Word on the Street
President Donald Trump slammed commentators Tucker Carlson and Megyn Kelly, who have criticized the administration’s military strikes targeting Iran; Trump told journalist Rachael Bade that Carlson “can say whatever he wants; it has no impact on me” and that “MAGA is Trump — MAGA’s not the other two,” referring to Carlson and Kelly…
The Financial Times does a deep dive into the yearslong effort by Israel to track the movements of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed on Saturday, and other senior members of the Iranian regime; among the tactics used by Israel was the hacking of traffic cameras around Tehran, which allowed Israeli intelligence officials access to regime movements around the capital…
The Supreme Court blocked an effort to redraw Rep. Nicole Malliotakis’ (R-NY) 11th Congressional District — the sole Republican-leaning district in New York City — that encompasses Staten Island and parts of Brooklyn; the move preserves the existing districts in the city, including NY-10, where Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY) is facing a primary challenge from former New York City Comptroller Brad Lander…
Federal prosecutors are filing an additional charge of damaging religious property against the man accused of ramming a car into the headquarters of Chabad-Lubavitch in Brooklyn in January…
The FBI is investigating recent antisemitic emails that were sent to members of Stanford University’s Jewish community, including more than half a dozen Jewish student leaders…
The Yeshiva University Maccabees are again heading to the Division III NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament after the team’s 79-72 win over the Farmingdale State Rams over the weekend secured their position as Skyline Conference champions…
MyFitnessPal acquired calorie-counting app Cal Al, including 19-year-old CEO and co-founder Zach Yadegari and the startup’s six additional employees…
The Wall Street Journal spotlights Blue Owl Capital co-founders Doug Ostrover and Marc Lipschultz as the firm faces financial challenges tied to upheaval in the broader credit market…
Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, bought an under-construction mansion in South Florida’s Indian Creek for $170 million, setting a new record in Miami-Dade County…
A new report from the Jewish Representative Council of Ireland found that Irish Jews self-reported 146 incidents involving antisemitism between July 2025 and January 2026…
Kate Schmier is joining the Jewish Book Council as director of publishing relations…
London retailer and fashion designer Bernard Lewis, the founder of Little Island, died at 100…
Pic of the Day
President Donald Trump posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor on Monday to Army Master Sgt. Roderick “Roddie” W. Edmonds, a World War II soldier whose defiance of a Nazi order saved more than 200 Jewish American prisoners of war, Jewish Insider’s Matthew Shea reports. Edmonds’ son, Chris Edmonds, accepted the award on his father’s behalf.
Birthdays
Vocalist for indie-pop band Lucius, Jess Wolfe turns 40…
Australian residential property developer, colloquially known as “High-Rise Harry,” Harry Triguboff turns 93… Former justice of the Supreme Court of Israel, Dalia Dorner turns 92… Author of 32 books and the editor emeritus of Dissent magazine, Michael Laban Walzer turns 91… Researcher in Yiddish language at Sweden’s Lund University’s Centre for Languages and Literature, Henrik Lewis-Guttermann turns 77… Best-selling and Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer of financiers and politicians, Ron Chernow turns 77… President of CBS News until 2021, now president of See It Now Studios, Susan Zirinsky turns 74… Retired chief investment officer of Neuberger Berman, he served as president of AIPAC, Michael Kassen… Fashion designer and businessman, he is the founder and former CEO of an eponymous company, Steve Madden turns 68… NPR personality and the host and producer of the radio and television show “This American Life,” Ira Jeffrey Glass turns 67… Former director of policy for New York state under Gov. Andrew Cuomo, David Yassky turns 62… Israeli economist and diplomat, he served as Israel’s first ambassador to the UAE, Amir Hayek turns 62… MLB pitcher until 2001, his 557 appearances rank second in career games pitched by a Jewish pitcher, Scott David Radinsky turns 58… Co-founder and co-president of Clarity Capital, David Steinhardt turns 57… EVP and general counsel at Eli Lilly and Company, Anat Hakim… Founder of Bunk1, a provider of parent-engagement software for summer camps, he is a co-owner of the Miami Marlins, Ari Jack Ackerman… President and founder of Heppin Biosciences, Brett S. Abrahams, Ph.D. turns 53… Screenwriter and columnist in the Israeli newspaper Globes, Efrat Abramov turns 46… British rabbi who has run for mayor of London and of Manchester, Shneur Zalman Odze turns 45… Acting U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York for the first 24 days of the Trump 47 administration, Danielle R. Sassoon turns 40… Senior communications manager for Uber, she was the press secretary for former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, Freddi Goldstein… Manager of public policy for hate speech at TikTok, Erica H. Mindel… Member of AJR, an indie pop multi-instrumentalist trio, together with his two brothers, Ryan Metzger turns 32…
'We were able to take out dozens of launchers,’ IDF spokesperson says
Jack GUEZ/AFP via Getty Images
Rocket trails from Israel's Iron Dome missile defense system are seen over Tel Aviv on February 28, 2026.
A notable decrease in the number and frequency of Iranian missile strikes at Israel is the result of a focused strategy of hunting and aiming at launchers, Lt.-Col. Nadav Shoshani, the IDF’s spokesperson for international media, said on Tuesday.
“The missile and launcher hunt is happening in real time,” Shoshani told reporters. “We have been able to narrow [Iran’s] capability to fire missiles toward us. … We are putting our focus on continuing to do so in the coming days.”
“We were able to take out dozens of launchers,” since the operation began on Saturday, Shoshani said.
Shoshani said that Iran currently has “a lack of capability to fire in large amounts” and that there is a diminished rate of fire.
“I’m sure all of you in Israel can feel it,” he added. “We have significantly limited their ability to fire toward our civilians and other civilians in the region.”
At the same time, Shoshani said part of the reduction in missile launchers may be attributed to Iran trying to ensure it can keep the war going over the coming weeks.
The IDF is also prepared for the war to continue for weeks, but “it is early to give estimates,” Shoshani said, adding that “we are in a more positive scenario than [what] we looked at in the beginning of the war.”
Israel has also destroyed hundreds of Iranian missiles, but “launchers, that’s the real thing that’s important,” the spokesperson said.
Shoshani did not have readily available information on how many missiles Iran has shot, because the Islamic Republic attacked several countries in the region and not just Israel.
Asked if he expects Israeli boots on the ground in Iran, following President Donald Trump’s remarks about deploying U.S. ground troops “if necessary,” Shoshani said he does not see such a scenario as realistic for Israel.
Most of the targets the IDF struck were found after Operation Rising Lion began on Saturday, including radar and detection arrays, surface-to-air missile launchers, surface-to-surface missile launchers and related infrastructure, command and control centers, strategic military bases in Tehran, and facilities belonging to the regime’s repression and enforcement mechanisms.
Among those targets was the Iranian regime leadership’s compound in Tehran, which includes the presidential office, national security council and a training facility for military officers.
Israel’s “aerial superiority now allows the IDF to continuously strike the Iranian regime’s terror infrastructure — including its command-and-control centers and other high-value assets — not merely through isolated sorties, but through sustained operations, fundamentally shifting the operational reality in Operation Roaring Lion and enabling the IDF and the Israeli Air Force to operate freely in Iranian airspace,” the military spokesperson’s office said.
About 30 female aircrew members, including pilots and navigators, have taken part in the strikes on Iran in recent days.
Combat Navigator Maj. S, whose name was kept anonymous by the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit, said that she and her crew “prepared for this operation for a long time — hours of training and briefings.”
Maj.-Gen. Shlomi Binder, the IDF’s intelligence chief, said on Monday, “In 40 seconds, we eliminated more than 40 of the most important people in Iran … and we are not finished. … We intend to add to the list every day.”
“We are sending a very clear message to our enemies — there is no place where we will not find them,” Binder added. “Anyone who chooses to engage in such actions against the state of Israel, against the residents of the state of Israel, against our future here, we will find them, and we will eliminate them.”
As Israeli strikes in Lebanon continue as far north as Beirut, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said the IDF will move to “take control of additional strategic positions in Lebanon in order to prevent attacks on Israeli border communities.”
The IDF holds five positions in southern Lebanon, as permitted by the U.S.-negotiated late-2024 ceasefire, and Katz said he “authorized the IDF to advance and secure additional strategic areas in Lebanon, and from there to defend the border communities.”
Shoshani said that while Israel’s main goal is to “remove the existential threat” emanating from Iran, it is doing “we are acting defensively on the northern front in order to focus our effort on Iran.”
He also noted that “Hezbollah’s main lifeline is Iran,” and said that in the last year, Iran sent over $1 billion to its proxies, with Hezbollah getting the majority of the money.
Israel does not plan to evacuate civilians from towns on the Lebanon border as it did in October 2023, though they have been dealing with frequent drone and rocket attacks in recent days, Shoshani said.
The IDF struck over 70 weapons storage facilities, launch sites and missile launchers in Lebanon on Monday, the military said.
One target was Hezbollah’s intelligence headquarters. The IDF killed Hussein Makled, Hezbollah’s chief intelligence official, a role he took on after Israel eliminated his predecessor in November 2024.
The IDF also said it eliminated the commander of Palestinian Islamic Jihad in Lebanon, Abu Hamza Rami, who was “responsible for advancing and carrying out hundreds of terrorist attacks against IDF troops and Israeli civilians.”
Another target was the Al-Qard Al-Hassan Association, which Hezbollah has said provides social services to the people of Lebanon. Al-Qard Al-Hassan has been sanctioned by the U.S. and others since 2007, and as such, deals exclusively in cash, which the IDF sought to destroy.
According to the IDF, “the terrorist organization uses these services to create economic dependency on the association and to exploit public funds for the purchase of weapons and the payment of salaries to its operatives.”
Also on Monday, the IDF Home Front Command extended restrictions until Saturday night, including closing schools and nonessential workplaces, and prohibiting large gatherings.
Two major missile barrages hit Israel on Tuesday, with two injured in the first one in Israel’s north, and no casualties in the second. Overnight Monday, Magen David Adom released its final casualty count for an Iranian missile strike on Beersheba, where 21 were injured. Since Operation Roaring Lion was launched on Saturday, there have been at least 371 casualties, including 12 fatalities and two severely injured.
Iran continued its strikes around the Gulf on Monday, with a drone causing minor damage to a U.S. Embassy building in Riyadh. Among the sites damaged by Iranian projectiles were three Amazon facilities in the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.
Trump briefed leaders of two main Kurdish factions in Iraq on what may come next in the war, a step that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had encouraged him to take, Axios reported. Kurdish groups throughout the Middle East have had close security and intelligence ties with Israel for decades. The Kurdistan Freedom Party has also accused Iran of targeting them with missiles and drones.
‘You don’t have to drag him into anything. Donald Trump is the strongest leader in the world. He does what he thinks is right for America,’ Netanyahu said in his first interview since the operation began
SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images
President Donald Trump shakes hands with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a meeting in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on April 7, 2025.
In his first interview since the U.S. and Israel launched their joint military campaign against Iran, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu defended the timing of the operation’s launch and rebuffed the notion that he decisively pushed President Donald Trump to take action.
“The reason that we had to act now is because after we hit [Iran’s] nuclear sites and their ballistic missile program [in June 2025] … they started building new sites, new places, underground bunkers that would make their ballistic missile program and their atomic bomb program immune within months,” Netanyahu told Fox News host Sean Hannity on his show Monday night. “If no action was taken now, no action could be taken in the future.”
Without undertaking military operations, Netanyahu warned that Iran would be able to “target” and “blackmail America” and argued that Tehran could threaten the U.S. and Israel “and everyone in between.” He added that the moment was also opportune due to the Iranian regime being “at the weakest point that it’s been since it hijacked Iran from the brave Iranian people 47 years ago.”
When asked about allegations from critics of the operation that he had “dragged” the U.S. into a wider conflict with Iran, Netanyahu dismissed the notion, calling it “ridiculous.” He said that Trump made the decision on his own because he “understands” the threat Iran poses to the U.S.
“You don’t have to drag him into anything,” said Netanyahu. “Donald Trump is the strongest leader in the world. He does what he thinks is right for America.”
In comments Monday afternoon, both Secretary of State Rubio and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) suggested it was Israel’s determination to strike Iran, which would have prompted Iranian retaliation against U.S. assets, that necessitated U.S. preemptive action.
Netanyahu did not offer a timeline for how long he expects the joint operation to last; however, he emphasized that it will be “quick and decisive” and not an “endless war” as some critics have alleged.
“You’re not going to have an endless war,” said Netanyahu. “This is going to be a quick and decisive action, and we’re going to create the conditions first for the Iranian people to get control of their destiny, to form their own democratically elected government, which will make Iran different altogether. It may take some time, but it’s not going to take years.”
The prime minister argued that the current military confrontation is intended not only to neutralize an immediate threat but to reshape the region’s long-term trajectory, describing it as a potential “gateway to peace.”
“I think it changes the world,” Netanyahu said, arguing that dismantling Iran’s regime would remove what he called the Middle East’s primary driver of instability. “Iran has been the main engine of war over these years. Ninety-five percent of all the problems you see in the Middle East are generated by Iran and the worldwide terror network that they built.”
“When you take away Iran [Iranian leadership] — let the people of Iran have the opportunity to act and liberate themselves, free themselves from the work of this terror machine — you get a different future,” he added.
Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, however, have insisted that the U.S. objective in Iran is more constrained. The White House has asserted it is not seeking regime change, instead emphasizing that American action is narrowly focused on dismantling Tehran’s nuclear program, ballistic missile capabilities and naval assets.
Still, Netanyahu embraced a broader vision, suggesting that the fall of the Iranian regime would fundamentally reshape the region and open the door to normalization agreements and “many peace treaties” with Arab and Muslim-majority countries. He specifically pointed to Saudi Arabia as a potential partner.
“Saudi Arabia will have a lot to gain,” Netanyahu said. “All these countries around Iran are threatened by Iran. I think they [Arab countries] want to see this regime go down, even if they don’t publicly say that.”
“If Iran [Iranian leadership] is removed, that’s a great boon to Saudi Arabia, a great boon to these other countries, and I think peace between Israel and Saudi Arabia would be really possible — and probably very close — once this thing happens.”
Murphy: ‘Not a single one of us is safe from a future that mirrors the thousands of years of persecution that the Jewish people, with no self-determination, suffered under’
Jemal Countess/Getty Images for Fair Share America
Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) speaks at the U.S. Capitol on April 10, 2025 in Washington, DC.
Since the beginning of President Donald Trump’s second term, Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) has routinely adopted the argument that Trump poses a unique threat to American democracy. In an address on Monday at the J Street conference in Washington, Murphy leaned on Jewish history to tailor his case to fight Trump specifically to American Jews.
Murphy, who is considered a possible 2028 presidential candidate, invoked three pivotal moments in Jewish history that he said should inspire American Jews to speak out against what he described as Trump’s efforts to undercut democratic norms and procedures: the Bar Kokhba revolt against the Roman empire that led to the displacement of the Jewish diaspora; the Spanish Inquisition in 1492 that saw Jews flee Spain rather than face conversion or death; and pogroms under imperial Russia in which Jews had no recourse against state-sanctioned violence.
If American Jewry doesn’t stand up to Trump, Murphy said, they risk facing a similar fate in the United States.
“We are here today because we believe that this tragic history requires our world to make a home for the Jewish people in the Holy Land. That place is Israel. That place will always be Israel,” said Murphy, who has taken a harsher stance toward Israel in recent years. “When we criticize the government of Israel, when we speak up against its policies in places like Gaza or the West Bank, it is because we love Israel. It is out of our love for Israel and our belief that its current leaders are jeopardizing the future survival of that state.”
Yet he argued that the existence of a Jewish state should not preclude American Jews from fighting for the future of their own country.
“The answer to thousands of years of the Jewish people’s faith being decided by emperors and queens and czars is not and cannot simply be the State of Israel. No, the rest of the answer is simple. It’s democracy,” said Murphy. “In a working democracy, Jewish citizens are not subjects. They are not petitioners. They’re not guests to be expelled at the whim of a monarch. They are, you are, we are citizens.”
In the speech, Murphy criticized the U.S. attacks on Iran, saying Trump “launched an illegal war that the American people do not want” and that it amounts to “his most grievous assault on democracy.” But Murphy mostly used the stage to raise the alarm about democracy generally, saying America is “in the middle” of “a totalitarian takeover” and rallying J Street’s attendees to work to save it.
“You are here at maybe the most pivotal moment of all of our lifetimes when it comes to the preservation of self-determination, essential to the American project, essential to the future of the Jewish people all over the country,” said Murphy.
He closed by using a story about former Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir as a call to action. Murphy described her attendance at the 1938 Evian Conference on the shores of Lake Geneva, where 32 nations — led by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt — discussed the plight of Jews in Europe. Meir attended as a Zionist representative of British Mandatory Palestine.
“She was assigned the status of observer, forced to watch in silence as one by one the representatives of 32 nations rose to express their deepest sympathy for the Jewish people in Europe, and then one by one explained why their countries could not take them in,” said Murphy. “Years later, reflecting on what her experience at that pivotal conference had taught her, she put it simply. The Jews should not be dependent on anyone giving them permission to stay alive.”
But where Meir used that sentiment to justify her support for Zionism, Murphy argued that it should also apply to American Jews living in the diaspora.
“Today, Jews in America and a multitude of other groups that are still facing discrimination and bias are not observers like Golda Meir was in the late 1930s. In our democracy, however imperfect, we have self-determination,” said Murphy.
“What a gift to be alive,” Murphy offered in closing, “when our mission is to save a country and to remember that without self-governance and self-determination, not a single one of us is safe from a future that mirrors the thousands of years of persecution that the Jewish people, with no self-determination, suffered under.”
Edmonds refused to identify Jewish prisoners of war to SS soldiers, saving over 200 lives
Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty Images
President Donald Trump presents Chris Edmonds with the Medal of Honor on behalf of his father, Army Master Sergeant Roderick Edmonds, during a ceremony in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC, US, on Monday, March 2, 2026.
President Donald Trump posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor on Monday to Army Master Sgt. Roderick “Roddie” W. Edmonds, a World War II soldier whose defiance of a Nazi order saved more than 200 Jewish American prisoners of war.
“In 1941 Roddie Edmonds of Knoxville, Tenn., enlisted in the U.S. Army and soon rose to one of the youngest master sergeants in the military,” Trump said during the White House ceremony. “In 1944, he sailed to Europe to fight in World War II … and soon found himself on the front lines of the Battle of the Bulge.”
During the battle, Edmonds and his unit were captured by German forces and interned at Stalag IXA, a prisoner-of-war camp in Germany. As the senior non-commissioned officer among more than 1,200 American POWs, Edmonds was responsible for the welfare of his fellow soldiers.
Trump recounted the pivotal moment that would define Edmonds’ wartime legacy: on January 26, 1945, an SS officer ordered “only American Jews” to assemble for roll call the next morning, warning that anyone who disobeyed would be shot.
“There were more than 200 Jewish American soldiers in the camp,” Trump said. “Roddie knew their separation from the group would mean certain death, so that night, he summoned his team and devised a plan.”
Edmonds directed his senior leaders to have all 1,200 American prisoners present themselves for roll call. The next morning, the American soldiers “fell in line together, shoulder to shoulder.” The action enraged the Nazi commandant, who Trump said “pressed the barrel between Sgt. Edmonds’ eyes,” and demanded that Edmonds identify the Jewish soldiers or be shot.
“Staring right back into the raging face of evil, Sergeant Edmonds replied fearlessly: ‘We are all Jews here,’” said Trump. Edmonds also invoked the Geneva Convention, warning the commandant that executing prisoners for refusing to identify their religion would constitute a war crime.
“The Nazi officer lowered his weapon and the soldiers erupted,” said Trump. “With total disregard for his own life, Roddie had saved over 200 of his fellow service members and their camp was liberated two months later.”
Edmonds’ actions have been recognized as extraordinary moral courage. In 2015, Israel’s Yad Vashem awarded him the title Righteous Among the Nations, the highest honor for non-Jews who risked their lives to save Jews during the Holocaust. Edmonds is one of only five Americans on that list and the sole U.S. serviceman so honored.
Edmonds died in 1985 without ever having received official recognition for the actions that saved hundreds of lives. In fact, the events had remained unknown, even to his family, until uncovered decades later by his son, Chris Edmonds.
More than eight decades later, Trump said the Medal of Honor “so courageously earned” by Edmonds will not be forgotten. Edmonds’ son accepted the medal on his father’s behalf.
Plus, Tehran takes aim at global energy
Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu via Getty Images
Smoke rises from the area after it was targeted in attacks as a series of explosions are heard in Tehran, Iran on March 01, 2026.
Good Monday afternoon,
This P.M. edition is reserved for our premium subscribers — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
It’s me again — Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
President Donald Trump and senior U.S. defense officials laid out an open-ended timeline for the ongoing bombing campaign against Iran in several press briefings and interviews today, Jewish Insider’s Matthew Shea and Emily Jacobs report.
Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth both declined to rule out a U.S. ground invasion of Iran, while Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine announced more American troops are en route to the region. “Every president says, ‘There will be no boots on the ground.’ I don’t say it. I say ‘probably don’t need them,’ [or] ‘if they were necessary,’” Trump told the New York Post.
The president repeatedly said the operation is “ahead of schedule,” but added that the U.S. military is prepared to continue the campaign beyond his initial four-to-five-week timeline. Trump also told CNN that the “big wave” of strikes on Iran “hasn’t even happened. The big one is coming soon”…
On the American public’s perception of the strikes, Trump said, “I think that the polling is very good, but I don’t care about polling. I have to do the right thing. This should have been done a long time ago.” A new CNN poll found that 41% of Americans support the strikes against Iran, while 59% disapprove…
After Hezbollah jumped into the conflict by launching strikes on Israel overnight, prompting Israeli fire on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon in return, Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam banned the terror group’s “military activities,” restricting it “to the political sphere.”
Salam said the group’s actions are now “illegal” and called on the Lebanese Armed Forces to “prevent any attacks originating from Lebanese territory,” a long-awaited show of resolve from Beirut. The LAF has struggled to disarm Hezbollah forces since the signing of a ceasefire agreement with Israel in November 2024…
On a ground invasion of Lebanon, IDF spokesperson Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin said, similarly to the U.S. position on Iran, “all options are on the table”…
U.S. casualties in the course of the operation increased today to six servicemembers…
Qatar’s Ministry of Defense condemned attacks by Iran on a power plant and an oil facility in the country, further indicating Tehran is setting its sights on civilian and energy infrastructure. The targeted energy plant, Ras Laffan, is responsible for around a fifth of all global natural gas production — Qatar halted production after the strike which, along with decreased passage through the vital Strait of Hormuz, sent oil prices soaring…
Iran continues to sustain heavy losses: The U.S. said it has sunk all 11 of Iran’s warships in the Gulf of Oman while Qatar shot down two Iranian SU-24 tactical bombers, which were developed by Russia; the UAE also intercepted around 150 Iranian drones and 15 missiles today in addition to hundreds over the weekend…
U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer reiterated in an address to parliament today that Britain will not be joining the strikes on Iran but will allow the U.S. to use its bases for “defensive actions,” noting that Iran has already struck a military base in Bahrain that houses around 300 British troops. “France and Germany are also prepared to enable U.S. action to destroy Iran’s capability to fire missiles and drones from the source,” Starmer added.
Trump said he was “very disappointed” with Starmer in an interview with The Telegraph, saying the prime minister “took far too long” in deciding to allow U.S. forces to utilize its bases…
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte praised the campaign, calling it “really important … because it is taking out, degrading the capacity of Iran to get its hands on nuclear capability, the ballistic missile capability.” But, he said, “there are absolutely no plans whatsoever for NATO to get dragged into this”…
GOP lawmakers are pushing Democrats to agree to a funding deal for the still-shuttered Department of Homeland Security, as hostilities with Iran raise concerns about domestic terror threats…
The war is also making its way into some of the most heated primary races unfolding across the country: In North Carolina’s 4th Congressional District, anti-Israel activist Nida Allam, who is challenging Rep. Valerie Foushee (D-NC), put out a new campaign ad just before tomorrow’s primary slamming “Trump and Netanyahu’s reckless war.”
Allam accused the administration of using “our taxpayer dollars to bomb a school in Iran, killing over 100 elementary school children,” even though there has been no proof that the U.S. was responsible for the strike…
Some pro-Israel Democratic candidates in Illinois also took harsh stances against the Iran operation: state Sen. Laura Fine, running in Illinois’ 9th Congressional District, called for Trump’s impeachment, while Cook County Commissioner Donna Miller, running in the 2nd District, and Chicago Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin, running in the 7th District, called the strikes “reckless” and “immoral,” respectively…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye out in Jewish Insider for a rundown of the high-profile primaries on the ballot tomorrow in North Carolina and Texas.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz will meet with President Donald Trump at the White House for a conversation that was set to focus on negotiations between Russia and Ukraine but will likely be overshadowed by the ongoing operation against Iran. Germany joined the U.K. and France over the weekend in offering a supportive but cautious stance on the hostilities.
It will be a busy day on the Hill, where administration officials including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, CIA Director John Ratcliffe and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine will hold all-member briefings on Iran for the House and Senate. Rubio is briefing the Gang of Eight again this afternoon, and national security committees in both chambers were briefed over the weekend.
Elbridge Colby, the under secretary of defense for policy, will brief the Senate Armed Services Committee on the Pentagon’s National Defense Strategy; Colby has previously drawn bipartisan ire from the committee over a lack of consultation by his team and alleged rogue decision-making on a range of issues by his office.
The Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on oversight of the Department of Homeland Security with testimony from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.
The Capitol Jewish Forum will host its annual Capitol Hill Purim celebration, attended by a number of Jewish lawmakers.
Stories You May Have Missed
WEIGHING IN
As Iran war continues, Senate and House set for long-shot votes to cut it short
The resolutions are unlikely to pass; if they do, they will need two-thirds support to override an inevitable presidential veto
CLOSING RANKS
Arab states unite as Iran strikes every member of Gulf Cooperation Council
UAE and Saudi leaders spoke by phone; the GCC affirmed its ‘right to respond’
Without setting a definitive timeline, officials said more U.S. troops are headed to the region and would not rule out a U.S. ground invasion
Alex Wong/Getty Images
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth (L) speaks with Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine (R) during a news conference at the Pentagon on March 2, 2026 in Arlington, Virginia.
President Donald Trump and senior U.S. defense officials laid out an open-ended timeline for the ongoing operation against Iran on Monday, announcing more U.S. forces are headed to the region to carry out the American and Israeli campaign aimed at dismantling Tehran’s long-range strike capabilities and nuclear ambitions.
Speaking to reporters at the White House on Monday morning, Trump said that U.S. forces were “already substantially ahead of our time projections” with their mission in Iran, but added that the American military was prepared to continue the operation beyond his initial four-to-five week timeline.
“Whatever the time is, it’s OK. Whatever it takes,” Trump said at a Medal of Honor ceremony. “Right from the beginning, we projected four to five weeks, but we have capability to go far longer than that. We’ll do it.”
The president told CNN Monday morning that the “big wave hasn’t even happened. The big one is coming soon.”
Adm. Brad Cooper, head of CENTCOM, “will receive additional forces even today,” said Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, during a separate press briefing alongside Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. “This rapid buildup of forces demonstrated the joint forces ability to adapt and project power at the time and place of our nation’s choosing.”
Caine also made clear the weekend barrage was only the beginning.
“This is not a single overnight operation,” he said. Caine noted that the operation was the result of “months, and in some cases years,” of planning. “The military objectives that CENTCOM and the Joint Force have been tasked with will take some time to achieve, and in some cases, will be difficult and gritty work. We expect to take additional losses.” Four U.S. servicemembers have already been killed in the course of the operations.
While officials emphasized that there are currently no American boots on the ground in Iran, Hegseth declined to rule out the possibility, saying the United States “will go as far as we need to go to advance American interests.”
Trump similarly kept the door open to a ground invasion in an interview with the New York Post. “Every president says, ‘There will be no boots on the ground.’ I don’t say it,” Trump said. “I say ‘probably don’t need them,’ [or] ‘if they were necessary.’”
Hegseth likewise acknowledged that a military effort “of this scope will include casualties” and declined to provide a timeline for completion. “President Trump has all the latitude in the world to talk about how long it may or may not take, four weeks, two weeks, six weeks, it could move up. It could move back,” Hegseth said.
“The commander in chief sets the tempo in terms of this fight. As I said, it’s on his terms,” said Hegseth. “Why in the world would we tell the enemy exactly how long we’ll go or how far we’ll go?”
“To the media outlets and political left screaming ‘endless wars’ — stop,” Hegseth added. “This is not Iraq. This is not endless.” He argued that the operation is “clear, devastating, decisive” with narrowly defined objectives: “destroy the missile threat, destroy the Navy, no nukes.”
Trump also laid out his four priorities for the campaign: “First, we’re destroying Iran’s missile capabilities … Second, we’re annihilating their navy … Third, we’re ensuring that the world’s number one sponsor of terror can never obtain a nuclear weapon … And finally, we’re ensuring that the Iranian regime cannot continue to arm, fund, and direct terrorist armies outside of their borders,” he said.
Hegseth insisted the campaign is not designed to topple Iran’s government, stressing that “this is not a war of regime change.” However, he noted that “the regime sure did change, and the world is better off for it today.”
Iranian leadership “had every chance to make a peaceful and sensible deal, but Tehran was not negotiating,” said Hegseth. “They were stalling, buying time to reload their missile stockpiles and restart their nuclear ambitions.”
Hegseth framed the military confrontation as the culmination of decades of Iranian aggression against the United States, arguing that Tehran’s missile and proxy network had created a conventional shield for its nuclear ambitions and left American forces and allies in its crosshairs.
“For 47 long years, the expansionist and Islamist regime in Tehran has waged a savage, one-sided war against America,” said Hegseth, calling the moment a “generational turning point.”
“We didn’t start this war, but under President Trump, we are finishing it,” Hegseth said.
Speaking about cooperation with partners, Hegseth noted that Israel “did a great job in the conduct of that operation,” also stating that the U.S.’ integrated air and missile defense network has intercepted “hundreds of ballistic missiles targeting U.S. forces, our partners and regional stability.”
“As the threat grew, our partners surged in beside us,” said Hegseth. “Air defense batteries in Qatar, the UAE, Kuwait, Jordan and Saudi Arabia joined the fight. Proof that years of training, trust and hard-earned integration pay off.”
Plus, conflict expands as Hezbollah strikes Israel
Mowj / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images
Plumes of smoke rise following reported explosions allegedly near Iran's Ministry of Intelligence on Araqi Street in Tehran on March 1, 2026.
👋 Good Monday morning!
In today’s Daily Kickoff, we report on the ongoing joint U.S.-Israeli military operations against Iran that began Saturday morning, and look at the responses from Gulf states, Capitol Hill and U.S. allies as the conflict enters its third day. We cover Columbia University’s effort to distance itself from the Columbia University Apartheid Divest group that called for “death to America” over the weekend, and report on Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner’s recent appearance on a podcast hosted by antisemitic conspiracy theorist Nate Cornacchia. Also in today’s Daily Kickoff: Simone Rodan-Benzaquen, Sen. Chris Van Hollen and Jean-Luc Mélenchon.
Today’s Daily Kickoff was curated by JI Executive Editor Melissa Weiss and Israel Editor Tamara Zieve, with assists from Danielle Cohen-Kanik and Marc Rod. Have a tip? Email us here.
What We’re Watching
- Purim begins tonight, in which Jews around the world will read from the Book of Esther and recount the Jewish people’s victory over Haman in ancient Persia.
- Our teams in Israel, New York and Washington are covering the latest news and reports as the U.S. and Israel carry out operations targeting Iran, and as the Islamic Republic launches strikes across the region, with the majority targeting Israel and the United Arab Emirates. More below.
- Overnight, Hezbollah launched its first attacks on Israel in more than a year, firing projectiles toward population centers in northern Israel and prompting retaliatory Israeli strikes on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon. More below.
- The International Atomic Energy Agency is convening a special session of its Board of Governors in Vienna today, which was requested by Russia to focus on the joint U.S.-Israeli military operations targeting Iran, following a board meeting that was scheduled prior to the start of the weekend hostilities.
- President Donald Trump will posthumously award the Medal of Honor to Master Sgt. Roddie Edmonds, who during World War II saved the lives of the hundreds of Jewish soldiers under his command at a POW camp in Nazi Germany. Trump is expected to take questions from the media at the event.
- The J Street national conference continues today in Washington. More below.
What You Should Know
A QUICK WORD WITH JI’S MELISSA WEISS
As joint U.S.-Israeli operations against Iran and the Islamic Republic’s ballistic missile and drone attacks continue into a third day, all parties are planning for what could be a conflict that stretches across weeks, despite the decapitation of nearly all of Iran’s senior-most officials in the opening salvos of the war.
On his Truth Social site, President Donald Trump doubled down on his push for Iranian protesters to take action, calling on “all Iranian patriots who yearn for freedom to seize this moment, to be brave, be bold, be heroic and take back your country. America is with you. I made a promise to you, and I fulfilled that promise. The rest will be up to you, but we’ll be there to help.”
Trump said on Sunday that the U.S. had sunk nine Iranian warships and destroyed Tehran’s naval headquarters as it works to dismantle the country’s entire naval fleet.
The president told numerous media outlets over the weekend that the time frame for operations would take four to five weeks, but said that Iranian officials “want to talk, and I have agreed to talk, so I will be talking to them.” Read more here.
Ali Larijani, the head of Iran’s National Security Council, refuted the claim, saying, “We will not negotiate with the United States.”
With the status of talks and any potential off-ramps in question, strikes continue in Israel and Iran, with Iranian proxy Hezbollah entering the hostilities early this morning with missile barrages targeting northern Israel.
The last 48 hours have scrambled and deepened alliances across the Middle East as a number of Arab states coalesced behind the U.S. In a joint statement released Sunday night, the U.S., Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates slammed Iran’s “indiscriminate and reckless missile and drone attacks against sovereign territories across the region” and said the countries “stand united in defense of our citizens, sovereignty, and territory, and reaffirm our right to self-defense in the face of these attacks.”
NORTHERN FRONT
Day 3: Israel-Iran conflict expands to southern Lebanon
Israel expanded its war effort against Iran to southern Lebanon on Monday after Iranian proxy Hezbollah launched rockets and drones at Israel overnight, Jewish Insider’s Lahav Harkov reports.
What he said: “We have launched an offensive campaign against Hezbollah,” Lt.-Gen. Eyal Zamir, the IDF’s chief of staff, said in a situational assessment on Monday. “We are not only operating defensively — we are now going on the offensive as well. We must prepare for many prolonged days of combat ahead.” The war against Iran and Hezbollah “requires strong defensive readiness and sustained offensive readiness, operating in continuous waves while constantly utilizing opportunities,” Zamir said.
By the numbers: The U.S. and Israel have suffered casualties throughout the weekend, including 12 civilians killed in Israel and three U.S. servicemembers killed during operations. Three U.S. F-15 fighter jets were accidentally shot down in a friendly fire incident over Kuwait late last night, CENTCOM announced, but all pilots ejected safely.
More from Zamir: The U.S. and Israeli militaries planned attacks on Iran for months, marking “unprecedented cooperation,” Zamir said on Saturday, hours after the launch of what Israel has called Operation Roaring Lion and the U.S. has called Operation Epic Fury, JI’s Lahav Harkov reports.
WEIGHING IN
As Iran war continues, Senate and House set for long-shot votes to cut it short
As the U.S.-Israel air war against Iran continues, the Senate and House are set to vote this week on war powers resolutions that would aim to cut the operations short, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
On the agenda: The resolutions, if passed, would force the administration to end the war, withdraw forces and cease operations against the Iranian regime. It’s almost certain that the resolution will not pass the Senate; the House vote may be closer but it is also not likely to pass. And even if the resolutions were to pass, they would not have the two-thirds support necessary to overcome an inevitable presidential veto. But the resolutions will be an opportunity for Democrats — and a small number of Republicans — to go on record demonstrating their opposition to the war and dissatisfaction with the administration’s approach. The Senate is expected to vote on Tuesday or Wednesday, with the House voting on Wednesday or Thursday.
Congressional reax: A number of Republican lawmakers rallied behind President Donald Trump’s military strikes against Iran on Saturday, while leading Democrats expressed quick and strident opposition to the operations, JI’s Marc Rod reports.
closing ranks
Arab states unite as Iran strikes every member of Gulf Cooperation Council
Major Gulf powers are coming together in rare lockstep amid Iran’s strikes around the region, with the United Arab Emirates closing its embassy in Iran and the Gulf Cooperation Council declaring it retains the right to respond. After the U.S. and Israel launched a major operation against Iran on Saturday, the regime struck sites in at least nine countries around the Middle East, including Israel, Jordan, Syria and every member of the Gulf Cooperation Council — Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, Jewish Insider’s Danielle Cohen-Kanik reports. Despite claiming it is aiming at U.S. military assets in the region, Iran has struck widely at civilian infrastructure, including hotels, residential neighborhoods and airports in the UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait and Iraq.
Putting differences aside: On Saturday, the first day of the operation, UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed spoke by phone with Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to discuss Iran’s aggression and their response, a significant development and sign of the seriousness of the issue amid a regional rift between the two major powers. On Sunday, the ministerial council of the GCC held a meeting over video conference and issued a statement strongly condemning Iran’s attacks and affirming the countries’ “legal right to respond.”
Allies assemble: President Donald Trump’s decision to launch a military campaign against Iran has earned unexpected support from Western leaders who have otherwise sparred with Trump, particularly on trade policy. Canada and Australia, both of which are led by liberal parties, robustly backed the strikes that began on Saturday morning, JI’s Gabby Deutch reports.
TAKING AIM
Chris Van Hollen, in J Street address, calls AIPAC anti-American
Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) took aim at the pro-Israel advocacy group AIPAC during an address on Sunday morning at the opening plenary of J Street’s convention in Washington and accused it of being un-American. Van Hollen elicited a loud chorus of boos in response to his description of AIPAC’s opposition to legislation he had sponsored seeking to place conditions on U.S. military assistance to Israel, Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch reports from the conference.
What he said: “I put forward months and months ago a proposal that said, with respect to any country, any country that receives U.S. military assistance — has to agree to, No. 1, comply by American law and by international law. You know who came out against that? AIPAC came out against that,” Van Hollen said. Read more here.
Two-way street: The first speaker on the conference’s main stage on Sunday, Rabbi Rick Jacobs, the president of the Union for Reform Judaism, took an unusual departure from J Street’s position on the U.S.-Israeli operations against Iran by noting that the organization’s positions are not the only ones that should be taken seriously in the Jewish community. J Street quickly came out against the attacks. “I’m certain that many in this gathering agree, as a matter of principle and foreign policy, with the J Street statement,” Jacobs said. “Many in our congregations might also agree. But America’s Jewish congregations are diverse, filled with good, moral people who differ on complex issues, as those raised by the Iran attacks.”
Info wars: The Congressional Progressive Caucus organized an “emergency convening” on Saturday evening for members to receive a briefing on Iran from the Quincy Institute’s Trita Parsi and former Obama administration official Ben Rhodes, according to an invitation obtained by JI’s Marc Rod.
PROBLEMATIC PODCAST
Platner sat for lengthy interview with antisemitic conspiracy theorist, said he was ‘longtime fan’ of his show
Weeks before Graham Platner promoted an antisemitic conspiracy theorist in a now-deleted social media post on Thursday, the controversial Maine Senate candidate appeared on a popular YouTube show whose host has spread specious claims about Jews and Israel, Jewish Insider’s Matthew Kassel reports. Platner faced blowback last week for boosting a social media comment about a looming war with Iran by Stew Peters, a neo-Nazi influencer who has frequently espoused antisemitic tropes and engaged in Holocaust denial. Platner’s team said the post was made in error and “immediately” removed it after learning it elevated a “despicable account.”
Yes, but: In late January, Platner sat for a lengthy online interview with Nate Cornacchia, a retired Green Beret who has also promoted antisemitic conspiracy theories. Near the end of their hour-long conversation, Platner, a fellow military veteran, called himself “a longtime fan” of Cornacchia’s YouTube channel, “Valhalla VFT,” and said it was “an absolute pleasure being” on the show.
Endorsement alert: Platner picked up the endorsement of Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), who became the second sitting senator to endorse the far-left candidate after Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT).
CREATING DISTANCE
Columbia denies connection to student group posting ‘death to America’ over Iran strikes
Columbia University distanced itself from Columbia University Apartheid Divest, a coalition of over 80 university student groups, after it posted “death to America” in Farsi in response to U.S. strikes on Iran, denying that current students are behind the account, Jewish Insider’s Haley Cohen reports.
Back and forth: “Marg bar Amrika,” CUAD posted on X on Saturday after U.S. and Israel’s joint strikes killed Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the country’s supreme leader — using a phrase that was frequently invoked by Khamenei. The post was deleted, but CUAD doubled down, writing in a new post, “X forced us to delete our ‘marg bar amrika’ tweet in order to gain back access to our account but the sentiment still stands.” Columbia responded that “the group that calls itself ‘CUAD’ is not a recognized student group, or affiliated in any way with the University.”
Bonus: Columbia reached a settlement with Jewish students, represented by the StandWithUs Center for Legal Justice, Students Against Antisemitism and Kasowitz LLP, in which the school says it will commit “to additional programming on antisemitism and scholarships for students who have worked, studied or lived in Israel.”
Worthy Reads
Misjudging Trump: In The New York Times, Gen. Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr., the former head of U.S. Central Command, posits that Iran “misjudged” President Donald Trump’s willingness to deviate from decades of U.S. foreign policy vis-à-vis Tehran. “For decades, Iran managed to bluff American presidents. It deterred attacks from a superpower and carried out proxy campaigns against its neighbors and Israel. Our strikes on Iran on Saturday are evidence that this long-term strategy of negotiating in bad faith is bankrupt. The military campaign underway is the direct result of Iranian leaders’ foot-dragging, obfuscation and delay tactics. … The president is the unique advantage we have in the region. For the first time in decades, American military power in the Middle East deployed against Iran is coupled with a commander in chief who isn’t afraid to use it.” [NYTimes]
A Gulf Between Them: The Wall Street Journal’s Yaroslav Trofimov talks to diplomats and analysts who suggest that Iran erred in its calculus that targeting Arab nations would increase pressure to end U.S. and Israeli strikes on the Islamic Republic. “Gulf states, rattled by volleys of Iranian drones and missiles targeting their hotels, ports and airports, are concluding the Iranian peril must be confronted. Rather than seeking an offramp, the prevailing mood in the Gulf — at least for now — is that the Iranian regime can’t be allowed to get away with this unprecedented onslaught on its neighbors. … Meanwhile, [Saudi political analyst Ali Shihabi] added, Iranian attacks on Gulf states have removed any embarrassment that these monarchies had in cooperating with the U.S. military campaign. It is unlikely that Saudi Arabia, the U.A.E. and other Gulf states will just keep absorbing Iranian blows for long, officials in the region said. One possibility is to start targeting missile and drone launch sites inside Iran.” [WSJ]
Equal Partners: The Atlantic’s Eliot Cohen considers the key role that “sophisticated, creative, and bold allies, such as Israel,” are playing in operations against Iran. “Today, however, the Israeli air force is equipped with the latest American aircraft and its own and American munitions, and is operating on a scale that no U.S. European ally could match in this theater. That is an astonishing thing. … Behind the sounds of jets and explosions lies another dimension of this war, and one in which the Israelis, who have been preparing for this for decades, are equal partners with the United States. It is a campaign in the shadows, composed of intelligence gathering, assassination, covert action, and special operations.” [TheAtlantic]
Word on the Street
Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides said that an Iranian attack drone hit a British air base in Cyprus overnight, causing limited damage and no casualties; two additional drones were intercepted on Monday morning, according to Cypriot authorities…
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani slammed joint U.S.-Israeli airstrikes on Iran in a statement Saturday — without placing fault with Tehran in his reaction; Mamdani’s statement reiterated his police department’s earlier pledge to boost local security, and also attacked Israel and the United States for “an illegal war of aggression,” Jewish Insider’s Will Bredderman reports…
As California’s gubernatorial race heats up, five leading candidates said at a forum on Thursday that they are committed to deepening the state’s partnership with Israel and fighting efforts to boycott the Jewish state, Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch reports…
The FBI is probing whether a deadly shooting that occurred in Austin, Texas, over the weekend was prompted by the U.S. strikes on Iran, with sources saying that the suspect, a 53-year-old Senegalese immigrant, was wearing a sweatshirt that said “Property of Allah” over a T-shirt with an Iranian flag design…
The University of Toronto is investigating instructional materials used by the dean of the university’s dentistry school that displayed antisemitic imagery; in an apology email, Anil Kishen said he used the images “without appreciating” their context and potential impact on the Jewish community…
U.K. authorities arrested a man accused of vandalizing a statue of Winston Churchill in London’s Parliament Square last week with graffiti branding the British leader a “Zionist war criminal”; additional charges were levied against the man for his membership in the Palestine Action group, whose status as a terror organization is in limbo following a court’s ruling that the government’s designation was illegal…
Jean-Luc Mélenchon, the leader of the far-left La France Insoumise party, is facing accusations of antisemitism over a speech last week in Lyon in which he mocked the pronunciation of Jeffrey Epstein’s name…
Simone Rodan-Benzaquen, formerly the head of the American Jewish Committee’s Europe operations, is joining the Foundation for Defense of Democracies as the think tank’s senior envoy to Europe…
Historian Donald Makovsky, the father of JINSA’s Michael Makovsky and The Washington Institute’s David Makovsky, died last week…
Singer and songwriter Neil Sedaka died at 86…
Philanthropist and art collector Iris Cantor died at 95…
Pic of the Day
Members of the Iranian diaspora in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles celebrated on Sunday the death of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Birthdays
Former culture reporter for The New York Times, David L. Itzkoff turns 50…
Restaurateur, lawyer, financier and former owner of Braniff International Airlines, Jeffrey Chodorow turns 76… Comedian, actress and writer, she was part of the original cast of NBC’s “Saturday Night Live,” Laraine Newman turns 74… Former U.S. senator from Wisconsin, Russ Feingold turns 73… Member of the Knesset for the National Unity Party, Alon Natan Schuster turns 69… Anesthesiologist in Skokie, Ill., Samuel M. Parnass, M.D…. Director of Judaism and Israel education at the Jewish Community Relations Council of Minnesota and the Dakotas, Sally G. Abrams… Member of the New York State Assembly, Alec Brook-Krasny turns 68… Consultant in public affairs, Mitch Bainwol turns 67… Author and reporter for The New York Times where she covers power players in New York City, Katherine “Katie” Rosman turns 54… Executive director of the Jewish Orthodox Feminist Alliance, Daphne Lazar-Price… Editor and director of communications at Twin Cities, Minnesota’s TC Jewfolk (a Jewish news, events and culture online media hub), Lonny Goldsmith… Israeli hip-hop singer and rapper better known as Mooki, Daniel Neyburger turns 51… Former member of the Knesset for the Kadima party, Yuval Zellner turns 48… Director of marketing at Window Nation, Eric Goldscher… Chief of staff for Rep. Maxwell Alejandro Frost (D-FL-10), Yuri Beckelman… Israeli journalist and radio newscaster, Dr. Hila Chaya Korach turns 42… VP at This Machine Filmworks in Los Angeles, Sally Rosen Phillips… Founding member of CoS Mastermind Network, a vetted community of chiefs of staff, Kaylee Berger Porco… Project manager at Halo Development, Donni Lurman…
The president predicted a four to five week timeline for the military campaign against Iran in several interviews over the weekend
Daniel Torok/White House via Getty Images
President Donald Trump oversees "Operation Epic Fury" at Mar-a-Lago on February 28, 2026 in Palm Beach, Florida.
President Donald Trump said over the weekend that Iran’s new leadership has made overtures to restart diplomatic negotiations with the U.S. — which he plans to accept — after Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed during Israeli and U.S. strikes in the country.
Still, the president warned that strikes would continue until their objectives had been achieved.
Trump made the comments while speaking to The Atlantic on Sunday morning, one of a series of interviews he gave after launching a joint military operation against Iran alongside Israel on Saturday. The president has been touting Operation Epic Fury to journalists as an immediate success, arguing that the removal of Khamenei and 47 others in senior Iranian leadership has provided a window for diplomacy as the U.S. military operation swiftly advances.
“They want to talk, and I have agreed to talk, so I will be talking to them,” Trump told The Atlantic. “They should have done it sooner. They should have given what was very practical and easy to do sooner. They waited too long.”
The commander-in-chief declined to say when he plans to begin engaging with the Iranians, instead noting that most of the Iranians involved in past negotiations with the U.S. are now deceased.
“Most of those people are gone. Some of the people we were dealing with are gone, because that was a big — that was a big hit,” Trump said. “They should have done it sooner. They could have made a deal. They should’ve done it sooner. They played too cute.”
Asked if he was willing to extend the bombing campaign in order to support a popular uprising in Iran, should it unfold, the president was similarly coy, telling the outlet: “I have to look at the situation at the time it happens … You can’t give an answer to that question.”
In a video posted to his Truth Social platform on Sunday afternoon, however, Trump spoke directly to the protesters, calling upon “all Iranian patriots who yearn for freedom to seize this moment, to be brave, be bold, be heroic and take back your country. America is with you. I made a promise to you, and I fulfilled that promise. The rest will be up to you, but we’ll be there to help.”
Further illuminating his thinking, Trump wrote on Truth Social on Saturday shortly after the killing of Khamenei, “We are hearing that many of their IRGC, Military, and other Security and Police Forces, no longer want to fight, and are looking for Immunity from us … Hopefully, the IRGC and Police will peacefully merge with the Iranian Patriots, and work together as a unit to bring back the Country to the Greatness it deserves. That process should soon be starting.”
“The heavy and pinpoint bombing, however, will continue, uninterrupted throughout the week or, as long as necessary to achieve our objective” of world peace, he wrote.
In an interview on Saturday evening with CBS News’ Robert Costa, Trump said he believes that the joint U.S.-Israeli attacks on Iran that killed Khamenei made diplomacy “much easier now than it was a day ago, obviously, because they are getting beat up badly.”
As for the military operation itself, Trump suggested in subsequent conversations on Sunday with The Daily Mail and The New York Times that the U.S. could be involved for another four to five weeks.
“It’s always been a four-week process. We figured it will be four weeks or so,” Trump told the U.K. tabloid. “It’s always been about a four week process so — as strong as it is, it’s a big country, it’ll take four weeks or less.”
He repeated the four to five week timeline in interviews with Axios’ Barak Ravid on Saturday and The New York Times on Sunday.
“I can go long and take over the whole thing,” Trump told Ravid by phone, “or end it in two or three days and tell the Iranians: ‘See you again in a few years if you start rebuilding [your nuclear and missile programs].’”
Trump later predicted to Ravid that, “In any case, it will take them several years to recover from this attack.”
Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Tom Cotton (R-AR) echoed the president’s predictions, telling CBS’ “Face the Nation” on Sunday that Trump has “no plan for any kind of large-scale ground force inside Iran.”
“The president has been clear that what we should expect to see is an extended air and naval campaign that’s designed not only to continue to set back Iran’s nuclear ambitions, but most importantly, to destroy its vast missile arsenal, many more missiles than the United States and Israel have air defenses combined, as well as the missile launchers and its missile manufacturing capability,” said Cotton, one of the president’s more hawkish GOP allies on Capitol Hill.
“Now obviously one risk of that kind of campaign is that an aircraft could be shot down, and the president would never leave a pilot behind,” he continued. “So no doubt we have combat search and rescue assets in the region that are prepared to go in and extract any downed pilot. But barring that kind of unusual circumstance, the president has no plan for any kind of large-scale ground force inside of Iran.”
Canada and Australia immediately offered support; European leaders signaled changing views amid Iran’s indiscriminate attacks in the region
Kay Nietfeld/picture alliance via Getty Images
French President Emmanuel Macron (l-r), German Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) and Keir Starmer, Prime Minister of Great Britain, meet in The Hague at the delegation hotel on the sidelines of the NATO summit for trilateral talks in the E3 format.
President Donald Trump’s decision to launch a military campaign against Iran has earned unexpected support from Western leaders who have otherwise sparred with Trump, particularly on trade policy. Canada and Australia, both of which are led by liberal parties, robustly backed the strikes that began on Saturday morning.
“We support the United States acting to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and to prevent Iran continuing to threaten international peace and security,” Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said in a statement on Saturday.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, speaking to reporters during a trip to India, also threw his support behind the U.S.: “Canada supports the United States acting to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and to prevent its regime from further threatening international peace and security,” he said.
Meanwhile, three powerful European allies known as the E3 — France, Germany and the United Kingdom — were more circumspect after the military campaign began, with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz calling on Saturday for nuclear negotiations to resume.
But by late Sunday, as Iran doubled down on its campaign of retaliation against American and Western assets across the Middle East, the E3 nations inched toward support for Washington with a statement strongly calling on Iran to cease its “indiscriminate and disproportionate missile attacks.”
“We call on Iran to stop these reckless attacks immediately. We will take steps to defend our interests and those of our allies in the region, potentially through enabling necessary and proportionate defensive action to destroy Iran’s capability to fire missiles and drones at their source,” the E3 leaders said. “We have agreed to work together with the U.S. and allies in the region on this matter.”
Meanwhile, security tightens in NYC as NYPD and Gov. Hochul boost presence around Jewish and Iranian institutions
Kyle Mazza/Anadolu via Getty Images
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani slammed joint U.S.-Israeli airstrikes on Iran in a statement Saturday — without placing fault with Tehran in his reaction.
Mamdani released a statement that reiterated his police department’s earlier pledge to boost local security, and also attacked Israel and the United States for “an illegal war of aggression.” But unlike other Democrats who have spoken out against the air campaign, he mentioned neither the atrocities committed by the Iranian regime against its own citizens, nor President Donald Trump, with whom he met just days ago.
“Today’s military strikes on Iran — carried out by the United States and Israel — mark a catastrophic escalation in an illegal war of aggression. Bombing cities. Killing civilians. Opening a new theater of war,” he wrote. “Americans do not want this. They do not want another war in pursuit of regime change. They want relief from the affordability crisis. They want peace.”
The NYPD declared Saturday morning it was “closely monitoring” the situation in the Middle East and working with federal and international law enforcement. It further promised pre-emptive steps to increase security at potential targets, though it did not indicate whether it was aware of any specific threat.
“As is our protocol and out of an abundance of caution, we will be enhancing patrols to sensitive locations throughout the city, including diplomatic, cultural, religious, and other relevant sites,” the department tweeted.
The NYPD did not respond to queries about specific actions, but videos on social media showed members of the department’s Counter-Terrorism Task Force at Manhattan’s iconic Temple Emanu-El as well as outside the Iranian consulate.
Gov. Kathy Hochul similarly vowed that she would deploy state troopers to guard vulnerable sites, even as she said “there were no specific, credible threats to New York.” She noted the impending start of Purim Monday night as cause to coordinate with the leaders of the Jewish community.
“State Police are increasing their presence at religious, diplomatic, and cultural sites statewide in coordination with federal, state, and local law enforcement partners,” the Democrat wrote in a statement. “Additionally, in advance of the Jewish holiday of Purim, State Police remain alert and have already begun outreach to religious organizations to offer support.”
Meanwhile, organizations affiliated with China-based left-wing tech tycoon Neville Roy Singham — known for promoting geopolitical narratives favorable to Beijing and its allies in Moscow and Tehran — including the People’s Forum and CODE PINK kicked off a protest against the strikes in Times Square on Saturday afternoon.
Joining them, according to promotional materials, are the Democratic Socialists of America, the Palestinian Youth Movement, and the National Iranian American Council, known as the country’s de facto lobbying group in the United States.
President Donald Trump confirmed the news, calling Khamenei ‘one of the most evil people in history’
Iranian Leader Press Office / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei makes remarks in Tehran, Iran, on May 20, 2025.
President Donald Trump confirmed on Saturday that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the supreme leader of Iran and the country’s highest political and religious authority, was killed during Israeli and U.S. strikes in the country.
“Khamenei, one of the most evil people in History, is dead. This is not only Justice for the people of Iran, but for all Great Americans, and those people from many Countries throughout the World, that have been killed or mutilated by Khamenei and his gang of bloodthirsty THUGS,” Trump wrote.
Israeli media reported he was killed in an Israeli strike on his compound in Tehran. He was 86.
Khamenei had led Iran since 1989, succeeding Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, who took over the country as part of his Islamic Revolution in 1979. Over more than three decades in power, he oversaw major shifts in Iran’s domestic politics, military posture and regional strategy, moves that resulted in the Islamic Republic becoming the world’s leading exporter of terrorism through proxies such as Hamas and Hezbollah.
As supreme leader, Khamenei exercised ultimate authority over the armed forces, judiciary, state broadcasting and key political appointments. He maintained final say over defense and foreign policy, including Iran’s nuclear program, and appointed top commanders of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
The IRGC became the primary instrument of Khamenei’s rule. He cultivated and empowered it for decades, and the IRGC in turn underwrote his domestic authority and Iran’s regional ambitions across Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Yemen and Gaza through what he called the “Axis of Resistance.”
His foreign policy was defined by two poles of opposition: the United States, which he called Iran’s “No. 1 enemy,” and Israel, whose destruction he repeatedly called for in rhetoric that mixed geopolitical calculation with antisemitic tropes. Under his leadership, Iran became what the U.S. State Department designated the world’s foremost state sponsor of terrorism.
No successor has been publicly named, and with much of the IRGC’s senior leadership also reported killed in Saturday’s strikes, the question of who fills the vacuum left by Khamenei will mark a pivotal moment in Iran’s history.
Most Democrats are pushing for a war powers resolution next week, amid ongoing military operations
Win McNamee/Getty Images
The American flag flies in front of the U.S. Capitol on February 28, 2026 in Washington, DC. U.S.
A number of Republican lawmakers rallied behind President Donald Trump’s military strikes against Iran on Saturday, while leading Democrats expressed quick and strident opposition to the administration’s decision to attack Iran.
Democrats are also demanding Congress reconvene promptly next week to vote on war powers resolutions to block further military operations in Iran without congressional approval. The resolutions were already expected to come up for votes in the coming week.
A few Democratic lawmakers sounded more open-minded about the attack against Tehran. Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA), one of the few foreign policy hawks in his party, said the president “was absolutely” correct to attack Iran in an appearance on Fox News. “God bless the United States, our great military, and Israel,” Fetterman said.
Rep. Greg Landsman (D-OH), who told Jewish Insider earlier this week that limited strikes on Iran could be necessary and productive, echoed that stance on Saturday. He said that he would oppose the war powers resolution.
“I hope these targeted strikes on the Iranian regime’s military assets end the regime’s mayhem and bloodshed and makes way for this lasting peace in the region,” Landsman said. “Thank you to our brave service members who are leading this effort, and I pray their work will finally free the people of Iran and those in the region from more violence or war. May peace emerge from all of this.”
Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), who had been planning to oppose the war powers resolution, praised the attack while highlighting the administration’s obligations under the War Powers Act, which limits the duration for which the president can unilaterally commit forces to armed conflict without congressional approval.
“Today, the United States, with our key democratic ally Israel, took decisive action to defend our national security, fight terror, protect our allies and stand with the Iranian people who have been massacred in the streets for demanding freedom from the murderous Iranian regime,” Gottheimer said. “I applaud the extraordinary bravery and professionalism of our servicemembers and pray for their safety as Iran and its terrorist proxies retaliate against American bases and our partners in the region.”
“Confronting the Iranian threat is essential to America’s national security and to global stability. The world is safer because of the courage and skill of our service members. I am praying for their safety and the safety of all of our allies who have been targeted by Iranian retaliation,” he continued.
Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-NV) offered more muted support for the operation, praising U.S. servicemembers while saying she “stand[s] with the Iranian people in their hope for a better future and will continue to work in a bipartisan way in Congress to provide them the support they need.” She called for an immediate and detailed briefing on the administration’s plans, and highlighted Iran’s long record of malign activity and attacks on its own citizens.
But Rosen also warned against a protracted conflict and criticized the lack of congressional authorization.
Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-NY), among the most moderate Democrats in the House and a potential swing vote on the war powers resolution, said Trump needs to seek congressional authorization for the operation, while offering support for the administration’s goals.
“I agree with the President’s objectives that Iran can never be allowed to obtain nuclear capabilities. The President must now clearly define the national security objective and articulate his plan to avoid another costly, prolonged war in the Middle East,” Suozzi said. “Iran remains the leading state sponsor of terrorism in the region and must never be allowed to obtain a nuclear weapon. Preventing that outcome is vital to our national security, the safety of our allies, and the stability of the Middle East.”
Most of the leading voices in the Democratic Party, however, are rallying against the Iran attack.
Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA), who is leading a war powers resolution in the Senate that he planned to call up for a vote next week, said in a statement, “Every single Senator needs to go on the record about this dangerous, unnecessary, and idiotic action,” calling the strikes a “colossal mistake,” accusing the president of having “learned nothing from decades of U.S. meddling in Iran and forever wars in the Middle East” and of being “mentally incapacitated.”
Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA), who is leading similar legislation in the House, said that “the American people are tired of regime change wars that cost us billions of dollars and risk our lives. We don’t want to be at war with a country of 90 million people in the Middle East.”
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), one of the few GOP isolationists in Congress and Khanna’s cosponsor on that resolution, also said he opposes the operation.
“This is not ‘America First,’” Massie said. “When Congress reconvenes, I will work with @RepRoKhanna to force a Congressional vote on war with Iran. The Constitution requires a vote, and your Representative needs to be on record as opposing or supporting this war.”
Rep. Warren Davidson (R-OH), another isolationist-minded Republican who indicated this week that he was leaning toward voting for the war powers resolution, sent similar signals on Saturday.
“We need a government small enough to fit within the Constitution. We need a government effective enough to solve problems and serve its own people. Or, we need a new Constitution,” Davidson said.
The House is not scheduled to reconvene until Wednesday.
Rep. Jim Himes (D-CT), the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, who was one of the handful of congressional leaders briefed on the administration’s plans earlier this week, said that “everything I have heard from the administration before and after these strikes on Iran confirms this is a war of choice with no strategic endgame.”
He said he expressed his concerns to Secretary of State Marco Rubio during the briefing this week.
Republicans are largely lining up behind the administration, with the exception of Massie.
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), who had urged Trump to take action, praised the administration, saying Trump had “met the moment.”
“My mind is racing with the thought that the murderous ayatollah’s regime in Iran will soon be no more. The biggest change in the Middle East in a thousand years is upon us,” Graham said. “The likelihood of normalization between Saudi Arabia and Israel getting back on track is exceedingly high – a subject I brought up last week to the key players in the region who concurred if the ayatollah goes down, historic peace advances.”
Graham met with leaders in Israel, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates this month and said on Fox News on Saturday morning that he plans to return soon. Following retaliatory strikes by Iran on U.S. military facilities in several Arab states, Saudi Arabia issued a statement condemning Iran and offering its support for measures the Arab states may take in response.
“This operation has been well-planned,” Graham continued. “It will be violent, extensive and I believe, at the end of the day, successful. Again the demise of the ayatollah’s regime with American blood on its hands is necessary and more than justified.”
He later urged Arab and other allies to “get behind President Trump and go all in to ensure the ayatollah’s Iran, which has become the largest state sponsor of terrorism in the world is no more.”
Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR), the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, who was also briefed, said, “The butcher’s bill has finally come due for the ayatollahs. May God bless and protect our troops on this vital mission of vengeance, and justice, and safety,” highlighting the regime’s long record of attacks against Americans.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) said Iran is “facing the severe consequences of its evil actions,” and said Trump had “made every effort” at diplomacy. “For decades, Iran has defiantly maintained its nuclear program while arming and funding Hamas, Hezbollah, and other internationally recognized terrorist organizations. Iran and its proxies have menaced America and American lives, undermined our core national interests, systematically destabilized the Middle East, and threatened the security of the entire West.”
“The Gang of 8 was briefed in detail earlier this week that military action may become necessary to protect American troops and American citizens in Iran. I received updates from Secretary Rubio thereafter, and I will remain in close contact with the President and the Department of War as this operation proceeds,” Johnson continued.
Other rank-and-file Democrats, including some moderates, drew parallels with the Bush administration’s war against Iraq in their criticism.
Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA), the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, said that the strikes raise “serious legal and constitutional concerns.”
“The American people have seen this playbook before — claims of urgency, misrepresented intelligence, and military action that pulls the United States into regime change and prolonged, costly nation-building,” Warner continued. “We owe it to our service members, and to every American family, to ensure that we are not repeating the mistakes of the past. The president owes the country clear answers: What is the objective? What is the strategy to prevent escalation? And how does this make Americans safer?”
Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), an Iraq war veteran representing a GOP-leaning state, expressed concern for U.S. forces, who Trump acknowledged could be lost in the ensuing war.
“I lost friends in Iraq to an illegal war. Young working-class kids should not pay the ultimate price for regime change and a war that hasn’t been explained or justified to the American people,” Gallego said. “We can support the democracy movement and the Iranian people without sending our troops to die.”
Rep. Brad Schneider (D-IL), a co-chair of the House Jewish caucus and a key pro-Israel leader, criticized the administration’s move and said he would support the war powers resolution. “The President of the United States is not allowed to take our nation to war without authorization from Congress.”
“This is a moment of peril and opportunity,” Schneider said. “Congress must step up to meet the moment, fulfill its constitutional duties, and ensure American action — with our allies in the region and around the world — leads to a more stable and peaceful Middle East, not another generational entanglement ending in failure.”
Former Rep. Elaine Luria (D-VA), among the House’s most vocal Democratic Iran hawks while she was in office and who is now running to reclaim her former seat, also said Congress should “immediately return to Washington” to vote on Kaine’s war powers resolution.
Rep. Jake Auchincloss (D-MA) said that Trump has “no credibility on either the strategy or law guiding foreign policy” — pointing to the president’s delayed promise to Iranian protesters earlier this year that help would be coming — and said he plans to support the war powers resolution.
“I am ready to work across the aisle to craft congressionally directed strategy on Iran, especially for securing American air supremacy in the region and supporting the Iranian people’s right to self determination,” Auchincloss said. “But first congressional Republicans must call the question on this fundamental issue of war powers by voting against a reckless commander-in-chief and for the Constitution.”
President Donald Trump called on Iranians to ‘take over your government’ when ‘we are finished’
Mandel NGAN / AFP via Getty Images
President Donald Trump steps off Air Force One at Palm Beach International Airport in West Palm Beach, Florida, on February 27, 2026.
The U.S. and Israel launched a joint military operation targeting Iran on Saturday morning, the culmination of months of tensions and, more recently, negotiations aimed at reaching a diplomatic resolution to concerns over Iran’s nuclear program.
In an address on Saturday shortly after the first strikes were reported, President Donald Trump announced that “the United States military is undertaking a massive and ongoing operation to prevent this very wicked, radical dictatorship from threatening America and our core national security interests.”
Trump said that the goal of the operation “is to defend the American people by eliminating imminent threats from the Iranian regime, a vicious group of very hard, terrible people.”
“For 47 years, the Iranian regime has chanted ‘Death to America’ and waged an unending campaign of bloodshed and mass murder targeting the United States, our troops and the innocent people in many, many countries,” Trump said, noting that “it was Iran’s proxy Hamas that launched the monstrous October 7 attacks on Israel, slaughtering more than 1,000 innocent people, including 46 Americans, while taking 12 of our citizens hostage.”
The strikes came a day after Omani Foreign Minister Bdar Al Busaidi traveled to Washington to meet with Vice President JD Vance after mediating a round of talks in Geneva between senior Iranian officials and a U.S. delegation led by White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.
The military confrontation came eight months after Israel’s 12-day war with Iran, which the U.S. joined, which significantly degraded Iran’s aerial defenses and nuclear program.
The White House had faced questions in recent weeks about the scale of a potential operation in Iran as it amassed the largest U.S. military presence in the Middle East in more than two decades.
In his most direct remarks targeting Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Trump addressed “the great proud people of Iran,” saying, “The hour of your freedom is at hand. Stay sheltered. Don’t leave your home. It’s very dangerous outside. Bombs will be dropping everywhere. When we are finished, take over your government.”
Trump slammed the efforts by Iran and its proxies to disrupt commercial waterways and target U.S. interests and positions across the region. “It’s been mass terror, and we’re not going to put up with it any longer. From Lebanon to Yemen and Syria to Iraq, the regime is armed, trained and funded terrorist militias that have soaked the earth with blood and guts,” Trump said.
Two hours after the start of the strikes, Iran launched its first barrages of ballistic missiles at Israeli population centers. No injuries were reported.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement, “My brothers and sisters, citizens of Israel, a short while ago, Israel and the United States embarked on an operation to remove the existential threat posed by the terrorist regime in Iran. I thank our great friend, President Donald Trump, for his historic leadership.”
“For 47 years, the Ayatollah regime has called for ‘Death to Israel’ and ‘Death to America.’ It has spilled our blood, murdered many Americans, and massacred its own people. This murderous terrorist regime must not be allowed to arm itself with nuclear weapons that would enable it to threaten all of humanity,” Netanyahu continued.
“Our joint action will create the conditions for the brave Iranian people to take their destiny into their own hands” Netanyahu said. “The time has come for all segments of the people in Iran – the Persians, the Kurds, the Azeris, the Balochis, and the Ahwazis – to rid themselves of the yoke of tyranny and bring about a free and peace-seeking Iran.”
“The coming days of Operation Roaring Lion will demand patience and fortitude from all of us. We shall stand together, fight together, and ensure the eternity of Israel together,” he concluded.
Jewish Insider’s Israel Editor Tamara Zieve contributed reporting.
Plus, Mamdani makes surprise WH visit
Umman Foreign Ministry/Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images
Special Envoy Steve Witkoff (C) advisor Jared Kushner (L) meet with Omani Foreign Minister Badr bin Hamad Al Busaidi (R), who is mediating between the parties in the third round of Iran-U.S. negotiations held in Geneva, Switzerland, on February 26, 2026.
Good Thursday afternoon!
This P.M. edition is reserved for our premium subscribers — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
It’s me again — Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
U.S.-Iran negotiations wrapped up for the day in Geneva without a decisive result: Omani Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi said the sides had made “significant progress” while Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told state media they negotiated “very seriously,” but no agreement was reached.
Araghchi said technical experts will meet on Monday in Vienna at the International Atomic Energy Agency and fourth round negotiations will take place later next week, after consultations in both capitals…
Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters yesterday that Iran “poses a very grave threat to the United States” and is trying to reconstitute its nuclear program. “After their nuclear program was obliterated, they were told not to try to restart it, and here they are. You can see them always trying to rebuild elements of it. They’re not enriching right now, but they’re trying to get to the point where they ultimately can.”
Beyond the nuclear issue, Rubio said, Iran also has “conventional weapons that are solely designed to attack America and attack Americans. … These things have to be addressed.” While the current talks are focused solely on Tehran’s nuclear program, “it’s also important to remember that Iran refuses to talk about ballistic missiles to us or to anyone, and that’s a big problem”…
House Democratic leaders said in a joint statement today that they plan to force a vote “as soon as Congress reconvenes next week” on a resolution blocking military action against Iran without congressional authorization, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports. Three Democrats have already indicated they will oppose the resolution, with other defections likely to follow…
U.S. forces raided a ship last month and seized cargo heading from China to Iran, officials told The Wall Street Journal, part of a broader effort to head off Iran’s covert arms purchases after the 12-day war last June. The cargo was reportedly intended for Iranian companies that procure weapons for the regime’s missile program…
The Journal interviews fighter pilots involved in the U.S. bombing campaign against the Houthis last spring, as military assets are once again amassing in the Middle East for a potential operation against Iran…
Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner amplified a social media post today from a far-right conspiracy theorist well-known for viciously antisemitic commentary — before quickly deleting the statement, JI’s Matthew Kassel reports. In a comment on X, Platner approvingly boosted a remark opposing war with Iran from Stew Peters, who has said Judaism is “satanic” and a “death cult,” promoted blood libels and called for a “final solution” to mass-deport American Jews…
The issue is particularly sensitive for Platner, who earlier in his campaign faced scrutiny over a Nazi tattoo on his chest, which he has since had covered. He was pressed today on a YouTube call-in show about his knowledge of the tattoo’s symbolism because of his self-identification as a WWII history enthusiast.
“I was well aware that they [Nazis] used a similar-looking thing,” Platner said. “You have to admit it’s not a ‘similar-looking thing,’ it’s the same thing. … Anyone who’s remotely a WWII buff knows what that is,” the caller replied. Platner answered, “I’m not going to apologize for something that I didn’t know about or do”…
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani made an unannounced visit to the White House to meet with President Donald Trump today. Among other issues, the two discussed housing and immigration activities…
The family of Francesca Albanese, the U.N. special rapporteur for Israel and the Palestinian territories, sued Trump and other administration officials yesterday in district court, alleging that the sanctions imposed on Albanese by the U.S. violate her First, Fourth and Fifth Amendment rights…
Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar attended an iftar meal to break the Ramadan fast hosted by UAE Ambassador to Israel Mohamed Al Khaja in Tel Aviv, where Herzog said that the “members of the Abraham Accords should be treated in an upgraded manner as they pursue the noble cause of peace.”
“And this I say especially,” Herzog continued, “when there are nations who are spreading hate, spreading blasphemy against nations who seek peace — against the Emiratis, against the Israelis,” ostensibly referring to Saudi Arabia…
As Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrapped up his trip to Israel today, the two countries signed 16 memorandums of understanding to expand cooperation in fields including agriculture and AI. Modi also met with the cast of “Fauda”…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye out in Jewish Insider for a profile of Sam Bregman, the Jewish cowboy-hat wearing former district attorney running for governor of New Mexico.
ADL’s Desert Region will hold its annual conference at Arizona State University, with speakers including ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt, Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs, Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego and state Rep. Alma Hernandez.
J Street’s annual conference will kick off Saturday in Washington. Speakers will include former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Sens. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Brian Schatz (D-HI), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Chris Murphy (D-CT) and Reps. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), Sara Jacobs (D-CA), Sean Casten (D-IL) and Madeleine Dean (D-PA). J Street’s PAC will hold an event with Roy Cooper, the former governor of North Carolina now running for Senate, and phone banking sessions for Evanston, Ill., Mayor Daniel Biss, running for the House.
We’ll be back in your inbox with the Daily Overtime on Monday. Shabbat Shalom!
Stories You May Have Missed
EDUCATION CONSTERNATION
Jewish groups file suit against California for widespread failure to address antisemitism in K-12 schools
The suit highlights several complaints from Jewish parents and children statewide, in school districts including Berkeley, Los Angeles, Santa Clara, San Francisco, Campbell Union, Fremont, Etiwanda and Oakland
PRAIRIE STATE DEBATE
Abughazaleh says she doesn’t support Iron Dome, dodges on Israel’s right to exist
The far-left influencer, running competitively in a Chicago-area district with a sizable Jewish constituency, debated primary rivals Laura Fine and Daniel Biss on Wednesday
‘The president has a number of other tools at his disposal to ensure’ Iran does not get a nuclear weapon, the VP said on Fox News
Jim Watson - Pool/Getty Images
U.S. Vice President JD Vance gives remarks following a roundtable discussion with local leaders and community members amid a surge of federal immigration authorities in the area, at Royalston Square on January 22, 2026 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
A day before U.S.-Iran nuclear talks, Vice President JD Vance urged the Iranian regime on Wednesday to take President Donald Trump’s diplomatic overtures “seriously,” cautioning that the president has “a number of tools at his disposal” to keep the “craziest and worst regime in the world” from acquiring nuclear weapons.
Vance made the comments while appearing on Fox News’ “America’s Newsroom” after being asked about Trump’s comments at the State of the Union on Tuesday night, during which the president underscored his willingness to use force while acknowledging his preference for a diplomatic solution.
“The president has been as crystal clear as he could be: Iran can’t have a nuclear weapon. That would be the ultimate military objective if that’s the route that he chose,” Vance said. “That is what we’re trying to accomplish, as the president said, through the preferred route of diplomacy, but it’s very simple: We have to get to a position where Iran, the largest state sponsor of terrorism in the world, cannot threaten the world with nuclear terrorism.”
“I think most Americans understand that you can’t let the craziest and worst regime in the world have nuclear weapons. That’s what the president is accomplishing, that’s what the president has set as our goal,” he continued. “He’s going to try to accomplish it diplomatically, but as we all know, the president has a number of other tools at his disposal to ensure this doesn’t happen. He’s shown a willingness to use them, and I hope the Iranians take it seriously in their negotiations tomorrow because that’s certainly what the president prefers.”
Asked if that meant the president’s position is that Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei must be removed, Vance reiterated that the administration is “hopeful that we’re able to come to a good resolution without the military, but if we have to use the military, the president, of course, has that right as well.”
“I think the president ultimately will make the decision about how to ensure Iran does not have a nuclear weapon, but we’re sitting down having another round of diplomatic talks with the Iranians, trying to reach a reasonable settlement, but a reasonable settlement towards what end?” Vance asked. “Iran can’t have a nuclear weapon. It’s very simple. I think the supreme leader and everybody in their system should understand it. We’ve been crystal clear.”
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), meanwhile, warned on Wednesday that he would not support a Trump administration-brokered deal with Iran that would allow the regime to continue enriching some uranium as part of its nuclear program.
“If media reports are true that there is a consideration of allowing Iran to have very small enrichment of uranium for face-saving purposes: screw that,” Graham wrote on X. “This regime is made up of religious Nazis that are the largest state sponsor of terrorism. The regime has American blood on its hands and they have killed over 30,000 of their citizens simply because they demand the end to their oppression.”
Graham added that he “could care less about efforts to save face for this regime. I would like to see the people of Iran change the regime – it’s long overdue. I hope help is on the way.”
Gov. Jared Polis of Colorado is the only Dem governor so far to opt into the program; other Dem governors actively considering it
CHET STRANGE/AFP via Getty Images
Colorado Governor Jared Polis speaks during a community gathering at the site of an attack against a group people holding a vigil for kidnapped Israeli citizens in Gaza oin Boulder, Colorado on June 4, 2025.
At the start of a pivotal campaign cycle, Democratic governors will face a politically high-stakes decision this year on a new education policy that President Donald Trump signed into law last year.
One provision of Republicans’ sweeping spending package adopted in 2025 — dubbed the “One Big Beautiful Bill” by Trump — was a measure that provides a dollar-for-dollar federal tax credit for people who donate to approved scholarship organizations that can support a range of education expenses, including private school tuition and tutoring.
Individual states must opt in for taxpayers to be eligible for the credit of up to $1,700 annually.
So far, the policy has been a no-brainer for Republican governors, who already support school choice programs, to allow parents to receive a federal tax credit to support private schools, including religious schools. Twenty-three states have formally opted in as of last month, and at least two other Republican-led states (Florida and Utah) said they plan to do so.
Democratic governors, skeptical of school choice programs and wary of powerful teachers’ unions, face a trickier choice. They have to opt in by the end of the year for taxpayers to be eligible for the credit. The National Education Association urged lawmakers to vote against the bill last year, and has said that “voucher-inspired schemes” like the federal tax credit program “erode public education, the foundation of our democracy.” (An NEA spokesperson declined to comment on Wednesday.)
Orthodox Jewish groups have long supported school choice efforts, including vouchers, while most non-Orthodox groups — including umbrella organizations such as the Jewish federations — sat out those matters in the past or opposed them. Now, Orthodox leaders are being joined by the Jewish Federations of North America as the umbrella group urges Democratic governors to support the bill. The Union for Reform Judaism, which opposed an earlier version of the tax credit that was farther-reaching, ultimately did not come out against the measure.
“We think this should be a priority for the entire Jewish community, to support students, especially in Jewish day schools,” said Rabbi A.D. Motzen, national director of government affairs at Agudath Israel, a major Orthodox organization. “I think it’s very helpful, because in many of those blue states, the more governors see that this is a politically wise idea, and that there is widespread support among different faiths, whether it’s Catholic clergy or Jewish leaders and business leaders, then it will make it easier for them to to opt in.”
Marc Baker, CEO of Combined Jewish Philanthropies, Boston’s Jewish federation, said the tax credit “aligns with CJP’s vision to make day school more affordable and accessible for families in Greater Boston,” and that he plans to discuss it with Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey, a Democrat.
Part of the pitch that Gil Preuss, CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Washington, is making to Democratic leaders in Maryland, Virginia and Washington, is to differentiate the tax credit from more controversial voucher programs.
“I know, particularly for Democratic governors, they place significant value in public education, and we as a Jewish community strongly support public education,” said Preuss. “We don’t believe it’s taking away money from public education, but it is a way for individual households to direct some of their federal taxes.”
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis is so far the Democrat who has expressed the most enthusiasm about the tax-credit scholarship program.
“It supports donors to give more money to our schools,” Polis said in November. “I mean, I would be crazy not to” opt in. A spokesperson for Polis confirmed in December that he plans to add the state to the program.
North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein, a Democrat, has also said he intends to opt in his state once more information is released from the federal government. “School choice is good for students and parents,” Stein said last year. “I intend to opt North Carolina in so we can invest in the public school students most in need of after school programs, tutoring, and other resources.”
A handful of blue-state governors — in Wisconsin, Oregon, New Mexico and Hawaii — have stated they will opt out of the program.
Most Democratic governors, including in states with the largest Jewish communities, are taking a wait-and-see approach, saying they need to see formal regulations from the IRS and the Treasury Department outlining what the funds can be used for and how they can be collected. Activists in the Jewish community working on this issue say they are still in conversation with Democratic governors even though the timeline for implementation is not totally clear.
“The governors that we speak to on a regular basis about this are very clear that they want to see the regulations first, which we don’t hold against them. We think that’s fair. You don’t want to play a game until you see the rules of the game,” said Sydney Altfield, CEO of Teach Coalition, a project of the Orthodox Union that advocates for federal funding for nonpublic schools. “We think that in the long run, it will be a positive outcome, but we understand that there’s no movement yet.”
Rosie Lapowsky, a spokesperson for Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, said his administration “is awaiting federal guidance to address key questions about how this program would work, including which students will be eligible, how this federal initiative will interact with existing programs, and more. We look forward to reviewing that guidance.”
A spokesperson for Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said he has not yet taken a position. Alana Davidson, director of communications at the Massachusetts Executive Office of Education, told JI that Gov. Healey “is awaiting official guidance from the U.S. Department of Education and Treasury at this time.”
Jen Goodman, a spokesperson for Gov. Kathy Hochul of New York, took a swipe at the Trump administration while saying Hochul has not yet made up her mind.
“While this proposal doesn’t take effect until 2027, it’s surprising that the federal government continues to fail to share any policy details with states,” Goodman told JI. “Gov. Hochul is supportive of anything that would help students and schools, but given this administration’s record of including poison pills in policies, the state needs to thoroughly review the proposal before making commitments.”
Spokespeople for Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, California Gov. Gavin Newsom, New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill, Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser and Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger did not respond to requests for comment.
Spanberger is in a different position from other Democrats, because her predecessor — Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin — already opted Virginia in last month before he left office, so she would have to formally revoke that permission.
Preuss said his goal at the moment is not necessarily to get area governors in the Washington area to a yes anytime soon, with IRS regulations not likely to come out for a few more months. He just wants to convince them to leave the door open.
“It’s very early on,” Preuss said. “We mostly want to make sure that governors do not come out against it.”
Plus, Witkoff calls for indefinite Iran nuclear deal
Mario Tama/Getty Images
An attendee wears a jacket at an Iowa caucus watch party organized by Metro D.C. Democratic Socialists of America, on February 3, 2020 in Washington, DC.
Good Wednesday afternoon!
This P.M. edition is reserved for our premium subscribers — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
It’s me again — Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
Ahead of the third round of U.S.-Iran negotiations taking place in Geneva tomorrow, Vice President JD Vance told Fox News that President Donald Trump “has a number of other tools at his disposal” besides diplomacy to ensure “the craziest and worst regime in the world” does not obtain nuclear weapons, following on the president’s remarks during last night’s State of the Union calling Iran “the world’s No. 1 sponsor of terror”…
In response to Trump’s comments, where he also said Iran was developing advanced ballistic missiles and had killed 32,000 protesters, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei tied Trump to the “law of propaganda coined by Nazi [chief propagandist] Joseph Goebbels.”
“This is now systematically used by the U.S. administration and the war profiteers encircling it, particularly the genocidal Israeli regime … Whatever they’re alleging in regards to Iran’s nuclear program, Iran’s ballistic missiles, and the number of casualties during January’s unrest is simply the repetition of ‘big lies,’” Baghaei wrote on X…
White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, who is leading Iran negotiations alongside Jared Kushner, reportedly told AIPAC members at the group’s summit in Washington yesterday that any deal reached with Iran should not have a “sunset clause,” as the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action was criticized for.
“We start with the Iranians with the premise that there is no sunset provision. Whether we get a deal or not, our premise is: you have to behave for the rest of your lives,” Witkoff told the group, according to Axios. He said talks are currently focused only on the nuclear issue, but if they are successful, the administration would look to hold additional talks on Tehran’s missile program and support for terror proxies…
Satellite photos analyzed by the Associated Press appear to show U.S. ships that typically dock in Bahrain as part of the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet have moved out to sea. The 5th Fleet similarly scattered its ships during the U.S. strikes in Iran last June…
Dutch airline KLM announced a suspension of flights between its hub in Amsterdam and Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport starting March 1 until further notice, saying in a statement that it is currently “not commercially or operationally feasible for KLM to operate flights to Tel Aviv.” It’s the first airline to pause flights amid the current unrest with Iran…
On the campaign trail, Washington, D.C., mayoral candidate Janeese Lewis George vowed to reject the “Zionist lobby” in a questionnaire seeking the endorsement of the Metro D.C. chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America, Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch reports, a category that the DSA said includes AIPAC, Democratic Majority for Israel, Christians United for Israel and J Street.
Referencing her appearance at an event with the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington in December, Lewis George assured the DSA she “disagree[s] with the JCRC on a number of issues,” including its opposition to describing Israel’s actions in Gaza as a genocide and its “definition of antisemitism that criminalizes dissent, and their attacks on activists.”
Ron Halber, CEO of the JCRC, told JI, “As far as I’m concerned, [the DSA’s questionnaire] is an antisemitic manifesto. They are making the price of their endorsement the social exclusion of Jews”…
Illinois state Sen. Laura Fine, a Democrat running for an open Illinois House seat, unapologetically championed her backing for Israel in a position paper obtained by JI’s Marc Rod, amid attacks from anti-Israel activists and groups over her support for the Jewish state and backing from pro-Israel supporters.
Fine described Israel in the paper as “more than just a strategic ally, it is a beacon of democracy in one of the world’s most volatile regions,” as she and some of her primary opponents, including Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss and far-left activist Kat Abughazaleh, are set to participate in a televised debate tonight…
The U.S.-led Board of Peace released a video today laying out its vision for Gaza. The board’s goal by Year 3 is to fully rebuild the southern Gazan city of Rafah and have Gaza “connected to the world through an Abrahamic gateway, linking it with Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and extending to India and Europe.” By the board’s 10th year, it said, Gaza will be “self-governed,” without specifying who will oversee the enclave and how Hamas will be removed from power…
Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana awarded Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi the newly established Medal of the Knesset, the highest honor of the body, after Modi’s address there today. His remarks were warmly received by members of Knesset and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who was also in the chamber…
Following Israel’s recognition of Somaliland’s independence in December, Jerusalem accepted the appointment of Mohamed Hagi as the first Somaliland ambassador to the Jewish state (and its first fully accredited ambassador anywhere in the world). Hagi “was a member of the inner circle of officials who promoted the establishment of relations between Israel and Somaliland,” the Israeli Foreign Ministry said, and vowed that a reciprocal Israeli ambassador “will soon be appointed”…
Former Harvard President Larry Summers will remain on leave from his teaching position at the Ivy League school for the duration of the academic year, at which point he will retire, Harvard announced today, after files released by the Department of Justice showed Summers maintained a relationship with sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein after the financier had been convicted of prostitution involving a minor…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye out in Jewish Insider for a preview of Fox Nation’s new docudrama on King David, offering a dramatic reenactment of the biblical coming-of-age story of the Jewish leader.
White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner will hold discussions with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in Geneva, mediated by Omani Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi.
California Jewish groups including the JCRC Bay Area, the Jewish Federation of Los Angeles and Jewish California, which rebranded today from its previous name of JPAC, are hosting a forum for candidates running for governor, as Gov. Gavin Newsom reaches his term limit. Participating candidates include former presidential contender Tom Steyer, Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA), San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, all of whom are Democrats, as well as Republican commentator Steve Hilton.
Stories You May Have Missed
PUSHING BACK
Moderate Democrats mock notion that Kamala Harris lost because she wasn’t tougher on Israel
Rep. Jared Moskowitz, representing a swing district: ‘The idea that the vice president lost every swing state because she wasn’t more extreme on this issue is laughable’
CAPPELLO’S CAMPAIGN
Democrat John Cappello brings military experience in Israel to race against Mike Lawler
The Air Force veteran, who served for six years at the U.S. Embassy in Israel, said Israel should continue to make efforts toward peace
"They want to make a deal, but we haven't heard those secret words, ‘We will never have a nuclear weapon,’” Trump said about Iran
Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
U.S. President Donald Trump, with Vice President JD Vance and Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA) looking on, delivers his State of the Union address during a Joint Session of Congress at the U.S. Capitol on February 24, 2026, in Washington, DC.
In his State of the Union address Tuesday night, President Donald Trump maintained his tough talk against Iran, reiterating that he will use force to prevent Iran from getting a nuclear weapon, even though he’s willing to explore diplomatic options to resolve the standoff.
Trump did not — as some online had predicted — make a grand televised announcement of United States strikes on Iran during the speech. Nor did he elaborate further on his plans for the growing U.S. military might in the region, or what specifically would trigger the U.S. to utilize that military power.
”They want to make a deal, but we haven’t heard those secret words, ‘We will never have a nuclear weapon,’” Trump said about Iran. “My preference is to solve this problem through diplomacy. But one thing is certain, I will never allow the world’s No. 1 sponsor of terror — which they are by far — to have a nuclear weapon. Can’t let that happen.”
A number of moderate House Democrats — around a third of the Democrats in the chamber — as well as the majority of Republicans stood to applaud those comments from the president. Democrats remained largely passive through much of the rest of Trump’s speech.
Negotiations are set to resume between the U.S. and Iran in Geneva later this week.
Trump also insisted again that the U.S. had “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear program in its strikes last June, and had warned the regime in Tehran not to attempt to rebuild its weapons programs, including its nuclear program, but it has continued those efforts anyway.
“As president, I will make peace wherever I can, but I will never hesitate to confront threats to America wherever we must,” Trump said. “And no nation should ever doubt America’s resolve. We have the most powerful military on earth. … It’s really called ‘peace through strength’ and it’s been very, very effective.”
In addition to Iran’s nuclear ambitions, Trump highlighted the Islamic Republic’s manufacture of ballistic missiles, threatening U.S. allies, troops and potentially the U.S. homeland, and its sponsorship of terrorism.
“Since they seized control of that proud nation 47 years ago, the regime and its murderous proxies have spread nothing but terrorism and death and hate,” Trump said. “They’ve killed and maimed thousands of American service members and hundreds of thousands and even millions of people.”
And he again said the regime had killed 32,000 protesters during a recent wave of demonstrations, though he asserted that the U.S. had prevented the regime, through threats of retaliation, from executing “a lot of” dissidents.
Trump boasted of having ended the war between Iran and Israel last year, as well as the war in Gaza, which he said “is proceeding at a very low level — it’s just about there.” Trump offered praise to White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner for their involvement in those negotiations, as well as Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), who wore a scarf in the pattern of a keffiyeh with a Palestinian flag at its ends, shouted, “It’s a genocide” during those remarks.
Trump also highlighted the successful return of the Israeli hostages: “Believe it or not, Hamas worked along with Israel and they dug and they dug and they dug. It’s tough — it’s a tough thing to do, going through bodies all over, passing up 100 bodies sometimes for each one they found,” the president said.
Trump added that “nobody thought that was possible” to find the remains of the final hostage, Ran Gvili, but Witkoff and Kushner were able to accomplish it.
“I remember the family of the 28th [hostage of the final group that had remained in Gaza]. They were so — grieved, but they were so happy, as happy as it’s possible to be. They had their boy back,” Trump said. He emphasized that the hostage families all wanted to see the remains of deceased hostages come home “as much as though [they] were living.”
Earlier in the day, top congressional leaders received a classified briefing from the administration on Iran, and Democrats emerged urging the administration to explain its position and plans to the American people.
“It’s very serious and the president has an obligation to make his goals public,” Schumer told Jewish Insider after the briefing.
The minority leader said after receiving the classified briefing that ‘the president has an obligation to make his goals public’
Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) speaks at a press conference following recent elections as the government shutdown continues in Washington, DC on November 5, 2025.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) urged President Donald Trump on Tuesday to explain to the public his goals in the accelerating pressure campaign and military buildup targeting Iran, following a classified briefing earlier in the day for senior congressional leaders by Cabinet officials on the developing situation in Iran.
Several other lawmakers offered similarly sober responses to the briefing.
“It’s very serious and the president has an obligation to make his goals public,” Schumer told Jewish Insider after the briefing.
Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA), the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, similarly called on the administration to lay out “what our country’s goals are, what our country’s interests are and how we’re going to protect American interests in the region.”
Rep. Jim Himes (D-CT), the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said he was “very concerned” and warned that “wars in the Middle East don’t go well for presidents, for the country, and we have not heard articulated a single good reason for why now is the moment to launch yet another war in the Middle East.”
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) said the administration is “giving a lot of thought to the situation. And I appreciate where they’re coming from.”
Plus, Trump says Iran won't rule out nuclear weapons
Mario Tama/Getty Images
Protestors gather after police cleared a new encampment on the UCLA campus on May 23, 2024 in Los Angeles, California.
Good Tuesday afternoon!
This P.M. edition is reserved for our premium subscribers — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
It’s me again — Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
Previewing his State of the Union address tonight, where it remains to be seen if he will make any announcements on Iran, President Donald Trump told reporters, “Iran wants to make a deal more than I do, but they just won’t say the sacred phrase: ‘We won’t build nuclear weapons,’” signaling that the two sides are still at an impasse ahead of the third round of negotiations scheduled for Thursday…
Secretary of State Marco Rubio briefed the congressional Gang of Eight, the bipartisan set of leaders advised on classified matters by the executive branch, this afternoon to provide an update on Iran, with CIA Director John Ratcliffe reportedly joining the discussion. The White House did not brief the group before striking Iran last June, drawing ire from Democrats…
Ahead of the meeting, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) told C-SPAN about potential Iran strikes, “Closed-door briefings are fine, but the administration has to make its case to the American people on something as important as this”…
Around a dozen U.S. F-22 stealth fighter jets departed from the U.K. today to be deployed at an Israeli Air Force base in the south of the country, as over 150 aircraft are being moved to the region. Military experts told The Washington Post that the “assets being assembled are indicative of a multiday campaign without a ground invasion”…
The Coast Guard is investigating a swastika drawn at its primary recruit training center in New Jersey, where Coast Guard commandant Adm. Kevin Lunday quickly flew to address recruits and staff about the incident. Lunday recently came under fire from Congress, and had his confirmation delayed, over a change in Coast Guard policy that downgraded the swastika from a prohibited hate symbol to “potentially divisive,” which was eventually walked back.
Regarding the recent incident, Lunday said in a statement to The Washington Post, “Anyone who adheres to or advances hate or extremist ideology — get out. Leave. You don’t belong in the United States Coast Guard and we reject you”…
Rep. Brad Sherman (D-CA) is pushing for legislation to require an affirmative congressional vote prior to the U.S. reaching any nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports, following a notification from the administration to Congress indicating that it is moving toward a deal that could allow Riyadh to enrich uranium for civilian purposes.
The notification procedures, which do not include specific terms of a potential deal, suggest that Saudi Arabia will not be required to agree to more intrusive International Atomic Energy Agency inspections or “gold standard” safeguards — which would require Saudi Arabia to agree not to enrich or reprocess nuclear material — used for the U.S. nuclear cooperation agreement with the United Arab Emirates…
The Justice Department sued the University of California today under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits employment discrimination, alleging that the UCLA campus created a “hostile work environment against Jewish and Israeli faculty and staff.”
During campus anti-Israel protests in 2024, the DOJ said, “the University allowed antisemitic harassment to continue unabated for days” and “has ignored, and continues to ignore, gross and repeated violations” of time, place and manner restrictions on student protest. The department further claimed Jewish and Israeli faculty at the school have been physically threatened, ostracized, harassed, forced to take leave and assaulted…
The New York Times details efforts by New York’s business community and Democratic establishment to organize and promote the moderate wing of the party in response to New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s rise to power. Some of the individuals involved, including former Gov. Andrew Cuomo allies Phil Singer and Steven Cohen, are considering forming PACs, watchdog groups, lobbying campaigns and more…
New York’s Working Families Party endorsed Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso to replace retiring Rep. Nydia Velázquez (D-NY) yesterday over Mamdani’s objections. The mayor has been backing Assemblymember Claire Valdez, who, like Mamdani, is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America and a vocal critic of Israel, and he had lobbied the WFP to endorse her or to stay out of the race. WFP’s director, Jasmine Gripper, told the Times, “At the end of the day, Zohran is an individual who gets to weigh in as an individual”…
A new poll from the University of New Hampshire found oyster farmer Graham Platner with a commanding lead among likely Senate Democratic primary voters, outdistancing Gov. Janet Mills by 34 points, with the primary less than four months away. In a general election matchup with incumbent Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), Platner leads Collins by 11 points, while Mills and Collins are neck-and-neck…
Khalid Turaani, executive director of the Ohio branch of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), testified at the Ohio Senate Judiciary Committee last week against a bill to codify the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of antisemitism, where he claimed that Israel operates the world’s largest human skin bank and harvests the skin from deceased Palestinians. “And if I call them Nazis,” Turaani continued, “your law is going to punish me.”
The Anti-Defamation League’s Ohio River Valley office condemned Turaani’s speech, saying that the “antisemitic organ harvesting myth plays on the blood libel trope, which has spurred the torture, murder, and expulsion of Jews for centuries”…
The U.S. Embassy in Israel announced that, as part of the government’s “efforts to reach all Americans,” the embassy will be providing consular services for one day only at several locations across Israel and the West Bank, including Ramallah and the Jewish settlement of Efrat…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye out in Jewish Insider for the highlights from President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address, taking place at 9 p.m. ET tonight, as all eyes are on possible U.S. military action against Iran.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrives in Israel tomorrow, where he will be greeted by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu before addressing the Knesset. In the evening, the two leaders will have dinner at Jerusalem’s King David Hotel. Read JI’s interview on Modi’s visit with Israeli Ambassador to India Reuven Azar.
The New York City Council will hold its first hearing on Council Speaker Julie Menin’s bill aiming to create “buffer zones” around houses of worship to protect from disruptive protests. The bill’s language was updated last night to remove the original 100-foot figure, which had reportedly emerged as a point of concern for the NYPD.
Congressional candidates from Illinois’ 9th District, where pro-Israel spending is boosting state Sen. Laura Fine and attacking Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss, will hold a debate on local news.
Stories You May Have Missed
SHIFTING STANCE
Sue Altman pivoting on Israel as she runs in safely Democratic N.J. district
The progressive activist ran as a pro-Israel candidate in a neighboring swing district, but is now walking back her support as she runs to succeed Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman
PRAIRIE STATE OF PLAY
Raja Krishnamoorthi emerging as the strongest ally of Jewish voters in Illinois Senate race
Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton seems to be running to the congressman’s left on Israel, even as Rep. Robin Kelly is the most outspoken critic of Israel in the race
We’ll be watching for how Trump will address the situation with Iran in his speech, if at all
Murat Gok/Anadolu via Getty Images
President Donald Trump makes a speech during the inaugural meeting of the 'Board of Peace' at the US Institute of Peace in Washington, DC, United States on February 19, 2026.
President Donald Trump is set to address Congress for his State of the Union speech tonight, with U.S. forces amassing in the Middle East and administration officials engaged in an ongoing flurry of diplomacy with the Iranian regime.
We’ll be watching for how Trump will address the situation with Iran in his speech, if at all. Will he set red lines or negotiate demands for the regime? Will he lay out his plan or goals for a potential military attack? The White House, as of now, isn’t previewing his remarks.
Trump took to Truth Social yesterday afternoon with a post rejecting as “fake news” reporting from a series of outlets that Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, had raised concerns about a sustained military campaign against Iran.
The president said that Caine “like all of us, would not like to see War” but also believes that a military conflict would be “easily won.” Although talks have reportedly centered around limits on Iran’s nuclear program, Trump continued to insist that the regime’s nuclear development is “no longer, but rather, was blown to smithereens.” He called reports that the administration is considering limited strikes on Iran “fake.”
It’s not out of the question that Trump, who loves a made-for-TV moment, breaks major news on Iran during the speech — last year, he announced in the middle of his speech that the U.S. had apprehended a terrorist allegedly involved in the bombing that killed 13 U.S. servicemembers during the pullout from Afghanistan.
On the other hand, Trump might steer clear of the topic entirely as he focuses on domestic issues dominating the headlines, such as tariffs and immigration.
We’ll also be keeping an ear out for whether Trump tries to draw any boundaries for the conservative movement on Israel policy and antisemitism in his speech. The president has largely stayed out of the ongoing fight over Israel roiling the right, but the GOP’s most prominent Israel critic, Tucker Carlson, visited the White House on Monday after an interview with U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee that grabbed headlines.
Gov. Abigail Spanberger of Virginia is set to deliver the Democratic rebuttal to Trump’s speech — making her the second of a class of female Democrats with national security backgrounds to deliver the response in two years, following Sen. Elissa Slotkin’s (D-MI) remarks last year.
Despite Slotkin’s expertise, her speech last year was fairly light on foreign policy, and it remains to be seen whether Spanberger will follow that approach.
Rep. Summer Lee (D-PA), among the most strident Israel critics in the House, is set to deliver a response on behalf of the progressive Working Families Party.
On the Democratic side of the chamber, don’t expect to see a repeat of last year’s rowdy response from the crowd — Democratic leaders are urging members to avoid disruptive protests during the speech, such as attempting to interrupt Trump.
And a growing number of Democrats, mostly progressives, including several Senate Democrats with potential presidential ambitions,are set to skip the speech entirely, in some cases attending or speaking at counter-programming events being hosted by liberal groups.
Plus, major Dem donor calls out 'Jew hate' in party
Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
President Donald Trump in the Oval Office at the White House on September 25, 2025 in Washington, DC.
Good Monday afternoon!
This P.M. edition is reserved for our premium subscribers — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
It’s me again — Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
As rumors abound about the possibility and timing of U.S. strikes on Iran, the State Department ordered the evacuation of non-essential personnel and their families from the U.S. Embassy in Beirut. “Based on our latest review, we determined it prudent to reduce our footprint,” a State official told Fox News…
Nearby, amid the buildup of U.S. military assets in the region, American refueling and cargo planes were spotted at Ben Gurion Airport…
President Donald Trump denied reports that Pentagon officials, namely Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Dan Caine, are raising concerns about striking Iran, writing on Truth Social this afternoon, “General Caine, like all of us, would like not to see War but, if a decision is made on going against Iran at a Military level, it is his opinion that it will be something easily won.”
“He has not spoken of not doing Iran, or even the fake limited strikes that I have been reading about, he only knows one thing, how to WIN and, if he is told to do so, he will be leading the pack,” Trump said of Caine, while alluding to the potential breadth of military action against Iran…
Secretary of State Marco Rubio pushed back his visit to Israel, originally scheduled for this weekend, to March 2, The Jerusalem Post reports, days after the next round of U.S.-Iran negotiations in Geneva on Thursday…
Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE), a leader on foreign policy among Democrats in Congress, told Jewish Insider’s Emily Jacobs that he heard “pretty stark early warning signs of some challenges where core allies do not share our priorities” on a potential Iran strike during his recent trip t0 Europe, which included stops at the Munich Security Conference, along with meetings in Ukraine and Moldova with top European diplomats.
Coons laid out what he hopes to see from the president: “A) Consult Congress. B) Make a case to the American people about why this is in our national security interest. C) Clarify what on earth he’s planning with this Board of Peace … And D) If he’s going to work with close allies to ramp up pressure to try and achieve something at the negotiating table, he should work with close allies”…
Anthony Driver Jr., a union organizer and candidate in Illinois’ 7th Congressional District, doubled down on his recent repudiation of AIPAC, despite previously having little public record on Israel policy issues. Following a press conference last week where Driver, who is running against AIPAC-backed Chicago Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin, denounced the pro-Israel group, he returned donations from major Democratic Party donor Michael Sacks over the finance executive’s ties to AIPAC.
Sacks, who was a major backer of former President Barack Obama and former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, said in his reply, “It is truly sad there is so much anti Israel sentiment and outright Jew hate that Anthony found himself in this position. I can only hope that the electorate rejects hate in all forms”…
As more details emerge about Rep. Tony Gonzales’ (R-TX) alleged affair with a staffer who later committed suicide, a poll commissioned by the campaign of Brandon Herrera, Gonzales’ opponent, shows the congressman trailing Herrera by a whopping 24 points among likely GOP primary voters. The story, which entered the news cycle right as early voting kicked off, could catapult Herrera, a social media influencer with a history of antisemitism, to the Republican nomination and on to Congress…
Investigators at the cryptocurrency giant Binance found last year that about $1.7 billion had been sent from two accounts to Iranian entities with links to terror groups, The New York Times reports, even after Binance pleaded guilty to violating anti-money laundering laws in 2023 and vowed to prevent sanctioned actors from accessing its platform. Trump pardoned Binance founder Changpeng Zhao, who was jailed for his role in the saga, in October 2025…
The Atlanta Jewish Film Festival backtracked in its defense of a juror selected for a judging panel who had posted antisemitic and anti-Israel content online, whom it had stood behind even after the Israeli Consulate in Atlanta announced it was withdrawing its funding and support of the event over the pick.
The festival changed its tune yesterday, saying it is “first and foremost, a Jewish institution” and has “a responsibility, particularly at this fraught time, to stand firmly against antisemitism and to affirm the Jewish people’s right to self-determination.” It said it would review its “organizational processes and policies, including those related to antisemitism, BDS, and cultural boycotts”…
The French Foreign Ministry has moved to block U.S. Ambassador to France Charles Kushner’s access to government officials after he declined to appear for a summons by Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot today, which was issued after the U.S. Embassy reposted comments by Trump about a far-right French activist who was killed in a clash with far-left protesters. It was Kushner’s second summons, after his first last year when he accused the French government of not adequately combating antisemitism…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye out in Jewish Insider for a look at Sue Altman’s shifting views on Israel as the formerly pro-Israel congressional candidate is now running in New Jersey’s more heavily Democratic 12th Congressional District.
We’ll be watching for mention of President Donald Trump’s thinking on Iran as he delivers the annual State of the Union address tomorrow night. Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger will deliver the Democratic response.
The House Foreign Affairs Committee will hold a hearing on “advancing national security through commercial diplomacy” with Jacob Helberg, under secretary of state for economic affairs, who recently told JI that he hopes the Pax Silica initiative, which he leads, “will pave the way for peace and economic integration” in the Middle East.
Australia’s royal commission on antisemitism, formed after the Hanukkah terror attack at Sydney’s Bondi Beach, will hold its first public hearing, though no testimony or evidence will be heard.
Stories You May Have Missed
OVERTON WINDOW
Jewish Democrats alarmed about whether their party will remain welcoming
Former Democratic Rep. Kathy Manning: ‘There is no doubt that we are living through very difficult times for American Jews’
BIG TENT SHABBAT
State Dept. Shabbat dinner draws UAE, Saudi ambassadors and senior Trump officials
The dinner was hosted by Rabbi Yehuda Kaploun, the U.S. antisemitism special envoy
The Delaware senator holds a unique place in the Democratic Party, rising to leadership roles while continuing to champion Biden-era foreign policy
Alex Kraus/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Senator Chris Coons, a Democrat from Delaware, at the Munich Security Conference in Munich, Germany, on Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026.
Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE), one of the leading foreign policy voices in the Democratic Party’s moderate wing, expressed concern over the weekend that any White House decision to move ahead with military action against Iran would deeply alienate leading European allies of the United States.
“There are pretty stark early warning signs of some challenges where core allies do not share our priorities,” Coons told Jewish Insider following a weeklong trip to Europe, which included stops at the Munich Security Conference, along with meetings in Ukraine and Moldova with top European diplomats.
“It leaves me genuinely concerned that if Trump goes ahead with a strike against Iran, it is not going to enjoy support from any of our core allies,” he continued. “That will make it harder, and it may deepen this growing challenge for us.”
Asked how he would like to see the Trump administration address the Iranian regime’s violent crackdown on protesters and its nuclear program, Coons urged the president to work with close allies to “ramp up pressure” on Tehran and explain his approach to the public. The Delaware senator also encouraged Trump to include Congress in his deliberations.
“A) Consult Congress. B) Make a case to the American people about why this is in our national security interest,” Coons said. “C) Clarify what on earth he’s planning with this Board of Peace, which just launched with a massive pledge from the United States that none of us had heard of before he announced it,” he said, ostensibly referring to the $10 billion financial commitment Trump made to Gaza’s reconstruction. “And D) If he’s going to work with close allies to ramp up pressure to try and achieve something at the negotiating table, he should work with close allies.”
“He shouldn’t just fire off a bunch of missiles and assume that that’s going to be enough to achieve the result he wants,” he added.
Coons also highlighted growing transatlantic tensions over potential U.S. military action against Iran during discussions with European officials, who expressed worries about a brewing U.S.-U.K. dispute tied to the Chagos Islands.
The remote British Indian Ocean Territory is at the center of a 2025 agreement in which the U.K. agreed to transfer sovereignty of the island chain to Mauritius while securing a 99- or 100-year lease for the strategic Diego Garcia military base, a joint U.S.-U.K. facility long used by American forces.
The Trump administration initially signaled support for the deal, with the State Department affirming it last Tuesday. But one day later, President Donald Trump publicly urged Prime Minister Keir Starmer to scrap the arrangement and retain full control of the “strategically located” base, warning it could be needed if diplomacy with Iran fails.
The Times of London reported Thursday that the British government had informed Washington that week it would not permit U.S. strikes on Iran from Diego Garcia or the Royal Air Force’s Fairford station, which houses U.S. Air Force troops, in England.
Coons called the U.K.’s stance “striking.”
Coons plays a unique role in today’s Democratic Party. He sits in the Senate seat held by former President Joe Biden for 36 years, and the two Delaware Democrats have a relationship that dates back four decades.
In addition to being the ranking member on Defense Appropriations, the panel responsible for Pentagon funding, Coons is next in line to succeed retiring Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) as the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, a role Biden held in the early 2000s. The Delaware senator remains Biden’s most ardent defender in politics following his exit from public life, and continues to advocate in his role as a senior Democrat in Congress for the traditional foreign policy views the two men have long shared.
He does so against the backdrop of the ongoing debate among Democrats about the future direction of the party, on foreign policy and otherwise, in the post-Biden era.
Alongside Coons in Munich were a handful of prominent Democrats believed to be considering presidential runs in 2028, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), Sens. Chris Murphy (D-CT), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), Mark Kelly (D-AZ) and Elissa Slotkin (D-MI). Govs. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan and Gavin Newsom of California and former Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo.
Among the possible presidential hopefuls, Ocasio-Cortez and Whitmer were criticized for being unprepared for the conference after struggling to answer questions on U.S. policy toward China and Ukraine. Meanwhile, Murphy and Ocasio-Cortez separately accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza — appealing to a left-wing base that has made criticism of the Jewish state central to its foreign policy.
Ocasio-Cortez later griped to The New York Times that her gaffes and perceived presidential ambitions overshadowed the message she was attempting to deliver on a major foreign policy stage.
Asked about the large presence of potential Democratic presidential candidates in Munich, Coons joked that he was “announcing my 2028 candidacy” before crediting his fellow Democrats for engaging closely on foreign policy issues.
“The reality is that over the last several cycles, I’ve been very encouraged to see governors, senators, former cabinet officials who are likely future presidential candidates invest the time in coming to Munich, coming to Davos, going to Halifax, going to Australia, because the threat environment for all of our countries has become more serious and more real,” Coons said.
Coons also expressed concern about the hefty $850 billion budget for the Pentagon in the upcoming fiscal year, noting the significantly increased funding is “a breathtaking amount of money, and there is a lot of skepticism on the part of Americans that it’s being well spent.”
“The average American needs to see good jobs and innovation coming out of this massive defense investment. If we focus only on buying American and only on American jobs, we will lose tactically, we will lose strategically, we will lose politically. To the extent we align together, there is a strong future for all of our countries as democracies to meet this moment and to deliver the innovation that this threat environment absolutely demands,” Coons said.
Hanan Lischinsky, whose brother Yaron was killed alongside his girlfriend in May, will be a guest at Trump’s address
Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images
U.S. Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL) (L) speaks with Speaker of the House Rep. Mike Johnson (R-LA) (R) after a memorial vigil held outside of the U.S. Capitol on June 10, 2025 in Washington, DC.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) will bring Hanan Lischinsky, the brother of an Israeli Embassy staffer shot and killed outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C., last May, as his guest to President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address on Tuesday evening.
Lischinsky is the brother of Yaron Lischinsky, who was killed alongside Sarah Milgrim, his girlfriend and a fellow embassy staffer, while exiting a museum event for young diplomats and Jewish professionals hosted by the American Jewish Committee; the two were gunned down by a suspect seen on video shouting “free Palestine” and “I did it for Gaza” after the attack.
Lischinsky and Milgrim met while working at the embassy. Lischinsky’s family said he had planned to propose to Milgrim on an upcoming trip to Jerusalem, which was scheduled for the month after their murders.
“On May 21, 2025, Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim were murdered on the streets of Washington, D.C. These two young diplomats of the Israeli Embassy, devoted to the cause of peace and to one another, had their futures stolen in a violent act of antisemitism,” Johnson said in a statement.
“Yaron’s brother, Hanan Lischinsky, has shown remarkable courage in shedding light on the extremism that took his brother’s life,” the statement continued. “I am honored to invite him as my guest for President Trump’s State of the Union address.”
Lischinsky and Milgrim’s murders were met with widespread calls from pro-Israel voices in the U.S. for critics of Israel to call out and condemn antisemitism within the anti-Israel movement. A coalition of 42 Jewish organizations described the murders in a statement at the time as “the direct consequence of rising antisemitic incitement in places such as college campuses, city council meetings, and social media that has normalized hate and emboldened those who wish to do harm.”
The alleged shooter, Elias Rodriguez, was charged in late May with two counts of first-degree murder, the murder of foreign officials, causing death with a firearm and discharging a firearm in a violent crime. The Department of Justice went on to charge Rodriguez, a 31-year-old Chicago native, with nine additional counts, including federal hate crimes charges, in August. Prosecutors are still considering whether to pursue the death penalty.
State leaders would have to opt in to a new tax credit allowing parents to get financial assistance for students
Getty Images
As governors from across the country convened in Washington over the weekend for the annual National Governors Association summit, representatives from the Jewish Federations of North America held dozens of sideline meetings with Democratic officials to lobby them on a new education tax initiative, Josh Nason, JFNA’s senior director of political affairs, told Jewish Insider.
Their goal was to educate those governors, some of whom were skeptical of the credit, and urge them to participate in the first-of-its-kind supplemental federal funding that could help pay for Jewish day school and yeshiva education.
Starting in the 2027 tax year, the federal Education Freedom Tax Credit, part of President Donald Trump’s One Big, Beautiful Bill Act, provides a dollar-for-dollar tax credit — up to $1,700 annually — for donations to approved Scholarship Granting Organizations. These SGOs offer scholarships for a variety of K-12 public and private education expenses, including private school tuition, transportation and tutoring.
If states don’t opt in, taxpayers can still donate, but residents of that state won’t have the ability to be beneficiaries.
“For Jewish day schools, it’s a huge opportunity,” Nason told JI following his meetings with both Democratic and Republican governors — the first time JFNA had a presence at NGA.
The credit differs from school-choice programs “in the sense that it’s not taking money out of public school funds,” said Nason. “It’s just a tax credit that people can put toward a school scholarship option. The advocacy that we’re doing is [to raise awareness that] any individual can make this donation and get the tax credit, but a state has to opt in in order for their [SGOs] to be eligible to receive the funds.”
While nearly all Republican governors have already opted in, their Democratic counterparts have been hesitant. Some critics have voiced concerns that the program has insufficient oversight against fraud or that it could divert public money to private schools. JFNA submitted written comments in December to the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service regarding implementation of the tax credit.
Last month, Colorado Gov. Jared Polis became the first Democratic state leader to opt his state into the program. States have the next several months to choose to participate.
Nason said that in meetings with Democratic governors, “we heard a lot of interest in opting in.” Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, who serves as vice chair of the NGA, was among the officials JFNA met with.
“A lot of the Democratic governors are waiting to understand the implications, especially for IRS regulations,” continued Nason. “We certainly heard a lot of positive reactions to it and a lot of openness to understanding it. It was really productive and a good opportunity to educate them.”
While the Orthodox Union has been active for years in lobbying for Jewish day school affordability, JFNA has only started wading into the issue in recent months. Eric Fingerhut, JFNA’s CEO, raised the topic during the group’s inaugural “State of the Jewish Union” address last week.
Meetings with governors were just the beginning of JFNA’s advocacy for the tax credit. The group also recently started conversations in Jewish communities to raise awareness about the opportunity for prospective day school students.
“We at JFNA are leading the charge on this, but part of it is making sure there’s awareness out there,” Nason told JI. “We’ve been in touch with other partners. There’s significant interest from the denominations. We’ve had a generally positive response from everyone we’ve spoken to in the Jewish community as folks understand what can be done to make Jewish day schools more affordable. We are at the early stages of advocating for this.”
“We are doing outreach inside and outside the Jewish community,” said Nason.
While the education tax credit could help many more families send their children to Jewish schools — which cost an average of $35,000 per student annually — the program is “not really a Jewish communal issue,” he continued. “There are a lot of other religious groups in the country sending their kids to private schools, and we want to get public school parents to understand that this can benefit their schools as well.”
Jewish life in other areas could also be enhanced by the program, according to Nason, because “money coming into the system in other ways [allows for] more money in general that federations have to spend on projects.”
“This is a great opportunity for there to be funds available, and we would love to see all the states opt in,” he said. “For this program to be sustainable, it really needs to be nationwide. That’s the message we are sending.”
This story was updated on Feb. 23 to reflect that JFNA representatives met with both Democratic and Republican governors.
Plus, Trump's kind words for Qatari PM
Alex Wong/Getty Images
A visitor holds an AIPAC folder in an elevator in Rayburn House Office Building on March 12, 2024 on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC.
Good Thursday afternoon!
This P.M. edition is reserved for our premium subscribers — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
It’s me again — Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
President Donald Trump used the occasion of the first meeting of the Board of Peace in Washington today to announce significant monetary and troop commitments from the U.S. and other countries to stabilize Gaza, as well as lay out a timeline for military action against Iran, Jewish Insider’s Matthew Shea reports.
The pledges included $10 billion from the U.S. and $7 billion from several Middle Eastern countries for Gaza’s reconstruction, as well as commitments to provide troops and police to the U.S.-led International Stabilization Force. (The Guardian reports the White House is currently exploring plans to build a 5,000-person military base to house the ISF in southern Gaza.)
On Iran negotiations, Trump said in his remarks, “Now we may have to take it a step further or we may not. Maybe we are going to make a deal [with Iran]. You are going to be finding out over the next probably 10 days.”
He later told reporters on Air Force One, “Ten, 15 days, pretty much maximum.” Remember: Last June, Trump said he would decide whether to take action against Iran within two weeks, and carried out strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities two days later…
U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has reportedly not given approval to Washington to use the joint U.S.-U.K. base on Diego Garcia island for a strike on Iran, as Trump said yesterday he is considering. London is concerned that a U.S. strike from the shared base, which the U.K. must grant permission to use, could implicate it in violating international law…
Trump also offered praise for Qatar’s prime minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, during his Board of Peace remarks, despite widespread criticism of Doha’s backing of Hamas and platforming of anti-Israel actors.
“His excellency, Prime Minister Al Thani of Qatar, just a great and highly respected man,” Trump said. “I always say he needs a public relations agency because you do so much good, and they have you down as evil, and you’re not evil. You help us so much and you’re such a good ally”…
Meanwhile, Hamas is entrenching itself further in Gaza, repositioning its loyalists in government and paying salaries across the enclave, according to Reuters. Hamas has said it is willing to hand power over to the Palestinian technocratic committee established by the U.S. and led by former Palestinian Authority official Ali Shaath, but as one Palestinian source told the outlet, “Shaath may have the key to the car, and he may even be allowed to drive, but it is a Hamas car”…
Former Rep. Tom Malinowski (D-NJ), who recently lost the Democratic primary for New Jersey’s 11th Congressional District, called AIPAC’s attacks against him in the race “bizarre in several ways,” writing in an op-ed today that he has “no problem identifying as a Zionist” and calling on Democratic leaders to collectively “refuse [AIPAC’s] support, instead of letting it pick off candidates one by one”…
Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) withdrew her endorsement of Cook County Commissioner Donna Miller, the front-runner in Illinois’ 2nd District Democratic primary, over Miller’s backing by groups that are reported to be affiliated with AIPAC, though the pro-Israel group hasn’t endorsed her and neither AIPAC nor its super PAC are publicly spending any money in the district.
“Illinois deserves leaders who put voters first, not AIPAC or out-of-state Trump donors,” Schakowsky told the Chicago Sun-Times. “I cannot support any candidate running for Congress who is funded by these outside interests”…
Ahead of a hearing next week on New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin’s proposed 100-foot ban on protests around houses of worship, Mayor Zohran Mamdani said today that he had the NYPD review the legality of the measure, “and I can tell you, my police commissioner has expressed concerns about that proposal”…
Three officials appointed by Mamdani to administration posts are co-founders of a group that blamed Israel for the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks two days after they took place, the Washington Free Beacon reports.
The group, the Muslim Democratic Club of New York (MDCNY), was founded by Faiza Ali, now commissioner of the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs; Aliya Latif, now executive director of the mayor’s Office of Faith-Based Partnerships; Ali Najmi, tapped as chair of the mayor’s Advisory Committee on the Judiciary; and anti-Israel activist Linda Sarsour.
On Oct. 9, 2023, the MDCNY posted on X, “Many NYers are feeling pain, fear, and anger after the horrific events in the Holy Land this weekend. Especially as the Israeli apartheid regime have forced millions of Palestinians in Gaza to live under occupation for decades and an open air prison since 2007.” The group went on to condemn “elected officials offering support for Israeli occupation’s rampant violence as it openly declares & enacts its intent to engage in mass violence and genocide against Palestinians,” well before Israel’s ground invasion of Gaza had begun…
The Forward profiles Los Angeles City Councilmember Nithya Raman as she runs for mayor with a unique ideology: Raman is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, but has also been vocally supportive of Israel. She called DSA’s statement blaming Israel for the Oct. 7 attacks “unacceptably devoid of sympathy” and rejects the BDS movement, but was also condemned by the local Jewish community for introducing a ceasefire resolution in June 2023…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye out in Jewish Insider for a preview of the AIPAC Congressional Summit, which is kicking off Sunday amid the group’s increasing involvement in midterm election races.
President Donald Trump is expected to meet with governors at the White House tomorrow, though the meeting will no longer be held under the auspices of the National Governors Association, as is done annually, after the White House declined to invite Democratic Govs. Jared Polis of Colorado and Wes Moore of Maryland to a black-tie dinner on Saturday.
We’ll be back in your inbox with the Daily Overtime on Monday. Shabbat Shalom!
Stories You May Have Missed
FULOP’S FIGHT
Former Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop brings the fight against antisemitism to NYC’s business community
As the new head of NYC’s leading business advocacy group, Fulop said he’s preparing for ‘this experiment of what it means to be an executive in a DSA world’
TEXAS TROUBLE
How an anti-Israel Republican with an antisemitic history could get elected in Texas
An unfolding scandal involving Rep. Tony Gonzales could cost him his seat at the hands of a far-right social media influencer
At the inaugural meeting of the Board of Peace, the president also announced monetary and troop commitments from several foreign nations
Murat Gok/Anadolu via Getty Images
President Donald Trump makes a speech during the inaugural meeting of the 'Board of Peace' at the US Institute of Peace in Washington, DC, United States on February 19, 2026.
President Donald Trump used the occasion of the first meeting of the Board of Peace in Washington on Thursday to announce significant monetary and troop commitments from the U.S. and other countries to stabilize Gaza, as well as lay out a timeline for military action against Iran.
“I want to let you know that the United States is going to make a contribution of $10 billion to the Board of Peace,” Trump said at the United States Institute of Peace, where several foreign leaders gathered for the meeting.
The president also named, for the first time, which countries have agreed to make additional financial contributions to the reconstruction of Gaza: Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, the United Arab Emirates, Morocco, Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Uzbekistan and Kuwait “have all contributed more than $7 billion toward the relief package,” Trump said.
The meeting comes as the administration works to address several issues in the Middle East, including rising tensions with Iran. The U.S. has amassed a large collection of military assets in the region in preparation for a potential strike, as the two sides attempt to negotiate a nuclear deal.
Trump said in his remarks, “Now we may have to take it a step further or we may not. Maybe we are going to make a deal [with Iran]. You are going to be finding out over the next probably 10 days.”
Speaking to reporters on Air Force One later in the day, Trump said, “I would think that would be enough time — 10, 15 days, pretty much maximum.” Last June, Trump said he would decide whether to take action against Iran within two weeks, and carried out strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities two days later.
During the meeting, Trump also called on Iran to “join” the board “on a path that will complete what we’re doing.”
“If they [Iran] join us, that will be great. If they don’t join us, that will be great too, but it will be a very different path,” the president said. “They cannot continue to threaten the stability of the entire region, and they must make a deal. Or if that doesn’t happen, I maybe can understand if it doesn’t happen, but bad things will happen.”
Trump also announced that several countries would contribute personnel to an International Stabilization Force tasked broadly with securing Gaza and upholding the ceasefire between Hamas and Israel. Morocco, Albania, Kosovo and Kazakhstan “have all committed troops and police to stabilize Gaza,” he said. Indonesia vowed prior to the meeting to also contribute personnel to the body’s mission.
The president added that “Egypt and Jordan are likewise providing very, very substantial help, troops, training and support for a very trustworthy Palestinian police force. We think we’re getting some very good people on that police force.”
However, despite the announcements, questions remain over how effective the pledges will be. Hamas continues to maintain a presence in Gaza and has thus far refused to disarm or relinquish governing authority — a dynamic that could complicate reconstruction and stability efforts. Trump has not clearly defined the operational scope of the International Stabilization Force, including whether its members would be expected to confront Hamas directly or focus on traditional peacekeeping functions.
Despite those uncertainties, Trump still expressed confidence that Hamas would comply with disarmament commitments.
“[Hamas] made a promise, and they promised me they would get rid of their weapons. Looks like they’re going to be doing that,” Trump said, adding that if they do not, “they’ll be very harshly met.” Since announcing the Board of Peace, Trump has made similar threats to Hamas numerous times.
He also said there are “two countries that want to go in and do a number on Hamas,” without specifying which countries, but added, “I really don’t think that’s going to be necessary, because [Hamas] they made a promise.” The ISF is not expected to play a role in countering Hamas.
During his address, the president also took a moment to acknowledge the foreign leaders of member countries that had shown up to back the announcement, including offering praise for Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, Qatar’s prime minister. Despite widespread criticism of Doha’s ties to Hamas officials and support for the terrorist organization, Trump strongly defended the leader against accusations that he and his country are “evil.”
“His excellency, Prime Minister Al Thani of Qatar, just a great and highly respected man,” said Trump. “I always say he needs a public relations agency because you do so much good, and they have you down as evil, and you’re not evil. You help us so much and you’re such a good ally.”
Meanwhile, Trump signaled that he hopes to broaden the Board of Peace’s membership, though several leaders of major U.S. allies — including the United Kingdom, Germany and France — have indicated they do not plan to take part.
Trump also withdrew an invitation previously extended to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney after the leader delivered remarks critical of the initiative at last month’s World Economic Forum in Davos.
“So many of our friends in Europe are attending today, and we’re eager to have them become full members,” said Trump. “And we’ve had a great response from Europe. I’m excited to announce that Norway has agreed to host an event bringing together the board of peace.”
Trump also addressed the board’s relationship with the United Nations, amid questions about whether the new body is intended to complement or rival existing international institutions. He positioned the board as senior to the U.N., and that the two bodies would work “very closely.”
“We’re going to bring them back. I think the United Nations has great potential, really great potential. It has not lived up to potential,” said Trump. “The United Nations will be much stronger, and the Board of Peace is going to almost be looking over the United Nations and making sure it runs properly. But we’re going to strengthen the United Nations. We’re going to make sure its facilities are good. They need help, and they need help money wise. We’re going to help them money wise, and we’re going to make sure the United Nations is viable.”
Experts tell JI that despite the constant flow of reports that Trump favors a military response as talks with Iran falter, an American strike and Iranian retaliation against Israel are likely not imminent
Tomer Neuberg/AP
Israeli Iron Dome air defense system launches to intercept missiles fired from Iran, in central Israel, Sunday, April 14, 2024.
Tensions in Israel continued to rise over possible missile strikes from Iran, as signals increased that President Donald Trump is ready to order a strike on the Islamic Republic, possibly within days.
Yet experts told Jewish Insider on Thursday that, despite the constant flow of reports that Trump favors a military response as negotiations with Iran falter, an American strike and Iranian retaliation against Israel are likely not imminent.
Nearly every major Israeli news website and broadcast led with Iran news on Wednesday evening and Thursday morning, referencing reports in CBS News that the U.S. military could be prepared to strike in the coming days and and the Wall Street Journal headline that the U.S. has amassed the greatest air power in the Middle East since the Iraq war in 2003.
In a moment that went viral in Israel and sparked hundreds of phone calls to the IDF Home Front Command, former IDF intelligence chief Amos Yadlin told Israel’s Channel 12 on Wednesday that while he went to the Munich Security Conference last week, “I would think twice about flying [abroad] on the coming weekend.”
Every Israeli “asks himself several times a day when there will be a campaign against Iran,” Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee chairman Boaz Bismuth (Likud) said on Wednesday. “The entire population and homefront are preparing.”
However, IDF Spokesperson Effie Defrin said that “there is no change in the situational assessment, and if there will be, we will update [the public]. There is no need to panic.”
Defrin also noted that “there are negotiations, and the IDF has long been prepared for maximum defense. If we are attacked, we will respond forcefully.”
However, while Israel’s leadership and the IDF’s assessment is that the U.S. will warn them before a strike, they plan to prepare quietly and not alert the public in advance, in order to increase the chances of success, Israel’s Kann News reported on Wednesday.
Raz Zimmt, director of the Iran Program at Tel Aviv University’s Institute for National Security Studies, quipped to JI in reference to Yadlin’s remarks: “Don’t change your weekend plans.”
Zimmt noted that the USS Gerald Ford aircraft carrier is still on the way to the region, and argued that “the Americans will want to be maximally prepared when they make their decision” whether to strike Iran.
“I think it’s a matter of days, not weeks, but it could also be 14 days,” he said.
Oded Ailam, former head of the Mossad Counterterrorism Division and a researcher at the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs, said that he “doesn’t see a scenario of an immediate strike in the coming days or the coming week, despite the fearmongering in the media.”
Ailam argued that Trump will try to exhaust the current negotiations to be certain if Iran will accept a deal.
“He won’t attack until it is totally clear that this is a dead end, but he will gather forces” in the region, Ailam said. “It won’t happen for the next week or two, and after that, it depends mostly on the Iranians and the extent of their concessions.”
In Zimmt’s assessment, an Iranian surprise attack, rather than a retaliation following an American strike, is unlikely.
“Iran understands the chance of an American attack is higher than the chance of an agreement, but why should they drag themselves into a war that they have a chance of avoiding?” he said.
In addition, he said, the Iranian leadership “knows very well that Israel is ready and won’t be surprised, so it’s not worth it.”
Still, Zimmt said, Iran’s likely first reaction to an American strike will likely be to attack U.S. bases in the Gulf and Israeli targets: “For them, the U.S. and Israel are the same thing.”
Ailam said that Israel has greatly improved its air defenses since the 12-day war with Iran last June. At the time, Israel intercepted 85% of the missiles coming from Iran, and Ailam said the interception rate would likely be higher next time. Israel’s Iron Beam laser-defense system has also become operative in the interim, adding a new element of defense against drones.
In addition, he noted that the amassing of American naval vessels in the region means that the U.S. will likely contribute more to Israel’s defense than during the last war.
At the same time, Ailam said, “the Iranians have not managed to rebuild their ballistic missile systems. They only have 240 launchers, which is not much. When you strike launchers, you neutralize their ability to shoot many missiles simultaneously and disrupt Israel’s defense systems.”
As such, Ailam’s assessment was that “Iran is on the defensive and Israel has a clear advantage.”
“If two ballistic missiles penetrate Israel’s defensive envelope, it can cause great damage — as it did at Soroka [Medical Center in Beersheba] and Weizmann [Institute of Science] last year — but it is not a threat that Israel can’t handle. I don’t see it as an existential or very significant threat,” he said.
Congressional candidates in New York and Illinois also signed onto the campaign, linked to Shanghai-based magnate Neville ‘Roy’ Singham and a series of anti-Israel groups
Roberto Machado Noa/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
Havana, Cuba, Residential district cityscape from an elevated point.
A raft of Democrats — including 23 members of the 51-seat New York City Council, multiple state lawmakers and four candidates for Congress — have joined forces with a Beijing-aligned tech tycoon to bail out the fuel-starved dictatorship in Cuba.
The officials in question lent their names to the “Let Cuba Live” campaign, which denounces President Donald Trump’s oil embargo on the island nation and seeks to triage solar panels and generators to defray the crippling impact on its energy production.
All donations for the effort run through the People’s Forum, a Manhattan-based nonprofit established and financed by Shanghai-based magnate Neville “Roy” Singham, part of his sprawling web of organizations promoting the interests of China and its allies Russia and Iran.
The People’s Forum and Singham, a devout Maoist who reaped a fortune from the sale of his software firm Thoughtworks, were at the center of a House hearing last week on foreign influence operations and overseas funding of activist groups.
Let Cuba Live’s website reveals the involvement of other Singham-linked groups, including CODEPINK — co-founded by his wife, Jodie Evans — and the ANSWER Coalition, both of which spearheaded anti-Israel protests beginning the day after the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks on Israel. Jewish Voice for Peace and the Democratic Socialists of America are also signatories, along with well-known left-wing celebrities such as Susan Sarandon and Roger Waters who have long been vocally hostile to Israel.
But unlike Singham’s other attempts to influence U.S. policy and promote its geopolitical foes, this effort has attracted backing from dozens of leading Democrats, the vast majority of them representing parts of New York City.
Several of the elected officials who have joined the crusade are DSA members: Councilmembers Alexa Aviles, Tiffany Caban, Chi Ossé, Shahana Hanif, state Sen. Julia Salazar and Assemblymembers Diana Moreno and Claire Valdez.
Moreno was Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s handpicked successor to his old seat in the New York Legislature, while Mamdani has endorsed Valdez to replace Rep. Nydia Velazquez (D-NY) in Congress.
However, the bulk of the New York co-signers are not card-carrying DSA members, but simply members of the Council’s long-standing left-of-center Progressive Caucus. These include Councilmembers Harvey Epstein, Gale Brewer, Althea Stevens, Amanda Farias, Crystal Hudson, Christopher Marte, Elsie Encarnacion, Farah Louis, Jennifer Gutiérrez, Kayla Santosuosso, Pierina Sanchez, Sandy Nurse, Rita Joseph, Shanel Thomas-Henry, Shekar Krishnan, Shirley Aldebol, Julie Won — also a candidate for Velazquez’s soon-to-be-vacant seat — and Deputy Council Speaker Nantasha Williams.
Other prominent Democrats who have joined the Singham campaign include congressional hopefuls Jake Levine and Byron Sigcho-Lopez, seeking the seats of Rep. Brad Sherman (D-CA) and Rep. Chuy Garcia (D-IL), respectively. Levine did not respond to a request for comment. Sigcho-Lopez, a Chicago city alderman, told Jewish Insider that he had signed on at the request of DSA, of which he is a member.
He said he was aware of CODEPINK’s participation in the campaign, but not of the larger Singham network’s involvement, though he expressed no regrets joining.
“Outside of the geopolitical struggle, it is important that we protect the well-being and lives of anyone,” Sigcho-Lopez said. “I think they’re fighting for the same things we’re fighting for in Chicago: we want to protect people’s humanity.”
None of the elected officials responded to JI questions, although two New York City Council sources — who requested anonymity to avoid jeopardizing their positions — said that the Progressive Caucus had urged members to sign on.
Several of the other names attached to “Let Cuba Live” are leading members of the Party for Socialism and Liberation, a small but prominent fringe party that has spearheaded anti-Israel protests, promotes the interests of Tehran, Moscow and Beijing, and provides staff and support to Singham’s network. The Justice Department has identified the PSL as a key force in organizing the wave of protests that have targeted synagogues in recent months.
As of Wednesday evening, the campaign was about $60,000 away from hitting its $200,000 fundraising goal, funds it has vowed to expend. “We are rushing solar generators and panels to our neighbors 90 miles away so that hospitals can keep their doors open and their lights on.”
Plus, Sen. Graham reports MBZ is alive and well
Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Amber Smalley/U.S. Navy via Getty Images
Flight deck of the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) May 10, 2019 in the Red Sea.
Good Wednesday afternoon!
This P.M. edition is reserved for our premium subscribers — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
It’s me again — Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
President Donald Trump warned U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer not to relinquish control over Diego Garcia — an island in the Indian Ocean that hosts a joint U.S.-U.K. base, as the U.K. plans to transfer sovereignty of the larger island chain to Mauritius, while maintaining a 99-year lease on the base — because it may act as the launching pad for a U.S. strike on Iran.
“Should Iran decide not to make a Deal, it may be necessary for the United States to use Diego Garcia, and the Airfield located in Fairford, in order to eradicate a potential attack by a highly unstable and dangerous Regime — An attack that would potentially be made on the United Kingdom, as well as other friendly countries,” Trump wrote on Truth Social…
Iran is also signaling its readiness for military conflict, The Wall Street Journal reports, including deploying Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps naval units to the Strait of Hormuz, launching cruise missiles along the coast, conducting a military exercise with a Russian warship near the USS Abraham Lincoln, testing air defense systems, hardening nuclear sites and cracking down once more on dissidents…
Israel, meanwhile, is preparing for its civilian infrastructure to be “a central arena” in a potential U.S.-Iran conflict, Jewish Insider’s Lahav Harkov reports, as Home Front Command chief Maj.-Gen. Shay Klapper told the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee today. Committee Chairman Boaz Bismuth said, “There is not one [Israeli] who doesn’t ask himself several times a day when there will be a campaign against Iran. The entire population and home front are preparing”…
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) dispelled rumors, seemingly spread by Saudi media, that UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed was ill or even dying after meeting with him in Abu Dhabi today: “Not only is he alive, but he is also well and as sharp as I’ve ever seen him. To those powers that feel the need to attack MbZ and the UAE for doing the right thing — you do so at your own peril,” Graham said on X.
He also called MBZ’s decision to join the Abraham Accords and “to try to integrate the region with the whole world … one of the most consequential decisions any Middle Eastern leader has made.” Graham is now headed to Saudi Arabia where he will meet with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, whom he recently told publicly to “knock it off” regarding the kingdom’s destabilizing activities in the region…
Democratic Texas state Rep. James Talarico raised $2.5 million in donations for his Senate campaign in the 24 hours after his interview on Stephen Colbert’s late-night show was reportedly quashed by CBS, Politico reports, as early voting in Texas kicked off yesterday ahead of the March 3 primary.
CBS denied it had banned the interview, saying Colbert’s show “was provided legal guidance that the broadcast could trigger the FCC equal-time rule for two other candidates, including Rep. Jasmine Crockett, and presented options for how the equal time for other candidates could be fulfilled,” which Colbert derided as a statement “written by — and I’m guessing for — lawyers”…
On the GOP side of the Texas Senate ballot, Attorney General Ken Paxton looks like the front-runner in his hotly contested primary against incumbent Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) and Rep. Wesley Hunt (R-TX), despite the GOP establishment spending more than $60 million in attack ads against Paxton, Punchbowl News reports. (And the infighting goes further: Hunt said yesterday he filed criminal charges against a senior member of Cornyn’s campaign team for allegedly doxxing a member of his family.)
Trump told reporters last night that he still hadn’t decided which of the GOP candidates, if any, to endorse, saying, “I like all three of them actually. Those are the toughest races. They’ve all supported me. They’re all good. You’re supposed to pick one, so we’ll see what happens. But I support all three”…
Democratic Virginia state Del. Dan Helmer, a key architect of the state’s current redistricting effort, plans to enter the race for the 7th Congressional District that will be created if state voters approve a constitutional amendment to allow redistricting to proceed.
Helmer, who is Jewish and the son of an Israeli immigrant, ran for the state’s 10th District in 2024 on a staunchly pro-Israel platform, telling JI at the time that calls for conditions on U.S. aid to Israel are “incredibly frustrating.” He became the target of late-stage ad campaigns, which their backers insisted to JI were unrelated to his support for Israel, and ultimately came in second in the Democratic primary…
Humain, Saudi Arabia’s state-sponsored AI company, invested $3 billion in Elon Musk’s xAI, the company announced today. The investment came just before Musk combined xAI with his SpaceX aerospace company, giving the Saudi firm a significant stake in the major U.S. government contractor…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye out in Jewish Insider for a look at how the emerging scandal involving Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX) — whom the San Antonio Express News confirmed yesterday was engaged in an extramarital affair with a staffer who committed suicide — could catapult an anti-Israel Republican, who has posted videos featuring Nazi imagery, to Congress.
Our focus tomorrow will be the first meeting of the Board of Peace, which will bring several heads of state and senior ministers, including Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, to Washington. Read JI’s preview of the meeting.
Jewish Federations of North America CEO Eric Fingerhut will deliver what JFNA is calling the first “State of the Jewish Union Address,” ahead of the president’s State of the Union next week, from the organization’s Washington headquarters.
The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights will hold a daylong hearing on antisemitism on college campuses, featuring legal experts, former administration officials, students and Jewish communal leaders, which include Amy Spitalnick, CEO of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs; Kenneth Marcus, founder and CEO of the Louis D. Brandeis Center; Erin Beiner, J Street U director; and Kevin Rachlin, Washington director of The Nexus Project.
Stories You May Have Missed
MONIKER MEANING
Anger at ‘Epstein class’ bleeds into conspiratorial finger-pointing
Follow the language to its most extreme end, and what emerges is undiluted antisemitism
ROCK AND A HARD PLACE
In North Carolina’s Research Triangle, pro-Israel voters at a loss
Rep. Valerie Foushee was backed by AIPAC, but has since turned against supporting Israel. Her Democratic opponent is a virulently anti-Israel activist
A source told JI they expect discussion on humanitarian aid and the Palestinian technocratic government in Gaza; it remains to be seen how Israel and Hamas will respond to the board's directives
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
President Donald Trump holds up his signature on the founding charter during a signing ceremony for the “Board of Peace” at the World Economic Forum (WEF) on January 22, 2026 in Davos, Switzerland.
After a splashy debut at the World Economic Forum in Davos last month, President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace will convene for its first meeting on Thursday in Washington.
The new international body now faces a test of its ability to operationalize its goals: Observers will be watching whether the board makes any significant announcements toward its goal of implementing Phase 2 of Trump’s peace plan, which is focused on rebuilding Gaza and securing the enclave.
A source familiar with Thursday’s meeting told Jewish Insider that it is “not just pomp and circumstance,” and that they expect discussion about topics including humanitarian aid and the Palestinian technocratic government in Gaza. “It’s not window dressing at all,” the source said of the board’s work.
Trump has assembled a roster of regional heavy hitters on the Board of Peace, including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Turkey, Jordan and Israel. Many European nations, including France, have so far declined the invitation, wary that it intrudes on the United Nations’ authority and that its mandate is not clearly confined to Gaza.
According to a senior Trump administration official, speakers at the event will include Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Jared Kushner, former U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Mike Waltz, White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Nickolay Mladenov, the former U.N. Middle East envoy now serving as the high representative for Gaza on the Board of Peace. Little has been shared publicly about what the format will be.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, a close ally of Trump, said he plans to attend, as will the leaders of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Indonesia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Pakistan, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. Several countries, including Israel, Egypt and Turkey, are sending senior ministers in place of their heads of state. A European Union commissioner is expected to attend Thursday’s meeting as an observer, alongside observers from some other nations who have not joined the board, including South Korea.
“President Trump is proud to welcome representatives from over 40 nations to the Donald J. Trump Institute of Peace on Thursday for a big announcement on Board of Peace actions to establish an enduring peace in the Middle East,” White House principal deputy press secretary Anna Kelly told Jewish Insider, arguing that the board will be “the most consequential international body in history.”
The gathering of Middle East and global leaders will also come against the backdrop of U.S.-Iran nuclear negotiations and speculation that Trump is seriously considering military action against Iran, with the U.S. building up military assets in the region this week.
Trump announced on Sunday that member countries have pledged $5 billion toward rebuilding the war-torn enclave and will commit thousands of personnel to the International Stabilization Force, which has not yet been launched. He did not detail which member nations were making the pledges for funds or troops, though Indonesia said it was readying up to 8,000 personnel to deploy to Gaza by this summer. The estimated cost to rebuild Gaza is $70 billion.
The White House said the media had been too skeptical of Trump’s plans but declined to offer specifics about the source of the $5 billion or how the money would be deployed.
“We’re talking about reconstructing Gaza. I remember when those words came from the president’s lips in the East Room many months ago and all of you in the press were bewildered at how the president could have such an ambitious goal of rebuilding Gaza, which is obviously a place that has been just turmoiled by violence and chaos for many many years,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said at a Wednesday press briefing. “But we’re well underway in doing that.”
The key question facing the body is whether it can actually make progress toward addressing the most intractable issue in Gaza: Hamas’ continued control over large parts of the Strip and the terror group’s refusal to disarm.
“What will come out of it besides rhetoric is some financial commitments and troop commitments. But the troop commitments are limited. No one will agree to disarm Hamas,” Elliott Abrams, who served as an Iran envoy in Trump’s first term, told JI. “Reconstruction won’t really begin until Hamas is disarmed and fighting has ended.”
While Trump has repeatedly indicated that disarming Hamas is a top priority, the International Stabilization Force tasked with keeping the peace in Gaza is not expected to take on Hamas militarily. The White House has not laid out a plan for how the ISF will take over control from Hamas, which is thus far unwilling to relinquish governance. It is also not clear how Israel and Hamas will respond to the board’s directives.
“The three core questions that the board is examining are, who’s going to govern Gaza, who is going to provide security for Gaza and then number three, how is Gaza going to be reconstructed?” said Aaron David Miller, a former State Department negotiator. “The board can’t answer those questions. It can provide the resources that could supplement good answers, but those decisions lie in Jerusalem and in Gaza and on the part of Hamas’ external leadership.”
Plus, Belgium's mohel madness
Jim Watson - Pool/Getty Images
U.S. Vice President JD Vance gives remarks following a roundtable discussion with local leaders and community members amid a surge of federal immigration authorities in the area, at Royalston Square on January 22, 2026 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Good Tuesday afternoon!
This P.M. edition is reserved for our premium subscribers — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
It’s me again — Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
As the second round of U.S.-Iran negotiations wrapped up in Geneva this morning, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told state media that the parties reached a “general understanding on a set of guiding principles” and will “begin working on the text of a potential agreement.”
A U.S. official sounded a more reserved note, telling Axios the talks “made progress” but “there are still a lot of details to discuss.” Iranian officials are expected to present proposals in the next two weeks “to address some of the open gaps in our positions,” the official said.
Vice President JD Vance said on Fox News this afternoon that “the United States has certain red lines. Our primary interest here is we don’t want Iran to get a nuclear weapon. We don’t want nuclear proliferation.”
On today’s negotiations, Vance explained, “in some ways it went well — they agreed to meet afterwards — but in some ways it was very clear that the president has set some red lines that the Iranians are not yet willing to actually acknowledge and work through.”
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader, demonstrated that unwillingness, posting on X as talks were underway that if the U.S. insists on prohibiting Iran from enriching uranium “there is no room for negotiation.” As the U.S. sends more military assets to the region, he also threatened to “send that [U.S.] warship to the bottom of the sea”…
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani tapped Faiza Ali as commissioner of the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs today, elevating the longtime activist with ties to the Council on American-Islamic Relations and anti-Israel activist Linda Sarsour. Ali previously served as the community affairs director for CAIR’s New York chapter, and she and Sarsour have co-led Muslim advocacy efforts, including being arrested together in 2017…
Several Chicago-era endorsees of the Congressional Progressive Caucus PAC — Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss, union organizer Anthony Driver Jr., state Sen. Robert Peters and activist Junaid Ahmed — held a joint press conference today slamming AIPAC as a “pro-Trump, right-wing aligned organization” that “is rooted and based in lobbying for this right-wing Israeli government.”
Driver, a candidate in the 7th District who was just endorsed by the CPC PAC today and has not previously spoken at length about his position on Israel, said, “AIPAC is not your friend. … They are in the business of buying elections”…
U.S. Ambassador to Belgium Bill White was summoned to a meeting with Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prévot today after White accused the country in a series of heated social media posts of a “RIDICULOUS AND ANTI SEMITIC ‘PROSECUTION’” of three mohels who are being charged with practicing medicine without a license.
Prévot said White’s posts “and interference in judicial matters violate basic diplomatic norms” and denied accusations of antisemitism, while Ambassador Yehuda Kaploun, the State Department’s antisemitism envoy, concurred with White…
Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) told BBC “Newsnight” yesterday that he will “seriously consider” a presidential run in 2028 “because we’re in some seriously challenging times.” The former astronaut, who has recently been the target of the White House’s ire over a video in which he and fellow veterans urged servicemembers to refuse illegal orders, touted his military experience and engineering certifications as part of his pitch…
Texas state Rep. James Talarico, running in a competitive primary for U.S. Senate against Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX), shared an interview he conducted with late-night host Stephen Colbert that CBS declined to run.
Colbert said in his show’s opening remarks last night that the clip would not be broadcast because “we were told in no uncertain terms by our network’s lawyers, who called us directly, that we could not have [Talarico] on the broadcast,” claiming the network was threatened by the Federal Communications Commission…
Eric Trump has invested in Israeli drone maker Xtend as part of a $1.5 billion deal in which the company, which already has a multimillion-dollar contract with the Pentagon, is merging with a Florida construction firm. Xtend was also selected this month by the Department of Defense as one of 25 companies participating in its “Drone Dominance Program”…
Tricia McLaughlin, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s spokesperson, is leaving her post next week, Politico reports, after becoming one of the most vocal defenders of the Trump administration’s deportation efforts…
Warner Bros. Discovery announced today it will restart talks with Paramount after initially rejecting the company’s hostile takeover bid in favor of its current agreement with Netflix. Paramount has since increased its nearly $78 billion all-cash offer, including paying the $2.8 billion termination fee Warner will owe Netflix if their deal falls through…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye out in Jewish Insider for an interview with Steven Fulop, the former Jersey City mayor who is making a priority of countering antisemitism in his new role as the head of New York City’s business advocacy group.
The International Federation of Social Workers will hold a vote on a contentious effort to expel the Israeli Union of Social Workers, after some European members complained that Israeli social workers had served in combat roles during Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza — a move that the U.S.-based National Association of Social Workers unexpectedly said today it resoundingly opposes.
U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee will sit down with Tucker Carlson in Jerusalem for an episode of the commentator’s podcast, as the two have been at loggerheads over Carlson’s repeated criticisms of Israel.
The Kigali Forum, a conference bringing together policy leaders and think tanks from the United States, Africa and Israel to discuss “the new Middle East,” will take place in Kigali, Rwanda.
The trial of the man accused of killing Paul Kessler, a Jewish man who was beaten and died during rival pro- and anti-Israel protests in the Los Angeles area in November 2023, is set to begin in Ventura County Superior Court.
Stories You May Have Missed
ENVOY ISSUES
Lawmakers alarmed by Barrack’s Turkey tilt in his Middle East diplomacy
Barrack, the U.S. ambassador to Turkey, plays an outsized role in setting foreign policy in the region, lawmakers and experts say
SENATOR SAYS
Lindsey Graham calls on Saudi Arabia to ‘knock it off’
The senator addressed Saudi and Emirati leadership directly about escalating tensions in the region in his remarks at the Munich Security Conference
Graham said Trump told him there’s ‘no light’ between Trump and Netanyahu
Maayan Toaff/GPO
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) meets Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem.
The Iranian regime may fall within weeks, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) said during a press conference in Tel Aviv on Monday.
“We’re on the verge of eliminating the greatest state sponsor of terrorism in the region,” Graham said. “We’re in for weeks, not months.”
“President Trump is very good at making sure people don’t play him by giving them deadlines. I think you may see that now with Iran,” he added.
Graham said that President Donald Trump is pursuing diplomacy “to find a way to end this regime diplomatically that will advance our national security interests,” while leaving the military option open.
“I think President Trump is looking to see which line will catch the biggest fish,” he added.
Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are in total agreement about how to proceed to weaken the Iranian regime, Graham said.
“There is no light between President Trump and Bibi about what to do and how to do it,” Graham said, later adding: “That’s what the president told me.”
After their meeting at the White House last week, Netanyahu characterized Trump’s assessment of Iran negotiations as overly optimistic of the regime’s intentions, saying, “The president thinks the Iranians understand who they’re dealing with. He thinks the conditions he is setting, combined with their understanding that they made a mistake last time not reaching a deal, could bring them to agree to conditions that will allow a good deal to be reached.”
But Netanyahu’s own view was more reserved: “I do not hide my general skepticism about the possibility of any deal with Iran.”
Graham called on the U.S. to “meet the moment” to topple the regime in Tehran.
The senator said both that he is “hopeful that diplomacy may prevail yet,” but when asked if he thinks a diplomatic solution is possible, he noted that Iran is “prone to cheat,” and that “based on the past, no,” but he is willing to give it a chance.
He pointed out that the military option is still on the table and that “the [USS] Gerald Ford [aircraft carrier] is steaming this way. I don’t think they’re just going for better weather.”
“In the coming weeks, if we can’t find a diplomatic solution, we will engage in the great endeavor of supporting the Iranian people, demanding their freedom and the end of their oppression,” he stated.
To reach that goal, Graham said, “we have military capability second to none. There’s no more clever nation than Israel and no more powerful nation than the United States.”
Asked if he thinks a military solution could actually bring about the end of the regime, Graham said that the Iranian regime is “weak” and “will collapse with sustained pressure,” and noted that their Air Force flies planes “from the 80s.”
“To anybody who believes the ayatollah can withstand all of this — you’re wrong,” he said.
Graham said the way to topple the regime militarily is to “kill the people who do the killing and see if the next guy wants to volunteer. … To those who want to appease: It never works. How many times could we have stopped Hitler? A bunch … The ayatollah represents evil incarnate to me.”
Graham acknowledged that military action in Iran could endanger American troops and result in the regime shooting ballistic missiles at Israel, but said “the risk associated with that is far less than the risk associated with blinking and pulling the plug and not helping the [Iranian] people as we promised. … We have to be good to our word.”
Should the mullahs’ regime fall, Graham said, it will be the result of Israel’s “determination to … go on the offensive” in response to the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks by Hamas, sponsored in part by Iran, and the “bravery of the people of Iran, who said ‘we’ve had it; we want change.’”
“I look forward to the day that Israel no longer has to fear a nuclear weapon developed by the Iranian regime,” he said.
Graham also recalled attending a demonstration against the Iranian regime in Munich over the weekend, and displayed a “Make Iran Great Again” hat, the idea for which, he said, came from diplomat Morgan Ortagus.
“The best way to make Iran great again is through the people, not the ayatollah,” Graham said.
In Gaza, Graham said that Hamas is “playing a game,” and Trump should set a time limit for disarmament.
“I think it’s either going to take pressure from the region to get a monster to disarm, or Israel is going to have to go back in and wipe them out. The sooner we get an answer to those questions the better,” he said.
Graham also expressed doubts that Gaza can be rebuilt “if right down the road there’s a neighborhood controlled by Hamas.”
Graham’s remarks came following meetings with Netanyahu, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar and former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, and he plans to visit the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia in the coming weeks.
The senator said one recurring theme in his meetings in Israel was expressions of appreciation for UAE leadership, specifically President Mohammed bin Zayed, as “a stalwart, reliable partner under difficult circumstances.”
As for concerns about antisemitic and anti-Israel messages coming out of Saudi Arabia, Graham said that he knows Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman well, and that he “believe[s] he still has the same vision for the region as he did before Oct. 7, but Oct. 7 took its toll.”
Graham expressed support for Netanyahu’s plan to taper off U.S. military aid over the next decade, saying that “rather than writing a check, he wants to create a partnership. … I like that idea. The wars of the future are being planned here in Israel, because if you’re not one step ahead of the enemy, you suffer. … We’re looking at Israel advancing down the road of new weaponry far beyond us. It would be nice to be part of that process.”
As to Trump calling Israeli President Isaac Herzog a “disgrace” for not yet deciding whether to pardon Netanyahu of his various corruption charges, Graham said: “I’ll leave that to President Herzog.”
Plus, Trump sets monthlong timeline for Iran deal
DOMINIC GWINN/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images
Jeremy Carl speaks at the National Conservatism Conference in Washington D.C., Sept. 3, 2025.
Good Thursday afternoon!
This P.M. edition is reserved for our premium subscribers — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
It’s me again — Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu again voiced skepticism about the U.S.’ ability to reach an agreement with Iran as he departed Joint Base Andrews today, reports Jewish Insider’s Lahav Harkov, who is traveling with the prime minister’s delegation.
A day after his White House meeting with President Donald Trump, Netanyahu told reporters, “The president thinks the Iranians understand who they’re dealing with. He thinks the conditions he is setting, combined with their understanding that they made a mistake last time not reaching a deal, could bring them to agree to conditions that will allow a good deal to be reached.”
The prime minister’s view was more reserved: “I do not hide my general skepticism about the possibility of any deal with Iran.” Netanyahu said he told Trump that if a deal is indeed reached, “it must include the components that are important to us, the State of Israel, and, I think, the entire international community: not just the nuclear matter, but also ballistic missiles and Iranian proxies in the region.”
The Prime Minister’s Office also said Netanyahu will not be returning to Washington next week as scheduled, in order to speak at an AIPAC conference, and will instead appear virtually…
At a press conference this afternoon, Trump said the timeline for a potential deal with Iran is “over the next month … should happen quickly.” Asked why Netanyahu wants him to stop negotiating, Trump said, “He didn’t say that, we didn’t discuss that. I’ll talk to [Iran] as long as I like.” Trump additionally said Israeli President Isaac Herzog “should be ashamed of himself” and called him “disgraceful” for not issuing a pardon to Netanyahu…
The Trump administration smuggled around 6,000 Starlink terminals, used to establish internet connection, to activists in Iran during the regime’s violent suppression of nationwide protests, which included internet blackouts, U.S. officials told The Wall Street Journal…
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and his team refused to condemn antisemitic and pro-Hamas social media posts from the co-founder of the group ‘Hot Girls for Zohran’ when pressed by JI’s Will Bredderman and other reporters today.
Speaking from City Hall, Mamdani would only stress that Gilani’s organization operated independently of his official election effort: “This was an individual leading an outside group and was never paid for by our campaign,” said Mamdani. “If New Yorkers want to know my views then they can hear it directly from me.
But when JI pressed the mayor directly whether he condemned the content of Gilani’s posts, he refused to respond and left the room, similar to how he fled questions on the matter from Politico on Wednesday…
Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) urged the Trump administration today to investigate reports that a clique of radical staffers at the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene had launched an anti-Israel “working group” inside the agency, JI’s Will Bredderman reports.
In a letter addressed to Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Stefanik decried reports that employees had met during work hours at the city bureaucracy’s Queens headquarters. She raised the possibility that the department’s federal funding might have gone toward a prohibited political purpose — or that the gathering may have violated civil rights protections by creating a discriminatory environment for Jewish New Yorkers…
The nomination of Jeremy Carl, tapped to be the assistant secretary of state for international organizations, appears bound to fail after Sen. John Curtis (R-UT) announced his opposition to Carl’s confirmation following his contentious hearing in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee this morning, JI’s Marc Rod reports.
Curtis and a series of Democrats questioned Carl over past antisemitic, anti-Israel and otherwise inflammatory comments that the nominee had made online and in a series of podcast appearances, including his assertion that the U.S. spends too much time and energy on Israel “often to the detriment of our own national interest” and that “the Jews love to see themselves as oppressed”…
CENTCOM announced today it had completed a “deliberate and conditions-based” withdrawal of U.S. forces from al-Tanf Garrison in Syria, handing control of the site on the country’s border with Iraq and Jordan to forces aligned with the Syrian government. The U.S. has had a presence at the base since 2016 as part of its fight against ISIS; over 7,000 ISIS detainees are also being transitioned out of Syria into Iraq, while the U.S. troops were relocated to Jordan…
Germany joined the growing calls today for U.N. Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese to resign, after France did the same yesterday, over her recent speech at the Al Jazeera Forum where she called Israel humanity’s “common enemy.” German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul wrote on X, “I respect the system of independent rapporteurs of the UN. However, Ms. Albanese has already repeatedly failed in the past. I condemn her recent statements about Israel. She is untenable in her position”…
Israeli authorities arrested several people, and indicted one army reservist and one civilian, for allegedly using classified information to place bets on the popular prediction market Polymarket around the timing of Israel’s war with Iran last June, the Shin Bet announced today. The bets all correctly predicted the timeline of the strikes, raking in more than $150,000, Israeli media reported…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye out in Jewish Insider for reporting on the race to succeed Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ) in New Jersey’s 12th Congressional District, where the congresswoman is coming out forcefully against the lone Jewish candidate in the race — for being too supportive of Netanyahu.
The Munich Security Conference kicks off tomorrow, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio leading the U.S. delegation and speaking from the main stage on Saturday. Dozens of members of Congress were also expected to attend — official travel was canceled due to the impending shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security tomorrow, but members still may attend on their own. One member making a foray into foreign policy is Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), who will be speaking on two panels at the high-level summit. Other Democrats in attendance will be California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Boston Mayor Michelle Wu.
In observance of President’s Day, we’ll be back in your inbox with the Daily Overtime on Tuesday. Shabbat Shalom!
Stories You May Have Missed
DOUBLING DOWN
Two Trump religious liberty appointees joined forces in anti-Israel push for antisemitism hearing
Activist Sameerah Munshi was appointed by the White House to the commission’s advisory board; the two women have jointly posted antisemitic content online
DOHA DEALINGS
GOP senator Ted Budd calls on Qatar to extradite Hamas leader to the U.S.
Budd says Qatar should hand over Khaled Mashaal because he has the ‘blood of Americans on his hands’
Departing from Washington, the Israeli PM said he stressed to Trump that if any deal is reached, it must go beyond the nuclear issue
Lahav Harkov
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu departs Joint Base Andrews on Feb. 12, 2026.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu again voiced skepticism about the U.S.’ ability to reach an agreement with Iran as he departed Joint Base Andrews on Thursday, a day after his White House meeting with President Donald Trump.
Netanyahu said that his nearly three-hour meeting with Trump “mostly focused on the negotiations with Iran.”
“The president thinks the Iranians understand who they’re dealing with,” Netanyahu said. “He thinks the conditions he is setting, combined with their understanding that they made a mistake last time not reaching a deal, could bring them to agree to conditions that will allow a good deal to be reached.”
The prime minister’s view was more reserved: “I do not hide my general skepticism about the possibility of any deal with Iran.”
Netanyahu said he told Trump that if a deal is indeed reached, “it must include the components that are important to us, the State of Israel, and, I think, the entire international community: not just the nuclear matter, but also ballistic missiles and Iranian proxies in the region.”
After Wednesday’s White House meeting, the Prime Minister’s Office stated that the leaders discussed Iran and Gaza, and that Netanyahu “emphasized the security needs of the State of Israel in the context of the negotiations, and the two leaders agreed on continued coordination and the close contact between them.”
Trump posted on Truth Social that he “insisted that negotiations with Iran continue to see whether or not a Deal can be consummated. If it can, I let the Prime Minister know that will be a preference. If it cannot, we will just have to see what the outcome will be.”
The president warned that last time Tehran did not make a deal, the U.S. launched Operation Midnight Hammer, striking Iran’s nuclear sites.
The Prime Minister’s Office said Netanyahu will not be returning to Washington next week as he had been scheduled to, in order to speak at an AIPAC conference, and will instead appear virtually.
As he departed Washington a day after his meeting with Trump, Netanyahu voiced skepticism about the U.S.’ ability to reach an agreement with Iran.
— Jewish Insider (@J_Insider) February 12, 2026
“The president thinks the Iranians understand who they’re dealing with,” Netanyahu said from Joint Base Andrews. “He thinks the… pic.twitter.com/A1AsiDYZCe
Plus, breaking down the Bibi-Trump meeting
Ali Altunkaya/Anadolu via Getty Images
Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal speaks on the second day of the 17th Al Jazeera Forum held in Doha, Qatar on February 8, 2026.
👋 Good Thursday morning!
In today’s Daily Kickoff, we cover yesterday’s White House meeting between President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and report on the ouster of Carrie Prejean Boller from the White House’s Religious Liberty Commission following her comments earlier this week on Israel and antisemitism. We report on Sen. Ted Budd’s call for Qatar to extradite Hamas operative Khaled Mashaal to the U.S., and interview Jason Friedman about his run for Congress in Illinois’ 7th Congressional District. Also in today’s Daily Kickoff: Bill Ackman, Rosaura Bagolie and Beejhy Barhany.
Today’s Daily Kickoff was curated by JI Executive Editor Melissa Weiss and Israel Editor Tamara Zieve, with assists from Danielle Cohen-Kanik and Marc Rod. Have a tip? Email us here.
What We’re Watching
- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is heading back to Israel today following yesterday’s meeting with President Donald Trump. More below.
- The Senate Foreign Relations Committee is holding its confirmation hearing for Jeremy Carl to be assistant secretary of state for international organizations. Carl, who was born to a Jewish family and now identifies as Christian, has expressed a range of derogatory views about Jews, including in a 2024 interview in which he said that “Jews have often loved to play the victim rather than accept that they are participants in history.” Read Jewish Insider’s past reporting on Carl’s comments here.
- Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) is meeting today with Zach Shemper, president of Beth Israel Congregation in Jackson, Miss., which suffered significant damage in an arson attack last month. The two are expected to discuss the Nonprofit Security Grant Program, which provided the congregation with security cameras that helped catch the perpetrator, and the Pray Safe Act.
- In Los Angeles, Sinai Temple and Fabric are co-hosting a daylong summit focused on building bridges within the sports community. Lisa Leslie, Eddy Curry and Tamir Goodman are among those slated to appear at the gathering.
What You Should Know
A QUICK WORD WITH JI’S LAHAV HARKOV
At first glance, President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s nearly three-hour meeting at the White House on Wednesday appeared to end without any clear accomplishments.
Instead of the freewheeling question-and-answer sessions with media in the Oval Office and formal press conferences that followed most of Trump and Netanyahu’s previous six meetings since Trump returned to the White House, came a laconic statement from Netanyahu’s office about Israel’s security needs and a Truth Social post from Trump that was staid by the president’s standards.
Trump wrote that he “insisted that negotiations with Iran continue to see whether or not a deal can be consummated. If I can, I let the Prime Minister know that will be a preference.” However, the president warned that last time Iran decided against making a deal, “that did not work out well for them,” and the U.S. struck the country’s nuclear sites.
However, Trump and Netanyahu were similarly silent about their meeting in April 2025 — their last in-person meeting before the joint strike in Iran two months later.
Behind the scenes, the main topic of conversation between the two leaders yesterday appeared to focus on options for action if Iran does not agree to a deal.
The lack of press around the meeting was because Netanyahu wanted to keep a relatively low profile and show deference to Trump, since a strike on Iran — should one occur — would be led by the U.S., an Israeli source said.
The Israeli side is very skeptical that any deal can be reached between the U.S. and Iran, with Trump saying publicly that a good deal would mean “no nuclear weapons, no ballistic missiles,” and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi saying the ballistic missile issue is a nonstarter for Tehran.
DOUBLING DOWN
Two Trump religious liberty appointees join forces in anti-Israel push after antisemitism hearing
Conservative activist Carrie Prejean Boller was removed from the White House’s Religious Liberty Commission, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, the chair of the commission, announced on Wednesday. The news came two days after the commission held its first public hearing on antisemitism, which turned contentious when Prejean Boller minimized charges of antisemitism leveled against other public figures and pressed Jewish witnesses about whether they would consider her antisemitic for not being a Zionist and for believing Jews killed Jesus, Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch reports.
Doubling down: Prejean Boller found an ally who has stood by her this week and who remains on the commission’s advisory board: Sameerah Munshi, a Muslim activist who first gained a public profile in the summer of 2023, when she testified at a Montgomery County, Md., school board hearing against the inclusion of LGBTQ-related material in elementary school classes. The two women — both of whom were appointed by President Donald Trump — have now joined together as the anti-Israel wing of the commission. Both of them have publicly defended antisemitic commentator Candace Owens, who uses conspiracy-laden language to discuss Jews and Israel. In a shared Instagram post last week, Prejean Boller and Munshi pointed fingers at a shadowy cabal that they blame for both the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the alleged crimes of Jeffrey Epstein.
DOHA DEALINGS
GOP senator Ted Budd calls on Qatar to extradite Hamas leader to the U.S.
Sen. Ted Budd (R-NC) called on Qatar to extradite Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal to the U.S., telling Jewish Insider on Wednesday that the leader has the “blood of Americans on his hands,” JI’s Matthew Shea, Marc Rod and Emily Jacobs report. Mashaal, who is under U.S. indictment on terrorism-related charges, appeared this past weekend at the Al Jazeera Forum in Doha, where he rejected the U.N. Security Council-backed plan for Gaza — a move that could further complicate U.S. efforts to advance Phase 2 of President Donald Trump’s Gaza peace initiative.
What he said: “[Mashaal] is responsible for plotting the brutal massacre of Americans and Israelis on Oct. 7, 2023,” said Budd. “He should absolutely be extradited to the U.S. to face justice for his appalling crimes, not walking free to make public appearances in Qatar calling for Hamas to maintain its weapons and deny foreign intervention in Gaza.” Budd also told JI that he wants to see Qatar crack down on the content disseminated by state-backed Al Jazeera.
clearing the way
Jewish N.J. assemblymember decides against challenging Mejia in Democratic primary
Democratic New Jersey Assemblymember Rosaura Bagolie has decided not to run against progressive activist Analilia Mejia in the 11th Congressional District primary in June, making it increasingly likely that Mejia, who has accused Israel of genocide, may not face any competition for a full term in Congress, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
The latest: Bagolie, who is Jewish, first floated a run on Monday in an interview with Politico, but backed off those plans on Wednesday, after a slew of top political leaders in the state lined up behind Mejia’s campaign, both in the April special general election and the June regular primary election. The pro-Israel community may be left without any challenger to back against Mejia in June. The most credible possible challenger appears to be the candidate it preferred in the special election, former Lt. Gov. Tahesha Way, who has not indicated whether she will be running for the seat again.
IN THE RACE
Longtime Chicago Jewish federation leader Jason Friedman makes a bid for open House seat
Jason Friedman, a prominent real estate developer and longtime leader in the Jewish United Fund, Chicago’s Jewish federation, is seeking to make a name for himself in the crowded primary for Congress in Illinois’ 7th Congressional District, long represented by retiring Rep. Danny Davis (D-IL), Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports. Friedman is facing off against candidates including Davis’ preferred successor, state Rep. LaShawn Ford; Kina Collins, a Justice Democrats-backed third-time candidate with an anti-Israel record; attorney Reed Showalter, also running on an anti-Israel platform; and Chicago Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin, who previously ran for the seat as a strong supporter of Israel.
Guiding star: Friedman told JI in an interview last week he has “dedicated … my philanthropic life, to our Jewish community here in the city of Chicago. I’m really, really proud of it,” having served on the JUF board for years and at one point as head of government affairs. He said that his Jewish faith has instilled the values of tzedakah and tikkun olam, as well as empathy and compassion, which have inspired him to be a good servant and steward of the community. “It’s repairing the whole world, and that means being there for every community, not just the Jewish community … and fighting for them,” Friedman said. “That’s something that really guides me.”
EXCLUSIVE
Bipartisan Senate resolution condemns Iranian crackdown against protesters
A bipartisan group of 23 senators introduced a resolution on Wednesday condemning the Iranian government for its crackdown on protesters and attempts to cut off internet access across the country, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
Who’s on board: The resolution is led by Sens. James Lankford (R-OK) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), and co-sponsored by Sens. Cory Booker (D-NJ), John Boozman (R-AR), Katie Britt (R-AL), Ted Budd (R-NC), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Joni Ernst (R-IA), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), John Hoeven (R-ND), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), Pete Ricketts (R-NE), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Dan Sullivan (R-AK), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Tom Cotton (R-AR), Andy Kim (D-NJ) and Dick Durbin (D-IL).
NOT CONVINCED
Bipartisan bill seeks to strengthen U.S.-Israel defense cooperation
A pair of senators and a House lawmaker will introduce bipartisan, bicameral legislation on Thursday aimed at boosting U.S.-Israeli cooperation on bilateral defense programs, Jewish Insider’s Emily Jacobs reports.
Bill’s aim: The United States-Israel Framework for Upgraded Technologies, Unified Research, and Enhanced Security Act of 2026, abbreviated to the United States-Israel FUTURES Act, will be introduced in the Senate by Sens. Ted Budd (R-NC) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and in the House by Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-TX). The bill establishes a cooperative initiative focused on accelerating and expanding bilateral defense technology research, development, testing and evaluation projects, as well as supporting industrial cooperation.
Worthy Reads
Open Season: In The Free Press, 92nd Street Y CEO Seth Pinsky, reflecting on protests last week targeting the venue’s State of World Jewry address, calls on officials in New York City and state to take additional steps to protect the Jewish community. “The protesters outside illustrated one of the challenges plainly: In today’s New York City, Jewish conversations — on any topic — are treated as legitimate targets for protest and disruption. More disturbing still, the hostility was not confined to the event’s attendees. Families arriving from birthday parties were harassed, as were New Yorkers simply using our gym. Even a neighboring store was targeted, with one protester explaining that it “had Zionists inside.” In other words, merely being present in and around a Jewish space was now enough to make someone fair game. … [W]hat we need from our progressive leaders is to demand the same clarity and consistency from their allies when it comes to Jews and Israel that they and their allies regularly demand of the MAGA right on a host of other topics.” [FreePress]
Bridge Over Troubled Water: In The Wall Street Journal, Henry Louis Gates Jr., who recently released a four-part docuseries on Black-Jewish relations, makes the case for strengthened ties between the two communities. “Two streams run beneath the floorboards of Western culture: antisemitism, our civilization’s oldest hatred, and antiblack racism. Whenever people search for a scapegoat, they lift up those floorboards and reach down. … Neither community speaks with a single voice. Each contains a range of convictions, anxieties, loyalties and values. Any durable partnership has to make room for that internal plurality. Coalitions fail when they demand unanimity, when they turn disagreement into disqualification. What sustains a shared project is the harder work of staying in relationship across difference, arguing without rupture, and protecting common interests even amid unresolved tensions. We often talk about community as if it were a mood. But it’s a practice. It means renouncing the cheap satisfactions of applause from your own side and the ease of a story with only heroes and villains.” [WSJ]
The Gaza Fantasy: In The Atlantic, Hussein Ibish reflects on what he calls the “profoundly unserious” proposal from the Trump administration to reconstruct Gaza. “It promises industrial parks, educational centers, residential zones, and beach resorts, likely inspired by cities such as Dubai and Singapore. But those cities evolved through decades of careful urban planning. Gaza is, at the moment, a rubbled wasteland. Approximately 80 percent of all structures have been badly damaged or destroyed, and Gazans have nowhere to live except in squalid tents or the ruins of former homes. … The fantasy is beguiling, and its realization would be a magnificent accomplishment — if it weren’t so unimaginably absurd. Trump’s master plan treats Gaza as if it were a greenfield site rather than a partitioned pile of wreckage populated by destitute, hungry, unsheltered people.” [TheAtlantic]
Word on the Street
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu formally joined the Trump administration’s Board of Peace during his meeting on Wednesday with Secretary of State Marco Rubio…
A group of Senate Democrats, including Sens. Tim Kaine (D-VA), Peter Welch (D-VT), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Mark Warner (D-VA), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Alex Padilla (D-CA), urged Secretary of State Marco Rubio to halt further deportations of asylum seekers to Iran…
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan told the Financial Times that efforts to broaden U.S.-Iran talks beyond the nuclear issue would risk “nothing but another war”…
More Democratic lawmakers condemned the Israeli Cabinet’s recent moves to expand control over the West Bank, with Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) saying the move constituted a “green light for unilateral annexation of the West Bank” that violates the Oslo Accords and “threatens Israel’s security,” and House Foreign Affairs Committee Ranking Member Greg Meeks (D-NY) calling the decision “de facto annexation’ and “deeply troubling” and saying it may “irreversibly erode” the possibility of a two-state solution…
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA) introduced legislation to gain more transparency into the U.S.’ handling of hundreds of millions of dollars in Venezuelan oil proceeds, which are currently being held in an offshore account in Qatar…
Harlem’s Tsion Cafe, the only Ethiopian-Israeli restaurant in New York City, ended its regular dining service, with owner Beejhy Barhany citing a changed environment for Israeli restaurants in the city since the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas terror attacks and over the course of the ensuing war in Gaza among the reasons she’s switching to a cultural events-only model…
Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square revealed a $2 billion stake in Meta, with the hedge fund manager reportedly being drawn to the tech company’s focus on AI…
The EU approved Google/Alphabet’s $32 billion acquisition of Israeli cloud-security startup Wiz, avoiding a lengthy inquiry as the companies seek to move forward on the sale…
France is calling on Francesca Albanese, the U.N. special rapporteur for the Palestinian territories, to resign over comments she made at the Al Jazeera Forum in Doha, Qatar, last week, in which she claimed that all of humanity “now has a common enemy” in Israel…
The Sydney Morning Herald reports on Hamas documents that allege that Mohammed al-Halabi, the former Gaza director of the World Vision, worked for Hamas while employed by the charity and used his role to obtain information about Israeli court proceedings…
Takamitsu Muraoka, an expert in Semitic languages and a former chair of Hebrew, Israelite Antiquities, and Ugaritic at Leiden University in the Netherlands, died at 88…
Pic of the Day
Israeli President Isaac Herzog (left) met on Wednesday with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in Canberra. Herzog will travel back to Israel today after a four-day visit, which also included stops in Melbourne and Sydney, that was marred by widescale protests targeting the president.
Birthdays
Best-selling author, known for children’s and young adult fiction, Judy Sussman Blume turns 88…
Commercial director in the Inglewood and Beverly Hills offices of Keller Williams Realty, he is also a principal at Westside Realty Advisors, Gary Aminoff turns 89… Physician and public intellectual, he is a dean at Shalem College in Jerusalem and professor emeritus at the University of Chicago, Leon Richard Kass turns 87… Former prime minister of Israel, Ehud Barak turns 84… Periodontist in Newark, Del., Barry S. Kayne, DDS… Economist, physicist, legal scholar and libertarian theorist, his father was Nobel Prize-winning economist Milton Friedman, David D. Friedman turns 81… Computer genius, author, inventor and futurist, Ray Kurzweil turns 78… Grandmother of Aryeh, Gabby, Alex and Daniella, among others, Esther Dickman… Member of the Knesset for the Likud party, Eti Hava Atiya turns 66… Former president of Disney-ABC Television Group, Ben Sherwood turns 62… President of U.S. affairs at Combat Antisemitism Movement, Alyza Lewin… Associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, Brett M. Kavanaugh turns 61… Film director, producer and screenwriter, Darren Aronofsky turns 57… Comic book author and illustrator, Judd Winick turns 56… Actress known for her voice work in animation, websites and video games, Tara Lyn Charendoff Strong turns 53… Member of the board of directors for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics committee, Chad Tyler Brownstein turns 53… Comedian, actor, podcaster, writer and producer, Ari Shaffir turns 52…
Principal deputy national security advisor throughout the Biden administration, now a distinguished senior fellow at the Center for American Progress, Jonathan Finer turns 50… Deputy director for external affairs and communications at the Troy, Mich.-based Kresge Foundation, Christine M. Jacobs… Former MLB player, he is now the program director and owner of London, Ontario-based Centrefield Sports, Adam Stern turns 46… Former columnist for The Wall Street Journal for 17 years, Rachel Feintzeig… Deputy solicitor general of New Jersey, he previously clerked for Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, Michael Zuckerman… New York regional director for the American Jewish Committee, Joshua Kramer… Israeli actress, best known as ADA Samantha Maroun on “Law & Order,” Odelya Halevi turns 37… Syndicated political columnist and senior editor-at-large for Newsweek, Josh Hammer turns 37… Senior advisor in the Bureau of Global Public Affairs at the State Department during the Biden administration, Megan Apper… Counsel in the international trade group at Crowell & Moring, Jeremy Iloulian… PR and communications manager at Cravath, Swaine & Moore, Anna Behar…
Behind the scenes, the main topic of conversation between the two leaders yesterday appeared to focus on options for action if Iran does not agree to a deal
GPO
President Donald Trump greets Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House on Feb. 11, 2026.
At first glance, President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s nearly three-hour meeting at the White House on Wednesday appeared to end without any clear accomplishments.
Instead of the freewheeling question-and-answer sessions with media in the Oval Office and formal press conferences that followed most of Trump and Netanyahu’s previous six meetings since Trump returned to the White House, came a laconic statement from Netanyahu’s office about Israel’s security needs and a Truth Social post from Trump that was staid by the president’s standards.
Trump wrote that he “insisted that negotiations with Iran continue to see whether or not a deal can be consummated. If I can, I let the Prime Minister know that will be a preference.” However, the president warned that last time Iran decided against making a deal, “that did not work out well for them,” and the U.S. struck the country’s nuclear sites.
However, Trump and Netanyahu were similarly silent about their meeting in April 2025 — their last in-person meeting before the joint strike in Iran two months later.
Behind the scenes, the main topic of conversation between the two leaders yesterday appeared to focus on options for action if Iran does not agree to a deal.
The lack of press around the meeting was because Netanyahu wanted to keep a relatively low profile and show deference to Trump, since a strike on Iran — should one occur — would be led by the U.S., an Israeli source said.
The Israeli side is very skeptical that any deal can be reached between the U.S. and Iran, with Trump saying publicly that a good deal would mean “no nuclear weapons, no ballistic missiles,” and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi saying the ballistic missile issue is a nonstarter for Tehran.
According to a report by Barak Ravid for Israel’s Channel 12, the Trump administration’s views are very close to those on Netanyahu’s team, with a senior American official also believing the Iranians are unlikely to compromise.
The meeting between the two leaders was “critical,” Ravid quoted the official as saying, because they “need to decide whether to conduct a joint strike if a deal is not reached.” Such a strike would be more likely to succeed if the militaries work together.
One indication of the Trump administration’s pessimism about the talks is the Pentagon’s order, as reported by The Wall Street Journal, for a second aircraft carrier strike group to deploy to the Middle East if negotiations fail, which came after Trump teased the idea earlier this week.
A source in Netanyahu’s delegation said that the prime minister also arrived in Washington with evidence, which he presented to Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner on Tuesday and Trump on Wednesday, that the Iranians lied to the Americans about their intentions in the talks, which they never planned to include ballistic missiles, as well as about stopping the slaughter of anti-regime protesters.
Meanwhile, the U.S. and Iran have yet to set a date for a second round of talks, and the first was under 90 minutes long — with some of that time dedicated to their Omani hosts passing messages back and forth in the indirect talks.
Activist Sameerah Munshi was appointed by the White House to the commission’s advisory board; the two women have jointly posted antisemitic content online
Win McNamee/Getty Images
President Donald Trump speaks to the White House Religious Liberty Commission at the Museum of the Bible September 8, 2025 in Washington, DC.
For the first hour and a half of the White House Religious Liberty Commission’s Monday hearing on antisemitism, the Jewish witnesses testifying about their experiences of antisemitism seemed to be in alignment with the commission’s members — all generally conservative and eager to see antisemitism stamped out.
Then Commissioner Carrie Prejean Boller began questioning the witnesses with a sharply anti-Israel bent, in an adversarial tone. Following public backlash, she was removed from the commission two days later by the commission’s chair, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick. (Prejean Boller insists Patrick does not have the authority to remove her.)
Prejean Boller, who wore a Palestinian flag pin at the hearing, has used the criticism to deepen her line of attack against so-called “Zionist supremacy in America,” doubling down on her opposition to Israel. “I am a free American. Not a slave to a foreign nation,” she wrote on X on Tuesday.
While Prejean Boller may have been removed from the body, she found an ally who has stood by her this week and who remains on the commission’s advisory board: Sameerah Munshi, a Muslim activist who first gained a public profile in the summer of 2023, when she testified at a Montgomery County, Md., school board hearing against the inclusion of LGBTQ-related material in elementary school classes.
That moment thrust Munshi briefly into the national spotlight, where she worked alongside conservative Christians who also opposed the liberal Maryland county’s approach to educating about LGBTQ issues. Prejean Boller, too, first gained national attention for her opposition to gay marriage at a beauty pageant in 2009.
The two women — both of whom were appointed by President Donald Trump — have now joined together as the anti-Israel wing of the commission. Both of them have publicly defended antisemitic commentator Candace Owens, who uses conspiracy-laden language to discuss Jews and Israel. In a shared Instagram post last week, Prejean Boller and Munshi pointed fingers at a shadowy cabal that they blame for both the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the alleged crimes of Jeffrey Epstein.
“The politicians who refuse to condemn the Israeli government’s starvation and genocide on the Palestinians are the same ones unmoved by the Epstein crime files,” Prejean Boller and Munshi wrote. “Gaza was a precursor to the release of the Epstein files. Their goal: normalize and justify the torture and killing of innocent children … Arrest these monsters. Drain the evil swamp. End Palestinian genocide. Defund Israel.”
Prejean Boller and Munshi said in another post that they had submitted an alternative list of “fair witnesses” to the commission whom they hoped would present at the antisemitism hearing. The list included Norman Finkelstein, a discredited Holocaust scholar who has publicly defended the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks, as well as Miko Peled and Yaakov Shapiro, two anti-Zionist Jewish activists.
“Antisemitism should never be conflated with anti-Zionism or pro-Palestinian advocacy,” the two women wrote.
When former UCLA law student Yitzy Frankel spoke at the hearing about his experience of antisemitism on campus after Oct. 7, and described a statement he wrote condemning Hamas’ “rape, beheading of children and taking of hostages,” Munshi muttered under her breath that Hamas had not beheaded anyone, a member of the audience who was seated near her told Jewish Insider.
What remains unclear is who at the White House appointed Prejean Boller and Munshi to their roles on the commission and its advisory board, of which Munshi serves as a lay leader. Several members of the advisory board who spoke to JI said they did not know how they had been selected. A White House spokesperson declined to comment. Munshi did not respond to a request for comment.
Neither Munshi nor Prejean Boller had a history of posting anti-Israel content online prior to late last year.
Prejean Boller’s X account was used only infrequently, mostly to share content about Trump, illegal immigration, Christianity and gender issues. In early 2024, Prejean Boller began to come to Owens’ defense when Owens left The Daily Wire amid concerns about her antisemitic views. Munshi was also an infrequent user of X, and very occasionally posted pro-Palestinian messages over the last two years. Following Monday’s hearing, both women have taken to posting often and highlighting their opposition to Zionism.
“We condemn Zionist supremacy and the demanding we deny our individual faith for the fear of being called an antisemite. Religious freedom lives on,” Prejean Boller posted on Tuesday alongside a photo of the two women.
Plus, France calls for resignation of U.N.'s Albanese
GPO
President Donald Trump greets Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House on Feb. 11, 2026.
Good Wednesday afternoon!
This P.M. edition is reserved for our premium subscribers — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
It’s me again — Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
The U.S. will continue pursuing diplomacy with Iran, President Donald Trump said following his White House meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier today, Jewish Insider’s Lahav Harkov reports.
“There was nothing definitive reached” in the meeting “other than I insisted that negotiations with Iran continue, to see whether or not a deal can be consummated,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “If it can, I let the Prime Minister know that will be a preference.”
If negotiations do not lead to a deal, the president added, “we will just have to see what the outcome will be. Last time, Iran decided they were better off not making a deal, and they were hit with [Operation] Midnight Hammer. That did not work out well for them. Hopefully, this time, they will be more reasonable and responsible.”
Netanyahu’s office said about the meeting, “The prime minister stood up for the State of Israel’s security needs in the context of the negotiations, and the two agreed to continue to coordinate closely”…
Even as Trump insists diplomacy will continue, the Pentagon has told a second aircraft carrier strike group to prepare for deployment to the Middle East, The Wall Street Journal reports, to join the USS Abraham Lincoln along with dozens of U.S. aircraft and other warships…
Meanwhile, a bipartisan group of 23 senators, spanning the political and ideological spectrums, introduced a resolution today condemning the Iranian government for its crackdown on protesters and attempts to cut off internet access across the country, JI’s Marc Rod reports.
“Iranian civilians’ unprecedented nationwide protests and bravery, confronted with the regime’s unprecedented widespread extrajudicial killing of thousands and disruption of all electronic communication, have profoundly destabilized the country and constitute changed conditions in Iran,” the resolution reads, highlighting that the regime’s suppression and killing of protesters continues…
The Trump administration expects to be able to announce several billion dollars in donations for Gaza reconstruction at the Board of Peace’s inaugural meeting in Washington next week, The Times of Israel reports, even as it is still working on a proposal to disarm Hamas. That plan so far reportedly envisions Hamas relinquishing its heavy weapons and destroying manufacturing sites, without fully addressing lighter arms…
Conservative activist Carrie Prejean Boller was removed from the White House’s Religious Liberty Commission today, JI’s Gabby Deutch reports, two days after the commission held its first public hearing on antisemitism, which turned contentious when Prejean Boller pressed Jewish witnesses about whether they would consider her antisemitic for not being a Zionist and for believing Jews killed Jesus.
“No member of the Commission has the right to hijack a hearing for their own personal and political agenda on any issue,” Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who chairs the commission, wrote in a post on X. “This is clearly, without question, what happened Monday in our hearing on antisemitism in America. This was my decision”…
France is calling for the resignation of U.N. Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot announced today, after Albanese called Israel humanity’s “common enemy” in a speech at the Al Jazeera Forum in Qatar over the weekend.
“France unreservedly condemns the outrageous and reprehensible remarks made by Francesca Albanese, which are directed not at the Israeli government, whose policies may be criticized, but at Israel as a people and as a nation, which is absolutely unacceptable,” Barrot said in remarks to lawmakers. Her latest comments add “to a long list of scandalous positions,” including “justifying” the Oct. 7 attacks and “comparing Israel to the Third Reich,” he said…
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA) introduced legislation seeking oversight into the hundreds of millions of dollars in Venezuelan oil proceeds that the U.S. has acquired, some of which officials have said is being held in an account in Qatar…
New York City’s only Ethiopian-Israeli restaurant is closing its doors to diners, Jewish Telegraphic Agency reports, and turning only to private events over rising anti-Israel harassment, which the owner, Beejhy Barhany, said escalated after the restaurant became kosher in February 2024…
The Department of Homeland Security hired a social media manager who had raised red flags at his previous position at the Department of Labor posting messaging that echoed white nationalist sentiments on official social media accounts, The New York Times reports.
Those posts “used evocative imagery, some reminiscent of the 1920s and 1930s, with phrases like ‘Restore American Greatness’ and ‘the globalist status quo is OVER.’ … Colleagues warned superiors that the department’s accounts could be seen as promoting white-supremacist rhetoric, Nazi imagery and QAnon conspiracy theories”…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye out in Jewish Insider for an interview with Jason Friedman, a longtime Chicago Jewish federation leader making a bid for Illinois’ open 7th Congressional District.
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee will hold a nomination hearing for conservative commentator Jeremy Carl to serve as assistant secretary of state for international organizations. Schumer denounced Carl and his nomination on the Senate floor this week, “citing Carl’s long history of racist, white supremacist, and antisemitic views.”
Sinai Temple in Los Angeles will host a summit tomorrow on faith and sports, ahead of NBA All-Star weekend taking place in the city. The convening will feature several NBA athletes, coaches and faith and civic leaders.
Stories You May Have Missed
BASEBALL DIARIES
Team Israel’s World Baseball Classic team unveils its 2026 roster
The team is anchored by its pitching ace Dean Kremer of the Orioles, while Harrison Bader and Spencer Horwitz are among its best known hitters
SYRIA SPOTLIGHT
House members say Syrian government is not meeting U.S. expectations for sanctions relief
Speaking at a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing, Republican and Democratic lawmakers highlighted ongoing abuses by the Syrian government
The two leaders avoided the cameras during Israeli PM’s White House visit
GPO
President Donald Trump greets Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House on Feb. 11, 2026.
The U.S. will continue pursuing diplomacy with Iran, President Donald Trump said following his White House meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday.
“There was nothing definitive reached other than I insisted that negotiations with Iran continue, to see whether or not a deal can be consummated,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “If it can, I let the Prime Minister know that will be a preference.”
If negotiations do not lead to a deal, the president added, “we will just have to see what the outcome will be. Last time, Iran decided they were better off not making a deal, and they were hit with Midnight Hammer. That did not work out well for them. Hopefully, this time, they will be more reasonable and responsible.”
In addition, Trump wrote, he and Netanyahu discussed “the tremendous progress being made in Gaza.”
Trump characterized the summit as “a very good meeting, the tremendous relationship between our two countries continues.”
Netanyahu’s office said he and Trump discussed Iran, Gaza and regional developments.
“The prime minister stood up for the State of Israel’s security needs in the context of the negotiations, and the two agreed to continue to coordinate closely,” the Prime Minister’s Office statement read.
Netanyahu made a quiet entrance to the White House, and Trump was uncharacteristically camera-shy.
Trump and Netanyahu’s meetings — this was their seventh in the past year — have usually been accompanied by freewheeling press huddles, either in the Oval Office or East Room, in which Trump answered dozens of questions. On Wednesday, however, reporters were not allowed in the room before or after the meeting, which continued longer than scheduled and included lunch.
At the top of the meeting’s agenda were the details of the ongoing negotiations with Iran. The American team is led by White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, both of whom met with Netanyahu at Blair House on Tuesday.
On Tuesday, Trump said on Fox Business that the Iranians “want to make a deal. I think they’d be foolish if they didn’t. We took out their nuclear power last time, and we’ll have to see if we take out more this time.”
Trump added that a “good deal” would mean “no nuclear weapons, no ballistic missiles, no this or that.”
That statement checks off the most important items on Netanyahu’s priority list for an Iran deal, while leaving out the Islamic Republic’s sponsorship of terrorist proxies like Hezbollah and Hamas. It also does not include any aid to the Iranian protesters against the regime, whom Trump said late last year that he would help.
A source on Netanyahu’s delegation said that the prime minister is aware of the American political sensitivities around their meeting and was cautious to show deference to Trump, lest Netanyahu be seen as trying to push for war.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, however, said in an interview that his country’s ballistic missile program is “never negotiable.”
Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani called Trump ahead of his meeting with Netanyahu to encourage him to reach a deal, according to Qatari media.
Netanyahu met with Secretary of State Marco Rubio ahead of the Trump meeting, for discussions focused on the administration’s plans for Gaza.
Netanyahu presented Rubio with signed letters certifying his membership in the Board of Peace, which Trump founded to oversee reconstruction and demilitarization in Gaza and attempt to resolve other conflicts.
The Board of Peace’s first meeting is next week, and Netanyahu’s office has yet to say whether he will attend. The prime minister was expected to come back to Washington from Feb. 18-22 for an AIPAC conference beginning that Sunday, and his office said the trip is still on schedule.
The statement was issued ahead of Trump’s meeting with Netanyahu
Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) speaks at a press conference following recent elections as the government shutdown continues in Washington, DC on November 5, 2025.
A group of eight leading Senate Democrats released a statement on Tuesday evening urging President Donald Trump to “clearly reinforce the opposition of the U.S. government to Israeli government actions that set the conditions for irreversible annexation” of the West Bank when he meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House on Wednesday.
The statement emphasizes Senate Democrats’ opposition to Israel expanding its control over settlements in the West Bank, which Israel’s Security Cabinet approved measures to help facilitate on Sunday ahead of Netanyahu’s visit to Washington this week.
“We are deeply troubled by the Israeli government’s decision to blatantly consolidate administrative control over and set the conditions to expand settlements into the West Bank,” the senators wrote. “The Israeli government’s actions contravene decades of bipartisan United States policy, including that expressed by President Trump, which asserts the United States supports a two-state solution and that it is not in the U.S. national security interest to support annexation of the West Bank.”
“We have long expressed our concern that these reckless moves make the possibility of a two-state solution, where Israelis and Palestinians can live side by side in peace and security, further out of reach,” the statement continued.
The group said they “urge Prime Minister Netanyahu to reverse course. When President Trump meets with Prime Minister Netanyahu this week, we also urge the President to clearly reinforce the opposition of the U.S. government to Israeli government actions that set the conditions for irreversible annexation.”
The statement was signed by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY); Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL), the Senate Democratic whip; and Sens. Jack Reed (D-RI), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Mark Warner (D-VA), Chris Coons (D-DE), Brian Schatz (D-HI) and Patty Murray (D-WA). The senators who joined Schumer and Durbin are, respectively, the ranking members of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Foreign Relations Committee, Intelligence Committee, the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense, the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on State and Foreign Operations and the Senate Appropriations Committee.
Trump has held firm on his opposition to Israeli settlement expansion since saying last September that he would “not allow Israel to annex the West Bank.” Trump reiterated this position in an interview with Axios on Tuesday.
He said following a meeting with Netanyahu at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Fla., in late December that the two were still on separate sides of the issue, but expressed confidence that all parties would reach “a conclusion,” though he declined to offer specifics.
“Well, we have had a discussion, big discussion, for a long time on the West Bank. And I wouldn’t say we agree on the West Bank 100%, but we will come to a conclusion on the West Bank,” Trump said at the time. “It’ll be announced at an appropriate time, but [Netanyahu] will do the right thing. I know that. I know him very well. He will do the right thing.”
Plus, N.C. Dems condemn antisemitism from Muslim caucus chair
Heather Khalifa/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Analilia Mejia, Democratic House candidate for New Jersey, speaks to supporters and members of the media at Paper Plane Coffee Co. in Montclair, N.J., on Jan. 29, 2026.
Good Tuesday afternoon!
This P.M. edition is reserved for our premium subscribers — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
It’s me again — Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
President Donald Trump is considering sending a second aircraft carrier group to the Middle East as a contingency if negotiations with Iran fail, he told Axios today. “Either we will make a deal or we will have to do something very tough like last time,” the president said, adding, “We have an armada that is heading there and another one might be going.”
Still, Trump expressed optimism that Tehran “wants to make a deal very badly” and said the negotiations are “very different” since he authorized strikes last June on Iran’s nuclear facilities. He also said he doesn’t think Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is en route to Washington for his Wednesday meeting with Trump, is nervous about the negotiations, stating Netanyahu “also wants a deal. He wants a good deal”…
Trump also reiterated his opposition to West Bank annexation, days after Israel’s Security Cabinet voted to expand Israeli authorities in the area. “I am against annexation. We have enough things to think about now. We don’t need to be dealing with the West Bank,” he told Axios. While Trump’s meeting with Netanyahu tomorrow will ostensibly focus on Iran, the latest Israeli moves could drive a wedge between the two leaders…
On the campaign trail, former Rep. Tom Malinowski (D-NJ) conceded the race for New Jersey’s 11th Congressional District to far-left activist Analilia Mejia today, after outstanding ballots broke decisively in her favor over the weekend.
In his statement, Malinowski, the presumed favorite who was the target of over $2 million of ads by the AIPAC-linked United Democracy Project super PAC, claimed that “the outcome of this race cannot be understood without also taking into account the massive flood of dark money that AIPAC spent on dishonest ads” attacking him. He warned, “If AIPAC backs a candidate — openly or surreptitiously — in the June NJ-11 Congressional primary, I will oppose that candidate and urge my supporters to do so as well.”
Mejia was congratulated by New Jersey Democratic leaders including Sens. Andy Kim and Cory Booker and Gov. Mikie Sherrill, though it remains to be seen if she will retain their support in the June primary when she must run for the Democratic nomination again if she hopes to retain the office for a full term…
Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) officially launched her reelection campaign today for her seat which Democrats likely need to flip if they hope to take back the chamber. Collins, who has been targeted by Trump due to her occasional votes across the aisle, will likely face either Maine Gov. Janet Mills or oyster farmer Graham Platner in the general, after they battle it out in a hotly contested primary…
New York Lt. Gov. Antonio Delgado dropped his primary challenge to Gov. Kathy Hochul today, whom he had hoped to beat out in her reelection race from the left. The move comes after several progressive leaders, including New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, endorsed Hochul, which Delgado alluded to in his statement: “After much consideration, I’ve concluded that there simply is no viable path forward. And though my campaign has come to an end, I fully intend to do all I can in our effort to build a more humane, affordable, and equitable state that serves all New Yorkers”…
The Washington Free Beacon details several Mamdani administration staffers with a history of comments defaming Israel, including one who called Israel a “modern-day Nazi Germany” and one who called people ripping down posters of Israeli hostages “heroes”…
North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein, a Democrat, condemned rhetoric from the leader of the state Democratic Party’s Muslim Caucus, Elyas Mohammed, in a statement shared exclusively with JI’s Matthew Kassel. Mohammed recently described Zionists as “modern day Nazis” and as a “threat to humanity,” among other incendiary social media posts.
“Antisemitic comments and conspiracy theories have no place anywhere, including in the North Carolina Democratic Party,” the governor said, after the leaders of several prominent Jewish groups in the state sent a joint letter urging Democratic officials and lawmakers to publicly denounce Mohammed’s statements…
Columbia University is considering expanding and refocusing how its Middle Eastern studies department teaches about Israel, JI’s Haley Cohen reports. The provost’s regional review committee announced a set of recommendations this week for the department, including a stronger partnership with the school’s Institute for Israel and Jewish Studies, marking a pivot in a field and at a school that have come under immense scrutiny from the federal government and Jewish leaders following the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks…
Shaare Tefila, a Conservative congregation in Olney, Md., in the Washington suburbs, was defaced with antisemitic graffiti today, JI’s Haley Cohen reports. A swastika, the word “genocide” and the phrase “AZAB,” an acronym standing for “All Zionists Are Bastards,” were spray-painted on street signs and banners outside the synagogue.
Ron Halber, CEO of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington, called the act “outrageous. While it is fortunate that no one was physically hurt, it is yet another sad reminder that antisemitic incidents have become common occurrences throughout our region,” he said…
Harmeet Dhillon, the assistant attorney general for civil rights, said the Justice Department intends to pursue and ultimately shut down groups that have engaged in disruptive protests at synagogues and other antisemitic activities, as well as those supporting those groups, JI’s Marc Rod reports.
Speaking today at a conference on antisemitism organized by The George Washington University Program on Extremism, Dhillon said her division’s work includes pursuing those funding, training and supporting groups such as American Muslims for Palestine and the Party for Socialism and Liberation, which she said are engaging in “acts of domestic terrorism”…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye out in Jewish Insider for a preview of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s bilateral meeting with President Donald Trump tomorrow at the White House, as the Israeli PM seeks to provide input on U.S. negotiations with Iran.
The House Appropriations Committee will hold a hearing on the potential impacts of a Department of Homeland Security shutdown, which looks likely as lawmakers struggle to reach a deal before its funding runs out on Friday.
The House Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on oversight of the Department of Justice with Attorney General Pam Bondi.
American Jewish Committee CEO Ted Deutch will speak at New York City’s Temple Emanu-El on the organization’s annual State of Antisemitism in America survey, released today.
Stories You May Have Missed
POSTWAR PROBLEMS
White House needs to confront limits of Hamas disarmament, experts say
The options for demilitarization ‘strike me as not feasible from a military point of view and certainly not practical from a political point of view,’ says the Carnegie Endowment’s Aaron David Miller
POST-TRAUMA ACTIVISM
‘Bringing voice to the voiceless’: Former hostages Aviva and Keith Siegel heal through helping others
The couple, once held captive by Hamas, channel their trauma into humanitarian work, volunteering in Kenya’s Kakuma refugee settlement with IsraAid and amplifying the stories of those suffering in silence
The options for demilitarization ‘strike me as not feasible from a military point of view and certainly not practical from a political point of view,’ says the Carnegie Endowment’s Aaron David Miller
Saeed M. M. T. Jaras/Anadolu via Getty Images
Israeli hostages are handed over to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) by the Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, as part of the ceasefire agreement in effect in Gaza City, Gaza on October 15, 2025.
The White House launched Phase 2 of President Donald Trump’s 20-point Gaza peace plan last month, intending to transition the enclave toward demilitarization, technocratic governance and reconstruction. But before those plans can move forward, the administration still needs to confront a central reality on the ground: Hamas remains armed and unwilling to cooperate.
During the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, in January, the Trump administration unveiled the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG), a committee of technocrats intended as a post-Hamas governing authority, alongside an outline for reconstructing the enclave.
That vision, however, was quickly challenged by Hamas’ leadership. Speaking at the Al Jazeera Forum in Doha, Qatar, this past weekend, Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal, who is under U.S. indictment on terrorism-related charges, rejected the U.N. Security Council–backed plan for Gaza — a move that could complicate disarmament and Phase 2 efforts.
Experts told Jewish Insider that the administration’s expectation that Hamas can be persuaded to voluntarily hand over its weapons is detached from the group’s incentives and its perception of the war’s outcome.
“Without first disarming Hamas, progress on every other facet of Phase 2 will be minimal at best,” said Jonathan Ruhe, a fellow at the Jewish Institute for National Security of America. “The U.S. needs to adapt its strategy, which remains stuck on convincing Hamas to hand over its weapons.”
Ruhe said Hamas believes it “won the war” and therefore “can’t be incentivized to give up” power. He added that, absent voluntary disarmament, the administration may need to consider using well-vetted and tightly overseen “private military contractors” to carry out the task, a suggestion also recently put forward by former special envoy for Iran and Venezuela Elliott Abrams and JINSA’s Eric Edelman and Rena Gabber.
Other experts were similarly skeptical that Hamas would relinquish control voluntarily. Michael Koplow, chief policy officer at the Israel Policy Forum, warned that Hamas is not going to “want to voluntarily give up their weapons without real guarantees,” adding that the group’s incentive to comply is “not very high.”
“If you’re going to get [Hamas to comply with the plan], it’s going to have to involve some sort of guarantees for the group and guarantees for the leadership, which are going to be very difficult for the Israelis to swallow,” said Koplow.
Aaron David Miller, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said Hamas is also unlikely “to surrender the actual administrative control of Gaza.” He outlined what he described as a narrow and unattractive set of options for disarmament.
“There are only two ways to fundamentally demilitarize Hamas,” Miller said. “There are only two forces capable of doing it. One would be the IDF, and you’ve seen how that has gone over the course of the last 2 ½ years. The second would be the deployment of thousands of American combat forces, which would take a while and result in a permanent occupation of Gaza by the U.S. military. Both of these strike me as not feasible from a military point of view and certainly not practical from a political point of view.”
Miller added that any disarmament process would likely need to be accompanied by an Israeli withdrawal from additional areas in Gaza. The IDF currently controls more than half of the territory, demarcated by what officials refer to as a “yellow line.”
Until Hamas is disarmed, Miller said Israel is unlikely to permit large-scale reconstruction, given concerns that materials such as cement and metal tubing could be diverted for tunnel construction and weapons production.
Koplow also noted military means as an option for disarmament, but said the Trump administration appears to be leaning toward a “DDR” process — disarmament, demobilization and reintegration — an alternative to military force in which Hamas would give up heavy weapons first, transition away from armed activity and then reintegrate former fighters into civilian life.
“The idea is that you’re not going in and destroying the group,” Koplow said. “You’re first getting rid of their weapons, you’re then trying to transform the group itself into something different and then you’re reintegrating the group’s members back into society. Historically, that’s the way that terrorist groups like this are disarmed.”
Koplow cautioned that any such effort would be slow and contentious. “Hamas is going to make it difficult,” he said, adding that demilitarization will be “a long and drawn-out and very difficult process if it has any chance of working.”
“After all these months, the ISF still lacks a clear mandate,” Jonathan Ruhe, a fellow at the Jewish Institute for National Security of America, said. “If Hamas disarmed voluntarily, as Trump’s plan envisions, any number of countries would contribute troops for relatively safe peacekeeping duties like safeguarding humanitarian aid, police training and border patrol. But because Hamas won’t disarm peacefully, Arab and other Muslim countries consistently refuse to put their forces in harm’s way.”
Under Trump’s original 20-point plan, a U.S.-led International Stabilization Force (ISF) was envisioned as a “long-term internal security solution.” Last month, Trump appointed Maj. Gen. Jasper Jeffers as commander of the ISF, and Israeli media reported on Monday that thousands of Indonesian soldiers were expected to deploy to southern Gaza in the coming weeks as part of the first foreign contingent.
Despite those moves, experts say the ISF remains constrained. No other countries have formally joined the force, and efforts to assemble it have been complicated by reluctance among potential contributors and Israeli security concerns over which countries would be permitted to participate. Analysts also say the ISF still lacks a clearly defined mandate and could be limited to a supporting role rather than directly confronting Hamas.
“After all these months, the ISF still lacks a clear mandate,” Ruhe said. “If Hamas disarmed voluntarily, as Trump’s plan envisions, any number of countries would contribute troops for relatively safe peacekeeping duties like safeguarding humanitarian aid, police training and border patrol. But because Hamas won’t disarm peacefully, Arab and other Muslim countries consistently refuse to put their forces in harm’s way.”
Miller said the ISF would most likely deploy in areas already under Israeli control, rather than Hamas-held territory. “I see the stabilization force as exactly what its name implies,” he said. “It would be an after-the-fact deployment to monitor and stabilize. The heavy work of actually decommissioning weapons is going to take a very long time.”
Even if demilitarization were achieved, Miller said the question of whether and how Hamas members could be integrated into future governance remains unresolved. The group maintains an extensive bureaucratic apparatus in Gaza, including tens of thousands of civil servants and police officers, whose future role would need to be addressed.
“It’s probably going to involve making distinctions between Hamas fighters and Hamas bureaucrats, and making some very difficult choices about what level of reintegration, if any, you’re willing to allow for former Hamas members,” Michael Koplow, chief policy officer at the Israel Policy Forum, said.
“Hamas has 40,000 civil servants and 10,000 police,” Miller said. “Those people would be under the administration of whom?”
Koplow suggested that the group be completely dismantled and barred from maintaining governing authority.
“Hamas as a group, and certainly not as it’s currently constituted, can’t responsibly be given any role in future Gaza governance,” said Koplow.
“It’s probably going to involve making distinctions between Hamas fighters and Hamas bureaucrats, and making some very difficult choices about what level of reintegration, if any, you’re willing to allow for former Hamas members,” Koplow added. “Then the question is, does anybody who’s ever had a Hamas affiliation have to be hunted down and eliminated over time, or is there a world in which they can, as individuals, be integrated into whatever future Gaza governance and society looks like?”
The ayatollah is ‘never going to stop killing his people and drinking their blood out of a boot, and he’s never going to stop funding Hamas and Hezbollah,’ Sen. John Kennedy said
Iranian Foreign Ministry / Handout /Anadolu via Getty Images
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi (L) meets with Omani Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr Hamad Al Busaidi (R) to exchange views on how to advance US-Iran talks scheduled to be held later in the day, in Muscat, the capital of Oman, on February 06, 2026.
Republicans lawmakers continued to dismiss this week the idea that a nuclear deal with Iran is achievable, despite comments by President Donald Trump over the weekend.
Trump said that the talks with Iran, held in Oman last Friday, had been “very good,” that Tehran “wants to make a deal very badly” and that he is in “no rush” to move ahead. He also said that the Iranian demand that the talks be only focused on nuclear weapons “would be acceptable” — an apparent softening of the U.S. position that any potential agreement should also address Iran’s ballistic missile stockpiles and its support for regional terror proxies. The talks did not appear to touch on the Islamic Republic’s recent violent crackdown on nationwide protests.
Asked about Trump’s comments about a nuclear-only deal, Republicans largely dismissed the idea that any deal would actually be forthcoming.
“Iran’s not going to make a deal with us. They’re going to stall and re-stall to buy time, but they’re not going to make a deal,” Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) told Jewish Insider. “The ayatollah is [as] crazy as a bed bug. And he’s never going to give up any hope that he has of nuclear weapons. He’s never going to stop killing his people and drinking their blood out of a boot, and he’s never going to stop funding Hamas and Hezbollah.”
Kennedy predicted that military action is both necessary and forthcoming.
“You’re going to have to give them a curbstomping, but you don’t want to start a regional war doing it,” Kennedy continued. “My guess is that’s what the president is talking to [Secretary of State Marco] Rubio and the military guys with a bunch of their flags in their office [about] right now.”
Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL) agreed that the Iranian regime is not genuinely interested in making an agreement with the United States.
“There won’t be a deal,” Scott told JI. “They’re not going to do a deal.”
Sen. James Lankford (R-OK) said he hadn’t seen Trump’s comments but he does not “trust the word of the regime, at all.”
“They have not proven trustworthy with their word in the past, and so you have to have a way to be able to verify everything,” Lankford continued.
Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA), meanwhile, told JI on Monday that he would delay a vote on a war powers resolution he introduced with Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) blocking military action against Iran pending the ongoing talks with the regime.
The resolution would theoretically be eligible for votes by the full Senate later this week, should Kaine and Paul wish to call it up.
The Virginia senator told JI that he and Paul are in discussions about timing for votes, and that he hasn’t yet made a decision on when to call the bill up.
“We have to check each day to see where [the talks] are. I don’t think calling it up in the middle of discussions that have some chance to it — that’s not the right time — but we’ll just see where we are,” Kaine said.
Plus, report finds DSA may be acting as unregistered foreign agent
Win McNamee/Getty Images
President Donald Trump speaks at the Museum of the Bible September 8, 2025 in Washington, DC.
Good Monday afternoon!
This P.M. edition is reserved for our premium subscribers — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
It’s me again — Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
The Trump administration’s Religious Liberty Commission’s first hearing on antisemitism, which took place in Washington this morning, turned contentious as one commissioner declared herself an anti-Zionist and defended Candace Owens, Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch reports.
Amid testimony from Jewish witnesses about their experiences with antisemitism, Carrie Prejean Boller, a Catholic conservative activist and former Miss California, said about Owens, “I listen to her daily. I haven’t heard one thing out of her mouth that I would say is antisemitic.”
“Catholics do not embrace Zionism, just so you know. So are all Catholics antisemites?” Prejean Boller later asked the panel, earning some boos from the audience, a mix of Jewish professionals, Christian activists and members of the Washington Jewish community. “I want to be clear on what the definition of antisemitism is. If I don’t support the political State of Israel, am I an antisemite, yes or no?”…
The Network Contagion Research Institute accused the Democratic Socialists of America, in a report released in late January, of activities that may run afoul of the Foreign Agents Registration Act — alleging that the far-left group may be acting as an unregistered agent of various U.S. adversaries, JI’s Marc Rod reports.
The report points to foreign trips by DSA members to Venezuela, Cuba and China which have included access to top-level officials and, the report alleges, lodging, transportation and other services provided by the host governments “that may constitute in-kind benefits from foreign government-linked entities” and “participation in quasi-official functions.”
The report claims that the DSA’s foreign engagements are followed by brief upticks in the group’s promotion of U.S. adversaries’ priority issues, such as removing sanctions on Cuba and Venezuela, “consistent with campaign-style political activity rather than incidental commentary”…
Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblatt defended his organization’s approach to combating antisemitism in eJewishPhilanthropy today, after New York Times columnist Bret Stephens called for the ADL to be dismantled and for the organized Jewish community to reallocate its resources to focus on building Jewish identity rather than combating antisemitism.
“Stephens’ framing risks replacing one error with another,” Greenblatt wrote. “The choice is not ‘fight antisemitism’ or ‘build Jewish life.’ Security and identity aren’t competing priorities; they’re inseparable preconditions for Jewish flourishing in an open society. Shutting down the Anti-Defamation League or other Jewish organizations is not some magic formula that promises self-reliance; it’s a disastrous prescription for unilateral disarmament”…
Guy Christensen, an anti-Israel influencer who defended the Capital Jewish Museum shooting in which two Israeli Embassy employees were killed, spoke at the Al Jazeera Forum wrapping up in Doha, Qatar, today. As a last-minute addition to the event, which has already seen Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal defend the Oct. 7 attacks, Christensen spoke on a panel about content creation and influence.
The forum’s website touts Christensen, who was expelled from The Ohio State University over his defense of the alleged Capital Jewish Museum shooter, as “a political activist, commentator, and content creator who dedicates his efforts to advancing social justice and educating the masses. Over the past two years, he has proven himself to be one of the most prominent Gen Z voices supporting Palestinian liberation”…
Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY) endorsed state Assemblyman Micah Lasher today as his successor in New York’s 12th Congressional District, an expected move to boost his protege for the hotly contested seat. The endorsement comes shortly after reports emerged that one of Lasher’s opponents, Kennedy scion Jack Schlossberg, is set to receive his own prized endorsement from Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), who is also retiring after this term.
About Schlossberg, Nadler told The New York Times, “He’s a nice guy, and he comes from a nice family, but what’s his experience for this job? No, I don’t think people ought to support him. I don’t think they will support him”…
Adm. Brad Cooper, commander of CENTCOM, congratulated the Lebanese Armed Forces today for “recently finding a massive underground Hizbollah tunnel for the second time in the past two months.” He commended a “job well done by the LAF and U.S.-led Mechanism team that is helping enforce commitments made by Israel and Lebanon.”
The appreciative comments come as experts, lawmakers and Israeli officials have cast doubt on efforts by the Lebanese government to disarm Hezbollah, as required in the Israel-Lebanon November 2024 ceasefire agreement.
At the same time, Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam visited southern Lebanon today for the first time since the LAF said it had disarmed Hezbollah south of the Litani River, where he claimed that continuous Israeli “attacks” — strikes which Israel says it is carrying out due to Hezbollah’s rearmament and continued terror efforts in the area — are a “blow to our dignity”…
Indonesia is preparing to send a delegation of several thousand troops into Gaza, Israeli media reports. The timing, size and mandate of the deployment remains unknown, though the Indonesian defense minister said in November that the country had trained 20,000 troops to conduct health and construction-related efforts for the U.S.-led International Stabilization Force. The troops are expected to be stationed between the cities of Rafah and Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip…
Arab states and the EU condemned the Israeli Security Cabinet’s approval of a series of measures that will allow Israeli authorities to exert more control in the West Bank, with the foreign ministers of Jordan, the UAE, Pakistan, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Egypt rejecting the “expansionist Israeli policies and illegal measures” in a joint statement.
EU spokesperson Anouar El Anouni called it “another step in the wrong direction, while the whole international community is making an effort to implement Phase 2 of the comprehensive plan for Gaza.” President Donald Trump, whom Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is meeting with this week, has also voiced his opposition to annexation efforts, saying in October that “Israel would lose all of its support from the United States if that happened”…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye out in Jewish Insider for an interview with former hostages Keith and Aviva Siegel, as they pivot from hostage advocacy efforts to engaging in humanitarian work abroad.
On the Hill, the House Ways and Means Committee will hold a hearing on foreign influence in American nonprofits, including testimony from Adam Sohn, the co-founder of the Network Contagion Research Institute, which authored the recent study on the Democratic Socialists of America.
The House Foreign Affairs Committee will hold a hearing on Syria and U.S. policy challenges in a post-Assad world. Witnesses will include James Jeffrey and Andrew Tabler of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy and Nadine Maenza, the former chair of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom.
The Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington will host its Virginia Jewish Advocacy Day, featuring remarks from newly sworn in Gov. Abigail Spanberger.
Stories You May Have Missed
MEJIA’S MOMENTUM
Will Democrats rally behind progressive socialist Mejia as she vies to represent wealthy N.J. district?
Already several members of the state’s congressional delegation have begun to coalesce around Mejia’s campaign
STICKING BY THE STICKY NOTE
Amid criticism, Kraft’s anti-hate group defends Super Bowl ad against antisemitism
The head of the Blue Square Alliance Against Hate emphasized the ad was intended to persuade all Americans — not just Jews — and survey research proved its effectiveness
Carrie Prejean Boller, a member of the commission and a former Miss California, said she opposes Israel and defended Candace Owens from allegations of antisemitism
Win McNamee/Getty Images
President Donald Trump speaks at the Museum of the Bible September 8, 2025 in Washington, DC.
When the White House Religious Liberty Commission gathered in Washington on Monday for the body’s first public hearing focused on antisemitism, attendees expected an informative if subdued meeting, meant to gather testimony from Jewish Americans who have faced antisemitism. The commission’s members are tasked with drafting a report with recommendations for President Donald Trump about how to promote religious liberty.
The speakers were mostly conservative, like the 13 members of the commission, which was created by Trump last year.
The conversation was largely friendly, barring one member of the commission, Catholic conservative activist and former Miss California Carrie Prejean Boller, who acted as more of an interrogator. She pushed back on witnesses’ testimony, arguing that they had defined antisemitism too broadly and questioning whether she would be considered an antisemite because she does not support Zionism and because she believes the Jews killed Jesus.
She also defended right-wing influencer Candace Owens from accusations of antisemitism.
“I listen to her daily,” said Prejean Boller, who appeared to be wearing a Palestinian flag pin. “I haven’t heard one thing out of her mouth that I would say is antisemitic.” In 2024, Owens was dropped from a Trump campaign event where she was slated to speak alongside Donald Trump Jr. after the campaign faced backlash for including Owens, who regularly shares antisemitic commentary in social media posts and on her podcast.
The first panel of speakers featured former UCLA law student Yitzy Frankel, who sued the university over its handling of antisemitism during the 2024 encampments; Yeshiva University President Ari Berman; Harvard alum Shabbos Kestenbaum; and former Auburn basketball coach Bruce Pearl. Each of them talked about their experiences of antisemitism — or combating it — in the United States after the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks in Israel.
After nearly an hour and a half, Prejean Boller revealed that she had been counting each mention of Israel in the course of the discussion.
“Since we’ve mentioned Israel a total of 17 times, are you willing to condemn what Israel has done in Gaza?” said Prejean Boller. “You won’t condemn that? Just on the record.”
Prejean Boller insisted that she opposes Israel because of her Catholic faith.
“Catholics do not embrace Zionism, just so you know. So are all Catholics antisemites?” Prejean Boller asked the panel, earning some boos from the audience, a mix of Jewish professionals, Christian activists and members of the Washington Jewish community. “I want to be clear on what the definition of antisemitism is. If I don’t support the political state of Israel, am I an antisemite, yes or no?”
At the end of the first panel, the Religious Liberty Commission’s sole Jewish member, Rabbi Meir Soloveichik of Congregation Shearith Israel in New York, offered a pointed response to Prejean Boller’s commentary about Catholics.
“This is an incredibly diverse country, and the one thing we should be careful about is speaking on behalf of all members of a religious community, even if one is a member of that religious community. I certainly wouldn’t claim to speak for all Jews on all subjects,” said Soloveichik. “We’re not known for agreeing on everything, and that certainly should be said for speaking about Catholics in America.”
Soloveichik then quoted Secretary of State Marco Rubio, “who also happens to be a very devout Catholic,” and who spoke about the Jewish people’s connection to the land of Israel during a visit to Jerusalem last year.
Prejean was a member of Trump’s campaign advisory board in 2020. The next year, she began using social media to rally against COVID-19 mask mandates. “You’re the next Rosa Parks. You’re the next Martin Luther King. This is so important that you stand,” she told a group of girls in 2021, urging them to go to school without masks, according to a video she posted on her Instagram.
At the time, she had 11,000 followers. Now she has 124,000 followers. She is also an advocate against transgender women and girls participating in female sports, and an opponent of same-sex marriage. Recently, she began regularly posting videos from Owens and Tucker Carlson, along with sharp criticism towards Israel. Her biography on the commission’s website lists only her beauty pageant title and a book she authored about it. A White House spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment.
“They mocked her. They censored her. They called her a ‘crazy conspiracy theorist’ simply for asking questions,” Prejean Boller wrote in a recent post about Owens. “I stand with Tucker,” she wrote in another post.
“I would really appreciate it if you would stop calling Candace Owens an antisemite,” Prejean Boller said at the hearing. “She’s not an antisemite. She just doesn’t support Zionism, and that really has to stop.”
Other commission members include Cardinal Timothy Dolan, the former Archbishop of New York; Pastor Paula White, a senior advisor to the White House Faith Office; and Pastor Franklin Graham, president and CEO of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and of Samaritan’s Purse. It is chaired by Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick.
The rest of the Monday hearing proceeded as planned: bureaucratic, genial, straightforward. The commission’s membership is mostly Christian, and much of the discussion of antisemitism presented it as a problem for those who believe in Judeo-Christian values, and an issue for Jews and Christians to combat together — with an understanding that the government should be in the business of supporting Americans’ freedom of religion. The event took place at the Museum of the Bible, a private institution established by the evangelical founder of Hobby Lobby.
“I want to thank everyone who is part of this fight,” Housing and Urban Development Secretary Scott Turner said at the start of the event. “It’s a battle that President Trump will continue to wage for Jewish Americans, for Christians, and for all Americans of all faiths whose First Amendment freedoms are under attack. I know it’s fitting that we’re here at the Museum of the Bible. The word of God is powerful, and it’s a powerful reminder of the importance of the First Amendment.”
‘The Prime Minister believes any negotiations must include limitations on ballistic missiles and a halting of the support for the Iranian axis,’ Netanyahu’s office says
Avi Ohayon (GPO) / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu makes statements at Ben Gurion Airport ahead of his visit to Washington DC, where he will meet with US President Donald Trump in Tel Aviv, Israel on February 02, 2025.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office announced a last-minute trip to Washington on Wednesday to discuss talks between the U.S. and Iran, a day after President Donald Trump praised the negotiations with Tehran.
“The Prime Minister believes any negotiations must include limitations on ballistic missiles and a halting of the support for the Iranian axis,” the statement, sent Saturday night, read.
White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner met with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in Oman on Friday.
Later Friday, Trump told reporters on Air Force One that the talks had been “very good.”
“Iran looks like it wants to make a deal very badly,” he said. “We have to see what that deal is, but I think Iran wants to make a deal very badly, like they should. Last time, they didn’t want to make a deal, but I think this time they feel differently.”
Asked about Iran’s demand that the talks only be about nuclear weapons, Trump said, “That would be acceptable. One thing, right up front, no nuclear weapons. … They weren’t willing to do that [last year]; now they are willing to do much more.”
The president also said that he is in “no rush” in the negotiations, adding, “If you remember in Venezuela, we waited around for a while.”
Trump indicated that the military threat to Iran still stands: “We have a big armada, a big fleet heading in that direction that will be there soon, so we’ll see how that works out. … If they don’t make a deal, the consequences are very steep.”
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) expressed skepticism that the negotiations would bring about an acceptable agreement, and called for Congressional review and approval, which the 2015 Iran nuclear deal lacked.
“I hope it can meet our national security objectives and the needs of the people of Iran through diplomacy,” Graham wrote on X. “Given Iran’s behavior regarding deals, it could be a tough sell. However, I am open-minded, understanding [that] any agreement with the Islamic Republic and the United States must come to Congress for review and a vote.”
Meanwhile, in Iran, videos and photos were posted online of Iranians once again protesting the regime using methods other than mass demonstrations, The Wall Street Journal reported, including shouting slogans at funerals, doctors condemning the arrest of colleagues for treating wounded protesters, hosting memorials for wounded protesters and more.
Plus, Massie challenger gets strong GOP backing
Julie Menin, speaker of the New York City Council and Zohran Mamdani, mayor of New York, arrive for an announcement in the Brooklyn borough of New York, US, on Monday, Jan. 12, 2026 (Photographer: John Lamparski/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Good Thursday afternoon!
This P.M. edition is reserved for our premium subscribers — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
It’s me again — Danielle Cohen-Kanik, U.S. editor at Jewish Insider and curator, along with assists from my colleagues, of the Daily Overtime. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts and feedback by replying to this email.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA), the chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, wrote to New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani today voicing “serious concerns” about Mamdani’s “rescission of executive orders related to antisemitism and boycotts of Israel.”
Cassidy said the New York City Department of Education’s $2.2 billion in federal funding could be rescinded “contingent on compliance with federal civil rights laws and applicable executive orders designed to protect students”…
New York City councilmembers on both sides of the aisle denounced a new working group established by employees of the city’s Department of Health on “global oppression,” Jewish Insider’s Will Bredderman reports, which a presenter at its first meeting on Tuesday acknowledged was “really developed in response to the ongoing genocide in Palestine.”
City Council Speaker Julie Menin called for a probe into the working group at DOH, which operates under Mamdani’s administration, telling the New York Post, “Our health care officials should be fighting infectious diseases and addressing skyrocketing health care costs instead of spending public time debating geopolitics”…
Moshe Davis, the former executive director of the Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism in New York City, told The Free Press upon being ousted from the role by Mamdani, “I don’t think the priority of the administration has been to combat antisemitism.”
Davis, who was a political appointee of former Mayor Eric Adams, said a Mamdani staffer told him they were “looking to go in a different direction” in replacing him with Phylisa Wisdom, a progressive Jewish activist. “Look, I’m a loud, proud Jewish person with a kippah on my head, a proud Zionist. This administration maybe felt that was too much for them,” Davis said. He noted that his requests to meet with the mayor and the memos he produced on rising antisemitism in the city had gone ignored…
Mamdani officially endorsed New York Gov. Kathy Hochul in an anticipated move, boosting her reelection prospects while also dealing a blow to her lieutenant governor, Antonio Delgado, who is running to oust Hochul from her left…
Rep. Andy Barr (R-KY) and businessman Nate Morris, two of the leading Republican candidates for Kentucky’s Senate seat, today endorsed Ed Gallrein, the GOP challenger to Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), one of the leading Republican critics of Israel in Congress, JI’s Marc Rod reports.
“Ed will never side with AOC or the radical-left against President Trump. He is exactly the kind of conservative warrior we need in Congress, and I’m proud to endorse him,” Barr said in a statement, referencing Massie’s pattern of breaking with various elements of Trump’s agenda, which has included voting against support for Israel.
The endorsements came amid an ongoing series of attacks by Trump on Massie, which included calling Massie a “moron” in remarks at the National Prayer Breakfast this morning, as well as attacks on Truth Social this week targeting Massie’s wife…
Daniel Flesch, a senior policy analyst at the Heritage Foundation who led the drafting of the organization’s Project Esther report on combating left-wing antisemitism, has parted ways with the conservative think tank, according to Heritage’s website.
Flesch had raised the alarm on right-wing antisemitism after Heritage President Kevin Roberts released a video defending Tucker Carlson for hosting neo-Nazi Nick Fuentes on his podcast, telling the Young Jewish Conservatives in December that, “Now, in some ways, the call is coming from inside the house.” Flesch had also been Heritage’s point person for the National Task Force to Combat Antisemitism, a coalition of conservative groups that disaffiliated from the think tank after the incident…
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed today that Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner will be traveling to Oman for negotiations with Iran tomorrow, saying at a press conference this afternoon that the president is “standing by for an update from them.”
“The president has obviously been quite clear in his demands of the Iranian regime — zero nuclear capability is something he’s been very explicit about and he wants to see if a deal can be struck. And while these negotiations are taking place, I would remind the Iranian regime that the president has many options at his disposal aside from diplomacy as the commander-in-chief of the most powerful military in the history of the world,” Leavitt added…
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told lawmakers at a closed-door meeting of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee that U.S.-Israel coordination is “as high and as close as possible” ahead of the nuclear talks tomorrow, Israeli media reports, but that he still doesn’t know if President Donald Trump will choose to take military action…
Middle East countries that were originally meant to participate in the talks, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Egypt, Oman, the UAE and Pakistan, drafted a potential agreement for the U.S. and Iran, including a nonaggression pact, diplomats told The Times of Israel…
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps seized two foreign oil tankers in the Persian Gulf today, Iranian state media reported, days after attempting to stop and board a U.S.-flagged oil tanker. Reports did not provide the country of origin of the tankers seized today…
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) expressed frustration with the Lebanese government’s stance toward Hezbollah amid struggling disarmament efforts, describing on X a meeting he’d had with Gen. Rodolphe Haykal, the commander of the Lebanese Armed Forces. “I asked him point blank if he believes Hezbollah is a terrorist organization. He said, ‘No, not in the context of Lebanon.’ With that, I ended the meeting.”
“They have been designated as a foreign terrorist organization by both Republican and Democrat administrations since 1997 — for good reason. As long as this attitude exists from the Lebanese Armed Forces, I don’t think we have a reliable partner in them,” Graham continued. The U.S. has provided over $3 billion to shore up the LAF in the last 20 years, including $230 million approved by the Trump administration as recently as October…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye out in Jewish Insider for whether AIPAC’s active role in the New Jersey 11th Congressional District Democratic primary — opposing former Rep. Tom Malinowski (D-NJ) — paid off. Polls in the district close at 8 p.m.
We’ll be watching for readouts from the meeting between White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, advisor Jared Kushner and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in Oman at 10 a.m. local time tomorrow, including whether issues beyond Tehran’s nuclear program are discussed.
We’ll be back in your inbox with the Daily Overtime on Monday. Shabbat Shalom!
Stories You May Have Missed
AI AMBITION
Alphabet’s AI bet shows early returns under Israeli-American CFO Anat Ashkenazi
The Israeli-American CFO first fueled Eli Lilly’s success, and is now turning her attention to the tech sector
SURVEY SAYS
Israelis split on whether to join a U.S. strike on Iran – poll
Right-wing Israelis support a strike even if Iran does not attack, while other political camps prefer to wait and see if Iran strikes Israel first, IDI poll finds
Rep. Andy Barr (R-KY) and Nate Morris, leading Senate candidates, endorsed Ed Gallrein, Massie’s Trump-backed challenger
DANIEL HEUER/AFP via Getty Images
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) speaks to reporters at the US Capitol on Washington, DC on November 18, 2025.
Rep. Andy Barr (R-KY) and Nate Morris, two of the leading Republican candidates for Kentucky’s Senate seat, on Thursday endorsed Ed Gallrein, the GOP challenger to Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), one of the leading GOP critics of Israel in Congress.
Gallrein’s primary candidacy has also been championed by President Donald Trump, who has been infuriated by Massie’s frequent votes against party leadership; Massie particularly rankled the White House as a leading advocate for releasing files related to Jeffrey Epstein.
“Northern Kentucky needs a leader who will stand shoulder-to-shoulder with President Trump and always fight for the MAGA agenda,” Barr said in a statement. “Ed Gallrein is an American hero — a Navy SEAL, a fifth-generation farmer, and a small business owner — who has spent his life defending this country. Ed will never side with AOC or the radical-left against President Trump. He is exactly the kind of conservative warrior we need in Congress, and I’m proud to endorse him.”
Barr’s comment references Massie’s pattern of breaking with various elements of Trump’s agenda, which has included voting against support for Israel.
“I’ve said repeatedly President Trump won a historic mandate in Kentucky and he needs allies he can trust in the House and Senate to deliver his agenda,” Morris said in a subsequent statement. “I’m proud to support Ed Gallrein for Congress and look forward to working with him when he’s in the House and I’m in the Senate to deliver the MAGA agenda.”
Massie’s campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Daniel Cameron, the former Kentucky attorney general and the third major candidate in the Senate race also did not respond to an inquiry about whether he plans to endorse Gallrein as well.
“Those guys endorsing Woke Eddie isn’t about my race. It’s about their campaigns,” Massie said in a statement in response to the endorsements.
Barr hit out at Morris in response to Morris’ endorsement, saying he was “following my lead.”
“If only you would have done the same when I chaired President Trump’s primary campaign in Kentucky in 2024. But you were too busy donating to Nikki Haley. Better late than never!” Barr said on X.
An endorsement from Trump could easily swing the Senate race in the deep-red state.
In a statement accompanying Barr’s endorsement, Gallrein praised Barr as a “steadfast ally” of the president, “unlike Thomas Massie.”
“The Republican Party and the conservative movement are united to replace Massie so we can defend the MAGA agenda and send a clear message that Kentucky remains MAGA country and stands firmly behind our President,” Gallrein said.
Gallrein also thanked Morris for his endorsement.
“I thank Nate Morris for his support as Kentucky MAGA conservatives continue to unite against Thomas Massie,” Gallrein said. “Massie represents Trump County, yet partners with the Squad and attacks President Trump with his words and votes. MAGA Kentucky is standing up to defend our President and defeat Thomas Massie.”
The endorsements came amid an ongoing series of attacks by Trump on Massie, which included calling Massie a “moron” in remarks at the National Prayer Breakfast on Thursday, as well as attacks on Truth Social this week targeting Massie’s wife.
Massie recently took to the airwaves in Kentucky with an ad painting Gallrein as “Woke Eddie” and attempting to tie him to diversity, equity and inclusion programs and support for transgender people.
Borrowing a slogan used in Trump campaign ads in 2024 against then-Vice President Kamala Harris, the ad ends with, “Woke Eddie Gallrein. He’ll fight for they/them, but never us.”
Gallrein’s campaign has denied that characterization, and his campaign is airing its own ad introducing voters to Gallrein’s background and highlighting his support from Trump.
Gallrein has raised $1.2 million since entering the race and closed out 2025 with $933,000 on hand — significantly outraising Massie, who brought in $622,000 in the fourth quarter, but trailing well behind Massie’s cash-on-hand total of $2.2 million.
Please log in if you already have a subscription, or subscribe to access the latest updates.
Continue with Google
Continue with Apple