DMFI President Brian Romick: ‘We are equally clear that there is no lasting peace without Israeli responsibility and no Palestinian state without credible Palestinian governance’
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Two flags: American and Israeli waving in the blue sky
Add JewishInsider on GoogleDemocratic Majority for Israel, the Democratic pro-Israel advocacy group, released a proposal on Thursday for a “modernized U.S.-Israel relationship,” with a focus on reimagined ties between the countries following the end of the current memorandum of understanding on military aid, set to expire in 2028.
The plan comes as Democrats grapple with the future of the U.S.-Israel relationship, particularly ahead of a potential Democratic majority in one or both chambers of Congress, which could bring renewed efforts to end or substantially condition U.S. military aid and sales to the Jewish state.
The framework laid out by DMFI mirrors the policies likely to be championed by moderate pro-Israel Democrats in the coming Congress.
“‘Cut everything’ and ‘defend everything’ are shortcuts. Neither is a serious policy for advancing peace in the region,” DMFI said in a press release. “Our vision offers a path grounded in security, responsibility, regional cooperation, and sustained American leadership.”
DMFI said that the U.S. should fulfill its commitments on military aid through the end of the current MOU, arguing that failing to do so “would diminish the close defense partnership through which the United States and Israel plan, develop, and produce the capabilities both countries need to confront shared threats.”
The group maintained that the U.S. and the region “have far more to gain from a stronger and more effective partnership” than from cutting off the U.S.-Israel relationship, and that the path forward will help secure military victories against Iran and its proxies, protect American troops and civilians, support regional partners and strengthen the path toward a two-state solution.
Beyond 2028, the group urged focusing on “more joint development and production in missile defense, cybersecurity, and emerging technologies” — which itself has proven to be a controversial idea among some congressional Democrats and, to a lesser extent, Republicans.
But it also did not fully rule out the potential for “some” continued military aid and missile defense funding past 2028, while suggesting that such aid would likely be phased out “over time, and by mutual agreement … toward an increasingly reciprocal relationship centered on joint investment, innovation, and technological advantage.”
And it said that the U.S. still “has a strategic and moral interest in ensuring that Israel can deter and defend against threats to Israel’s fundamental security,” including preserving Israel’s qualitative military edge and ensuring that Israel maintains access to the military capabilities it needs.
DMFI said that cooperative military programs redound to the U.S.’ benefit, allowing “access to capabilities, operational experience, and regional insights that would be difficult and costly to replicate independently,” while allowing Israel and other partners to “shoulder more of the security burden” while the U.S. turns attention toward China and the Indo-Pacific.
The group emphasized that continued support for Israel “does not require support for every decision made by an Israeli government” and that the U.S. should speak out when Israel undermines “shared interests, democratic values, prospects for peace, or Israel’s own long-term security” and work with Israel to ensure that security assistance “continues to be used in accordance with U.S. law and that military operations incorporate effective measures to minimize civilian harm.”
But it also firmly rejected the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement and other efforts to delegitimize Israel and deny its right to exist as a Jewish state, as well as double standards singling out Israel.
“Criticism of Israeli governments and policies is legitimate, but political debate about Israel must never become a vehicle for antisemitism or collective blame of Jews,” the DMFI plan argues.
It said that the U.S., Israel, Palestinians and Arab states should continue to push toward a two-state solution, and that such a path includes obligations for both Israelis and Palestinians, and steps to improve conditions for Palestinians even without broader final-status negotiations.
The group said Israel must act to halt settler violence in the West Bank; “preserve the territorial integrity, economic viability, and institutional capacity necessary for legitimate Palestinian governance and eventual statehood”; and not work to weaken the Palestinian Authority, arguing that it’s in Israel’s interest to ensure stronger PA institutions and economic conditions as an alternative to extremism.
At the same time, DMFI’s plan describes Israeli skepticism of and concern about a Palestinian state as valid and based on Israel’s experience, particularly in the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks, and said that security arrangements around a two-state solution must “give Israelis confidence that a future Palestinian state will not become another base for terrorism.”
It also argues that the PA is a critical part of a two-state solution but must be significantly reformed to reject terrorism, support Hamas’ removal, stop incitement, overhaul educational materials that incite terrorism, combat corruption and improve governance.
“A reformed PA must demonstrate that it can serve its population, maintain security, govern responsibly, and act as a credible partner for peace before assuming responsibility for Gaza,” DMFI said. “The United States and its regional partners should help the PA undertake these reforms while establishing clear benchmarks to measure and verify progress.”
DMFI called on Arab states to work to strengthen the PA while integrating more closely with Israel.
In Gaza, the DMFI plan largely aligns with the 20-point peace plan put forward by the Trump administration, including disarming Hamas, establishing governance and ensuring humanitarian assistance, which “will require sustained American leadership and diplomatic engagement over many years.”
It argues that recovery and reconstruction should start in Israeli-controlled areas with a shift toward civilian governance and international oversight.
The plan speaks in broad strokes about a path forward for Iran, describing diplomacy as “an essential tool” to addressing Iran’s various threats, “backed by credible deterrence, rigorous verification, economic pressure, and close coordination with allies and regional partners,” alongside “military force [when] necessary” with clear goals and congressional authorization.
It also calls on Lebanon to disarm Hezbollah and offers support for “stable governance” in Syria that will block Iran and other terrorist groups from using Syrian territory to attack Israel.
“DMFI is proposing a vision for the Middle East that a Democratic majority can actually govern with: security for Israel, self-determination for the Palestinian people, and stability for the region, with every party carrying obligations you can name, measure, and verify,” DMFI President Brian Romick said in a statement. “Our commitment to Israel’s security is ironclad, and we are equally clear that there is no lasting peace without Israeli responsibility and no Palestinian state without credible Palestinian governance.”
Former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who is seen as a potential presidential contender, also praised the plan. The Democratic operative delivered a major speech in Israel earlier this year offering criticisms of Israeli policy and calling for an end of unconditional support for the Jewish state.
“DMFI is right to put regional stability, Israel’s security, and Palestinian self-determination in the same conversation. None succeeds on its own,” Emanuel said. “The next step is to make the Arab states full partners in building a credible path to Palestinian sovereignty and Israeli security — and to be clear that America’s support for Israel does not mean silence when its government makes choices that undermine both.”
Rep. Lois Frankel (D-FL), the ranking member of the House Appropriations Committee subcommittee that oversees U.S. military aid to Israel, said in a statement on the proposal that “U.S. partnership with Israel is essential to our national security and to advancing peace and stability in the Middle East” and that the DMFI plan “offer[s] a thoughtful and serious vision for strengthening that relationship to meet today’s challenges, while making clear that American interests, Israel’s security and Palestinian self-determination can be advanced together.”
Rep. Brad Schneider (D-IL), who co-chairs the Congressional Jewish Caucus and the Abraham Accords Caucus and is a leader among moderate pro-Israel Democrats, said, “Especially at this critical moment, it is vitally important to chart a course that strengthens the U.S.-Israel relationship and advances our mutual security interests and shared democratic values. I look forward to working with DMFI and others committed to this effort to help shape that future.”
The lawmakers also said they do not have serious concerns about antisemitism on the political right
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Rep. David Kustoff (R-TN) leaves a meeting of the House Republican Conference in the U.S. Capitol on June 4, 2025.
LAS VEGAS — Jewish House Republicans said during the Republican Jewish Coalition’s leadership summit in Las Vegas earlier this month that there’s little appetite among Republicans to end U.S. aid to Israel as the two sides look toward the end of the current memorandum of understanding on military aid.
They also said they do not have serious concerns about antisemitism on the right, and argued that it did not stand any real chance of encroaching into the GOP.
Rep. David Kustoff (R-TN) argued to Jewish Insider that the near-unanimous GOP vote this summer against an amendment to cut off U.S. aid to Israel showed that most Republicans want U.S. aid to continue, when asked about the next MOU and the prospect of winding down aid.
“I think the message is that the majority of the members of the House want to see the aid continue, want to see this alliance continue, but elections have consequences, and we don’t know what the makeup of the next House is going to be on the Republican side and on the Democrat side,” he said.
Kustoff said that the vote to cut off aid on the Democratic side, including House Minority Whip Katherine Clark’s (D-MA), shows “where the Democrat[ic] Party is going,” even as he praised select members like retiring Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-MD) for continuing to stand up for the U.S.-Israel relationship.
“I do feel confident that if the Republicans maintain the majority of the House, that this strong relationship continues and exists,” Kustoff said.
Rep. Craig Goldman (R-TX) emphasized that Israel and the United States are facing threats not only from Iran and its nuclear program but also from the terrorist groups that Iran has spent decades funding.
“I certainly will fight tooth and nail as long as I’m a member of U.S. Congress to continue aid to Israel,” Goldman told JI. “It’s too important for not only our national security but world security. Our strongest ally in the Middle East, we can’t let fall in bad hands.”
Rep. Randy Fine (R-FL) also argued to JI that continuing aid is in the interests of the U.S., explaining, “I think it’s in Israel’s best interest to stop taking the aid. I don’t know that it’s in America’s best interest.”
At least some Republicans on Capitol Hill have argued, echoing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, that U.S. aid to Israel should be wound down and ended in the coming years, though the idea does not seem to have purchase among others like Kustoff, Goldman and Fine.
Kustoff also told JI that the administration needs to “continue to make the argument” to Congress and the American public about the next steps in the Iran war in order to secure the necessary funding from Congress to continue the war effort.
“It’s so important for the administration to talk about what these next steps look like, and again, for the members of Congress who are going to be voting on these important appropriations, we need to know what these next several weeks look like in terms of planning and implementation,” Kustoff said.
Kustoff said that antisemitism is “far more” of a problem on the left than the right, pointing to recent primary results, but acknowledged that misinformation on social media targeting the Jewish community is impacting younger Americans regardless of political affiliation.
“There is no easy answer. Part of it is that people like me on our side, and people on the Democrat[ic] side, have to stand up and denounce and call out the misinformation, the out-and-out lies that are out there on social media,” Kustoff said. “We know that the misinformation emanates from the enemies of Israel and the enemies of the United States, to permeate discontent primarily among our younger population.”
He argued that the Republican Party can block antisemites from gaining ground in the GOP, as they have in the Democratic Party, by remaining firm on its “principles,” standing unequivocally in support of Israel and focusing on recruiting candidates who align with the party’s values and ideals.
Lee Zeldin, the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency and a former House Republican, also argued during a press appearance at the RJC conference that antisemitism on the right is less serious of a problem than on the left.
Democrats, he emphasized, are campaigning alongside the likes of streamer Hasan Piker, framing some candidates as functionally answering to Piker and his views.
“Where do you see congressional Republicans on the ballot this November campaigning with a [neo-Nazi] Nick Fuentes? It’s just it doesn’t happen. You know there’s no defense of him on the trail, and there’s a reason for that,” Zeldin said, arguing that Fuentes is not actually a conservative at all.
The Democratic Party leadership, he continued, is “being led by those extreme elements.” Zeldin said he witnessed the evolution of the Democratic Party firsthand with the rise of the Squad during his time on Capitol Hill. He also argued that the right-wing equivalent of a Squad member would never make it to a GOP nomination or be elected to federal office.
“When you see antisemitism, it should be singularly identified and crushed in any form, and antisemitism has no place in this country. I’ll say it unequivocally. I’ll say it forcefully and passionately every single time,” he said, when asked by JI how to prevent such a trend from repeating itself among Republicans.
“It’s to be identified, confronted and crushed,” he continued. “How do you eliminate it? It’s not by elevating it, embracing it, empowering it. You can’t be silent towards it. You can’t allow it to spread and gain a foothold. Wherever you see it, you have to identify it, and you have to crush it.”
Goldman voiced fears about the rise of the Democratic Socialists of America on the left.
“Organizations like the Democratic Socialists of America scare me as not only just an American but as a Jewish American,” Goldman said. “I have tremendous fears of what’s building on the left.”
He noted that the other Goldman on Capitol Hill, Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY), had been defeated by a further left candidate despite being a reliably progressive vote.
“That’s very, very scary,” he said. “That member, that person’s going to be a member of the U.S. Congress next year. So I think it’s a big moment to wake up. … This isn’t just normal Democrats running and winning. These are socialists.”
He said he’s not concerned about antisemites gaining similar purchase within the GOP.
Plus, Vance alleges Israeli influence campaign to extend Iran war
Photo by Kevin Carter/Getty Images
The sun sets behind the U.S. Capitol Building on July 8, 2026 in Washington, D.C.
Good Wednesday afternoon.
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
Today’s Daily Overtime was curated by JI U.S. Editor Danielle Cohen-Kanik.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
More than 100 House Democrats, about half of the caucus, voted in favorof Rep. Thomas Massie’s (R-KY) amendment to strip all U.S. aid to Israel out of the State Department appropriations bill this afternoon, including several leaders of the caucus such as Rep. Katherine Clark (D-MA), the No. 2 House Democrat, and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA).
While the amendment was overwhelmingly defeated, 314-104, the large segment of Democrats supporting the measure indicates a growing shift away from the party’s historic support for Israel…
Vice President JD Vance, in an episode of “The Joe Rogan Experience” released today, stated repeatedly that Israeli actors are engaged in a “very discreet, very well-funded” influence campaign to extend the war in Iran: “There are some people within their system we know beyond a shadow of a doubt who are manipulating and trying to change American public opinion to keep the war going on indefinitely. Again, not towards any objective, but just indefinitely,” he alleged.
Vance also said that the late disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein “clearly had connections to the highest levels of Israeli intelligence” and to “elements of the Israeli deep state that were left of center”…
The U.S., Israel and Lebanon, wrapping up talks in Rome this week, agreed on the structure and guidelines for implementing the two pilot zones the parties agreed to create in southern Lebanon, a State Department official said today, without specifying a timeline for the IDF’s withdrawal. The parties will now engage in expanded technical talks to implement the trilateral agreement reached in the last round of negotiations…
CENTCOM began another round of strikes against Iran this afternoon; coming after strikes earlier in the day, the pace of the operations appears to be gaining momentum. President Donald Trump is reportedly considering expanding U.S. military efforts to include more airstrikes, utilizing ground forces and targeting nuclear sites again, according to The Wall Street Journal…
Three senior U.S. officials connected to the Board of Peace, the Trump-led body created to resolve the conflict in Gaza, have been meeting with congressional offices this week to request $200 million for the International Stabilization Force, two people with knowledge of the meetings told Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch. The meetings mark the first time that Board of Peace representatives have approached Congress with a funding request…
Ahead of today’s deadline, candidates have begun releasing their fundraising reports for the second quarter. In Georgia, where some in the Jewish community have felt torn between two less-than-ideal options in Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-GA) and his opponent, Rep. Mike Collins (R-GA), Ossoff holds a commanding fundraising advantage: The senator reported raising$20 million this quarter with $42 million in the bank, while Collins raised $2.1 million, leaving him with $2.2 million in cash on hand…
Meanwhile, Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed released his 2025 tax returns, which he is not legally obligated to do but was pressured to do by his opponent in the Democratic primary, Rep. Haley Stevens (D-MI). El-Sayed’s reported total income was over $680,000, nearly $300,000 of which was unspecified as to its source…
The anti-Israel American Priorities super PAC made an initial investment of $375,000 to boost El-Sayed in the race; El-Sayed has repeatedly railed against super PAC involvement in politics — particularly that of AIPAC’s United Democracy Project, which is spending heavily in favor of Stevens…
Rep. Hilary Scholten (D-MI), speaking to Semafor about electability concerns in the Democratic Party, criticized progressives who “prop up other candidates who have said really problematic things.” The moderate congresswoman added that El-Sayed, who has been criticized for comments about Stevens seen as misogynistic, “has a problematic record with women”…
A new Quinnipiac poll of Pennsylvania voters found Gov. Josh Shapiro leading his Republican opponent in his reelection race by 13 points, 53-40%, with a 56% overall approval rating. Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) had a 77% approval rating among Republicans, but only 19% among voters in his own party. Nearly half (49%) of voters said the Democratic Party has moved too far to the left, while 42% said the Republican Party has moved too far to the right…
Former White House senior official Brett McGurk is releasing a book, Brink: Inside the Race to Free the October 7 Hostages, on his role leading U.S. efforts under former President Joe Biden to secure the release of hostages held by Hamas after the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks, due out on Oct. 6 to coincide with the third anniversary of the attacks…
The New York Times examines the role that Hollywood superagent Ari Emanuel could play in the potential presidential run of his brother, former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, as politicians increasingly seek access to media as part of their campaigns; among those close to Ari Emanuel are the UFC’s Dana White, commentator Joe Rogan, pundit Stephen A. Smith as well as Elon Musk…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider for a look at what this afternoon’s vote on Massie‘s amendment to cut all U.S. aid to Israel means for the future of Israel policy in the Democratic Party.
At least eight Democratic candidates vying to replace former nominee Graham Platner on the ballotfor U.S. Senate in Maine will take the debate stage tomorrow evening in their first chance to pitch themselves to voters, ahead of the state Democratic Party’s nominating convention later this month.
President Donald Trump will give an address to the nation in the evening, which he has said will largely focus on American election security.
The American Federation of Teachers’ annual convention will kick off in Washington. The second largest teachers’ union in the U.S., the AFT has previously featured anti-Israel resolutions at its gatherings.
The Aspen Security Forum continues with several panels on the Middle East, including speakers such as Akif Çağatay Kılıç, top advisor to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan; Ayman Safadi, Jordan’s foreign minister; Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT); Ted Deutch, CEO of the American Jewish Committee; Dan Shapiro, former U.S. Ambassador to Israel; Rahm Emanuel; Anne Neuberger, former deputy national security advisor; and Salam Fayyad, former prime minister of the Palestinian Authority.
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Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) questions U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth as he testifies before the House Armed Services Committee April 29, 2026.
Good Tuesday afternoon.
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
Today’s Daily Overtime was curated by JI U.S. Editor Danielle Cohen-Kanik.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a warning to Iranian leaders, as military hostilities escalate between Iran and the U.S.: “Do not count on there being calm if you attack us,” Netanyahu addressed Tehran, while speaking today at a conference in southern Israel. “Do not expect a repeat of what happened before, because there will be no repeat. … Any further attempt to harm us will be met with a different response — far more powerful”…
Meanwhile, President Donald Trump walked back his announcement that the U.S. would institute a 20% toll on all cargo passing through the Strait of Hormuz, saying in a post on Truth Social that Middle East leaders had agreed to additional trade and investment deals with the U.S. to replace the fee…
CENTCOM announced it began launching an additional round of strikes against Iran this afternoon “to continue degrading Iranian capabilities used to attack commercial shipping” in the strait, and officially reinstated a blockade on Iranian ports. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it launched missile and drone attacks in retaliation against bases in Kuwait and Bahrain…
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) said he would oppose an amendment led by Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) to strip all aid to Israel out of the 2027 State Department appropriations bill, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports. But Jeffries also argued for “urgent change” to the U.S.-Israel relationship, including suggesting that direct U.S. military aid to Israel should end when the current memorandum of understanding expires.
Progressive Caucus Chair Rep. Greg Casar (D-TX), on the other hand, said he plans to vote yes on Massie’s amendment, writing in a “Dear Colleague” letter that the “American people are crying out for an end to US tax dollars subsidizing Israel’s military”…
Israeli Transportation Minister Miri Regev announced today that the U.S. will only be permitted to station 20 military refueling aircraft at Ben Gurion Airport, while the rest must be parked at Israeli Air Force bases, in order to facilitate commercial travel for Israelis over the summer…
U.N. official Ramiz Alakbarov accused Hamas forces of interfering at a humanitarian aid distribution site in Gaza, saying armed men had entered a warehouse and “endangered humanitarian personnel,” leading the organization to suspend its operations at the site. “These incidents are not isolated. They are completely unacceptable and reflect an increasingly dangerous pattern of intimidation, violence and obstruction,” Alakbarov said…
Trump asked Netanyahu in a phone call last week to pull IDF forces back from Syria and Lebanon, Axios reports; the Prime Minister’s Office said Netanyahu in turn emphasized Israel’s need for security zones along its borders…
The Jewish Community Relations Council Bay Area issued a statement today on Rep. Ro Khanna’s (D-CA) recent encounter in the West Bank, where he claims he was detained by violent settlers as well as the IDF. The group said it has “conveyed our concerns to the Congressman in how he is representing the district and our community on foreign policy issues” and called on Khanna “to exercise the same urgency he has brought to criticizing Israel to address the hostile climate many Jewish Americans face every day”…
Pressed repeatedly by writers with the Hamas-sympathetic outlet Drop Site News to offer support for the Oct. 7, 2023, terror attacks and Palestinians’ “right to kill Israeli soldiers,” Khanna said he is “not for violence in any way”…
Asked about legislation imposing sanctions on Russia that was championed by the late Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Trump said in the Oval Office today that lawmakers “may be adding Iran to it … They may add Hezbollah, too.” He said there’s a “good chance” it will pass “in honor of Lindsey”…
White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner were spotted in the Senate chamber during the swearing-in this afternoon of Darline Graham Nordone to fill Graham’s seat…
The AIPAC-linked United Democracy Project super PAC sent direct mail to voters in Michigan highlighting far-left Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed’s refusal to condemn extreme rhetoric from antisemitic streamer Hasan Piker and El-Sayed’s efforts to “rationalize” the attack on Michigan’s Temple Israel earlier this year…
Columbia University anti-Israel protest leader Mahmoud Khalil filed a civil rights lawsuit against Trump administration officials, the Heritage Foundation and pro-Israel groups Canary Mission and Betar, alleging they “sought to terrorize” him to “intimidate and silence the growing movement for Palestinian rights”…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider for an interview with Avi Loeb, the Israeli Harvard scientist leading Trump’s search for answers that may be out of this world.
Trump will headline the last day of Sen. Dave McCormick’s (R-PA) Pennsylvania Defense and Innovation Summit at the U.S. Army War College, with additional remarks from Army Secretary Dan Driscoll, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Mike Waltz, CIA Director John Ratcliffe and JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon.
The Aspen Security Forum in Colorado will feature fireside chats with former Navy Secretary John Phelan and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer. Also on tomorrow’s agenda: a live taping of the “What the Hell is Going On?” podcast hosted by the American Enterprise Institute’s Danielle Pletka and Marc Thiessen, in conversation with former National Security Advisors Stephen Hadley and Robert O’Brien as well as Michèle Flournoy, former under secretary of defense for policy.
Jay Clayton will appear before the Senate Intelligence Committee for his confirmation hearing to be director of national intelligence, after Trump abruptly canceled his hearing originally scheduled for last month.
Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) will speak at the Hudson Institute on the future of U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East..
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The analysis by the Jewish Institute for National Security of America found that Tehran made 47% more in the three weeks following the MOU than it normally did in a month before the war
Photo by AFP via Getty Images
A cargo ship is pictured off coast of the Khor Fakkan Container Terminal, the only natural deep-sea port in the region, along the Gulf of Oman on June 28, 2026.
Iran netted nearly $5 billion in the 22 days after Washington and Tehran signed their memorandum of understanding on June 17, according to a new report from the Jewish Institute for National Security of America.
The findings come as President Donald Trump announced on Monday that the U.S. would reimpose its naval blockade on Iranian ports effective July 14 at 4 p.m. ET, with an added 20% U.S. toll on all shipping through the strait.
The U.S. had lifted the blockade last month upon the signing of the MOU with Iran, at which time the Trump administration also issued a waiver that allowed the sale of Iranian oil. That waiver was revoked last week in response to Iranian attacks on shipping vessels in the strait, but the damage, JINSA says, was already done.
The JINSA report, published on July 8, found that once the initial maritime blockade was lifted mid-June, the Iranian regime “rushed to export its oil at the first opportunity.” Shipping data analyzed in the report indicates that Iran exported 50 million barrels of crude within the first two weeks after the blockade was lifted. By early July, total exports under the temporary truce topped 55 million barrels, netting the regime more than $4.5 billion.
Before the conflict, Iran typically exported between 47 million and 50 million barrels in a single month, averaging roughly $3.05 billion in revenue, according to the report. Because the U.S. waiver allowed Iran to sell its crude at standard market prices rather than the heavily discounted rates it usually relied on to bypass international sanctions, the regime pulled in 47% more cash in the 22 days following the MOU than it normally did in an entire month before the war.
Tehran has simultaneously maintained a tight grip on the Strait of Hormuz that has severely constrained broader global shipping, in what the report describes as a “bad omen for the future of maritime security in the Middle East — and U.S. deterrence of Iran.”
Daily global transit through the Strait of Hormuz fell from 15 million barrels of crude oil per day before the war to 4.8 million barrels per day during the first week after the MOU was reached — less than a third of normal volumes. By contrast, Iran managed to export 5 million barrels of its own crude oil per day during that same week.
Beyond standard oil sales, the report notes that Iran maintained an aggressive financial squeeze on foreign vessels transiting the region. Citing Israeli media reports, the report said Iranian authorities blocked commercial oil tankers from passing through the Strait of Hormuz unless they paid a transit fee of up to $2 million per vessel.
Tracking data from the shipping analytics firm Kpler suggests that these unauthorized checkpoints generated roughly $300 million in extra revenue for Tehran, directly violating the agreement’s terms guaranteeing free passage for international trade.
Plus, Graham's Senate seat kept in the family
Shady Alassar/Anadolu via Getty Images
Commercial vessels and oil tankers preparing to transit through the Strait of Hormuz maintain their wait in the Gulf of Oman, on June 17, 2026.
Good Monday afternoon.
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
Today’s Daily Overtime was curated by JI U.S. Editor Danielle Cohen-Kanik.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
President Donald Trump declared today that the U.S. will take control of the Strait of Hormuz and will institute a 20% fee on all cargo passing through the waterway “for any and all costs necessary to do the job of providing safety and security to this very volatile section of the World,” Jewish Insider’s Christina Sher reports. The move comes after Trump and his administration insisted for months that no country is permitted to charge fees to transiting ships…
Trump also announced he is reinstating a blockade of Iranian ports, which was lifted when the two countries signed a memorandum of understanding last month. CENTCOM said the blockade will resume tomorrow at 4 p.m. ET and will be enforced “against vessels transiting to or from Iranian ports and coastal areas.”
CENTCOM also revealed that it successfully deployed sea drones in combat operations for the first time yesterday, using the unmanned vessels to strike an Iranian submarine at the Bandar Abbas Naval Base…
Trump notified Congress on Friday that fighting with Iran officially resumed last week, further stoking tensions between the executive and legislative branches as lawmakers already approved a war powers resolution calling for an end to American operations in Iran.
Trump’s letter to congressional leadership said U.S. “ground forces are not involved in these strikes” — which he described as “limited, measured, planned, and executed in a manner designed to minimize civilian casualties” — and said he is acting “pursuant to [his] constitutional authority as Commander in Chief”…
The Mossad spent years grooming former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as an intelligence asset to be installed as Iran’s leader after a post-Khamenei regime change, including paying for his housing and travel and arranging a meeting with then-Mossad chief David Barnea under cover of a climate conference in Budapest in 2024, American and Iranian officials told The New York Times.
As the Iran war broke out on Feb. 28, Mossad operatives rescued Ahmadinejad from an Israeli airstrike on his Tehran compound and took him to a safe house, but he balked and left — Ahmadinejad is now reportedly under house arrest by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps…
The Houthis accused Saudi Arabia of bombing Yemen’s international airport today, with a spokesperson saying the action “will not go unanswered,” threatening a tenuous truce enacted several years ago between the terror group and the Saudis. A spokesperson for the internationally recognized Yemeni government, which is backed by Riyadh, said the Houthis subsequently fired ballistic missiles into Saudi Arabia…
U.K. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood announced on Monday that the country designated the IRGC as a terror organization, with those found guilty of supporting the group facing up to 14 years in prison. The government also banned the Islamic Movement of Companions of the Right, which No. 10 Downing St. said was behind a number of attacks on British Jewish sites…
South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster announced at a press conference this afternoon that he is appointing Darline Graham Nordone, the late Sen. Lindsey Graham’s (R-SC) sister, to serve out the rest of Graham’s term. Trump had voiced his support for Nordone, who shared an exceptionally close bond with her brother, as “a fabulous tribute to Lindsey.” Fox Newsreported that Nordone could be sworn in as soon as Wednesday…
The Trump administration plans to launch a major diplomatic offensive against the International Criminal Court, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced today, the latest move in the White House’s longtime battle against the international organization.
The push appears to be rooted in concerns that the ICC will seek to prosecute American servicemembers, JI’s Gabby Deutch reports. Such actions would not only be “a grave overreach of its purported authorities,” Rubio wrote in a Wall Street Journal op-ed, “it would mean the death of the U.S. as a sovereign and independent nation”…
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani vowed that he would maintain ties with Morris Katz, the controversial political operative behind Mamdani’s own victory as well as the imploded campaign of former Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner, JI’s Will Bredderman reports, despite calls from members of the Democratic Socialists of America to boycott the consultant’s services…
Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN), a member of the Squad and a vocal detractor of Israel, endorsed far-left Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed today, joining fellow Squad members Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), Summer Lee (D-PA) and Delia Ramirez (D-IL) in backing him less than a month before the primary…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider for a look at the surging anti-Israel candidate in the Democratic primary for Michigan‘s swing 7th Congressional District.
The sixth round of talks between Israel and Lebanon are slated to begin tomorrow in Rome, despite Beirut’s reported threat not to attend if the IDF did not vacate two pilot zones in southern Lebanon before the discussions. Israeli media reported that this week’s talks will focus on the timeline for the withdrawal.
The Aspen Security Forum, the high-profile annual gathering of national security leaders, policymakers and foreign policy experts, begins tomorrow afternoon in Colorado. Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, former Defense Secretary Mark Esper and former Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker will speak on a panel on the “state of the world.”
The two-day Pennsylvania Defense and Innovation Summit, hosted by Sen. Dave McCormick (R-PA), will kick off at the U.S. Army War College in Carlisle, Pa., with a keynote address from Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine.
Some House Republicans were invited to a dinner tomorrow night with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, according to Punchbowl News, as the Trump administration is seeking more than $67 billion for the Pentagon in its supplemental funding request.
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Israeli Ministry of Defense/Anadolu via Getty Images
Israeli Defense Minister Yisrael Katz holds a security situation assessment meeting with IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir and other senior commanders in Tel Aviv, Israel, on March 07, 2026.
Good Thursday afternoon.
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
Today’s Daily Overtime was curated by JI U.S. Editor Danielle Cohen-Kanik.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
Appearing on CNN this morning, Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter said Jerusalem is “supportive of the position of the United States” regarding renewed strikes on Iran, and said Israel would “fly alongside U.S. aircraft” if called on to do so.
He added that Iran had violated its “only obligation” under the memorandum of understanding — to keep the Strait of Hormuz open — and that if the Iranians “persist in their malign intentions,” the war could resume “in full swing”…
Israeli military leaders are also hinting at potential Israeli involvement: At an Israeli Air Force graduation ceremony, Defense Minister Israel Katz said the IDF is prepared to carry out independent strikes “to remove threats” in Iran. Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, the IDF’s chief of staff, told the graduates that “new plans” are “on the drawing board” and that “major operations are still expected to lie ahead of us. Be prepared”…
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said he spoke with President Donald Trump today and was updated by the president “on American moves in the Gulf.” According to a statement from the PMO, Netanyahu again raised the issue of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan‘s hostile rhetoric toward Israel…
The Wall Street Journal examines the “root of the dispute” over the Strait of Hormuz — the “poorly worded” fifth article in the U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding that says Tehran will “make arrangements” to restore shipping in the waterway and then work with Oman on a plan to administer it going forward.
“Notably, the paragraph says nothing about the U.S. making arrangements for the safe passage of vessels, which Iran has seized on to attack ships that use a U.S.-coordinated route,” a U.S. official told the outlet…
Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) is in Israel and the West Bank this week while Congress is in recess, according to two individuals with knowledge of the trip. Khanna has not posted publicly about his visit, which is scheduled to conclude tonight, JI’s Melissa Weiss reports…
While wrapping up his trip, Khanna, who was one of Senate candidate Graham Platner’s most vociferous defenders until a rape allegation was made against the Maine Democrat earlier this week, told MS NOW that he’s endorsing former state Sen. Troy Jackson to take Platner’s place on the ballot. Jackson, who previously ran for governor, is a progressive seen as aligned with Platner…
But Platner’s potential replacements will have to wait a few more days: The candidate told campaign staff he intends to wait until the very last day — Monday — to officially file his paperwork to drop out of the race, Axios reports…
The Journal profiles Cheyenne Hunt, the progressive influencer and activist who played a key role in bringing to light the sexual assault and misconduct allegations that ultimately saw the ouster of Platner and the resignation of former Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA)…
Rep. Carlos Gimenez (R-FL) withdrew as co-chair of the Congressional Friends of Spain Caucus due to what he called Madrid’s “escalating, hostile crusade” against Israel…
Andy Burnham, widely expected to become Britain’s next prime minister, told The Guardian that the response of his Labour party to Israel’s military actions in Gaza “has too often not been good enough” and that the U.K. has “got to do more to put pressure on the Israeli government,” including sanctions and potentially banning trade in goods from Israeli settlements in the West Bank.
Burnham also said there is “increasing evidence” that Israel committed war crimes, though he did not use the word genocide, and said the determination should be left to international courts. His comments mark a shift to the left of Labour’s outgoing leader, Keir Starmer, who was slower than other European leaders to back a ceasefire and recognize Palestinian statehood…
Among those speaking at the closed-door Allen & Company retreat in Sun Valley, Idaho, today were Jared Kushner, UAE Ambassador to the U.S. Yousef Al Otaiba, former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, Sens. John Fetterman (D-PA) and Dave McCormick (R-PA) as well as Ken Griffin, the hedge fund manager and GOP megadonor.
Asked whether he would support Vice President JD Vance or Secretary of State Marco Rubio in the 2028 presidential election, Griffin said he’d be inclined to back Rubio…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider for a look at Platner’s potential replacements, as a handful of Maine Democrats are already jockeying for the position less than 24 hours after Platner announced he intends to drop out of the race for U.S. Senate.
We’ll be watching to see if U.S. and Iranian strikes continue into the weekend, or if the current flare-up has run its course. Prior to the outbreak in hostilities, Saudi media had reported that talks between Washington and Iran would restart on July 11, after the dayslong funeral of late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei wraps up today. Trump said this morning that the Iranians had called and “want to make a deal so badly,” but it’s unclear whether the two sides intend to meet.
We’ll be back in your inbox with the Daily Overtime on Monday. Shabbat shalom!
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Plus, Rahm Emanuel on the ‘moral bankruptcy’ of far-left Dems
Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images
President Donald Trump during the press conference at the NATO Summit in Ankara, Turkiye on July 8, 2026.
Good Wednesday afternoon.
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
Today’s Daily Overtime was curated by JI U.S. Editor Danielle Cohen-Kanik.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
CENTCOM began conducting additional strikes against Iran this afternoon, after President Donald Trump continued to escalate his rhetoric against the regime in his remarks today at the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey.
Trump said he wasn’t sure he wanted to make a deal with the Iranians any longer and reiterated his threat to “finish the job,” but still denied the strikes mark a return to full-scale war: “I think anything that happens is going to be over very quickly,” he said…
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had scrapped a planned trip to Israel, saying in an interview that the defense chief had been “called back home” from the summit in Ankara. Meanwhile, Israeli media reports that American military refueling planes have begun to return to the region…
Trump is likely to face pushback from lawmakers over the renewed strikes: Rep. Greg Meeks (D-NY), the ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said he’s already “in conversations with the Senate to explore any and all legal pathways to hold Trump accountable,” given that both chambers of Congress already passed a war powers resolution seeking an end to U.S. military action in Iran…
Trump also informed Congress today that he intends to rescind Syria’s designation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism following a 45-day pre-notification period, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced, shortly after Trump held a friendly meeting with Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa on the sidelines of the NATO summit…
Former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, speaking to Jewish Insider’s Melissa Weiss prior to his speech at Tel Aviv University today, criticized the “moral bankruptcy” of “those that paraded, celebrated and cheered” in the aftermath of Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attacks on Israel.
Responding to a question about Democrats who did so — including New York City congressional candidate Darializa Avila Chevalier, who attended an anti-Israel rally in Times Square on Oct. 8, 2023 — Emanuel said, “I have no place for the moral bankruptcy of those that found Oct. 8 as the day to cheer 1,200 people not only killed but sexually abused, and for taking hostage 250 people”…
In an interview on Israel’s Channel 12, Emanuel confirmed he’s “thinking about” running for president in 2028 and said he believes Americans could elect a Jewish president. “I believe people will evaluate me based on my character and my background,” he said…
Maine Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner still remains in the race two days after Politico published an account from a former romantic partner accusing him of rape, though the candidate’s feud with the Maine Democratic Party continues. Platner’s campaign manager, Ben Chin, sent a message to supporters today accusing the MDP of allowing the national Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee to orchestrate Platner’s replacement “behind closed doors.”
In response, the MDP, which was reportedly set to hold a meeting on the issue this afternoon, said Platner’s campaign is “distracting from the job of defeating [Sen.] Susan Collins (R-ME) in November with false accusations” and pledged to develop “a representative, transparent and inclusive process to select a new nominee when he chooses to withdraw from the race”…
A new Politico survey of Democratic primary voters in Michigan, conducted in the two days after state Sen. Mallory McMorrow dropped out of the race for U.S. Senate, found the two remaining candidates — Rep. Haley Stevens (D-MI) and Abdul El-Sayed — in a statistical tie at 42-41%, with nearly 20% of voters undecided…
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear sent a letter to Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) requesting that he “fully update Kentuckians regarding the current status of your health,” as McConnell has been hospitalized for nearly a month…
A new poll from the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that 44% of American Jews hold a favorable view of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani — a higher percentage than Netanyahu, who received a 32% favorability rating…
Jewish groups — including the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, Anti-Defamation League, American Jewish Committee, Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, Hadassah and StandWithUs — celebrated several steps taken at the National Education Association’s Representative Assembly, which wrapped up yesterday in Denver, including the Jewish Affairs Caucus’ work in advancing three amendments to the NEA Constitution and a resolution on Jewish education…
Bertrand Benoit, The Wall Street Journal’s bureau chief in Germany, explores what it means for Germany’s identity as its citizens begin to lose their living connection to the Holocaust, including how the fading of survivor testimony, rising antisemitism and challenges from both the political right and left are reshaping the country’s culture of remembrance…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider for a look at the choice ahead for Georgia’s Jewish community in the race between Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-GA) and his opponent, Rep. Mike Collins (R-GA).
The Contemporary Antisemitism conference at the University of Haifa will wrap up with a keynote speech by philosopher and author Bernard-Henri Lévy.
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The president said the U.S. would ‘de-nuke’ the Islamic Republic following Iranian strikes targeting U.S. military facilities in Bahrain and Kuwait
Win McNamee/Getty Images
President Donald Trump speaks during bilateral meeting at the Bestepe Presidential Compound, following his arrival to attend the annual NATO Summit on July 7, 2026 in Ankara, Turkey.
President Donald Trump, speaking at the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, on Wednesday, said that the memorandum of understanding with Iran that was inked last month was “over,” following overnight Iranian attacks targeting U.S. military installations in Bahrain and Kuwait.
“To me, I think it’s over,” Trump said. “I don’t want to deal with them anymore.”
The Iranian attacks came after CENTCOM hit over 80 targets in Iran on Tuesday in retaliation for Iranian strikes on three commercial vessels — including a Qatari ship and a Saudi oil tanker — in the Strait of Hormuz earlier this week.
“We attacked very powerfully last night the very dangerous people from Iran,” Trump said of the U.S. strikes, which targeted air-defense systems, command and control networks, coastal radar sites and more than 60 Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps small boats. “They’re sick. There’s something wrong with them.”
“We said, ‘Go and do your funeral stuff,’” Trump added, noting the multiday funeral ceremonies for the late Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in joint U.S.-Israeli strikes on the first day of the war against the Islamic Republic in February. “Instead of that, they start shooting rockets at ships yesterday, and so we hit them very hard last night.”
The president, appearing alongside NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in Ankara, said that the U.S. was “going to de-nuke Iran.”
“We’re not going to let them because they’re crazy,” Trump added.
The Iranians, the president said, are “bad people, very bad people. I think they’re incompetent, by the way, because if they were competent they would have made a deal a long time ago.”
“Of course they’re dirty players, so they go after everyone. Probably including me. I’ve been No. 1 on their list for years. And they’re a bunch of scum, if you want to know the truth. They’re scum. So we don’t like them, I don’t like them. And they’re evil people.”
Plus, progressives pull the plug on Platner
Photo by Elke Scholiers/Getty Images
Crude oil tankers, bulk carriers and vessels sit anchored around Qaboos Port on June 22, 2026 in Muscat, Oman.
Good Tuesday afternoon.
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
Today’s Daily Overtime was curated by JI U.S. Editor Danielle Cohen-Kanik.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
The fallout from a rape allegation made against Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner intensified today as Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) — some of the Democrat’s most prominent progressive backers — rescinded their support of Platner and called on him to drop out. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who shares a top consultant with Platner, also advised the candidate to drop his bid.
Platner’s campaign has canceled all in-person fundraising events scheduled for the coming days and put holds on its social media ads, according to Politico. The candidate reportedly told his campaign staff in a call last night that a decision on the future of his race is forthcoming…
Several prominent Maine Democrats have begun to signal interest in replacing Platner on the general election ballot, should he withdraw by the deadline of July 13. Among those hinting at a run are Troy Jackson, a former state Senate president who has already filed with the Federal Election Commission to explore a bid; former U.S. House candidate Jordan Wood; former gubernatorial candidate Nirav Shah; and Platner’s former primary opponent David Costello.
Maine Democratic Party officials are considering holding a pop-up convention around July 25 or holding a statewide caucus to choose Platner’s replacement, sources told The New York Times…
As the heated Democratic Senate primary in Michigan enters its final stretch, far-left candidate Abdul El-Sayed told CNN this week that he does not believe that a politician’s support for Israel could be about anything other than money, Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch reports. “Not if you’re a Democrat and you believe in human rights,” El-Sayed told CNN when asked about such a distinction…
The Treasury Department revoked the waiver it issued last month lifting sanctions on Iranian oil, after Iran reportedly struck another vessel in the Strait of Hormuz today, marking the third such attack in the last 24 hours.
“As President [Donald] Trump and the administration have repeatedly affirmed, the [memorandum of understanding] in effect with Iran is entirely performance-based. Iran will only reap benefits if they exhibit good behavior,” a U.S. official told JI’s Matthew Shea. “Iran’s actions in the Strait were wholly unacceptable to the United States and will be met with consequences. Our negotiators continue to work in good faith towards a final deal”…
Qatar’s Foreign Ministry summoned Iran’s deputy ambassador in the Gulf stateto express its “strong condemnation and denunciation” of Tehran’s strike yesterday on a Qatari tanker, after Doha sent a delegation of officials to the funeral of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in an apparent diplomatic olive branch…
Saudi Arabia is considering increasing the capacity of its East-West oil pipeline in order to bypass the Strait of Hormuz and facilitate oil exports out of the Red Sea, Reuters reports…
Trump announced today that his administration is preparing to lift congressionally mandated sanctions on Turkey as he weighs moving forward with the sale of F-35 fighter jets to Ankara, JI’s Matthew Shea reports.
“It’s time to do that. We don’t want to sanction friends,” the president said. Defense experts and lawmakers previously told JI that Turkey still maintains the Russian air-defense system that prompted the sanctions in 2020, which makes lifting the sanctions legally complicated…
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu again voiced his opposition to Trump’s overtures to Ankara, telling CNN that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is “not exactly a model ally of the United States” as he “threatens to destroy my country, the one and only Jewish state.”
Israeli Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli went further in his rhetoric, calling Erdoğan a “grotesque hybrid of Hitler and [late Hamas leader Yahya] Sinwar” and a “pathetic blood-soaked zero” in a post on X yesterday…
The Israeli Consulate in New York was evacuated from its Midtown Manhattan building after a nearby high-rise building under construction showed signs of collapsing, prompting evacuations across the area…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider for coverage of tonight’s debate between Michigan Senate Democratic primary candidates Abdul El-Sayed and Rep. Haley Stevens (D-MI), with less than a month to go until the election.
The NATO summit in Ankara will conclude with the main working session of all 32 member states as well as a press conference from NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte. A bipartisan delegation of U.S. lawmakers is set to attend a dinner tonight on the sidelines of the summit with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack.
Former U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel will deliver a speech at Tel Aviv University, where he is set to lay out his vision for the future of the U.S.-Israel relationship as he prepares for a potential 2028 presidential run. Emanuel met today with Israeli President Isaac Herzog and visited the Yad Vashem Holocaust museum.
The Contemporary Antisemitism conference will continue at the University of Haifa.
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The ambassador announced that the next round of Israel-Lebanon negotiations will take place next week in Rome
The ambassador announced that the next round of Israel-Lebanon negotiations will take place next week in Rome
Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images
Israeli Ambassador to the United States Yechiel Leiter
Jerusalem and Beirut see their trilateral agreement signed with the U.S. last month as “superseding” the memorandum of understanding signed between the U.S. and Iran, Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter said on Monday.
“Whether the United States does, you’ll have to ask the administration spokesman,” he added, speaking at an event hosted by the Council on Foreign Relations in Washington.
Leiter specifically referenced the first clause of the MOU, to which Israel and Lebanon were not parties, which called for an end in hostilities around the region, including Israel’s war against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. Leiter acknowledged that Iran — as well as mediating countries Pakistan and Qatar — views the MOU differently and believes it overrides the Israel-Lebanon framework deal.
The next round of talks between Israel and Lebanon will take place on July 14 and 15 in Rome, Leiter said, and revealed that Lebanese President Joseph Aoun will meet with President Donald Trump at the White House on July 21.
Leiter described the MOU as primarily a mechanism to reopen the Strait of Hormuz rather than a broad peace deal, and urged a “wait and see” approach to future negotiations regarding long-term limits on Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs.
The deal is “clearly an agreement to get the strait open. This is not an agreement to end the nuclear weaponization of Iran,” he said.
“We have to wait and see what that looks like when it’s done, whether that’s 60 days, 90 days or after the midterms,” he continued. “I’m quite sure the administration didn’t go to war to go back into a situation where Iran has a pathway to once again try and produce nuclear weapons [and] ballistic missiles.”
Leiter added that Trump has said any deal with Iran would have to curtail its support for proxies and its ballistic missile program, though such issues were not mentioned in the MOU. He also warned against U.S. sanctions relief that could fund Tehran’s proxies.
“All we can do is weigh in,” Leiter said of Israel’s role in U.S.-Iran negotiations. “We can’t be part of that decision-making process. That’s too big for us. We know our size.”
Leiter dismissed as exaggerated reports of a rupture in Israel-U.S. relations.
“Media loves drama. So, if the president and the prime minister have 100 conversations that are pleasant, and then there are two conversations in which the president is having a bad day, is a little irritable and makes that known — that becomes the tenor of the relationship between the two men,” he said.
“I’ve been in all those conversations, all the meetings … arguments happen among people who are close. The relationship is good, the relationship is solid. There are differences along the way, and those are legitimate,” Leiter said, pointing to Israel’s opposition to the proposed U.S. sale of F-35 fighter jets to Turkey. Leiter said that Israel has made its position clear and that the U.S. has the right to decide how it wants to proceed.
He rejected claims that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dragged the U.S. into the war with Iran, dismissing such accusations as “sheer stupidity” rooted in antisemitic conspiracy theories.
“We presented our case as any self-respecting country does and it’s up to the United States to make a decision whether or not to embark on a war,” said Leiter. “It doesn’t do that because of AIPAC or other diabolical Jews.”
Leiter also dismissed a recent claim from Vice President JD Vance that Trump is the only world leader sympathetic to Israel. “It’s just not true. We just had an invitation to India. The relations we have with the United Arab Emirates have never been stronger. We have wonderful relations with Azerbaijan … our relations with Armenia now are quite good … and Somaliland.”
Alongside navigating divisions over Israel, the Democratic Party is currently grappling with “the Mamdani effect,” said Leiter, referring to a string of primary victories by progressive and democratic socialist candidates backed by New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
“Israel is part of a much larger social metamorphosis,” he said.
Plus, Rahm Emanuel says Israel support should come with strings
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Graham Platner speaks at a “Fighting Oligarchy” tour stop held by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) at the Collins Center for the Arts on the University of Maine campus on May 24, 2026 in Orono, Maine.
Good Monday afternoon.
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
Today’s Daily Overtime was curated by JI U.S. Editor Danielle Cohen-Kanik.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
A woman who dated Maine Senate nominee Graham Platner alleged in a series of interviews with Politico that the Democrat sexually assaulted her in 2021, an account the outlet backed up with her correspondence and other interviews.The woman, Jenny Racicot, said Platner came into her home uninvited while intoxicated and forced himself on her despite her repeated objections.
In a video statement, Platner denied the accusation outright but said he’s “mindful of the political reality it will inflict” and would be “taking the time to reflect on the best path forward for the state that I love,” a different tone than Platner has struck in the aftermath of his previous controversies. The Maine Democratic Party can only choose a replacement nominee for the general election ballot if Platner voluntarily withdraws by July 13…
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu voiced opposition today to the Trump administration’s sale of jet engines and potential sale of F-35 fighter jets to Turkey, hours before President Donald Trump was set to depart for the NATO summit in Ankara, Jewish Insider’s Christina Sher reports.
Netanyahu suggested on “Fox & Friends” that such moves “will upset the power balance in the Middle East, which is ultimately guaranteed by Israeli air superiority” and U.S. posture in the region. Axios reports that Netanyahu relayed the same message directly to Trump in a phone call last week and asked him to help address Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan‘s escalating anti-Israel rhetoric…
The percentage of Jewish Israelis who believe Israel’s security is a central consideration for Trump has reached a record low of 26%, according to a new survey from the Israel Democracy Institute, JI’s Matthew Shea reports. The figure marks a 15-point decrease from a month ago, during which time the Trump administration signed its memorandum of understanding with Iran…
Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem announced at a press conference in Gaza today that the terror group’s Emergency Committee — the administrative body that has governed the enclave for more than two decades — is dissolving and that its civil servants, who will remain in their roles, stand ready to work under the new technocratic government established by the Board of Peace.
The BoP expressed skepticism about the announcement, JI’s Emily Jacobs and Matthew Shea report, saying its “assessment will be guided by actions, not promises” and calling for a “genuine transfer of authority” and for Hamas to disarm. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar dismissed the move outright, calling it a “trick … designed to prevent [Hamas’] own disarmament”…
Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter said both Israel and Lebanon see the agreement signed between Jerusalem, Beirut and Washington earlier this month as “superseding” the first clause of the U.S.-Iran MOU, which calls for the end of hostilities on all fronts. “Whether or not the United States does, you’ll have to ask an administration spokesman,” Leiter said at an event with the Council on Foreign Relations.
Leiter also said he “can’t imagine that any ultimate agreement with Iran would be absent a clause limiting the development of ballistic missiles,” though the MOU did not mention Iran’s ballistic missile program…
In a preview obtained by Politico of the speech former U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel is set to deliver at Tel Aviv University on Wednesday, the prospective 2028 presidential candidate is set to say that the U.S. has spent too long “averting its eyes” from what he views as Israel’s misadventures, calling for “significant changes and a new direction” in the bilateral relationship.
“Going forward, Emanuel plans to say, Israelis should regard U.S. support as expressly contingent: On reviving a serious commitment to Palestinian sovereignty; On rejecting dreams of asserting dominion beyond official borders in pursuit of ‘Greater Israel’; On abandoning a security strategy that emphasizes brutally effective military force with scant attention to diplomacy or credible what-next plans in Gaza and Iran,” the outlet reported…
French President Emmanuel Macron became the first major Western head of state to visit Syria since the fall of dictator Bashar al-Assad in 2024, landing in Damascus today for meetings with Syrian leaders. Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa is also expected to meet with Trump on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Turkey this week…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
The two-day NATO summit begins in Turkey tomorrow with leaders of all 32 NATO countries expected to attend, as well as a congressional delegation comprised of Sens. Dick Durbin (D-IL), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Chris Coons (D-DE) and Mike Rounds (R-SD) and Rep. Mike Turner (R-OH). At the top of the agenda are increasing defense investments, as Trump continues to press NATO allies to shoulder a greater share of the alliance’s defense burden and threatens to draw down U.S. troops from Europe, and continuing to support Ukraine in its war with Russia.
Rep. Haley Stevens (D-MI) and Abdul El-Sayed, now the only remaining candidates in Michigan’s Democratic U.S. Senate primary, will participate in a televised debate on local news tomorrow night, their first head-to-head matchup since state Sen. Mallory McMorrow suspended her campaign yesterday.
The annual Contemporary Antisemitism conference, which bills itself as the largest annual academic conference on contemporary antisemitism, will kick off tomorrow at the University of Haifa. The three-day summit will feature hundreds of academics and experts, with a keynote speech tomorrow from former State Department antisemitism envoy Deborah Lipstadt and a lifetime achievement award presented to Tel Aviv University professor emerita Dina Porat.
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NO FLIGHT PLAN
Rep. Dina Titus is leading the Joint Resolution of Disapproval against the Trump administration’s $700 million sale of F110 jet engines to Turkey despite legal restrictions on U.S. military sales to the country
TEACHING MOMENT
Some Jewish Affairs Caucus leaders say they weren’t consulted about the changes, which are meant to prevent issues around antisemitism that occurred at last year’s assembly
Trust in Trump dropped 15 points among Jewish Israelis in the last month, though a majority still see tensions between Washington and Jerusalem as temporary
Jack GUEZ / AFP via Getty Images
A billboard depicting an image of President Donald Trump with a message thanking him, is displayed on the side of a building in the Israeli coastal city of Tel Aviv on March 12, 2026.
The number of Israelis who believe President Donald Trump views Israel’s security as a central consideration has continued to fall to record lows after Washington signed a memorandum of understanding with Iran, according to a new survey from the Israel Democracy Institute.
The June 2026 Israeli Voice Index, conducted between June 28 and July 1, found that 28% of respondents — including 26% of Jewish Israelis and 36% of Arab Israelis — believe Israel’s security is a key consideration for Trump.
Among Jewish Israelis, the figure dropped 15 percentage points from a month ago, when 41% of respondents said they felt Israeli security was a key consideration for Trump as his administration engaged in negotiations with Tehran. At the time, those findings marked the lowest levels of Israeli trust in Trump since the research center began tracking the metric when he was elected to a second term in November 2024.
Despite declining confidence in Trump, a majority of Israelis continue to view current tensions between Washington and Jerusalem as temporary rather than indicative of a meaningful deterioration in bilateral ties. Among Jewish Israelis, 54% said current disagreements represent a temporary crisis that will not harm the relationship, while 34% said they mark a longer-term shift for the worse.
Respondents were more divided when asked whether Israel’s strategic security situation was better or worse than it was before the Iran war. Thirty-six percent said Israel’s security situation is now worse, an increase of eight percentage points from April. Meanwhile, 38% said it is better, down six percentage points over the same period.
The survey also found strong support for maintaining an Israeli security zone in southern Lebanon, even if doing so conflicts with U.S. interests. Overall, 72% of respondents backed a permanent security zone in the area. Support was especially high among Jewish Israelis, at 80%, while a majority of Arab Israelis (58%) opposed maintaining a permanent Israeli presence in southern Lebanon.
Beyond military and diplomatic issues, the poll found that rising antisemitism and attacks targeting Israelis abroad were influencing travel decisions. Fifty-six percent of respondents said the threat environment has affected their travel plans, with 41% saying it has impacted where they choose to travel and 15% saying they plan to avoid traveling abroad altogether because of security concerns.
Plus, Israel ally draws the line at Syria
Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
Rep. Yassamin Ansari (D-AZ) speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill on November 13, 2025 in Washington, DC.
Good Thursday afternoon.
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
Today’s Daily Overtime was curated by JI U.S. Editor Danielle Cohen-Kanik.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
In their indirect talks in Doha this week, the U.S. offered Iran access to some of its$100 billion in frozen funds in exchange for Tehran not instituting a toll on the Strait of Hormuz, but Iranian officials have continued to signal they plan to proceed with the move. Continued fighting between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon also caused tension during the discussions, The Wall Street Journal reports…
U.S. officials told The New York Times that Washington believed Israel was plotting to assassinate Iran’s top negotiators — Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf — as they were engaged in recent talks with the U.S. over the memorandum of understanding…
Arizona Jewish and pro-Israel leaders told Jewish Insider’s Matthew Kassel that they feel misled by Rep. Yassamin Ansari (D-AZ), whom they supported in her contested 2024 primary but who has since turned away from the pro-Israel views she espoused during the campaign — including now rejecting support from Democratic Majority for Israel, which backed her with a surge of spending in 2024…
The AIPAC-linked United Democracy Project super PAC is up with its first negative ad against far-left Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed, JI’s Marc Rod reports, hitting the Democrat in the initial $2 million ad buy for his “long history of disrespecting women.” Meanwhile, El-Sayed picked up a high-profile endorsement today from Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), her first in a contested Senate race this cycle.
UDP also made $400,000 in advertising reservations to support Rep. Wesley Bell (D-MO) as he faces a comeback primary challenge from former Rep. Cori Bush (D-MO), whom UDP helped Bell defeat in 2024…
Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser, the Democratic nominee for governor, criticized his party’s socialist congressional nominee, Melat Kiros, for her refusal to describe the deadly firebombing of a Boulder, Colo., hostage awareness march last year as an act of antisemitism, JI’s Marc Rod reports…
New York City congressional nominee Brad Lander published a response to Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove’s letter earlier this week in which Cosgrove predicted that Lander’s hostility to Israel would not be enough to protect him from being targeted by the far left. Lander argued in his response that criticism of Israel — including describing its war in Gaza as a genocide — is consistent with Jewish values and that excluding anti-Zionist Jews weakens the Jewish community…
New polling data shows that a sizable majority of Jewish voters disapprove of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s job performance and fear he is pushing the Democratic Party too far to the left, in contrast with non-Jewish voters who hold a largely favorable view of the democratic socialist, JI’s Matthew Kassel reports…
A bipartisan group of House lawmakers, led by Reps. Mike Lawler (R-NY) and Brad Sherman (D-CA), wrote to President Donald Trump today to “express deep concern about any effort” to sell F-35 fighter jets to Turkey, JI’s Marc Rod reports, after Trump and Vice President JD Vance indicated they were looking into it last week…
Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC), the founder of the Republican Israel Caucus and a reliable ally of the Jewish state, called Israel’s “continuing aggressive operations” in Syria “deeply disturbing,” “counterproductive” and “irresponsible.” Wilson accused Israel of “taking Syrian land and attacking Syrian cities,” saying the operations “need to end immediately”…
Wilson, along with Sens. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), also sent a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio urging the administration to remove Syriafrom the State Sponsor of Terrorism list…
Israel marked 1,000 days today since the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas terror attacks, with memorials and protests taking place around the country…
Far-right commentator Tucker Carlson told the Columbia Journalism Review that he plans to help start a new political party — after saying last month he was renouncing the Republican Party — but does not plan to run as a candidate. He repeatedly railed against Israel in the interview and accused it of “taking over my political system and destroying my country”…
Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin hosted his annual White Party at his Hamptons estate yesterday featuring a host of high-profile attendees, including Ivanka Trump, New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, former quarterback Tom Brady, actor Leonardo di Caprio and more…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider for a look at Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz’s (D-FL) contentious primary race in Florida’s 20th Congressional District.
Fourth of July celebrations in the nation’s capital are kicking off with a bang (literally — the fireworks show on the National Mall could break world records). President Donald Trump is slated to give a speech on the Mall ahead of the fireworks show on Saturday night, followed by a military flyover debuting the new Qatari-gifted Air Force One jet.
Iran is slated to hold a massive, dayslong funeral procession for the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei beginning on Saturday in Tehran and including cities across Iran and Iraq. Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, a top mediator between the U.S. and Iran, will attend the memorial, alongside officials from dozens of other countries.
Christians United for Israel’s annual summit in Washington will begin on Sunday. Speakers over the three-day confab include State Department antisemitism envoy Rabbi Yehuda Kaploun; former Auburn University basketball coach Bruce Pearl; Malcolm Hoenlein, vice chair of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations; Georgia state Rep. Esther Panitch; and former Israeli hostage Yair Horn.
We’ll be back in your inbox with the Daily Overtime on Monday. Shabbat shalom and happy Fourth of July weekend!
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LAND OF THE FREE
Rabbis, historians and communal leaders told JI that the nation’s semiquincentennial offers an opportunity to celebrate America’s promise even as they confront the antisemitism and political currents challenging Jewish life today
CAMPAIGN CONTROVERSY
The same day Francesca Hong appeared on the livestream of antisemitic conspiracy theorist ‘Mike From PA,’ she also joined Hasan Piker’s Twitch show
Plus, NEA cracks down on antisemitism chaos
Amirhossein KHORGOOEI / ISNA / AFP via Getty Images
Vessels are pictured anchored in the Strait of Hormuz off Bandar Abbas in southern Iran on May 5, 2026.
Good Wednesday afternoon.
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
Today’s Daily Overtime was curated by JI U.S. Editor Danielle Cohen-Kanik.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
Talks in Doha about the U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding have concluded, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi announced, with the countries agreeing to create a communication channel “by tomorrow” in order to address MOU violations.
The U.S. and Iran also agreed to “keep things quiet for the coming week,” a U.S. official told Axios, while Washington is reportedly continuing to press Tehran to abandon its plan to charge tolls in the Strait of Hormuz and “think bigger” on a nuclear deal. The sums Iran could generate from freely selling oil without sanctions under such a deal “would be 100 times more valuable to them,” the official said…
New York Times/Siena polls of the six Senate battleground states — Alaska, Iowa, Maine, North Carolina, Ohio and Texas — found that Democrats have a path, albeit an uphill one, to retake the chamber in November. All of the races are within the margin of error except in North Carolina, where former Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper leads Michael Whatley, former chair of the Republican National Committee, with the largest margin of seven points…
Poetica Coffee, the Brooklyn cafe that banned Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY) last week over his support of Israel, claimed in an Instagram post today that Goldman intentionally “smear[ed]” the business in talking about his experience “possibly for election-eve media exposure”…
Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA), ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee, told CNN yesterday that some democratic socialist candidates have views that are “vastly more radical” than where the “Democratic coalition” stands, saying their support for communism, open borders and defunding the police represents “a fundamental attack on America itself”…
Asked about Republicans viewing him as easier to beat in a general election than his more-moderate primary opponents, far-left Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed told Semafor, “The number of times I’m gonna define and redefine Mike Rogers!” referring to the GOP Senate front-runner and former Michigan representative. “By the time I’m done, his best friends are gonna look at him and think what I think, say what I say. I’m gonna define him into eternity”…
The National Education Association adopted new policies ahead of its convening this weekend in Denver after its Jewish Affairs Caucus and the Jewish Council for Public Affairs advocated for such changes, JCPA said, in response to last year’s assembly which grew contentious over antisemitism issues. The new changes include stronger conduct enforcement for delegates, electronic voting to reduce shouting on the floor during resolution votes, de-escalation training for NEA staff and repeated public reminders of the rules…
Loay Abdelfattah Alnaji was sentenced to one year in jail and two years of probation yesterday after pleading guilty to involuntary manslaughter and battery in the death of Paul Kessler, a 69-year-old Jewish man who died after Alnaji struck him with a megaphone at a protest in California shortly after the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks. The Anti-Defamation League’s California regional offices decried the sentence as “little more than a slap on the wrist” and expressed concern at the judge’s dismissive demeanor during sentencing…
A New York woman was arrested yesterday by the FBI for allegedly providing material support to the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, including over $30,000 in cryptocurrency. The woman is a leader of an extremist organization called the Direct Action Movement for Palestinian Liberation, according to the FBI, and had communicated with a person claiming to be a PIJ fighter in Gaza, whom she told she “wish[es] every day were October 7th”…
Speaking at the Herzliya Conference in Israel, Maj. Gen. (res.) Amir Baram, director general of the Israeli Ministry of Defense, addressed Israeli public criticism of the U.S.’ foreign policy, Jewish Insider’s Matthew Shea reports: “What some in Israel perceive as weakness or folly, an apparent disregard for every warning sign on the ground, is viewed in Washington as cold, calculated and clear-eyed risk management in an era of shifting global attention.”
“For us, Iran is an existential threat; for the United States, it is a chronic regional challenge,” Baram said of the countries’ differing priorities. “We think Tehran, they think Taiwan”…
U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee and Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar held a ceremony to sign the lease for the permanent new complex of the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem; Huckabee handed Sa’ar a $1 bill as symbolic payment for the 99-year lease…
The New York Times looks at President Donald Trump’s insistence that Syria take over fighting Hezbollah in Lebanon from Israel, an idea that has been shot down by Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa and raised alarm across the Middle East…
CENTCOM hosted a regional security dialogue alongside the Bahrain Defense Force with participation from Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, the UAE and Yemen — “the first time military leaders from Syria and Lebanon participated in a regional defense conference led by the United States,” CENTCOM said…
The U.S. Navy is searching for a missing aircrew member after a Sea Hawk helicopter made an emergency water landing in the Arabian Sea, with three of the four crew members rescued in stable condition. There’s no indication any hostile action was involved, the Navy’s 5th Fleet said…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider for a look at how Jewish leaders are approaching America’s 250th birthday — and why many see the milestone, coming at a fraught moment, as a chance to reaffirm both their Jewish identity and their faith in the American experiment.
The Maccabiah Games, which kicked off today in Jerusalem with a grand opening ceremony, begin in earnest tomorrow as about 5,000 athletes — including 900 from the U.S. — compete in more than 30 sports over the next two weeks.
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PLATFORM PUNT
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Greg Casar were noncommittal when pressed by JI
RED SCARE
Jeffries said Avila Chevalier has ‘walked away from many of the things that have been unearthed’ following a CNN report on her past sympathetic posts about communism and Soviet figures
‘We think Tehran, they think Taiwan,’ Maj. Gen. (res.) Amir Baram said of diverging U.S.-Israeli foreign policy at the Herzliya Conference at Reichman University
Israeli Ministry of Defense/LinkedIn
Maj. Gen. (res.) Amir Baram, director general of Israel’s Ministry of Defense, speaks at the Herzliya Conference at Reichman University on July 1, 2026.
The director general of Israel’s Ministry of Defense, Maj. Gen. (res.) Amir Baram, urged Israelis on Wednesday to understand Washington’s perspective as the U.S. and Israel negotiate the next memorandum of understanding, cautioning against judging American policy through a purely “provincial lens.”
“What some in Israel perceive as weakness or folly, an apparent disregard for every warning sign on the ground, is viewed in Washington as cold, calculated and clear-eyed risk management in an era of shifting global attention,” he said at the annual Herzliya Conference at Reichman University.
The divergence between the two allies, he concluded, is not a misunderstanding of the fundamental threat, but rather a byproduct of different national security priorities.
“For us, Iran is an existential threat; for the United States, it is a chronic regional challenge, while China and the Indo-Pacific theater remain the core concern,” Baram said. “We think Tehran, they think Taiwan.”
“At the same time, based on my deep familiarity with the range of views within the American system, if there is one thing Americans hate more than this war that has dragged on for them, it is losing a campaign they have already won,” he added of the conflict with Iran.
Ultimately, Baram asserted that as Washington increasingly operates under an “America First” framework, the historic bilateral relationship must pivot toward concrete, mutually beneficial strategic dividends.
“Our partnership cannot rest on shared values alone. It must also rest on hard interests: a strong, independent, and proactive Israel that stabilizes the Middle East is the very asset that allows the United States to redirect resources toward Asia,” Baram stated. “This is the foundation of the next memorandum of understanding on security cooperation now being formulated. The agreement will need to generate security, economic, and strategic benefits for both countries for years to come.”
The director general also noted that he understands the differing strategic realities in Washington, including a growing American desire to avoid prolonged Middle East entanglements while prioritizing competing global theaters.
“From the Pentagon’s perspective, with American munitions stretched between supporting current wars and preparing for a potential confrontation in the Taiwan Strait, a prolonged war in the Middle East runs counter to America’s global posture,” Baram observed.
Baram emphasized that the war with Iran has fundamentally transformed Jerusalem’s strategic military calculus, warning that an escalating Iranian threat necessitates a sweeping, expanded regional security alliance.
“The war has sharpened, for every actor in the region, the price of Iran’s military buildup,” Baram said. “It has created a shared interest in forging a broader alliance, from India through the UAE to Greece and Cyprus. Israel’s strengths in technology, proven operational experience, and defense innovation, combined with the Gulf’s financial power, could enable a new security-economic front.”
Baram said that building these alternative multilateral partnerships is “not a substitute” for Israel’s bedrock security relationship with the United States. Rather, he argued, the strategy allows Israel to “broaden its room to maneuver and its standing on the international stage, and allow us to diversify our strategic footing.”
Plus, Menin's measured rebuke of antisemitic Brooklyn Dem
Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images
Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) speaks during a hearing on Capitol Hill on Wednesday, Dec. 01, 2021, in Washington, D.C.
Good Tuesday afternoon.
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
Today’s Daily Overtime was curated by JI U.S. Editor Danielle Cohen-Kanik.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
Nearly all House Democrats voted in favor of a war powers resolution this afternoon that aimed to block U.S. support for Israeli operations against Hezbollah in Lebanon, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports, though the legislation failed to secure a House majority, with nearly all Republicans and 22 Democrats voting against the measure…
White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are in Doha, Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesperson Majed al-Ansari confirmed, where they were set to meet with Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and other mediators, but did not hold talks with Iranian officials. It’s a step back from the direct negotiations that took place in Switzerland just a week ago…
Al-Ansari said further that the $6 billion in frozen Iranian assets has not yet been released to Tehran. “Whether the funds are transferred depends on the agreement of both parties and the progress of negotiations, which has not yet occurred,” he announced at a press briefing today…
Meanwhile, Oman has submitted a proposal to the U.S. for Muscat and Tehran to collect service fees from shipping companies seeking to transit the Strait of Hormuz, The New York Times reports. One of Iran’s deputy foreign ministers, Kazem Gharibabadi, said yesterday if Iran was unable to come to an arrangement with Oman it would move forward on its own…
A small group of House Republicans, led by Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE), is threatening not to support the Trump administration’s $88 billion Iran war supplemental funding request unless the White House replaces more than 4,000 U.S. troops who were pulled out of Poland last month, Politico reports. The effort could hold up the supplemental, already expected to face a tough fight, given the GOP’s razor-thin majority in the chamber…
A 20-year-old U.S. citizen living in Jerusalem is set to be charged by Israeli prosecutors for spying on Iran’s behalf. The suspect, arrested earlier this month, was allegedly paid to take pictures and videos of “sensitive sites” in Israel over several months…
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met with Iraqi leaders in Baghdad today as both countries prepare for a “mass funeral” for the late Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Araghchi said, after Khamenei was killed in February in a joint U.S.-Israeli operation…
The Israeli Ministry of Defense and defense manufacturer Rafael completed a successful test integrating the Iron Beam laser system into the Iron Dome missile-defense array, marking a “major breakthrough,” Rafael announced…
Ellie Cohanim, who served as deputy special envoy to monitor and combat antisemitism in President Donald Trump’s first term, recently joined his administration as a senior policy advisor to U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Mike Waltz, Waltz announced today…
A New York Times/Siena poll of the race for U.S. Senate in Texas found Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton and Democratic state Rep. James Talarico in a dead heat, 47-47%, among likely voters. The seat, once considered a long shot for Democrats in the deep-red state, has emerged as a top-tier pickup opportunity, given Paxton’s ethical and legal baggage…
New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin — the first Jewish person to hold her role — slammed a newly elected Brooklyn Democrat’s promotion of antisemitic conspiracy theories, but declined to call her commentary disqualifying, JI’s Will Bredderman reports…
After a monthslong unexplained absence from Congress, Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (R-NJ) returned to the House floor today to disclose that he had been hospitalized for depression. Kean faces a competitive reelection race against Democratic nominee Rebecca Bennett in a key battleground district in Democrats’ bid to retake the House…
Prominent pro-Israel activist Arsen Ostrovsky, who was injured in the Bondi Beach Hanukkah shooting in Sydney last year, testified before Australia’s Royal Commission on Antisemitism about how he faced “relentless” and “vicious” harassment online after the attack, including AI-altered images of his injuries and accusations that he was a crisis actor…
In a series of high-profiledecisions today, the Supreme Court sided with Vice President JD Vance in a case he brought as a Senate candidate, along with other plaintiffs, and lifted federal limits on coordinated spending between political parties and candidates.
The court also struck down Trump’s attempt to end birthright citizenship — a move that garnered praise from Jewish groups including the American Jewish Committee, the Union for Reform Judaism and the Jewish Council for Public Affairs…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider for a look at Democrats’ ongoing divisions over an effort to cut aid to Israel led by Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY).
Technical delegations from the U.S. and Iran are expected to meet separately with Qatari and Pakistani mediators in Doha — still with no direct talks planned.
Hard-line Republicans upended business on the House floor for the second week in a row, blocking the procedural measure that would have teed up consideration of the 2027 State Department funding bill and the 2027 National Defense Authorization Act. After a final vote this evening, the House will head to recess early, until July 13.
The Herzliya Conference continues in Israel: Among the many top national security and political officials speaking are former Prime Ministers Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid; former Israeli Ambassadors to the U.S. Danny Ayalon and Michael Herzog; former U.S. Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro; EU Ambassador to Israel Michael Mann; Yashar party leader Gadi Eisenkot; Yisrael Beiteinu party leader Avigdor Liberman; Democrats party leader Yair Golan; Ra’am party leader Mansour Abbas; and Nadav Tamir, executive director of J Street Israel.
President Donald Trump is set to take his first trip on the jumbo jet gifted to him by Qatar as he travels to an event in North Dakota.
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PRIDE AND PREJUDICE
Wiener said the incident where he was accosted at a pride march was ‘absolutely’ antisemitic; only a few California elected officials said the same
WESTWARD BOUND
Gen. Frank McKenzie revealed that CENTCOM had previously proposed a similar western contingency plan to the Biden administration which was shot down
Plus, Susie Wiles' Iran strike skepticism
Nathan Howard-Pool/Getty Images
Delegation staff members meet in the lobby during a quadrilateral meeting between the U.S., Iran, Pakistan, and Qatar at the Lake Lucerne Summit, aimed at advancing a deal to end the Middle East conflict at the Buergenstock Resort, Lake Lucerne on June 21, 2026 near Stansstad, Switzerland.
Good Monday afternoon.
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
Today’s Daily Overtime was curated by JI U.S. Editor Danielle Cohen-Kanik.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
The U.S. and Iran offered conflicting reports about whether talks will be heldthis week as the countries attempt to deescalate after a weekend exchange of military strikes: President Donald Trump claimed today that Iran had requested a meeting that would take place in Qatar on Tuesday, Jewish Insider’s Matthew Shea reports, while Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei denied any scheduled meetings with the U.S…
White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Secretary of State Marco Rubio briefed Congress this afternoon on the memorandum of understanding signed with Iran earlier this month, in the first member-wide update on the agreement…
CENTCOM head Adm. Brad Cooper met with Lebanese Armed Forces chief Gen. Rodolphe Haykal in Beirut today to discuss “implementing the security annex” to the Israel–Lebanon framework agreement signed on Friday, the LAF said in a statement. CENTCOM said Cooper also met with “senior civilian and military leaders” in Israel…
White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles joined Vice President JD Vance in initially voicing skepticism to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s pitch to Trump in February 2025 that the U.S. join Israel in striking Iran’s nuclear facilities, according to a new book by New York Times journalists Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan. Wiles feared that any involvement from the U.S. military could “spiral into an Israeli regime-change war,” the authors write…
The IDF’s Military Intelligence Directorate and Southern Command told Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, the IDF chief of staff, that Hamas is reconstitutingin order to resume war against Israel, according to Israeli media. The report indicates the IDF is urging a return to its campaign against the terror group, but the U.S. is opposed as it seeks to move forward with Trump’s Board of Peace…
Nika Soon-Shiong, the publisher of the Hamas-sympathetic outlet Drop Site News, claimed she was removed from the board of the Committee to Protect Journalists, sharing a letter she had written to the board objecting to CPJ’s announcement that it would audit its database of members of the media killed during the Israel-Hamas war. The move was undertaken after Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad identified individuals CPJ listed as journalists as members of the terrorist groups…
In the lead-up to this summer’s primary elections, endorsement season is in full swing: In its first-ever endorsement, Jewish Voice for Peace Action, the political arm of the anti-Israel advocacy group, is backing far-left Abdul El-Sayed in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate in Michigan. The Detroit Free Press, Michigan’s largest newspaper, endorsed one of his opponents, state Sen. Mallory McMorrow.
In Minnesota, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey is backing Rep. Angie Craig (D-MN) for U.S. Senate against her more-progressive primary opponent, Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan, and in Massachusetts, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) endorsed Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) as he fends off a generational primary challenge from Rep. Seth Moulton (D-MA)…
A new New York Times/Portland Press Herald/Siena poll shows Democratic candidate Graham Platner and Republican Sen. Susan Collins in a statistical tie, 49-47%, among likely voters in the Maine Senate race. The close margin reflects Platner’s struggles to consolidate Democratic support — 10% of voters who say they want Democrats to control the Senate indicated they plan to vote for Collins anyway.
Platner and the Democratic National Committee sent a joint fundraising email today, after Democratic leadership had hesitated to support him during the primary…
New York state Democratic Party Chairman Jay Jacobs acknowledged to The New York Post that the “Israel-Palestinian issue had an impact” in the state’s recent primary elections, where several socialist candidates prevailed. “It hurt establishment Democrats,” he said, including “people who may have voted against [Democratic incumbent Reps. Adriano] Espaillat and [Dan] Goldman because of it”…
Yair Rosenberg, a longtime journalist and commentator on American Jewry, is joining The New York Timesas a reporter covering Jewish American life, the Times announced today, amid criticism over the outlet’s alleged bias in covering antisemitism and Israel.
In the latest such incident, noted by Gabe Stutman, the former editor of J. The Jewish News of Northern California, the Times’ reporting on antisemitic harassment targeting California state Sen. Scott Wiener failed to mention Wiener is Jewish…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider for a look at how California politicians are responding to the repeated harassment targeting Wiener, who is running to replace retiring Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) in Congress.
Witkoff and Jared Kushner are headed to Qatar in order to represent the U.S. in talks with Iran, White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt told Fox News, as the status of the negotiations remains unclear.
The technical talks on the memorandum of understanding meant to be taking place separately are also up in the air — Iran’s Baghaei said an Iranian technical delegation will be in Doha this week but will not be meeting with American officials.
Colorado voters will head to the polls in tomorrow’s Democratic primaries, where moderate incumbents are fearing a far-left sweep similar to that of New York City’s primaries earlier this month. Internal polling from the campaigns of longtime state Democratic leaders Sen. Michael Bennet — who is running for governor — and Rep. Diana DeGette shows much tighter races than expected for the established politicians.
Russell Vought, director of the Office of Management and Budget, will testify before the House Appropriations Committee where he is expected to address the White House’s $88 billion supplemental funding request for the war with Iran and FY2027 budget request.
The Israeli Embassy in Washington will hold a “Zionist LGBTQ+ celebration” on the last day of Pride Month in memory of slain embassy staffer Sarah Milgrim’s allyship.
Reichman University’s Herzliya Conference kicks off in Israel, focusing this year on national security and national resilience. Israeli President Isaac Herzog will address the confab, as well as U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee; Amos Hochstein, who served as a Middle East envoy under former President Joe Biden; former Mossad chief Tamir Pardo; former Israeli National Security Advisor Tzachi Hanegbi; journalist Barak Ravid; and Aliyah Minister Ofir Sofer.
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Adam Smith, a reliable supporter of Israel, said he would now join progressives in his party to oppose a provision bolstering a close U.S.-Israel alliance
POLICY PERSPECTIVE
In conversation with Biden foreign policy officials Jake Sullivan and Jon Finer, Kagan said, ‘Israel’s vision for the Middle East has never been a vision that the United States should sign up to’
On Sunday afternoon, the U.S. and Iran agreed to cease their strikes and meet later in the week in Doha, Axios reported
ATTA KENARE / AFP via Getty Images
Explosions erupt following strikes at Tehran Oil Refinery in Tehran on March 7, 2026.
The U.S. and Iran traded strikes over the weekend, testing the fragile memorandum of understanding signed between the countries earlier this month.
The U.S. first accused Iran of violating the ceasefire after it launched drone attacks on a Singapore-flagged oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps had earlier issued a warning to commercial vessels “to strictly refrain from any movement outside the designated routes,” which are in parts of the waterway that it controls.
In a “powerful response” to Iran’s “unwarranted aggression,” CENTCOM said, the U.S. struck Iranian missile and drone storage locations and coastal radar sites on Friday.
On Saturday, CENTCOM said Iran was “given [another] chance to honor the ceasefire agreement but elected not to” when it launched another one-way attack drone on a Panama-flagged oil tanker earlier that morning. In retaliation, the U.S. targeted Iranian military surveillance infrastructure, communication systems, air-defense sites, drone storage facilities and minelayer capabilities, CENTCOM said.
President Donald Trump sounded his frustration in a post on Truth Social on Saturday, writing, “There may come a point when we are no longer able to be reasonable, and will be forced to militarily complete the job that we very successfully started” in Iran. “If that happens, the Islamic Republic of Iran will no longer exist!”
After the U.S. strikes, the governments of Bahrain and Kuwait said they were targeted by Iranian drone and missile attacks, which the IRGC said were attempted strikes on U.S. military bases in the country.
The IRGC added in its statement that vessels violating Iran’s instruction in the Strait of Hormuz “will be dealt with even more forcefully” and that U.S. bases in the region will be “experiencing hell” in the coming days.
By Sunday afternoon, the U.S. and Iran had agreed to cease their strikes and meet on Tuesday in Qatar to discuss the dispute over the Strait of Hormuz, Axios reported.
Qatar’s once-quiet intermediary role is now not only public, but a key element of the infrastructure supporting the new regional dynamics
Fabrice Coffrini / POOL / AFP via Getty Images
Qatar's Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim al-Thani speaks prior to a quadrilateral meeting between the United States, Iran, Pakistan and Qatar at the Burgenstock luxury hotel complex overlooking Lake Lucerne, Switzerland, on June 21, 2026.
As diplomacy between the U.S. and Iran continues following the adoption of the memorandum of understanding between the two countries last week, Washington is again leaning on Qatar to serve as a critical interlocutor, further cementing Doha’s standing as an intermediary despite the significant setbacks sustained by the Gulf state during the recent war with Iran.
In an interview with UnHerd that was published on Thursday, Vice President JD Vance, traveling back from the Iran talks in Switzerland earlier this week, said that Doha would serve as the location for CENTCOM to meet with Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps officials — despite the IRGC’s designation as a foreign terror organization by the U.S. (a move undertaken by President Donald Trump in his first term).
“One of the things we wanted to come out [of the negotiations] with” was a “channel on the Iranian side” to seek conflict resolution, Vance told UnHerd aboard Air Force Two. “Which we did. They were like, ‘OK, fine, we’ll send somebody from the IRGC to go hang out in Doha with somebody from CENTCOM,’ and that’s how we’re going to settle a lot of these disputes,” he said.
Doha has long played a role in the back-channel communications between the U.S. and adversaries. But Vance’s comments underscore the degree to which Qatar’s once-quiet intermediary role is now not only public, but a key element of the infrastructure supporting the new regional dynamics.
The close relationship between Washington and Doha was on full display during the Switzerland talks. On Sunday, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani posted a photo of himself with Vance and Jared Kushner as the three huddled around a laptop. “Live from Lucerne, work continues” with Vance and Kushner, Al Thani wrote in separate English and Arabic posts.
Earlier this week, the White House leaned on Al Jazeera, the Qatari-owned media outlet, to deny a report that Vance had been snubbed by the Iranians at a press conference following talks in Switzerland — a signal that Washington is increasingly treating Qatari institutions as useful and legitimate when its message is being amplified.
Qatar wasn’t affected by the war in the same way as the UAE, which faced more missile fire than any other country in the region, including Israel. But it also wasn’t immune from Iranian attacks. Early in the war, Iranian missiles targeted the Gulf state’s Ras Laffan gas complex, causing some $20 billion in annual revenue loss and damage that is estimated to take five years to fully repair.
The strike on Ras Laffan came in spite of a secret effort by Qatar, first reported by The Washington Post, to press Iran not to target the facility. In exchange, the Post reported, Doha offered to use its leverage to halt gas production and send oil costs up — moves intended to increase pressure on the U.S. and Israel to wind down the war quickly.
Qatar has long tried to play to all sides in conflicts even as it serves as a mediator — despite the inherent risks. It was an Iranian strike on the U.S. base in Qatar last June that marked one of the final salvos of the 12-day war. Months later, five Hamas members and a Qatari security guard were killed in an Israeli strike on a building used by Hamas for its senior officials who live in Doha.
Doha’s strategy over the last two decades of investing anywhere and everywhere has largely paid off (though not through sports prowess, as evidenced by the Qatari team’s World Cup loss to Bosnia and Herzegovina on Wednesday). In this next phase, Qatar will continue to seek to play a key role in Iran talks and the implementation of any agreements — ensuring that the Gulf state has significant buy-in in shaping the future of the region.
Plus, David Harris' message for Dems
Morteza Nikoubazl/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) military personnel stand guard on an avenue in downtown Tehran during a rally commemorating the International Quds Day, also known as the Jerusalem day, on April 29, 2022.
Good Thursday afternoon.
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
Today’s Daily Overtime was curated by JI U.S. Editor Danielle Cohen-Kanik.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
Vice President JD Vance said in an interview released todaythat U.S. military officials are going to “hang out” with representatives of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, a U.S.-designated terror organization, in Qatar in an effort to establish a conflict-reduction mechanism, Jewish Insider’s Danielle Cohen-Kanik reports.
“[Iran was] like, ‘OK, fine, we’ll send somebody from the IRGC to go hang out in Doha with somebody from CENTCOM,’ and that’s how we’re going to settle a lot of these disputes,” Vance said. He added that officials from the UAE — “by far the most hawkish, by far the most pro-Israel country in the [Gulf Cooperation Council]” — are also in touch directly with the IRGC…
Meanwhile, the IRGC reportedly attacked a cargo ship in the Strait of Hormuz today after issuing a warning to commercial vessels “to strictly refrain from any movement outside the designated routes.”
Iranian officials are further considering a plan to charge for security and environmental services in the strait that would generate $40 billion a year, sources told The Wall Street Journal. Tehran is seeking buy-in from other countries bordering the waterway and offering to share the revenue…
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, speaking to reporters in Bahrain as he wrapped up his Middle East tour today, said that U.S., Israeli and Lebanese representatives meeting for their last day of negotiations in Washington were “very close in our hopes of getting a commitment of intent” — a formal document typically used to outline preliminary terms between parties…
Rubio also spoke at a meeting of GCC foreign ministers where he vowed that Washington would not strike a deal with Iran that undermines “the security, the stability or the prosperity of any of our partners in the Gulf region”…
Iranian parliament speaker and top negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf denied President Donald Trump’s claim that the funds received by Iran under the memorandum of understanding will be used to buy American agricultural products. “The only crop we’re harvesting is what you planted: decades of mistrust,” Ghalibaf wrote on X, adding, “apparently the US only exports GMO soybeans, broken promises and trash talks”…
A new Quinnipiac University poll released yesterday found 48% of American voters say the U.S. is too supportive of Israel — the highest level since the survey started posing the question in 2017 — including 66% of Democrats and 20% of Republicans.
Fifty-nine percent of voters said they are “not so confident” or “not confident at all” that Trump’s deal with Iran will work, while 37% said they are “very” or “somewhat” confident…
The New York Times reports on a February meeting between Carl Heastie, speaker of the New York State Assembly, and officials from the New York City Democratic Socialists of America chapter, where Heastie reiterated his request that the group stop targeting incumbent Democrats.
“We told him then, and we’ll tell him now: That’s not something we can do. We have to continue to grow our numbers and grow our influence, and that means challenging incumbents,” recalled Grace Mausser, an NYC-DSA co-chair…
Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, the long-shot GOP candidate for New York governor, lashed out at congressional candidate Brad Lander on Wednesday night, telling Newsmax that the Jewish nominee is “antisemitic” and “would be a camp guard in the concentration camp if he could.” Blakeman, who is also Jewish, dialed back his remarks somewhat in a subsequent statement, saying, “Maybe camp guard was too strong, but certainly collaborator.”
Lander responded, “We named our son after Marek Edelman, a leader of the Warsaw ghetto uprising. That’s how seriously I take the legacy of Jews who fought Nazis”…
Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) became the second senator to endorsefar-left Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed today, after Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) became an early backer of the physician’s campaign. El-Sayed, who has drawn criticism for his heated anti-Israel rhetoric and campaigning with antisemitic streamer Hasan Piker, has previously advocated for Van Hollen to replace Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) as the Democratic leader in the Senate, due to Schumer’s continued support for U.S. aid to Israel…
Andy Burnham, the presumptive next prime minister of the U.K., has tapped as his chief of staff James Purnell, a former member of Parliament and lobbying executive who previously served as head of Labour Friends of Israel more than 20 years ago. Purnell also served as a Cabinet minister under former Prime Minister Tony Blair, who is now leading efforts on the Board of Peace for Gaza…
MIT professor Yossi Sheffi talks to the NYT about his forthcoming book on antisemitism at the elite school in the aftermath of the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks: Unsafe at M.I.T.: A Chronicle of a Campus War on the Jews. Sheffi said his book takes the place of an official study and report on campus antisemitism, which many universities undertook after the disruptive student protests of 2023-2024, but MIT did not…
Some Texas Jewish leaders are objecting to proposals under consideration by the State Board of Education that would require public school students to read Bible passages in class, saying they misrepresent Jewish tradition, despite their supporters touting the promotion of “Judeo-Christian” values…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider for an interview with David Harris, the longtime former CEO of the American Jewish Committee, about his book, Antisemitism: What Everyone Needs to Know.
Harris’ view: “Every Jewish organization looking for a Democrat from Washington lines up to invite Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA). If he’s not available, they’re all baffled as to who else to invite from the contingent of Democrats in the U.S. Senate.”
Amid gridlock on the House floor driven by some Republicans’ frustration with the Senate’s failure to pass President Donald Trump’s signature voter ID bill, the House canceled many of its expected votes this week, including those on the 2027 State Department budget and an effort to cut U.S. aid to Israel. The chamber will return next week with plans to work on the 2027 National Defense Authorization Act.
The Aspen Ideas Festival in Colorado continues, including a session on higher education with Princeton University President Chris Eisgruber and a live recording of “The Long Game” with former National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and his deputy Jon Finer, the podcast’s co-hosts, with Brookings senior fellow Robert Kagan.
We’ll be back in your inbox with the Daily Overtime on Monday. Shabbat Shalom!
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ON THE HILL
Sens. Bill Cassidy and Rand Paul, supporters of previous war powers efforts, changed their votes on the resolution, which had previously passed a procedural hurdle
Plus, Trump brings the heat to Capitol Hill
John Lamparski/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Voting booths at a polling location during a primary election in New York on June 23, 2026.
Good Wednesday afternoon.
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
Today’s Daily Overtime was curated by JI U.S. Editor Danielle Cohen-Kanik.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
Moderate House Democrats were shaken by the success of several Democratic Socialists of America-backed candidates in New York City primaries last night, and particularly the ouster of two incumbents by their left-wing challengers. “People who do not support the DSA wring their hands at cocktail parties, while the DSA is organizing,” Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-NY) told Axios. “You can’t win with these guys by playing patty cake,” another centrist House Democrat said…
Jewish leaders also expressed dismay at the election results: Rabbi Ammiel Hirsch of the Reform Stephen Wise Free Synagogue, an outspoken critic of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, told The New York Times that “a lot of American Jews” woke up today to “a sense of sadness, a sense that we’re losing something important.”
Rabbi Andy Bachman, a former rabbi at Congregation Beth Elohim in Brooklyn, said the “most disturbing” thing about the election results was that “if you declare genocide in Gaza, despite a distinct lack of experience compared to people that you’re running against, it can win you an election”…
Fresh off his election night victories, Mamdani announced today he would be meeting with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), Jewish Insider’s Will Bredderman reports.
Jeffries said earlier that he and Mamdani “agree to strongly disagree about some of his endorsements,” after the mayor helped unseat two New York City Democrats: Reps. Dan Goldman and Adriano Espaillat. “He’s got work to do in terms of the conversations that he’s going to have with members of Congress moving forward,” Jeffries said of Mamdani…
After blindsiding lawmakers today when he abruptly canceled a bill signing for a widely supported bipartisan housing bill, President Donald Trump attended a tense GOP Senate luncheon where he railed against the Senate’s passage of an Iran war powers resolution yesterday and got into a shouting match with Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA), who voted in favor.
When Trump asked why any Republican would have supported the measure, Cassidy, who was recently defeated by a Trump-backed challenger, recalled, “I stood and said, ‘You have not told the American people what’s going on’”…
Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed in Abu Dhabi this morning, where Rubio said he “thanked the UAE leadership for their unparalleled support, praised their courage and resilience in the face of Iran’s attacks, and reaffirmed our commitment to Emirati security”…
Pictured sitting next to the secretary of state in a working lunch with MBZ was Michael Boulos, Trump’s son-in-law whose father serves as a senior advisor to the president on the Middle East. Rubio said later that his “good friend” Boulos was not involved in the policy discussions…
Rubio then traveled to Kuwait, where he told reporters that technical talks with Iran are slated to resume next week and dismissed speculation that Israel is attempting to undermine the memorandum of understanding: “The Israelis exactly know what we’re working on. All of our partners in the region know what we’re working on”…
Yesterday’s discussions between Israeli and Lebanese representatives for their fifth round of negotiations at the State Department ended without progress and at some points became “ugly,” Axios reports, as military officials from both countries presented conflicting plans for the IDF’s withdrawal from southern Lebanon.
Rubio told reporters that Jerusalem and Beirut are still working to establish pilot zones under the control of the Lebanese Armed Forces where the IDF will pull back, saying, “The more of that area that the LAF is able to secure, the less of it is in Hezbollah’s control, the less Israel will be in Lebanon.” But Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz stated today that the IDF will not withdraw from southern Lebanon “even if there is an American demand”…
Rubio also presided over the official reopening of the U.S. Embassy in Kuwait City after it was shuttered for security reasons several months ago amid the Iran war…
Iranian parliament speaker and chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf called the agreement signed with the U.S. “a declaration of America’s defeat,” saying at a conference in Azerbaijan that it was reached as a “result of the resistance and authority” of Iran…
The Trump administration is planning to approve the sale of dozens of jet engines worth more than $700 million to Turkey, according to Reuters, ahead of the NATO summit in Ankara next month. The move comes despite reported security concerns from Congress…
FBI Director Kash Patel met with Qatari Interior Minister Sheikh Khalifa bin Hamad Al-Thani in Washington…
CENTCOM announced that the U.S. killed senior ISIS leader Ali Husayn al-‘Ulaywi in an airstrike in northwest Syria on Friday…
Iranian negotiators are consulting Trump’s book, The Art of the Deal, and psychologists in order to navigate the president’s shifting tone in negotiations, sources told The Wall Street Journal…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider for a look at how Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY) avoided a similar fate to his pro-Israel House colleagues who were ousted from their seats as he overwhelmingly defeated a left-wing challenger who made Torres’ support for Israel central to his attacks.
The House Committee on Education and Workforce will mark up Rep. Randy Fine’s (R-FL) No Antisemitism in Education Act.
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin will testify at an oversight hearing in the House Appropriations Committee.
The State Department will begin its two-day Pax Silica Summit at the U.S. Institute of Peace, hosted by Under Secretary of State for Economic Affairs Jacob Helberg, focused on strengthening cooperation in AI supply chains, critical minerals, energy and more. The event will be attended by representatives from the Pax Silica signatory countries — which include Israel, Qatar, the UAE, India, Germany and the U.K., among others — and senior business executives.
The Texas Democratic State Convention begins tomorrow, featuring remarks over the three-day event from Sens. Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Texas U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin. Activists will consider close to 20 resolutions critical of Israel — some of which condemn AIPAC and DMFI — introduced by seven individuals at a party convention in June.
The annual Aspen Ideas Festival will kick off in Colorado, bringing together leading figures from politics, business, media and academia for a week of discussions on global challenges including AI, economic policy and national security.
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The mayor flexed his political muscle as Brad Lander, Claire Valdez and Darializa Avila Chevalier triumphed in their congressional primaries
2028 WATCH
Several Democrats considering presidential bids have cast the Iran agreement as evidence of weak leadership, arguing that Trump has been outmaneuvered by Tehran
The House speaker said he wants negotiations to play out before passing judgment
Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA) speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill on October 20, 2025 in Washington, DC.
Breaking with many Senate Republicans who have expressed skepticism about various elements of the Trump administration’s memorandum of understanding with Iran, House Speaker Mike Johnson defended the deal on Tuesday.
House Republicans returned to Washington on Tuesday for the first time since the deal with Iran was finalized.
“We need to keep forward with good progress, the details are still being negotiated, so I’m not going to prejudge,” Johnson said.
“There’s a lot of moving parts right now,” Johnson said, when asked whether he has concerns about the lifting of oil sanctions under the agreement, as he did for the Obama administration’s 2015 nuclear deal. “It is something the Trump administration is working around the clock on. I trust that they’re going to come to a lasting solution on that. The world desperately needs it and we do as well.”
When pressed, he said that he has “always been a supporter of strong sanctions against Iran” but added that there’s “a lot of moving parts to this” and that he’s “not going to tell the administration how to negotiate that.”
Johnson added that he is “heartened to see” gas prices decreasing and the Strait of Hormuz reopened.
While several Republican defense hawks in the Senate have criticized the administration’s deal with and concessions to Iran, others say they want to see the full effects of the agreement and the potential outcome of negotiations first.
Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-ND) said at an Orthodox Union luncheon on Tuesday that he is currently weighing in privately with Republican leadership and the White House about his views on the deal, “in the hopes that at the end of all of this, that Israel is in a better neighborhood, and I believe that … can happen.” He said he would speak out publicly if “appropriate.”
Other hawkish Republicans have pointed blame for the deal away from the president himself.
Plus, NYC first lady snubs Brad Lander on primary day
Oliver Contreras / AFP via Getty Images
Israel's Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter speaks to reporters after a meeting between Israeli and Lebanese delegations hosted by the United States at the State Department in Washington, DC, on June 3, 2026.
Good Tuesday afternoon.
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
Today’s Daily Overtime was curated by JI U.S. Editor Danielle Cohen-Kanik.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
The U.S. and Iran continued to offer conflicting accounts of the agreement reached over the weekend: President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social this morning that Iran “fully and completely agreed to highest level Nuclear inspections long into the future,” without which “there would be no further negotiations.” But Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said it was untrue and that the parties had not discussed any nuclear issues.
About Tehran’s denial, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the U.S. “know[s] what [Iran] agreed to do, and now they’ll either do it or they won’t. And if they do, the process moves forward. And if they don’t, the president will have some decisions to make”…
Trump also said in his post that the funds received by Iran through the deal will go “into escrow, controlled by the U.S.A., and will be used for the purchase of food and medical supplies.” Yet the Treasury Department’s waiver of Iranian oil sanctions contains no such language and the text of the memorandum of understanding says unfrozen Iranian assets “shall be made fully usable” for “any ultimate beneficiary designated by the Central Bank of the Islamic Republic of Iran”…
Meanwhile, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi were in Muscat speaking with Omani leaders about the Strait of Hormuz: In a joint statement, the parties said their foreign ministries will work towards an agreement on the “future administration” of the strait, the “services that will be provided in this regard and the costs associated with them,” as the Trump administration has repeatedly stated it will not accept any tolls placed on transit through the key waterway…
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian was also abroad, meeting in Islamabad with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, where Pezeshkian said Iran’s ballistic missile program “will never be” up for negotiation with the U.S…
Jerusalem is publicly expressing concern about the Lebanon deconfliction mechanism established by the U.S. and Iran for the first time, Jewish Insider’s Emily Jacobs reports: At the opening of Israel and Lebanon’s fifth round of direct talks taking place in Washington today, Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter claimed the parties are “heading towards a train wreck.”
Leiter said he’s “concerned the concept of deconfliction is misplaced” because “Israel is not in conflict with Lebanon,” and that Israel had assumed “the central issue was Lebanon and Hezbollah — not the extent to which Iran could restrain Hezbollah. That is not Iran’s role”…
Rubio, arriving in Abu Dhabi, said the U.S.-Iran and Israel-Lebanon tracks “are separate because Lebanon is a sovereign country,” and that the U.S. is “going to negotiate a deal directly with the Lebanese government,” without mentioning Israel.
Rubio also made clear that Iran is responsible for much of the terror activity in the Middle East, striking a different tone than that of Vice President JD Vance, JI’s Danielle Cohen-Kanik reports, after Vance said yesterday the U.S. is counting on Iran to “rein in” Hezbollah…
The Senate passed a war powers resolution this afternoon directing the administration to withdraw U.S. forces from Iran, 50-48, with GOP Sens. Rand Paul (R-KY), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Susan Collins (R-ME) and Bill Cassidy (R-LA) voting in favor with Democrats,JI’s Marc Rod reports.
The resolution, now passed by both chambers, came as a concurrent resolution — meaning it will not be submitted to the president and, based on past court precedent, is not seen as carrying the force of law…
A manifesto allegedly left by the gunman behind yesterday’s rampage in Côte-des-Neiges, a heavily Jewish neighborhood in Montreal, repeatedly targeted Jews and Zionists, specifically identifying “influential Zionists” among his intended victims, JI’s Haley Cohen reports…
New York City First Lady Rama Duwaji posted an Instagram story today flashing an “I Voted” sticker and encouraging her followers to support two congressional candidates endorsed by Mayor Zohran Mamdani and the Democratic Socialists of America: Assemblymember Claire Valdez and doctoral candidate Darializa Avila Chevalier. Not receiving a mention was the only Jewish congressional candidate endorsed by her husband: former New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, JI’s Will Bredderman reports…
Ammar Campa-Najjar, a DSA-backed candidate who was recently defeated in his run for a California congressional seat, launched a new PAC called Democratic Majority for America — a counter to Democratic Majority for Israel, which organized against him in the June primary — to support progressive candidates who want to end aid to Israel, Politico reports.
The PAC, which Campa-Najjar said has about $100,000 in cash on hand, has already endorsed California congressional candidate Randy Villegas and far-left Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed…
AIPAC’s super PAC, the United Democracy Project, has spent more than $38 million backing candidates this election cycle so far through direct and indirect spending, according to Politico, surpassing the $26 million it spent on the 2022 midterms…
The Blue Square Alliance Against Hate, headed by New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, announced the formation of its inaugural advisory board, including Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan, Dentons CEO Kate Barton, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff, former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Warner Bros. CEO David Zaslav…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider for primary results from key races in New York and Maryland, as well as a postmortem on New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s ability to wield his political capital in the three congressional races where he endorsed progressive candidates.
President Donald Trump is expected to attend a GOP Senate luncheon as he remains at odds with his party over several legislative efforts and as some Republicans speak out against his efforts to curb Israeli operations against Hezbollah.
In the afternoon, Trump will hold a rally on the National Mall to kick off his Great American State Fair in the lead-up to the country’s 250th anniversary.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is slated to brief House Republicans tomorrow as the Pentagon gears up for a contentious fight over an expected $80 billion supplemental funding request tied largely to the Iran war.
The House Appropriations Committee will mark up the 2027 defense spending bill.
Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-NV) will speak in conversation with Jewish Council for Public Affairs CEO Amy Spitalnick as well as leaders from other religious groups, including the Union for Reform Judaism and Orthodox Union, about the Jewish American Security Act.
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The vice president suggested Iran could help rein in Hezbollah, while the secretary of state emphasized Lebanon’s sovereignty and described the Iran and Lebanon talks as separate diplomatic tracks
Photo by Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP via Getty Images
Vice President JD Vance and President Donald Trump listen to Secretary of State Marco Rubio speak during a meeting with Lebanon Ambassador to the U.S. and Israel Ambassador to the U.S., at the White House in Washington, D.C. on April 23, 2026.
As the details around the memorandum of understanding between the U.S. and Iran emerge, Vice President JD Vance, who has been deputized with leading the effort, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, ostensibly the Trump administration’s top diplomat, have offered different messaging around the issue of Lebanon and Hezbollah being subsumed into discussions with Tehran.
After the U.S. and Iran agreed to create a “deconfliction cell” for military operations in Lebanon — a mechanism that, notably, does not include Israel — Vance said on Monday that the U.S. will be counting on Iran to “rein in” its proxy Hezbollah, without referencing Tehran’s material support for the terror group.
Vance called on Israel to respond to Hezbollah’s attacks “in the context of a conversation that’s ongoing between Hezbollah, Lebanon, Israel and other partners in the region.” He said the conflict is “a bit of a chicken and egg problem,” in which he claimed lower-level Hezbollah operatives are firing on Israel without approval from their superiors.
Rubio, meanwhile, has been clearer about Iran’s role in propagating terror in the Middle East. Arriving in the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday, he said a “complete end of hostilities in the entire region” is “not possible … as long as Iranian proxies are launching missiles and drones from Iraq and are participating in terrorism like Hamas did and like Hezbollah did.”
WATCH: Marco Rubio said upon arriving in Abu Dhabi that the U.S.–Iran and Israel–Lebanon diplomatic tracks “are separate because Lebanon is a sovereign country,” while adding that Iran’s “support and sponsorship of Hezbollah” will be part of “our conversations with the Iranians.” pic.twitter.com/iADhszGTZC
— Jewish Insider (@jewishinsider) June 23, 2026
Rubio also distanced the Lebanon conflict from negotiations with Iran: Asked if he believes the Israel-Lebanon peace process should be separate from the Iran discussions, Rubio said, “That process is separate.”
“It’s separate because Lebanon is a sovereign country. … When it comes to Lebanon and what’s happening inside of Lebanon, we’re going to negotiate a deal directly with the Lebanese government,” he continued, again without mentioning Israel.
“Now, there’s an Iranian issue with regards to Lebanon, and that is their support and sponsorship of Hezbollah. And so that factor will be discussed as part of our conversation with the Iranians, but … the future of Lebanon belongs to the Lebanese people, through their sovereign, elected government, and that’s who we’re going to be working with,” Rubio said.
He referenced a phone call he and Vance held earlier on Tuesday with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, who said in a readout that the deconfliction mechanism will now include Lebanon as a party.
Olivia Wales, a White House spokesperson, told Jewish Insider, “Both Vice President Vance and Secretary Rubio are in lockstep with President Trump: Iran can never have a nuclear weapon and must stop their proxies in Lebanon from causing trouble. What President Trump and his entire national security team achieved on the battlefield and at the negotiating table is nothing short of remarkable and will strengthen American security for years to come.”
This story was updated on June 23 to include comment from the White House.
Plus, the White House amplifies Al Jazeera
Jonathan Raa/NurPhoto via Getty Images
The Brent crude oil price chart is displayed on a mobile screen on March 2, 2026.
Good Monday afternoon.
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
Today’s Daily Overtime was curated by JI U.S. Editor Danielle Cohen-Kanik.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
Three people were killed in a shooting attack today in Côte-des-Neiges, a heavily Jewish neighborhood in Montreal, Jewish Insider’s Haley Cohen and Tamara Zieve report. A civilian, a police officer and the suspect were confirmed dead by Montreal police, while one other police officer was seriously injured but in stable condition. Police said the suspect’s motive is still under investigation. Stay updated on this developing story with JI’s What We’re Watching briefing…
After the U.S. and Iran agreed to create a “deconfliction cell” for military operations in Lebanon during their negotiations yesterday, Vice President JD Vance said at a press conference today that the U.S. will be counting on Iran to “rein in” Hezbollah — without acknowledging that Tehran offers material backing to its proxy in Lebanon, JI’s Matthew Shea reports.
Vance called Hezbollah’s attacks on northern Israel and the IDF’s retaliation “a bit of a chicken and egg problem, that you’ve got a junior guy who fires a drone that didn’t have approval from the high command. Of course Israel has to respond to that,” he acknowledged, “but … we could actually have a better and more peaceful situation if Israel responds in the context of a conversation that’s ongoing between Hezbollah, Lebanon, Israel and other partners in the region”…
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared to push back on Vance’s framing, saying in a video statement this morning that his directive to the IDF “has not changed: Our fighters in southern Lebanon have full freedom of action to thwart any direct or developing threat to them or to the residents of the north. The IDF has no restrictions on this matter,” he said, while the tenuous ceasefire with Hezbollah appeared to hold today…
Vance also announced Iran had agreed to let U.N. nuclear inspectors back into the country, and President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social that “everybody is fully aware” Iran will agree to “have Major Weapons Inspections in order to ensure ‘Nuclear Honesty’ long into the future,” but Esmail Baghaei, Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson, told state media that Iran made “no new commitments” regarding inspections…
Pursuant to the agreement reached between the U.S. and Iran over the weekend, the Treasury Department issued a waiver lifting decades-old U.S. sanctions on Iranian oil for the next 60 days, permitting imports of Iranian oil directly to the U.S. and paying for the goods in U.S. dollars.
Asked this afternoon in the Oval Office if he can ensure that Iran won’t use the funds for military purposes, Trump said, “They’re not supposed to be doing that, so we’ll see, but they’re supposed to use the money to buy food for their people.” AIPAC described the waiver as “broader than the terms detailed in the MOU or what was included in the JCPOA”…
The White House’s “Rapid Response” X account boosted an Al Jazeera video interview about the negotiations with Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, calling it “the real story from people actually in the room”…
Avigdor Liberman, head of Israel’s Yisrael Beiteinu party and a leading opponent of Netanyahu, wrote in The Wall Street Journal that the “deal between Washington and Tehran won’t stop Iran from becoming a nuclear power. It will guarantee it.” He called for Jerusalem to “inform Washington that Israel won’t accept any linkage between Iran and Lebanon” and end its reliance on U.S. missile systems, preparing to attack key Iranian infrastructure if Tehran strikes Israel…
Asked about her stance on Israel in a rare nationally televised interview on Fox News today, Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) said she “remain[s] a very strong supporter of Israel” despite rising hostility to Israel and AIPAC among the American public, which she said “sadly reflects rising antisemitism in our country that” her opponent, Democratic nominee Graham Platner, “certainly is part of.”
“It’s important to recognize that AIPAC is made up of Americans who care deeply about our relationship with Israel. Platner makes it sound like this is some sort of evil foreign influence and that is absolutely wrong,” Collins continued…
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani doubled down on his rhetorical assault on AIPAC today, JI’s Will Bredderman reports, after Jewish groups over the weekend criticized his comments about the pro-Israel organization at a rally last week that they argued evoked classic antisemitic tropes.
Mamdani defended naming AIPAC among the “monsters who move dark money” as a reference to a widely known misquote of 20th-century Marxist philosopher Antonio Gramsci, and backed up his argument with statistics from the Hamas-controlled Gaza Health Ministry alleging that the IDF has killed more than 1,000 Palestinians since the ceasefire last fall…
JI’s Christina Sher looks at the state of tomorrow’s Democratic primary for executive of Montgomery County, Md., as all three of the front-runners — County Councilmembers Will Jawando, Andrew Friedson and Evan Glass — have been outspoken against antisemitism, but diverge in their policy positions and views on Israel…
Three men killed in asmall plane crash in Bowie, Md., on Saturday night have been identified as Israeli citizens, JI’s Haley Cohen reports: Yoav Bomrind, 26, David Rabinovitz, 19, and Elad Neidik, 20, boarded the single-engine plane in Ocean City, N.J., for a training flight before it crashed just outside Washington, D.C…
Alan Greenspan — the influential economist who led the Federal Reserve across four presidencies and whose track record guiding economic growth earned him status as an economic “maestro” — died today at 100, JI’s Haley Cohen reports…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider for a look at how pro-Israel groups’ intervention in the race to replace retiring Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-MD) — where they are supporting state Delegate Adrian Boafo — revealed a more proactive strategy for taking on the left than the one the groups have employed in New York City’s Democratic primaries, as voters in both states head to the polls tomorrow.
Israeli and Lebanese representatives are expected to meet in Washington to continue their direct negotiations, as the U.S. and Iran seek to intervene in ending military operations in Lebanon.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio will embark on a three-day trip to the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Bahrain to discuss issues including the memorandum of understanding with Iran and transit through the Strait of Hormuz.
Orthodox Union Advocacy will hold its annual lobbying day on the Hill, including a luncheon with senators from both parties and a speech by Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter.
The Jerusalem News Syndicate’s policy summit continues in Jerusalem with remarks from former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, former Defense Minister Benny Gantz, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli, Netanyahu advisor Michael Eisenberg and Magen David Adom President Gilad Erdan.
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JCRC CEO Ron Halber said he hopes to work with the DSA member, despite his strident criticism of the group, while remaining vigilant
BLAME GAME
Nearly all Israelis surveyed said they believed Tehran was the victor, while 70% rated Trump’s management of the war as a failure or poor
Jewish Republican donors said the agreement grants too many concessions to Tehran, though the Republican Jewish Coalition said it trusts Trump ‘to finish the job’
Official White House Photo by Daniel Torok
President Donald J. Trump signs a Memorandum of Understanding between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the United States of America at the Palace of Versailles, France on Wednesday, June 17, 2026. French President Emmanuel Macron and First Lady Brigitte Macron of were also in attendance.
Jewish Republican donors and activists are voicing their strong disappointment with President Donald Trump’s newly announced memorandum of understanding with Iran, which has been met with criticism from GOP lawmakers as well as influential hawkish conservatives.
Trump has fiercely defended the deal to end the war with Iran, the text of which was released Wednesday, claiming it is superior to the nuclear agreement with Tehran that was reached by former President Barack Obama in 2015.
But in interviews with Jewish Insider on Thursday, several Jewish conservatives who supported the war expressed misgivings about the deal that reopens the Strait of Hormuz, saying that it had granted too many concessions to a weakened Iran — including waiving sanctions on oil exports — while neglecting to broach the regime’s funding of terror proxies and its ballistic missile arsenal.
They also raised concerns that the memorandum of understanding with Tehran had not been favorable to Israel, a U.S. partner in the war, pointing to a term of the preliminary agreement that calls for a permanent end to military operations in Lebanon, where Israel is fighting Hezbollah, a key Iranian ally.
And they expressed serious doubts over Iran’s willingness to finalize a nuclear agreement during the 60-day negotiating period, fearing it could be indefinitely extended by “mutual consent,” per the terms of the MOU.
Their reactions highlight a rare point of tension between Trump and pro-Israel Republicans, who have long applauded his commitment to upholding a close alliance with the Jewish state, even amid rising hostility to Israel from the populist far right opposed to foreign wars.
Vice President JD Vance, who had initially been skeptical of the war, delivered a scathing public rebuke of Israeli officials who had criticized the agreement, saying on Thursday that Trump is “the only head of state in the entire world who is sympathetic to the nation of Israel at this moment in time” and warning Israeli detractors against “attacking the only powerful ally” they have “anywhere left in the entire world.”
But Eric Levine, a top GOP fundraiser who is on the board of the Republican Jewish Coalition, said that the war “achieved none of its stated aims,” including Trump’s pledge to liberate Iranians from a theocratic regime and nuclear disarmament. “We ran 26 miles, and then chose to stop at the last 385 yards,” he told JI. “I don’t understand why.”
“The most disturbing thing about the deal is that we have conceded to the Iranians up front that they can leave Lebanon alone,” Levine added, saying the deal effectively constrained Israel’s right to defend itself.
Levine predicted a future scenario in which Hezbollah would be “lobbing missiles into Israel” before the upcoming elections in Israel and the United States, prompting a disastrous chain reaction that could lead to the collapse of the deal and result in widespread GOP losses in November.
“Call me disappointed that we’re going down this road,” he sighed.
The RJC, for its part, was more positive about the deal, saying on Thursday that it had confidence in Trump’s decision, even as it was “deeply skeptical that the Islamic Republic has a genuine interest in peace or will abandon its Islamist, hegemonic malign ambitions in the region.”
The group said it was reassured that Trump had threatened to strike Iran again if it reneged on the agreement. “We take the president at his word and trust him to finish the job in the best interests of the United States and our allies in the region,” the RJC wrote in a lengthy statement.
Other Jewish leaders, however, have not been as charitable in assessing Trump’s motivations. One prominent Jewish Republican donor criticized the deal, speculating it had only come as a response to Trump’s fears about GOP losses in the midterms, as the war and rising gas prices have emerged as potent sources of Democratic attacks.
Gabriel Groisman, a Republican donor in Florida, said the terms of the deal were “certainly worrisome,” noting that “there is still no agreement on the major issues” such as “uranium enrichment, Iran’s ballistic missile program and its funding of terrorist proxies,” even as “sanctions relief appears poised to take effect immediately.”
“This MOU is not the end of the war and it unfortunately will not bring lasting peace,” he told JI. “Instead,” he added, “it appears to signal a significant realignment of American policy in the region, which raises serious concerns for many Americans, for U.S. allies and of course for American Jews, who have a special interest in the safety and security of the world’s only Jewish state.”
Joshua Katzen, the publisher of the Jewish News Syndicate and an RJC board member, echoed that sentiment, saying that he was “disappointed to see” Trump “apparently throwing away the leverage he has painstakingly accumulated and trading it for promises that are likely to be broken.”
“The worst aspect is that by relieving sanctions and allowing Iran to sell oil before they have performed more than letting a few ships through Hormuz,” he added, “Trump had given them the funds to rebuild and reconstitute the threat that he just spent billions of dollars to degrade.”
Katzen expressed hope that Trump was “playing four-dimensional chess here, as he often has in the past, but right now, I’m not so sure his horizon is larger than temporarily reducing oil prices while giving Iran the funds and time to renew their existential threat.”
While many Jewish Republicans acknowledged that Trump had been a strong friend to Israel and praised his initial decision to attack Iran, they were otherwise largely baffled about his decision to end the war, even as some attempted to put a positive spin on the move.
“I’m on a bunch of various threads and the majority are not happy, to say the least,” Alan Sager, a Jewish Republican donor and activist based in Texas, told JI. “I’m a wait-and-see guy.”
Still, he added that he was confused with Trump’s decision and doubted the Iranians would operate in good faith — particularly with regard to nuclear talks that have long proven to be unfruitful. “I don’t know what Trump is thinking,” he told JI. “I don’t trust the Iranians as far as I can throw them.”
Brad Kastan, a GOP donor in Ohio, said he was “taken aback like everybody else” when he learned about the deal, while acknowledging there was “no doubt” Trump ceded valuable leverage in readily agreeing to a range of key concessions.
“But as in most things in life, things are never as good as you hoped or as bad as you feared,” he told JI, speculating that perhaps Trump agreed to an end to the war in order to “buy more time” for the United States and Israel to replenish their eroding munitions reserves. “Why would you let them off the mat unless you needed to?”
“For every disappointment, I can’t help but think of all the good that happened. There are a lot of people rushing to jump to conclusions” while ignoring “the bigger picture,” Kastan said. “To conclude we are not better off today than we were a year ago is objectively false,” he argued, claiming “Iran is back on its heels.”
Marc Zell, an Israeli-American lawyer and chairman of Republicans Overseas Israel, said in a social media post on Friday that he did not “like the content of the MOU or the tone of certain statements from the” White House “defending it, but that’s politics in an election year.”
“The bottom line is the relationship between Israel and the U.S. is strong and inviolable,” Zell wrote.
One top Jewish Republican bundler said he was also more sanguine about Trump’s deal. “He took a huge risk for Israel, and people need to see what happens and calm down,” the bundler told JI, referring to the start of the war in February. “No president has done more than him or would do more.”
But Joel Geiderman, an RJC board member in Los Angeles, argued that “Israel’s last reliable ally seems to have abandoned her,” telling JI that he was “very disappointed” with the recently approved agreement.
Another top GOP donor, who also spoke with JI on condition of anonymity to address a sensitive subject in the wake of the deal, suggested that he was looking at the agreement through a realist’s lens.
In initially launching the war, Trump had “greatly underestimated Iran’s capabilities and willingness to stick with it,” and “put himself in a box where he had to make a deal,” the donor explained. “Every time he announced we had won the war, they’d shoot another ballistic missile.”
“Do I like this deal? Hell no. Nobody thinks he made a great deal. But there’s a difference between making a great deal and making the only deal you can make,” he told JI. “Knowing Donald Trump, he was going to make a deal.”
The briefing is co-organized by the Center for International Policy, a far-left think tank that has described Israel's operations in Gaza as a genocide, and Win Without War
BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images
Robert Malley, Biden administration special envoy for Iran, waits to testify about the JCPOA (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action) during a hearing of the Senate Foreign Relations on Capitol Hill May 25, 2022, in Washington, D.C.
J Street is slated to host a virtual briefing for congressional staff on the Trump administration’s memorandum of understanding with Iran featuring former Biden administration special envoy for Iran Rob Malley, who was suspended from his State Department role amid an investigation over his handling of classified materials.
The event, scheduled for next Tuesday, will feature Malley alongside Kelsey Davenport, director for nonproliferation policy at the Arms Control Association. It’s being co-organized by the Center for International Policy and Win Without War.
The Center for International Policy is a far-left think tank led in part by former Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) advisor Matt Duss, that has taken a strongly hostile stance toward Israel, including opposing U.S. aid to Israel and describing Israel’s operations in Gaza as a genocide.
Malley was suspended for much of Biden’s term in office under suspicion of leaking classified documents, though he said the investigation into him had been closed during the Trump administration, and denied any knowledge of what the investigation pertained to.
A State Department inspector general’s report found that Malley was improperly allowed to continue working in his role for some time after his security clearance was suspended, and that his direct supervisor and other senior officials were not notified of his suspension.
Plus, Albania blames Iran for stoking Kushner-unrest
Roy Rochlin/Getty Images
Vice President JD Vance
Good Thursday afternoon.
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
Today’s Daily Overtime was curated by Senior National Correspondent Gabby Deutch.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
As the White House continues to promote the memorandum of understanding that will end the war with Iran and start negotiations between Washington and Tehran, Vice President JD Vance is out with a message that sounds strikingly familiar — at least to anyone who followed former President Barack Obama’s pitch on the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch reports.
“If you think this is a bad deal, what is your alternative?” Vance said in an interview this week with New York Times columnist Ross Douthat.
Obama used nearly identical phrasing at a 2015 White House press conference: “I’m hearing a lot of talking points being repeated about ‘this is a bad deal,’” he said. “What I haven’t heard is, what is your preferred alternative?”
Watch a side-by-side look at Vance and Obama here…
Vance also delivered a tough message to Israeli officials who have criticized the MOU, telling reporters on Thursday that Israel’s government should be careful not to alienate the only friend it has left: President Donald Trump, JI’s Emily Jacobs reports.
“Donald J. Trump is the only head of state in the entire world who is sympathetic to the nation of Israel at this moment in time and he happens to be the head of state of the world’s superpower. If I was in the Cabinet of the Israeli government, I might not be attacking the only powerful ally that I have anywhere left in the entire world,” said Vance…
Trump also had a word of caution for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, two days after he said Netanyahu was too “vicious” in his approach to fighting Hezbollah in Lebanon. Asked by a reporter for Israel’s Kan News if he will support Netanyahu in this year’s Israeli elections, Trump said he most likely would, but did not commit.
“I’ll have to look at who’s running, but I like Bibi very much. I would be most likely to endorse him,” said Trump. “He’s doing a very good job, he’s got to be a little bit more rational”…
United Against Nuclear Iran, an advocacy group that rallied opposition to the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, said on Thursday that it “cannot endorse the MoU in its current form”…
AIPAC released a policy memo on Thursday that said the MOU “raises significant questions,” and called on Congress to “play a critical role in ensuring a final deal meets President Trump’s stated objectives for the war”…
In a Thursday speech at the FII Priority summit in Rome, Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama blamed Iran for “ruthless” cyberattacks against the country, claiming that Tehran has sought to sow unrest about a preliminarily approved luxury development project in the country from Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner, Trump’s daughter and son-in-law, JI’s Matthew Shea reports…
Janeese Lewis George defeated Kenyan McDuffie in the Democratic primary for mayor of Washington, D.C., with the Associated Press calling the race on Thursday afternoon. Democratic socialist Lewis George leads McDuffie 53% to 36%…
American Priorities, a super PAC created as a progressive counterweight to AIPAC, has received $250,000 from a tech executive whose firm is developing AI data centers in New York State — while boosting two democratic socialist House candidates who oppose efforts to expand data centers, JI’s Matthew Kassel reports…
Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (R-NJ), who has been absent from Congress since March due to an unexplained personal health issue, plans to return to Washington on June 30…
Israel and Syria are expected to resume direct talks soon due to pressure from the U.S., the Israeli network Kan reports…
The FBI announced that it charged San Diego resident Reda Mazen Rida Sabassi with conspiring to provide material support to Hamas after he allegedly raised approximately $600,000 through fraudulent charitable campaigns and funneled a portion to the terrorist organization…
Former Presidents Joe Biden, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton attended the grand opening of the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago on Thursday afternoon.
Guests included a litany of ex-Obama administration staffers, including former White House liaison to the Jewish community Matt Nosanchuk and former U.S. Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro, who was spotted chatting with Obama…
⏩ Tomorrow’s Agenda, Today
An early look at tomorrow’s storylines and schedule to keep you a step ahead
Keep an eye on Jewish Insider for a look at how Jewish Republicans are feeling about the U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding that was signed this week.
Vice President JD Vance plans to travel to Switzerland this weekend for talks with Iran, though the plans are not yet finalized, he told reporters on Thursday.
Bill Pulte, the director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, will become the acting director of national intelligence on Friday after the confirmation of DNI nominee Jay Clayton was delayed this week at President Donald Trump’s request.
We’ll be monitoring the final days of the heated congressional primary campaigns in New York, where Israel and Gaza remain hot topics for progressive candidates.
We’ll be back in your inbox with the Daily Overtime on Monday. Shabbat Shalom!
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BEHIND THE CURTAIN
Multiple sources identified Scott Stringer as a driving force behind two PACs spending to beat Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s House candidates
The vice president said Trump is "the only head of state in the entire world who is sympathetic to the nation of Israel at this moment in time" and warned Israeli officials not to take that for granted
Ken Cedeno / AFP via Getty Images
US Vice President JD Vance speaks during a press briefing in the Brady Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on June 18, 2026.
Vice President JD Vance on Thursday issued a scathing public rebuke of Israeli officials who have criticized President Donald Trump for approving the memorandum of understanding between the U.S. and Iran, cautioning Israeli skeptics of the deal against “attacking the only powerful ally” it has left and urging them to “wake up and smell the reality of the situation that country is in.”
Vance made the comments as part of his final answer at a White House press briefing regarding the MOU, directing his ire at members of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Cabinet who have criticized the deal or the president himself. The vice president said he was angered by the harsh commentary, which he credited Netanyahu for not participating in.
“What I will say, and it does bother me, is that you have seen people within Bibi’s Cabinet who have come out and attacked the deal, and in some ways very personally attacked the president of the United States, and I guess my message to them would be twofold,” Vance said. “Number one, Donald J. Trump is the only head of state in the entire world who is sympathetic to the nation of Israel at this moment in time and he happens to be the head of state of the world’s superpower. If I was in the Cabinet of the Israeli government, I might not be attacking the only powerful ally that I have anywhere left in the entire world.”
“The second message I would give to some of those Cabinet members — Bibi, to his credit, has not gone down this path,” Vance continued. “But to some of these Cabinet members in Israel who are attacking the president of the United States, the other thing that I would say is that over the last three months, two-thirds of the defensive weapons that have protected your homeland have been built by American hands and paid for by American tax dollars,” he added.
Vance then said, “The problem for Israel is not Donald J. Trump, and anybody in Israel who thinks their biggest problem is the president of the United States needs to wake up and smell the reality of the situation that country is in.”
The vice president pushed back on comparisons between the MOU and the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action that the Obama administration signed in 2015, arguing that the Arab world’s reaction to this current effort has been far more positive than its response to former President Barack Obama’s Iran deal.
“There are going to be any number of opinions about the negotiations, about where it’s ultimately going to go, but I tend to think that you should trust the people who know the Iranians the best and who have the most to lose,” Vance said. “What are the Gulf Arab states saying about this deal? What are they saying about this deal compared to the JCPOA in 2015? This is the Obama nuclear deal. Well, back then they hated that deal. They felt like it empowered the Iranians to be bad actors across the region, and of course that’s exactly what happened.”
“What are they saying about the president’s peace deal? They’re saying this is an amazingly transformative thing for the region, because either way we and the broader region win,” he continued. “Iran is weakened, their nuclear program destroyed, their economy in desperate straits, and if they change their behavior, big things are going to happen for Iran and for the world.”
Vance doubled down when asked about Trump’s comments on Wednesday that the U.S. would not forbid Iran from possessing ballistic missiles and downplaying the threat of the regime continuing to have those weapons — despite it being a key goal of the negotiations.
“All the president said yesterday is that of course, countries don’t give up the right of self-defense. Israel doesn’t give up the right of self-defense if Hezbollah fires rockets or drones at Israel,” Vance said.
“The Iranians don’t give up the right of self-defense in their country,” he added. “But we do expect that as part of the final deal, they are not going to be able to build the kind of missiles that can broadly threaten the entire world, and that’s what the president of the United States said yesterday. It’s very simple. You can’t tell a country whether Israel, Iran, they are not allowed to have any self-defense.”
Vance criticized U.S. sanctions against Iran, arguing that the effort to isolate Iran economically has been “fundamentally ineffective” despite it being a core part of Trump’s longstanding maximum-pressure campaign. The vice president said that the sanctions had forced Iran to “move the Iranian financial system to the shadow-banking system” where it was no longer subject to those penalties.
“We didn’t see that as a major concession to the Iranians, frankly,” Vance told reporters, adding that Iran “didn’t see that as a concession to them, because what prevented them from selling oil was not the sanctions.”
He argued that the lifting of sanctions would allow the U.S. to have greater oversight of Iran’s financial activities while defending the Trump administration’s decision to allow Iran to immediately resume selling oil.
“The number one thing is that we actually see where the money moves now because of what we’ve done with the financial sanctions. We actually know where the money is going to move,” he explained. “So we have great confidence that we’re going to be able to see if they try to fund terrorist organizations.”
Still, he reiterated his claim that the MOU does not involve millions in payouts to Iran despite the agreement text stating that the U.S. “undertakes to develop a definitive, mutually agreed reconstruction and economic development plan for the Islamic Republic of Iran valued at a minimum of $300 billion (USD).”
“The United States isn’t giving up a cent of money to Iran, and even the economic benefits, the sanctions relief and so forth that comes along with this bargain, only happens if the Iranians perform,” Vance said. “We have them in an economic chokehold right now that we’re not going to release until they fundamentally change their behavior.”
“I’ve seen skeptics of the deal. People say the Iranians will never change their behavior. Well, maybe that’s true, and if so, they don’t get any of the benefits of the bargain. But isn’t it worth trying?” he continued. “Isn’t it worth seeing whether this incredibly weakened position that the president of the United States has put the Iranians under, whether that motivates them to change their behavior, not just vis-à-vis the West but vis-à-vis the Middle East.”
The vice president also expressed confidence that the Trump administration would be able to lift the sanctions without congressional approval, though he said that White House Legislative Affairs Director James Braid planned “to brief Congress very soon” on the broader terms of the deal.
“There are certain things that require congressional approval. There are certain things that don’t require congressional approval,” he said. “We feel quite confident that we can temporarily lift those sanctions without going to Congress and seeking their approval on that.”
Dan Schueftan said that the agreement has surpassed Obama’s ‘high bar’ for bad diplomatic deals with Iran — undermining Israel and emboldening its enemies in the process
ATTA KENARE / AFP via Getty Images
Explosions erupt following strikes at Tehran Oil Refinery in Tehran on March 7, 2026.
Israeli national security expert Dan Schueftan said on Monday that President Donald Trump’s memorandum of understanding with Iran “proves nobody in the Western world is willing to fight. If we need to get permission from countries like Iran in order to use international waterways then we are in very deep trouble.”
The one exception, according to Schueftan, is Israel, which he called the “only one power in the Middle East that can contain the radicals … the only real power in this region that is committed to fighting the radicals and will fight the radicals.”
Schueftan, the chairman of the National Security Studies Center at the University of Haifa, made the comments while appearing on British journalist Jonathan Sacerdoti’s YouTube show.
Trump “built up the spirit of Hamas, Hezbollah, the Iranians, the Houthis,” Schueftan asserted. The president’s proposal that the terrorist groups disarm was “ridiculous,” continued Schueftan, who said the agreement with Iran has surpassed former President Barack Obama’s “high bar” for bad diplomatic deals with Iran — undermining Israel and emboldening its enemies in the process.
Schueftan’s comments came shortly after the U.S. and Iran reached a tentative agreement to end the recent fighting and enter into talks. The White House shared in a call with reporters on Wednesday the official text of the memorandum of understanding, to establish a ceasefire with Iran, permanently end Israel’s war against Hezbollah in Lebanon, reopen the Strait of Hormuz while ending the U.S. naval blockade and kickstart a 60-day negotiation period on the future of Iran’s nuclear program and the possibility of lifting U.S. sanctions on Tehran.
On Wednesday morning, Trump said that the U.S. would resume military activity against Iran if he did not like the MOU.
The deal could lead to confrontation between Israel and the U.S., Schueftan said. “If Israel responds in Lebanon, we have a major problem with the president of the United States,” he said.
“I don’t believe this will remain because Israel cannot afford tension with the only friend it has on the international arena … this is the worst that can happen from an Israeli point of view,” he continued. “But it will not stop Israel from doing what is vital for the existence of Israel.”
Schueftan further asserted that Trump betrayed and “abandoned” the Iranian people by failing to deliver on his promise that “help is on the way.”
“Israel will survive it, but they were reduced,” Schueftan said. He noted achievements in destroying Iran’s nuclear capabilities over the past year and policies adopted after Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attacks.
At the same time, he said, “the challenge now is more serious, therefore Israeli actions will have to be more serious, and I don’t believe Trump will go as far as trying to break Israel.”
From an American perspective, Schueftan continued, such a move would be a strategic error; the U.S., he said, needs to shift its focus away from the Middle East and toward countering China. “Israel should be in a position where it can substitute the United States. When the U.S. leaves the Middle East, you can’t leave the Middle East alone,” said Schueftan.
The conservative commentator said Vance has not served the president well in his most direct criticism of the VP’s job performance
Samuel Corum/Getty Images
Ben Shapiro walks the red carpet at the Turning Point USA Inaugural-Eve Ball at the Salamander Hotel on January 19, 2025 in Washington, DC.
Conservative commentator Ben Shapiro criticized Vice President JD Vance on Wednesday, arguing that Vance’s support for the memorandum of understanding between the U.S. and Iran suggested that he was not serving President Donald Trump well.
Shapiro made the comments, which mark his most direct criticism to date of Vance’s approach to Iran, to Fox News’ “The Story with Martha MacCallum”while offering a harsh assessment of the MOU in the hours after the Trump administration released the text of the agreement. He described the deal as “a disaster” and called out the vice president for his role in leading this particular diplomatic effort.
“The president deciding to go into Iran and to hit nuclear facilities in Operation Midnight Hammer and then to go after Iran’s ballistic missile facilities and nuclear facilities, army, navy and air force in this current operation was the signal act of political bravery perhaps of my lifetime,” Shapiro said.
“With that said, this MOU appears to be, just from the text, a disaster that does not achieve any of the actual signal goals that were set by the administration at the beginning,” he continued. “In my opinion, the vice president of the United States, the chief negotiator on this particular project, has not well served the president.”
On his latest podcast episode on Wednesday, Shapiro praised Vance for his appearance on ABC’s “The View” and described him as an “undeniably talented politician,” though he questioned Vance’s decision to appear on Megyn Kelly’s show “to make overtures to Tucker Carlson.”
“Megyn Kelly is a person who has said that the Israelis manipulated the administration into war, who has laughed along to the proposition that the Republican Party is a bunch of Israel-loving pedophiles,” Shapiro said. “This is where the vice president chose to retail the argument.”
Shapiro also disputed Vance’s assertion to Kelly that opponents of the MOU were “promoting endless conflict” in the region. “They don’t have an alternative. If your alternative is just to drop bombs without any clear goal or any clear American interest implicated, then you’re not making wise decisions on behalf of the American people,” Vance said.
“An entire field of strawmen is now burning because this is what we colloquially call a lie. This is a lie,” Shapiro said. “An endless conflict would be, say, a 47-year conflict with an intransigent radical Islamist enemy that wants to destroy America.”
“Some of us have been calling for the president to end this war quickly, like from the beginning,” he continued. “I’ve been saying for literally months that instead of signing onto a useless ceasefire, that we ought to take or bomb Kharg Island, open the Straits with operations like Project Freedom, which the president announced and then unannounced, and then leave overwatch to our allies like Israel and the UAE. That is not an endless war.”
Shapiro went on to detail his objections to the MOU itself in his Fox appearance, arguing that the text of the deal did not address several major sticking points that led to the U.S. launching the war in the first place.
“There were effectively five goals that were set by the administration at the beginning. One was ending the nuclear program, not just nuclear weapons, no nuclear enrichment, zero enrichment. That is not in the deal. Ballistic missiles ended, that is not in the deal,” Shapiro said. “Then you have the support of terrorism, that is not part of the deal, anything that looks like an attempt to end terrorism.”
“A permanent opening of the Strait of Hormuz toll free, not only is that not in the deal, the deal appears to have a provision allowing Iran and Oman to attempt to toll the Straits after 60 days,” he added. “Then finally, the idea that Iran would receive some sort of sanctions relief after all of those things happened. We are already seeing, from day one, relief in their ability to ship oil out of Iran.”
Shapiro expressed bewilderment at Trump’s comments earlier Wednesday suggesting that the U.S. would not forbid Iran from possessing ballistic missiles and downplaying the threat of the regime continuing to have those weapons — despite it being a key goal in entering the conflict. He also responded to Trump’s criticism of Israel’s conduct in its war against Hezbollah, defending the Israelis and pointing to previous statements by the president in support of Israel’s war aims.
“The president today suggested that ballistic missiles should actually continue to be held by the Iranians because the Saudis, our allies, also hold ballistic missiles,” Shapiro said. “The fact is that the president himself has suggested that Israel has a right to defend itself. Ambassador [Mike] Huckabee, our ambassador to Israel, has said that Israel has a right to defend itself. Hezbollah is a terrorist group. It’s not the government of Lebanon, and in fact is opposed to the government of Lebanon. They’ve been firing ordnance over the border at Israel for literally years at this point.”
“The idea that Israel should be held back from defending itself against a terror group that is a proxy army of Iran, because we have some sort of deal over the Strait of Hormuz, is a massive tactical blunder that gives Iran one of the things that Iran actually wants, which is to reconstitute its forward operating base in Lebanon,” he continued. “Anything that allows them to reconstitute their terror army would be a huge regional mistake.”
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) offered a similar take on Wednesday, arguing that Trump was given “some very poor advice on this deal” while declining to go after the vice president by name.
“Giving billions of dollars to theocratic lunatics who want to murder us is not a good idea. Setting up Iran to be in charge of the Strait of Hormuz in perpetuity, and to charge tolls is not in America’s interest, in my view. The Ayatollah should not reap a single penny from the free transit of the seas,” Cruz told reporters. “I think the president, unfortunately, is receiving bad advice once again.”
Asked if he believes the president should not sign the MOU and abandon peace talks, the Texas senator replied: “That’s a decision he’s going to have to make.”
Donald Trump Jr., the president’s son and one of Vance’s closest allies outside the White House, went on to attack Cruz on social media for his criticisms of the agreement.
Trump Jr. accused Cruz of “lying thru [sic] his teeth about the deal,” claiming in a post on X that the U.S. is “not giving them [Iran] a cent and he [Cruz] knows that.” He then alleged Cruz was “using fake news about the peace deal to undermine” the president, which he described as “the opposite of MAGA.”
According to the text of the MOU released on Wednesday, however, the U.S. “undertakes to develop a definitive, mutually agreed reconstruction and economic development plan for the Islamic Republic of Iran valued at a minimum of $300 billion (USD).”
The deal also includes language terminating “all sanctions against the Islamic Republic of Iran — including UN Security Council resolutions, IAEA Board of Governors resolutions, and all unilateral U.S. primary and secondary sanctions.”
Plus, Qatar complicates Israel-VW deal
Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
U.S. President Donald Trump is joined by (L-R) U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent as he speaks at a press conference during the G7 Leaders' Summit on June 17, 2026 in Evian-les-Bains, France.
Good Wednesday afternoon.
This P.M. briefing is reserved for our premium subscribers like you — offering a forward-focused read on what we’re tracking now and what’s coming next.
Today’s Daily Overtime was curated by Senior National Correspondent Gabby Deutch.
📡On Our Radar
Notable developments and interesting tidbits we’re tracking
After days in which President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance and other senior officials boosted the U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding — and amid calls from Capitol Hill and beyond to make public the agreement’s details — the White House on Wednesday shared the text of the document that the Trump administration said will end the war against Tehran. Jewish Insider’s Emily Jacobs obtained the text of the MOU, which was read aloud to reporters during a call with a senior administration official.
The MOU states that the two nations “and their respective allies in the current war” will permanently end military operations — including against Lebanon, a stipulation that suggests the deal is meant to suspend Israel’s retaliatory strikes against Hezbollah, a provision for which Israel has not yet expressed approval. Iran “reaffirms” in the MOU that it will not “procure or develop nuclear weapons”…
The MOU text also reveals that the U.S. plans to issue a sanctions waiver to Iran so that it can sell oil, a major policy shift away from Trump’s use of sanctions against Iran. If a final deal is reached, the U.S. committed to ending all sanctions on Iran. Trump said earlier in the day at the G7 summit in France that the U.S. will not invest in Iran but would not stop other countries from doing so, JI’s Matthew Shea reports.
One new piece of information Trump shared on Wednesday that was not directly addressed in the MOU: a nuclear deal between Washington and Tehran would not prohibit the Iranians from possessing ballistic missiles, JI’s Matthew Shea reports. “I mean, they have to have some, because other people have some … It doesn’t work that way. And missiles aren’t the problem,” Trump said at the G7.
The agreement does not address Iran’s ballistic missiles or support for terrorist proxies. At the beginning of the war, the Trump administration said eliminating the ballistic missile threat from Iran was a key war aim…
The MOU asserts that a final deal will be negotiated within 60 days, unless both countries agree to extend the deadline. Iran’s naval blockade on the Strait of Hormuz must be lifted within 30 days.
When talking to reporters after landing in Paris this afternoon, Trump said he does not view the 60-day deadline as a hard deadline. “Just as long as they’re behaving, I really don’t care that much,” Trump said.
Vance, not Trump, will be signing the MOU in Switzerland on Friday. “This way if it works out, I’m going to take the credit. If it doesn’t work out, I’m blaming JD,” Trump said during the G7…
Some Republican senators criticized the MOU, with retiring Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) calling it “the worst foreign policy blunder in decades,” JI’s Marc Rod reports…
Dario Amodei and Sam Altman, the CEOs, respectively, of Anthropic and OpenAI, joined Trump and the other G7 leaders for lunch on Wednesday, along with Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff and Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis…
The planned Senate confirmation hearing for Jay Clayton, Trump’s nominee to serve as director of national intelligence, was scuttled on Wednesday morning after a last-minute Truth Social post from the president saying that the hearing would be canceled, prompting frustration from both Republican and Democratic lawmakers, JI’s Marc Rod reports…
As a major shareholder in Volkswagen, Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund is complicating talks between the German automaker and the Israeli state-owned defense company Rafael over Rafael’s intention to buy a plant from Volkswagen to manufacture components for Israel’s Iron Dome missile-defense systems…
The anti-Israel advocacy group TrackAIPAC, which attacks lawmakers who have received support from pro-Israel groups and donors who have supported Israel-related causes, endorsed Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA), who once was targeted by TrackAIPAC before moving sharply to the left on Israel in recent months…
After eight people were indicted last week for allegedly threatening University of Michigan leaders and their families as part of an anti-Israel pressure campaign, former Michigan Democratic Party Chair Lon Johnson called on the party’s current leadership to review the actions of five of the suspects who were members of the Michigan Democratic Party…
The Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights announced on Wednesday that it is opening an antisemitism investigation into the American Psychological Association, the nation’s largest professional organization for mental health professionals. JI’s Gabby Deutch reported on the APA’s handling of antisemitism last summer…
⏩ 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 some of the country’s most prominent Jewish communal leaders are marking America’s 250th birthday this July Fourth.
Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) will be speaking in the morning at a fireside chat at the Hudson Institute focused on “diplomacy, defense and debt.”
We’ll be monitoring the results of Tuesday’s mayoral primary election in Washington, D.C., which still has not been called, even as Janeese Lewis George leads Kenyan McDuffie 53% to 37%, with 68% of the vote counted.
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Transferring responsibilities
The move marks a major step in the White House’s efforts to dismantle the Education Department and significantly reduce or distribute its work
TRUST ISSUES
Senators on both sides of the aisle say they’re eager to see the text of the agreement, but the administration has not yet made plans to brief Congress
Cassidy said the deal leaves Iran stronger and sanctions-free, while senators including Tillis, Cruz and Scott pushed back on Trump's acceptance of Iranian ballistic missiles
Photo by Al Drago/Getty Images)
Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) departs a meeting with Senate Republicans in the U.S. Capitol on June 28, 2025 in Washington, DC.
Some Senate Republicans are breaking with President Donald Trump over his handling of Iran, pushing back on the memorandum of understanding’s significant financial relief to the regime and Trump’s comments on Wednesday that he is willing to accept an Iranian ballistic missile program and some level of nuclear enrichment.
“Reagan is rolling over in his grave,” retiring Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) said on X. “Iran’s nuclear ambitions were not curbed, and they have learned that threatening the Strait of Hormuz works and will undoubtedly leverage it in the future. Now, Iran gets to build brand-new infrastructure under this deal.”
Cassidy recently voted in favor of war powers resolutions that aimed to prevent further combat operations in Iran. He’s retiring after being defeated by a Trump-backed primary challenger.
“Before the war, the Strait [of Hormuz] was open, Iran was being crushed by sanctions and 13 service members were still alive,” Cassidy said. “Now, 13 Americans are dead, families have paid billions at the pump, sanctions will be lifted, and the bombing has stopped. This is the worst foreign policy blunder in decades.”
He subsequently explained to reporters: “Iran went from having sanctions and now is having no sanctions. Hundreds of billions of dollars [are] being paid to it. Our allies are weaker. Our opponent is stronger. You say the strait’s open — the strait was open four months ago.”
Asked whether he thought the deal was worse than the Obama-era Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, Cassidy responded, “I didn’t like the JCPOA the first time. I don’t like it the second time.”
While Cassidy was perhaps the most strident critic, numerous Republican senators also expressed their disagreement with Trump’s comments, the deal, or both.
Given that eliminating Iran’s nuclear enrichment and ballistic missile capacity were stated objectives of the war, “$100 billion and 13 lives later, I’ll need to understand that rationalization,” Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) told Jewish Insider of Trump’s comments.
He added later that the $300 billion reconstruction fund laid out in the MOU is “concerning,” though he called the deal preliminary and said he needed to see more details.
“I need to see it taken as a whole. I can’t be against it because I need to see the net. I need to see, have we accomplished what the president set out to accomplish?” Tillis continued. “If you remember, we were going to obliterate their military, we were going to take all of the uranium or any weapons grade uranium out of the country — we’re equivocating on that now. I just need to see what the new deal is now.”
He said that, given the costs of the war, “there needs to be some accountability for Iran. We can’t just walk out because we’re getting a bit skittish over the economic consequences of going to war to begin with.”
While Trump argued that Iran should be able to have ballistic missiles because others in the region do as well, Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL) said that the difference is that other countries in the region aren’t American adversaries.
“I would be fine [with them having missiles] if they didn’t want to kill Americans. I don’t care if Saudi Arabia has them, or if Israel has them because they don’t want to kill us,” Scott told JI. “But if somebody wants to kill me, I don’t want them to have a ballistic missile.”
Asked about the financial benefits Iran is set to receive under the deal, Scott said that he does not want any U.S. funding to support Iran, and that Iran should be paying the U.S. reparations instead.
“I’m not spending a dime for Iran. I want them to pay us for what we had to do,” Scott continued.
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) warned against giving Iran a financial windfall, though he placed blame for the situation on those around the president, rather than Trump himself.
“History teaches that giving billions of dollars to theocratic lunatics who want to murder us is not a good idea,” Cruz said. “I think the President is receiving some very poor advice on this deal.”
Cruz said on his podcast that “if this deal is giving them $300 billion, that’s a mistake. I hope that is not the case.” But he also said that it is “absurd” to compare it to the JCPOA in light of the U.S. military action against Iran’s nuclear program.
“What I’m urging the president, what I’m saying to him, is don’t give away the victory. I don’t believe he’s doing so, I hope he’s not doing so, I hope his administration is not doing so,” Cruz said. “We have defeated their military, don’t suddenly come in with massive buckets of cash to let them rebuild and become a threat to America again.”
He added on X that the fact that Biden Iran Envoy Rob Malley supported the deal “may be the most serious criticism that can possibly be leveled against it.”
Sen. Pete Ricketts (R-NE) said that “it’s a bad idea to allow Iran to have a ballistic missile program,” though he said he was waiting to see what the text of the deal says on the issue of enrichment. Sen. Mike Rounds (R-SD) told JI, “I don’t feel the same way” as Trump on the missile and enrichment issues.
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), one of the most vocal supporters of the Iran war on Capitol Hill, offered his support for the MOU in a lengthy X post following a conversation with special envoy Steve Witkoff.
“It is my opinion that signing the MOU will be beneficial to the United States, in as much as the Strait of Hormuz will begin to open, and the hostilities with Iran will stop,” Graham said. “Whether or not the United States can reach an acceptable, verifiable deal with Iran regarding its nuclear program and other issues is yet to be determined, but I see little downside to trying.”
He added that the MOU would also be worthwhile as an “essential step” toward enabling the normalization of relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel, restoring economic stability and ending the war.
Despite that, Graham still broke with Trump on his comments on Iranian nuclear enrichment.
“I’m not OK with nuclear enrichment at all,” Graham said.
Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO), who has been one of the most vocal GOP advocates for bringing the war to a close, said that he’s “glad the strait is reopening” and “glad that their nuclear program is under rubble and presumably will stay that way.”
“I don’t really want to give them any money,” Hawley continued. “I discourage that. I would not want to do that. But, let’s see what happens and I wish the VP all the best of luck.”
Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS), the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, told JI he would continue to withhold comment on Iran, the same response he’s been offering to reporters on the deal throughout the week.
On the Democratic side, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) said that the deal constituted “unconditional surrender … by us, not by Iran,” referencing Trump’s demands earlier in the war.
“There seems to be no objective of this war that has been accomplished and in fact has emboldened Iran internally and strengthened their standing in the world community,” Blumenthal continued. “They’ve taken the best punch we could give them and they seem bolder than ever.”
He said that the financial benefits Iran is set to receive under the MOU “will enable them to support their malign proxies in the region, causing more instability and bloodshed.”
Blumenthal said that Iran’s objectives of “death to America and death to Israel … will only be advanced by this huge amount of money and additional freedom they have to sell their oil with lifting sanctions.”
Text of the 14-point MOU was read aloud to reporters on a phone call with a senior administration official
Daniel SLIM / AFP via Getty Images
The White House is seen in Washington, DC, on December 17, 2025.
The Trump administration on Wednesday shared with journalists the official text of the memorandum of understanding between the U.S. and Iran to establish a ceasefire with Iran, permanently end Israel’s war against Hezbollah in Lebanon, reopen the Strait of Hormuz while ending the U.S. naval blockade and kickstart a 60-day negotiation period on the future of Iran’s nuclear program and the possibility of lifting U.S. sanctions on Tehran.
The 14-point agreement was read aloud by a senior administration official on a call with reporters. The White House did not provide a written copy of the agreement after the readout.
Below is the agreement as delivered on the call:
The United States of America and the Islamic Republic of Iran, hereinafter referred to as the “Parties,” have jointly agreed in good faith on [Date] to the following:
Paragraph 1 – Cessation of Hostilities
The Parties and their respective allies in the current war, by signing this MOU, declare the immediate and permanent termination of all military operations on every front, including in Lebanon. The Parties undertake not to initiate any war or military operation against each other, to refrain from the threat or use of force against one another, and to respect the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Lebanon. The final deal will confirm the permanent termination of the war on all fronts, including Lebanon, and will incorporate the other provisions of this paragraph.
Paragraph 2 – Sovereignty and Non-Interference
The Parties undertake to respect each other’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and to refrain from interfering in each other’s internal affairs.
Paragraph 3 – Timeline for Final Deal
The Parties commit to negotiating and concluding the final deal within a maximum of 60 days, extendable only by mutual consent.
Paragraph 4 – Naval Blockade and Force Posture
Immediately upon signing this MOU, the United States shall begin removing its naval blockade and any other impediments or disturbances imposed on the Islamic Republic of Iran, and shall fully lift the naval blockade within 30 days. During this period, vessel traffic shall be progressively restored toward pre-war levels. The United States further undertakes to withdraw its forces from the proximity of the Islamic Republic of Iran within 30 days after the conclusion of the final deal.
Paragraph 5 – Strait of Hormuz and Maritime Security
Upon signing this MOU, the Islamic Republic of Iran shall, using its best efforts, arrange for the safe and free passage of commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz with no charge for a period of 60 days, in both directions (Persian Gulf to Sea of Oman and vice versa). Commercial vessel traffic shall resume immediately. Iran shall complete the necessary technical and military measures, including demining, within 30 days. The Islamic Republic of Iran will engage in dialogue with the Sultanate of Oman and other Persian Gulf littoral states to define future administration and maritime services in the Strait of Hormuz, in accordance with applicable international law and the sovereign rights of coastal states.
Paragraph 6 – Reconstruction and Economic Development
The United States, in coordination with regional partners, undertakes to develop a definitive, mutually agreed reconstruction and economic development plan for the Islamic Republic of Iran valued at a minimum of $300 billion (USD). The implementation mechanism for this plan shall be finalized as part of the final deal within 60 days. The United States shall grant all required licenses, waivers, and permissions necessary for the relevant financial transactions.
Paragraph 7 – Sanctions Termination
The United States undertakes to terminate all sanctions against the Islamic Republic of Iran — including UN Security Council resolutions, IAEA Board of Governors resolutions, and all unilateral U.S. primary and secondary sanctions — according to an agreed schedule to be included in the final deal. The Parties acknowledge the critical importance of the sanctions issue and express their intention to address it immediately in negotiations to reach mutual agreement.
Paragraph 8 – Nuclear Issues
The Islamic Republic of Iran reaffirms that it shall not procure or develop nuclear weapons. The Parties agree to resolve the disposition of Iran’s stockpiled enriched material through a mutually agreed mechanism, with the baseline method being on-site down-blending under IAEA supervision, in accordance with the sanctions-termination schedule in Paragraph 7. The Parties will also discuss Iran’s enrichment activities and other nuclear-related matters within a satisfactory framework to be agreed in the final deal. The final deal will confirm the provisions of this paragraph. The Parties acknowledge the critical importance of these nuclear issues and intend to address them immediately in negotiations.
Paragraph 9 – Status Quo Pending Final Deal
Pending the final deal, the Parties agree to maintain the status quo: the Islamic Republic of Iran will maintain the current status of its nuclear program, and the United States will not impose any new sanctions or deploy additional forces in the region.
Paragraph 10 – Oil Export Waivers
Immediately upon signing this MOU and until the termination of sanctions, the U.S. Department of the Treasury shall issue waivers authorizing the export of Iranian crude oil, petroleum products, derivatives, and all associated services (including banking, insurance, and transportation).
Paragraph 11 – Access to Frozen Funds and Assets
The United States shall make fully available all frozen or restricted Iranian funds and assets. Upon implementation of this MOU, the Parties will mutually agree on procedures for the release and use of these funds during negotiations. Such funds shall be usable for payments to any ultimate beneficiary designated by the Central Bank of the Islamic Republic of Iran. The United States shall issue all necessary licenses and authorizations to this end.
Paragraph 12 – Monitoring Mechanism
The Parties agree to establish an executive mechanism to monitor the implementation of this MOU and future compliance with the final deal.
Paragraph 13 – Sequencing of Negotiations
After signing this MOU, and subject to the commencement and continued implementation of Paragraphs 1, 4, 5, 10, and 11, the Parties shall begin negotiations on the remaining elements of the final deal.
Paragraph 14 – UN Security Council Endorsement
The final deal shall be endorsed by a binding United Nations Security Council resolution.
Senators on both sides of the aisle say they’re eager to see the text of the agreement, but the administration has not yet made plans to brief Congress
Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images
Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) attends the Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing titled "Arms Control and Transforming International Security Functions at the State Department," in Dirksen building on Tuesday, March 24, 2026.
Republican senators said on Tuesday that they’re skeptical that Iran will hold to any commitments it has made or may make in negotiations with the U.S., and urged the administration to release the terms of the memorandum of understanding announced on Sunday.
The administration has not yet communicated any specific plans to brief Congress on the deal.
“Rather than an end to the activities in Iran, I think it’s more of an intermission,” Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) told reporters. “We still haven’t seen what the documents look like, and regardless of what they look like, I don’t think you can trust the Iranian regime.”
Cornyn added, “I need to see the writing — I need to see the print. But I don’t believe that the regime will abide by it.”
Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) emphasized that the U.S. has been in similar positions with Iran before, and that they have not resulted in a viable long-term agreement. He told Jewish Insider that he thinks it’s “generous to call it a deal, it sounds like it’s a deal in progress … and if we’re making progress, that’s good.”
But he said that it’s hard for him to assess an agreement “that we only get described in broad strokes.”
He said he would also be uncomfortable with any arrangement that provided Iran with a financial windfall. Multiple outlets reported Tuesday afternoon that the MOU includes financial incentives for Iran, including lifting various sanctions.
“I’m worried only because at least some of our decisions seem to be affected by the short-term economic impact [of the war], and that’s not a good decision,” Tillis said. “Talking about some of the money that Iran’s going to start receiving. … If all of the sudden we’re pulling back some of the things that were in place even before the operation, I’ve got a real concern because they’re a totalitarian regime.”
He told JI that the U.S.’s current posture and negotiations with Iran make it appear that “we’re willing to accept a totalitarian regime, and so the question is, how does this agreement match up against the original objectives of this initiative” as laid out by the administration at the beginning of the war.
Tillis added that Trump should explain to the country the national security interests and necessities of the U.S. operations against Iran, and that some short-term economic harm might be a consequence of that.
“That should be the case to the American people, and then you stay strong, versus have a sub-optimal or bad deal that actually enriches the very people that you were focused on trying to take out,” Tillis said. “Now that we’re here, you can’t all of a sudden say that because people are really frustrated with gas prices, that the nuclear threat in Iran is a manageable risk, because that is 180 degrees away from the predicate for going in there to begin with.”
Tillis said that the final deal should be made public, or at least shown to members in a classified setting — though he said he was skeptical there was much substance in the page-and-a-half document described by Vice President JD Vance, given its length.
He also reiterated comments from Monday that any final agreement should be subject to ratification by Congress, as the only way to ensure that such a deal would last.
“Trump could have a real foreign policy legacy but he’s been poorly influenced because he’s just so insecure. I’ve never seen anything like it. His conviction is his own popularity, his own attention, his own credit. It hurts my heart a little,” another Republican senator told JI. “I just was hoping that the second term he wouldn’t do what he’s done, and that is to make it all about himself like his first term.”
“I don’t know what’s in [the MOU],” the senator added. “Don’t trust any senator who says they know what’s in the deal. They don’t know. I mean, none of us know, not really.”
Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) told JI the agreement “looks to me like it’s a deal to make a deal.”
“The only facts I know today are that the blockades on both sides have been lifted. We’re supposed to negotiate more over [60] days,” Kennedy continued. “The Iranian government Iran lies like fish swim. I have no idea, and neither does anyone else, whether they will make concessions. The other thing I know is that Iran is immeasurably weaker today than it was a year ago.”
He added that he does not expect that the “religious zealots” in Iran have “had an epiphany” and will give up their nuclear program.
Kennedy said he’s “sure” the text of the deal will be released this week. In the interim, “If you don’t know [what’s in it], you should shut up, and none of us … know what’s in it. I think we ought to wait and see what’s in it first,” Kennedy continued.
Asked about reports that Iran would be receiving up-front sanctions relief as part of the MOU, Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL) said, “I’d be surprised, I haven’t seen that. I think we’re all in the position we’d like to see the MOU. Unless there’s something in there that they’ve already changed their ways, I don’t know how you’d be entitled to sanctions relief.”
“I think we’d all like to see it,” Scott reiterated, when asked whether he was concerned the administration hasn’t released the text yet. “Then we’d be able to answer questions on specifics.”
Though some Senate Republicans are eager to see the agreement, there do not yet appear to be any specific plans to brief them on it. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) told JI on Tuesday that he was not yet aware of any plans for the administration to brief Congress on the contents of the MOU between the U.S. and Iran, as lawmakers continue to call for transparency on the agreement.
“Not that I’m aware of yet. [I’m] going to find that out,” Thune told JI, when asked whether the administration had notified him of plans to brief lawmakers.
On the other hand, Sen. Pete Ricketts (R-NE), said, “The administration probably has a reason for doing what they’re doing. I don’t know what it is, have not been briefed. We’ll all find out on Friday, and then I expect a briefing after that.”
Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-MO) likewise said his understanding is that the text of the agreement will be released after the formal signing ceremony on Friday.
Democrats have also been critical of the administration for failing to release the text of the MOU, and described it as a bad deal — though many say they support an end to the conflict anyway.
“He has not released text, but we know one thing about this president: if he had a great deal, he’d be jumping up and down, and doing a press event with the text. The fact that he announced the deal, got on a plane, left the country, and is now letting JD Vance explain it tells you everything you need to know,” Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) told JI.
He said he doesn’t expect the administration to come to “consult, brief or include us” in any capacity, including under the Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act.
“They should have come to us, consulted us, briefed us and explained to the American people what their objectives were at the outset, but I don’t expect their conduct to be any different at the conclusion, if there is one. This is such an internally flawed arrangement that it seems to be inevitable that it will fall apart in a matter of weeks,” Coons continued.
“Trump must hold a classified meeting on his so-called ‘understanding’ with Iran. He must brief all of Congress,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said. “He must inform the American people and make the ‘understanding’ public. … Americans need to know how and when this war will truly end.”
Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) said that if the deal touches on Iran’s nuclear program, the administration legally has to submit the agreement to Congress, but if the current deal does not include specific commitments on the nuclear program, it may not need to be submitted.
“We’ll know on Friday, and at that point, when it’s all out on the table, I probably have more to say,” Kaine said, declining to comment on potential concessions in the deal until it has been publicized.
Plus, primary day in Washington, D.C.
Aaron Schwartz/Sipa/Bloomberg via Getty Images
President Donald Trump speaks during a maternal healthcare event in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, US, on Monday, May 11, 2026.
Good Tuesday morning.
In today’s Daily Kickoff, we look at how legislators and Jewish groups are responding to details surrounding the memorandum of understanding between the U.S. and Iran, and cover last night’s NY-10 debate between Rep. Dan Goldman and Brad Lander, where Israel and AIPAC again took center stage. We report on the influx of suspected GOP spending in the NY-17 Democratic primary as Cait Conley and Beth Davidson jockey for the chance to challenge Rep. Mike Lawler, and spotlight a new Meta initiative, announced by Ivanka Trump, to supply AI glasses to visually impaired veterans. Also in today’s Daily Kickoff: Eric Goldstein, Boris Epshteyn and Joel Scanlon.
Today’s Daily Kickoff was curated by JI Executive Editor Melissa Weiss and Israel Editor Tamara Zieve, with an assist from Marc Rod. Have a tip? Email us here.
What We’re Watching
- Members of the G7, including President Donald Trump, are in Évian-les-Bains, France, for a multiday summit. Trump is scheduled to meet today with United Arab Emirates President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and met earlier today with Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani on the sidelines of the summit.
- Speaking to media alongside the Qatari emir after their meeting, Trump said about the war with Iran, “Working with Qatar and the people of Qatar was really a pleasure — they were tough, they were strong, they are closest to Iran physically so … you were in a more dangerous position but I do have to say you fought and you helped us and with great bravery so I just want to compliment you on that and you will always be my friend.” Trump also noted that Qatar would be investing “much more than a trillion dollars” in the U.S.
- Vice President JD Vance, whose newest book, Communion: Finding My Way Back to Faith, comes out today, is slated to be interviewed this afternoon by Megyn Kelly.
- Vance’s appearance on “The Megyn Kelly Show” comes amid growing calls from Capitol Hill and beyond for the U.S. to make public the text of the memorandum of understanding with Iran, after Vance and Trump gave conflicting timelines for its release — and as Iranian-affiliated media outlets publish details they claim are part of the agreement. Trump said yesterday in Paris that the text would be released after a signing ceremony on Friday in Switzerland, while a senior U.S. official told journalists on Monday that the text would be released within 24-48 hours.
- Voters in Washington, D.C., head to the polls today to cast ballots in the city’s mayoral primary, where D.C. Councilmember Janeese Lewis George, who repeatedly clashed with the city’s Jewish community over her ties to the Democratic Socialists of America and comments about Israel, faces former D.C. Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie. More below.
- In Georgia, Republicans will vote today in the runoff to select the party’s candidate to challenge Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-GA) in November. The race will pit Rep. Mike Collins (R-GA), who is endorsed by Trump and has faced a series of controversies related to antisemitism and conspiracy theorists while in office, against Derek Dooley, the favored candidate of the state’s GOP governor, Brian Kemp. Read more about the race here.
- The Senate Select Committee on Intelligence is holding a closed briefing this afternoon.
- The Sami Rohr Jewish Literary Institute will announce the winner of the annual Sami Rohr Prize today. This year’s finalists are Laura Hobson Faure, Shaul Kelner, Jordan Salama and Amir Tibon.
What You Should Know
A QUICK WORD WITH JI’S GABBY DEUTCH
Today’s mayoral primary in Washington, D.C., has not gotten the same kind of frenzied national attention that accompanied recent mayoral contests in New York City, which pitted Zohran Mamdani, a democratic socialist, against a centrist Democrat, and in Los Angeles, where Republican Spencer Pratt made an insurgent bid against Mayor Karen Bass and Nithya Raman, a Democrat Socialists of America-affiliated councilmember.
Still, there are dynamics with some similarities to the race in Washington, where DSA member Janeese Lewis George, a District councilmember, faces Kenyan McDuffie, a former councilmember running a more moderate campaign. And, like in New York, divisions over the Israeli-Palestinian conflict have surfaced in a way that would once have been unexpected in a municipal election, at least before the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks in Israel and the ensuing war in Gaza.
Early this year, Lewis George sparked concern among some Jewish Washingtonians when she said in a DSA questionnaire that she would not attend events that “promot[e] Zionism” and that she would avoid engaging with “the Israeli government or Zionist lobby groups.”
She has since done a degree of damage control — meeting privately with rabbis and pledging at a Jewish candidate forum last month not to exclude people “based on your opinions or feelings on matters here and across the world,” even as she avoided answering a question asking her to clarify her views on Zionism. In March, she said it is not a conflict to support “Palestinian human rights” and to “stand firm in my commitment against antisemitism.”
McDuffie saw an opening with the DSA endorsement kerfuffle, particularly when talking to Jewish voters, a constituency he has sought to engage. He told Jewish Insider in April that he would not seek the endorsement of DSA or any organization “that requires some sort of divisive pledge to exclude people that are a part of the fabric of the community.” And he has opted not to weigh in on questions about Israel at all, saying it is not the role of a mayor to conduct foreign policy.
But zoom out, and the candidates’ approaches to Israel and Jewish communal issues were not front and center in the closing days of this race. The campaign has otherwise zeroed in on cost-of-living concerns and a dispute over who will better be able to counter President Donald Trump.
SCOOP
Top Trump administration officials shared new details on Monday about the memorandum of understanding reached by the U.S. and Iran over the weekend, arguing that the new agreement is substantially better than the 2015 Iran nuclear deal and could pave the way for a new relationship between Washington and Tehran, Jewish Insider’s Matthew Shea reports.
VP remarks: During an interview with CNBC, Vice President JD Vance said, “What this agreement does is say to the Iranians that ‘You don’t have access to the money to rebuild that nuclear program, but if you’re willing to give up that program long-term, if you’re willing to accept the inspections and verification regime that’s necessary to give us the confidence you’re never going to have a nuclear weapon, then we want you to be a prosperous country, and we will re-invite you into the community of nations.’”
Congressional review: Several Republican senators said that the administration does not need to submit the recently signed 60-day memorandum of understanding with Iran to Congress for review and a potential vote under the Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act, potentially sidestepping the first major opportunity for Congress to weigh in on the agreement, JI’s Marc Rod and Emily Jacobs report.
WAIT AND SEE
With scant details provided by the Trump administration about the contours of the peace deal with Iran, Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) said on Monday afternoon that he doesn’t yet know enough about the administration’s deal with Iran to determine whether it is a good deal that will prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
Leadership lowdown: “I don’t know enough about it to say,” Thune told reporters. “I think the issues are going to be compliance, and how you can enforce that, and what are the financial incentives that the Iranians have from our country, and what are they conditioned upon.” Thune also indicated that he believes the deal should be submitted to Congress for review under the Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act. Thune said that “somebody” from the administration, whether that be Vice President JD Vance or other officials, “will need to” come to the Hill to brief members.
Deal divide: Some mainstream Jewish organizations are treating the deal as a preliminary step — focusing on the 60-day negotiating period ahead, while others are expressing skepticism about the contours of the agreement.
PRIMARY PLAY
With the Democratic primary in New York’s 17th Congressional District coming down to a two-person race between veteran and former national security official Cait Conley and Rockland County Legislator Beth Davidson, an alleged Republican-linked group is spending big in an effort to block Conley from the nomination, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
Last-minute money: A shadowy group that has been tenuously linked to GOP operatives recently announced plans to spend at least $1.5 million in the race against Conley, running ads echoing Davidson’s own messaging against Conley. The campaign suggests Republicans see Conley as the more competitive general election candidate.
DEBATE NIGHT
Israel again took center stage on Monday night in a debate between former New York City Comptroller Brad Lander and Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY) — with the incumbent congressman trying to prove his progressive bona fides by criticizing AIPAC, despite the group’s support for his campaigns, Jewish Insider’s Will Bredderman reports.
Israel and AIPAC: Both candidates, each a self-identified “progressive Zionist,” inveighed in the televised face-off on PIX11 against Israel’s conduct of the war in Gaza, although Goldman declined to join Lander in calling the military actions a “genocide.” But the embattled Goldman, trailing in all available polls in the NY-10 race, also criticized AIPAC, despite acknowledging he has received the group’s endorsement.
EYE ON THE PRIZE
Ivanka Trump on Friday announced a collaboration between Meta and the Blinded Veterans Association that aims to donate Ray-Ban Meta AI glasses to all legally blind American veterans, which the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs estimates number roughly 130,000. The event was co-hosted by Meta and UFC, Jewish Insider’s Christina Sher reports.
Launch event: Speaking at a Freedom 250 reception at Ned’s Club Washington, Trump said Meta will “give every blind veteran in America a free pair of glasses as just a small way to say thank you for your service.” The initiative was spearheaded by Trump alongside Meta President Dina Powell McCormick, who served as deputy national security advisor for strategy in the first Trump administration. Also speaking at the reception, Powell McCormick said that Meta believes “superintelligence is going to help people find their purpose in life.”
Worthy Reads
Islamist Wave Crashing: The New York Times’ Ben Hubbard does a deep dive into the history of political Islam amid questions over whether the movement is in decline. “The map of the Middle East is dotted with examples of idealistic Islamist visions that failed to manifest into real-world successes. Their proponents may have marshaled popular support, for a time. They may have held the levers of power. They may have governed, or tried, in line with their views of Islamic law. But today, in most cases, they did not last. … Iran’s current travails have intensified discussion among experts about whether political Islam has crested and what that means for the Middle East and the broader Muslim world.” [NYTimes]
Trump’s Blind Spot: The Wall Street Journal’s Walter Russell Mead considers how President Donald Trump has miscalculated in his approach to Iran. “Mr. Trump’s disregard for ideas, ideals and people who claim to believe in them leads him to underestimate the strength and determination of people who mean what they say. … However perverse and depraved the ideas that animate the Islamic Republic and Hezbollah, they inspire the kind of conviction that motivates people to fight grimly on against the odds. In the end, Mr. Trump underestimated Iran’s determination and resilience and launched a war that is proving much costlier and harder to end than he’d expected.” [WSJ]
Word on the Street
Axios reports that CIA Director John Ratcliffe warned President Donald Trump and other senior administration officials in the lead-up to the announcement of an MOU with Iran that U.S. intelligence indicated that Tehran was unlikely to make Washington’s desired nuclear concessions; Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth reportedly raised concerns about the agreement, while Vice President JD Vance, White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner backed the deal…
The Wall Street Journal reports that Boris Epshteyn, Trump’s personal attorney, joined the legal team of Indian billionaire Gautam Adani, who in 2024 was facing accusations of fraud by the Justice Department…
Axios spotlights the outsized role that Epshteyn plays in the White House, noting that Trump jokingly calls the lawyer “my psychiatrist” because of how often they speak…
Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) is backing Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan over Rep. Angie Craig (D-MN) in the state’s open Senate race; Klobuchar said that though she was “friends with both,” she was backing Flanagan because the two appear together on the state’ Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party ticket…
The Washington Post quietly removed two recently republished op-eds authored by a former Daily Caller staffer who had published racist and antisemitic writings under a pseudonym on a white supremacist website…
The New York Times is reviewing pieces by Nicholas Kristof, after Semafor discovered that on at least a dozen occasions, the columnist had quoted and reported on individuals who had contributed to his 2021 Oregon gubernatorial campaign without disclosing the relationship…
Former George W. Bush administration official Joel Scanlon was announced on Monday as the new president and CEO of the Hudson Institute, a conservative think tank in Washington, Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch reports…
The Hollywood Reporter spotlights Los Angeles chef Eric Greenspan’s new restaurant Mish, which gives an updated take on classic Jewish deli fare…
A U.K. appeals court ruled that the government’s banning of the Palestine Action was lawful, calling London’s proscription of the activist group “justified and proportionate”…
Qatar plans to scale up its production of liquified natural gas after the Strait of Hormuz reopens, with a goal of restoring some 80% of its export capacity within two months; the moves comes after the Gulf nation’s Ras Laffan facility was damaged in an Iranian missile attack early in the war…
El Al inked a deal with Elon Musk’s Starlink to provide free high-speed internet to passengers traveling with the airline, beginning in 2027…
Far-right Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir canceled a planned family trip to the U.S. amid challenges in obtaining a visa; Ben-Gvir, who has a history of criminal convictions in Israeli courts that could render him ineligible for a common ESTA visa, chose to forgo the trip after he was summoned to the U.S. Embassy to be fingerprinted…
Israel’s Defense Ministry accused organizers of the Eurosatory defense show in Paris of building walls around the booths of some Israeli defense technology firms, claiming that the companies had abided by a request from organizers to only display defensive weapons systems…
Pic of the Day
Pope Leo XIV met on Monday with a delegation from UJA-Federation of New York at the Vatican. Outgoing UJA CEO Eric Goldstein presented the pontiff with a menorah with an inscription expressing hope that the pope’s leadership “shine a bright light on unity, peace, tolerance, and human dignity for all.”
Birthdays
Singer-songwriter, Benjamin Lev Kweller turns 45…
Professor of theoretical physics at Stanford University, Leonard Susskind turns 86… Brigadier-general (ret.) in the IDF, then a member of Knesset, then chairman of Ha’aguda Lema’an Hachayal, a nonprofit IDF veterans group, Avigdor Kahalani turns 82… Former dean of Yeshiva College, U.S. ambassador to Egypt for President Bill Clinton, and U.S. ambassador to Israel for President George W Bush, Daniel C. Kurtzer turns 77… Professor at Nanjing University and China’s leading professor of Jewish studies, Xu Xin turns 77… Rickey Wolosky Palkovitz turns 77… Investigative reporter who worked for Newsweek, NBC News and then Yahoo News, Michael Isikoff turns 74… Principal executive at Kohn & Associates and chairman of the board of directors at ARMR Sciences Inc., he was the volunteer varsity and junior varsity boys and girls basketball coach at Farber Hebrew Day School in Southfield, Mich., for more than three decades, Kenneth I. Kohn turns 73… UC Berkeley professor, Alison Gopnik turns 71… Professor of Jewish studies at the University of Freiburg (Germany), Gabrielle Oberhänsli-Widmer turns 69… Distinguished fellow in Jewish studies at Dartmouth College and visiting professor of modern Jewish studies at Harvard Divinity School, Shaul Magid turns 68… Southern California resident, Roberta Trachten-Zeve… Senior project executive at Kansas-based Stuart & Associates Commercial Flooring, Matthew Rafael Elyachar… Pulitzer Prize-winning business reporter and bestselling author, he is a past president of Washington Hebrew Congregation, David A. Vise turns 66… Former chair of the Broward County, Fla., JCRC, he is the co-founder of The Alliance of Blacks & Jews, Keith Wasserstrom… Actor, screenwriter, producer and director, Daniel Zelman turns 59… Senior correspondent for military and intelligence affairs for Yedioth Ahronoth, Ronen Bergman, Ph.D., turns 54… Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit, Julie Rikelman turns 54… CEO and founder of NYC-based Marathon Strategies, Philip Keith (“Phil”) Singer… Israeli photographer, digital artist and artificial intelligence researcher, Dina Bova turns 49… Geographer and writer, Joshua Jelly-Schapiro turns 47… Comedian, actor and YouTuber with almost 100 million views, Adam Ray turns 44… Senior portfolio manager on the Jewish life and Israel grantmaking team at One8 Foundation, Alyssa Bogdanow Arens… Pitcher for Team Israel in the 2023 and 2026 World Baseball Classic tournaments, he has been a free agent since November 2025, Zachary D. “Zack” Weiss turns 34… Head video producer at Ocean One Media, Perry Chencin… Former catcher on Israel’s National Baseball Team at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, now a senior consultant for EY, Tal Erel turns 30… Israeli artistic gymnast who won a gold medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and a silver medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics, Artem Dolgopyat turns 29…
U.S. officials said that the Strait of Hormuz will remain toll-free and Lebanon is not part of the agreement
Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
Vice President J.D. Vance and President Donald Trump
Top Trump administration officials shared new details on Monday about the memorandum of understanding reached by the U.S. and Iran over the weekend, arguing that the new agreement is substantially better than the 2015 Iran nuclear deal and could pave the way for a new relationship between Washington and Tehran.
During an interview with CNBC, Vice President JD Vance said he expects the Strait of Hormuz to be opened immediately “in a toll-free way for the long term.” Vance indicated that he has observed more traffic flow in the strait following the announcement of the deal, but that the way in which the strait fully opens will be determined in technical negotiations.
“What this agreement does is say to the Iranians that ‘You don’t have access to the money to rebuild that nuclear program, but if you’re willing to give up that program long-term, if you’re willing to accept the inspections and verification regime that’s necessary to give us the confidence you’re never going to have a nuclear weapon, then we want you to be a prosperous country, and we will re-invite you into the community of nations,’” Vance said.
Vance said that Iran has agreed to never develop or procure a nuclear weapon and that the U.S. will ensure its stockpile of enriched material is destroyed, adding that technical talks will determine if U.S. ground troops will observe or play an active role in destroying it. He also argued that the latest MOU differs from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action signed under former President Barack Obama in 2015.
The vice president has stated that Iran’s nuclear program and capacity to enrich uranium have both been devastated by the U.S. and Israeli military campaign.
“We have comprehensively destroyed their nuclear program, and this agreement is about ensuring that they don’t rebuild it,” Vance said. “The JCPOA was mainly about bribing them to stop the construction or to cease a nuclear program that was already in progress. It’s a very different background, a very different sort of leverage, and I think really a different outcome for the American people.”
Vance also dismissed reports that Iran would receive billions of dollars without the funding being conditioned on the completion of certain steps, a clarification he made during an interview with CBS.
“When people say that billions of dollars of assets will be released, that’s not true,” Vance said. “What is true is that [there will be] a much better and much more prosperous future if they [Iran] meet the obligations they make in this agreement … that’s one of the things we’re going to work out in the technical talks that will follow the official signing on Friday.”
Vance stressed that the Iranians would attain frozen or other monetary assets only upon meeting verifiable benchmarks. He confirmed that Iran could receive $300 billion in reconstruction funding, as well as $24 billion in frozen assets, but emphasized that the funding would be conditioned on Tehran meeting its obligations.
“It’s set up in such a way where we’re going to have to attach their commitments to deliverables that then are met with economic benefits for the Iranian people,” Vance said on CNN. “On the other hand, if they [Iran] try to rebuild it [their nuclear program] they’re never going to get the financial resources that they would need to rebuild.”
The vice president said that the U.S. has not expended “a single dollar of sanctions relief or unfrozen assets,” stating that reports otherwise are likely from hardliners “within the Iranian system…in an effort to sell it to certain domestic populations.”
However, Vance said the U.S. is “open to a lot of things that are on the table.”
“That $24 billion just doesn’t appear anywhere in any of the texts that we’ve talked about with the Iranians,” Vance said. “What we have said is that we’re willing to talk about unfreezing assets, but a much, much bigger deal is un-sanctioning their economy, so long as they make the long-term commitments on the nuclear program.”
When asked whether the agreement would require Iran to halt support for U.S.-designated terrorist groups such as Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis, Vance indicated that it would, although the specific wording in the agreement appeared to be vague.
“What paragraph one of the agreement says is effectively that Iran commits itself, just as the United States commits itself, to regional peace and stability and part of that is that the Iranians have to stop funding violent terrorist organizations,” Vance said. “They know that we don’t want them to fund terrorist organizations..and be a source of instability in the region.”
The vice president touted the “level of direct connection” established through the latest negotiations, noting that “the people at the highest levels of the United States government are talking to the people at the highest levels of the Iranian government.”
“This is a very interesting thing about these negotiations, is you see people, both the hardliners, but also the more political people, saying, ‘Our relationship with the United States over the past 47 years has been a mistake. Let’s turn over a new leaf,’” he added.
A senior administration official told reporters on Monday that an Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon would not be part of the deal, despite Iranian officials’ insistence that it would be included.
The senior administration official confirmed that nuclear discussions would likely occur first and said the agreement “contemplates” the reduction of U.S. military forces in the region “upon the agreement of a final deal.” However, the official noted that Iran will need to “make some concessions and give up some of their activities and some of their nuclear program.”
A senior U.S. official called out “hardliners on both sides,” saying that they are rooting against “compromise” and “making a lot of noise.”
“There’s a lot of misinformation out there,” the official said. “I think that in any field that I’ve been involved in, I would say nobody roots for the referee. There’s not really a constituency for compromise. So what you’re seeing now is that the hardliners on both sides…we have certain people in the American system who say there’s no deal you could ever do with Iran ever, are obviously making a lot of noise.”
While the full details of the MOU have yet to be released, President Donald Trump indicated on Monday that he expects the document to be made public “sometime after Friday.”
“I want it to be released because it is a really powerful document,” Trump told reporters during a bilateral meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron on the sidelines of the G7 summit in France. “It is not like the Obama documents.”
However, Trump warned that should the deal fall apart, tensions between the U.S. and Iran could return to “where we started.”
“We have done a great job and hopefully it is going to be a good relationship, and we are going to get along,” Trump said. “If we don’t, we go back to where we started, but I don’t think that is necessary.”
Trump reposted a statement by Iran’s foreign minister saying a deal has ‘never been closer’ while urging the media to refrain from speculation about its terms
Foad Ashtari/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi
Despite initially conflicting claims emerging from the White House and Iranian state media about the contents and timing of a memorandum of understanding between the parties, there were indications on Friday that the gaps between the two sides could be closing.
Prime Minister of Pakistan Shehbaz Sharif confirmed that a “final and agreed version of the peace agreement has been achieved,” while Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on X that the memorandum of understanding “has never been closer,” a screenshot of which President Donald Trump reposted directly onto Truth Social.
Terms of the deal, first reported by Axios, include that the Strait of Hormuz would be reopened immediately without tolls and that the ceasefire would be extended for 60 days, including halting Israel’s military action in Lebanon. While the current text includes a framework for addressing Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile, any binding restrictions on its nuclear development would depend on a second, more detailed accord, according to the outlet.
A White House official indicated on Friday that under the broader terms being discussed, Iran’s nuclear material would eventually be destroyed and removed from the country, its nuclear program dismantled and its funding of regional militant groups halted. Frozen Iranian assets would be released upon verified performance of those key metrics.
Iranian state media, however, had reported a vastly different version of the deal, in which Iran would retain control over the strait and receive $300 million from the U.S. for reconstruction, as well as the suspension of sanctions and withdrawal of U.S. forces from the region — among other U.S. concessions.
Trump rebuffed news of the deal’s provisions on Truth Social, writing that “the terms that Iran leaked out to the Fake News have NOTHING to do with the terms that were agreed to, in writing.” Trump reportedly had asked the Iranians to issue public clarification over the Iranian state media reports.
“Very dishonorable people to deal with,” Trump said of the Iranians. “With them, there is no such thing as dealing in good faith.”
Vice President JD Vance also rejected what he called “fake information,” and reiterated that “the president is going to get us a good outcome, one way or the other.”
“First, the Iranians are not receiving any cash, and no funds are being released for simply signing a deal or attending a meeting,” Vance posted on X. “The deal is structured to ensure that the U.S. and its allies’ concerns are prioritized, and that if the Islamic Republic of Iran meets its obligations, then economic benefits will flow to them and to the entire region.”
Araghchi said that pending the finalization of an agreement, “the media should refrain from entering speculation about its content.”
Reports indicate that while the deal has been approved at high levels of Iranian leadership, it has not yet received official clearance from Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, despite Trump asserting he believes Khamenei had given the nod.
The sudden diplomatic momentum dramatically reshaped military operations on Thursday, when Trump ordered the Pentagon to call off scheduled airstrikes and a mission to capture Iran’s vital oil infrastructure on Kharg Island after announcing a deal was close at hand. The president hinted that a formal signing ceremony could take place over the weekend at a neutral venue in Europe, with Vance and White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff expected to attend.
“It seems that after repeated signs of an imminent deal for weeks now, a deal will be clear once U.S. and Iranian officials actually publicly agree to the same agreement,” Ari Cicurel, associate director of foreign policy at the Jewish Institute for National Security of America, told Jewish Insider. “Until then, it’s not clear that they actually have a deal yet.”
Cicurel noted, however, that the latest reports of an accord appear different from previous iterations throughout the conflict. He said he has seen “reports of [U.S. Air Force] aircraft heading to Europe,” which “could be a sign this is further down the road than previous efforts might have been.”
Foreign policy experts have expressed deep concern about the reported framework floated by the Iranian side, with several backing the Trump administration’s claims that it does not reflect the actual state of negotiations.
“I have been calling for Trump to accept the inevitable bad deal to get us out of this bad war. But even I think the absurd terms laid out here [in Iranian media reports] must represent Iranian spin and cannot possibly be the shape of the actual deal,” Dan Shapiro, former U.S. ambassador to Israel under the Biden administration, posted on X.
Richard Goldberg, a former Trump administration official, also expressed skepticism about the initial reporting coming out of Tehran.
“The reported MOU reads like an extortion racket guaranteed to preclude any nuclear concessions and instead lock the U.S. into paying the racket indefinitely for fear of the strait closing,” Goldberg posted on X. “It falls well below anything POTUS would consider a good deal so I question its veracity.”
“The claims that Iran made, if they’re anywhere near true, would be a disastrous agreement that would be rewarding Iranian aggression, providing it funds to further enable its aggression and rebuild its arsenal,” Cicurel said similarly. “The same leadership, the same regime that has been in charge of the proxy agents and conducted aggression against the United States and its partners remains in power.”
However, Cicurel noted that he also holds major concerns regarding the framework being presented by the White House — most notably, that negotiators have failed to address Iran’s missile capabilities.
“My main concern with the White House agreement is that with this proposal, and over the last few weeks, the discussion of Iran’s missile capabilities has disappeared from the conversation, which was a major mistake of the JCPOA and a major mistake of previous agreements,” Cicurel said. “Any agreement that doesn’t include that would enable Iran to take the lessons it’s learned from the current war — that it doesn’t need a lot of missiles, it doesn’t need a lot of drones to exert aggression on the Gulf — and leave a potentially dangerous situation over the long term, in the future.”
Cicurel also took issue with the White House’s indication that the MOU would launch another 60-day ceasefire, warning that the time would allow Iran to delay a durable, long-term settlement and gain leverage. He also argued that the U.S. should not release Iranian assets.
“I don’t think the United States should be unfreezing assets rewarding Iran for for its aggression and allow Iran to leverage its power projection over the Strait of Hormuz to extract financial gains that would enable it to rebuild itself to reassert more of that power projection over the Strait of Hormuz and further attack targets throughout the Middle East,” he said.
In an interview on CNBC, the Israeli premier said ending U.S. aid to Israel will ‘take away the myth that Israel is depleting America's coffers’
Ilia YEFIMOVICH / POOL / AFP via Getty Images
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a ceremony commemorating Israel's Remembrance Day on Mount Herzl in Jerusalem on April 21, 2026.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday that he wants to start the process of winding down U.S. aid to Israel in the final two years of the Trump administration, as both countries work on a new memorandum of understanding.
Netanyahu made the comments in an interview with CNBC’s Sara Eisen after being asked about his political future and when Israel would be ready for new leadership. The prime minister responded by noting that while the Israeli people could decide at “any time” to remove him from power, he is currently focused on achieving four objectives: “finish[ing] the security envelope that we have to make vis-à-vis Iran and its proxies”; securing more investments globally to expand Israel’s AI and tech sectors; normalizing relations with several countries in the Middle East; and ending Israel’s reliance on U.S. aid.
“The other thing I want to do is move away, in America, from aid to partnership. We’re now working on a memorandum of understanding, which will bring down the aid,” Netanyahu said. “I want it to start now, I want it to start in the last two years of the Trump administration and I want it to keep going down, coming to zero, because I think we’ve come of age.”
The current MOU, which provides Israel with $3.8 billion in U.S. military aid annually, runs through FY 2028. Netanyahu did not clarify whether he would like to see aid begin to wind down through changes to the current agreement, or whether he is focused on ongoing negotiations for the next one.
“Israel has a robust economy, and I want us to go from aid to a partnership where we both invest equal amounts and both share equally in the fruits of our innovators and technologies,” he continued. “I think that’s very, very important. It will also take away the myth that Israel is depleting America’s coffers.”
Netanyahu has said on multiple occasions since January that he hopes to wean Israel off of U.S. aid, initially suggesting in January that Israel would work to end U.S. aid within the next ten years. He pitched the aid drawdown to President Donald Trump in late December, an idea the president was initially bewildered by and not supportive of.
Netanyahu also downplayed reports that Trump told him he is “f***ing crazy” in a phone call on Monday about Israel’s military escalation in Lebanon and rejected the notion that his relationship with the president had shifted, noting that the two speak as frequently as “every two days.”
Still, he did not deny that the conversation occurred as reported.
“Sometimes we have, as in the best of families, you have these tactical disagreements. We always find a way to work them out and we do so as great friends,” Netanyahu said. “We can disagree in the morning, and by the afternoon we have common action.”
The ambassador’s comments were seemingly the first confirmation from a U.S. official that such plans are in the works
Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee delivers remarks as President Donald Trump hosts Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for a dinner in the Blue Room of the White House on July 7, 2025, in Washington, DC.
U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee said on X that the next U.S. memorandum of understanding with Israel will end U.S. aid to Israel in favor of prioritizing trade.
“Israel receives $3.8 billion but spends far more than that buying US military goods. US also receives intel, tech innovations so that ROI is many times more,” Huckabee said on his personal account on X, responding to former National Counterterrorism Center Director Joe Kent, who had argued in an interview that U.S. aid to Israel does not confer benefits to America. “New MOU w/ Israel ends aid & will be based on trade.”
Analysts have widely predicted that the next MOU, after the current one ends in 2028, will prioritize partnership programs jointly funded by both sides — which constitute a portion of current U.S. assistance to Israel — rather than direct financial aid, but the comments by Huckabee appear to be the first confirmation from a U.S. official that such plans are in the works.
Huckabee’s comments did not make clear whether the next agreement would phase out aid gradually or immediately.
The comments also come following repeated declarations by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he wants to end U.S. financial assistance to Israel in the next decade, and on a backdrop of growing skepticism of U.S. aid to Israel on both sides of the aisle.
Prominent pro-Israel Republicans have endorsed Netanyahu’s effort to wind down U.S. aid.
But some critics of current U.S. aid are not likely to be satisfied by a shift to a cooperative model, or any system in which the U.S. continues to supply funding that benefits Israel’s defense.
Jewish and pro-Israel groups seem at pains to clarify how they are now assessing an issue that has long been key to their advocacy — particularly as the conversation around funding and the possibility for a new MOU has rapidly evolved in recent months
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
President Donald Trump shakes hands with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a press conference at his Mar-a-Lago club on December 29, 2025 in Palm Beach, Florida.
Late last month, AIPAC circulated what seemed at first glance like a relatively anodyne memo stressing its support for the current 10-year memorandum of understanding between the United States and Israel, which guarantees $3.8 billion in annual military aid and missile-defense funding to Israel through 2028.
“Congress must fulfill America’s commitment by providing full security assistance and missile defense funding to Israel for the remainder of the MOU,” the group wrote in its missive published on April 28.
The memo was notable, however, for what it left out: calling to negotiate a follow-up MOU — the future of which has been a topic of ongoing speculation among analysts and lawmakers beginning to think about the contours of a potential new agreement in a changing political landscape.
That AIPAC had only urged the implementation of the final two years of the current deal was in many ways a tacit acknowledgement of shifting attitudes against U.S. military aid even among supporters of Israel.
The omission, intentional or not, was otherwise reflective of uncertainty around an agreement that has drawn scrutiny not only among Israel critics on the far left and right but also moderate defenders of Israel in both parties who are openly questioning the necessity of U.S. military assistance to a longstanding Middle East ally.
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called for winding down U.S. financial aid over the next decade, saying that the Jewish state has “come of age” and matured economically to continue on its own. In an interview with CBS’ “60 Minutes” earlier this month, he confirmed that he wanted to immediately begin the process of weaning Israel off of U.S. aid, noting the future of the U.S.-Israel alliance should be focused on joint projects equally funded by Israel and the United States.
“Each U.S.-Israel MOU to date — negotiated by Presidents Clinton, Bush and Obama — has laid the framework for the decade ahead, strengthening an alliance that advances American interests, supports a strong and capable ally in an unstable region, and drives a remarkable ecosystem of joint development and cooperation between two reliable allies,” Deryn Sousa, a spokesperson for AIPAC, told Jewish Insider in a recent statement.
Some pro-Israel Republican lawmakers — including Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), John Thune (R-SD), the Senate majority leader, and Roger Wicker (R-MS) — have welcomed the idea, even as the GOP has long touted its staunch support for such funding. Rahm Emanuel, the former Chicago mayor and Democratic presidential prospect who holds close personal ties to Israel, has advocated for immediately ending military aid to Israel, arguing it is not worth expending the “political capital” to promote spending that is facing mounting opposition in Congress and among voters.
But Jewish and pro-Israel groups seem at pains to clarify how they are now assessing an issue that has long been key to their advocacy — particularly as the conversation around such funding and the possibility for a new MOU, which remains an open question, has rapidly evolved in recent months.
“Each U.S.-Israel MOU to date — negotiated by Presidents Clinton, Bush and Obama — has laid the framework for the decade ahead, strengthening an alliance that advances American interests, supports a strong and capable ally in an unstable region, and drives a remarkable ecosystem of joint development and cooperation between two reliable allies,” Deryn Sousa, a spokesperson for AIPAC, told Jewish Insider in a recent statement.
She added, “We appreciate the Trump administration working closely with the Israeli government toward a new agreement that will strengthen and define the mutually beneficial partnership in the years ahead.”
“We’re figuring it out ourselves,” said Michael Makovsky, the president and CEO of the Jewish Institute for National Security of America, adding that he believed Israel “made a mistake” in choosing to forgo U.S. financial aid. He suggested that the U.S. sign “one more” MOU with Israel to cover the next 10 years and help Israel replenish its munitions stocks amid the war against Iran, which he believes is key to advancing American interests in the region. “It zeroes down at the very end,” he explained to JI.
In lieu of an agreement, Makovsky floated “non-monetary” alternatives, for instance, a U.S.-Israel mutual defense treaty — though he questioned whether such a pact could gain enough support in the Senate, where most Democrats recently voted in favor of resolutions to block arms sales to Israel.
Former U.S. and Israeli officials have also recently called for building closer technological ties between the two countries, in anticipation of an era in which financial aid is not a defining feature of the alliance.
“The model in which Israel is assisted by the United States and receives aid has a very small chance of continuing under any future administration,” former IDF intelligence chief Amos Yadlin said this month while promoting a new strategic technology alliance with Tom Nides, a former U.S. ambassador to Israel. “And perhaps even under the Trump administration, so we need to find a new basis for the relationship that is a transition from aid to partnership.”
Even as analysts had indicated last year that the U.S. should begin considering what the next MOU entails, it is unclear if the process is now seriously underway, as Netanyahu’s remarks have complicated the effort. One Hill staffer to a pro-Israel House member told JI he had no knowledge of discussions at the moment.
President Donald Trump was initially surprised when Netanyahu first proposed winding down U.S. funding late last year and did not immediately lend support to the move, JI has previously reported.
A White House spokesperson declined to comment on the prospects for a future MOU, the framework for which first went into effect in 1998 during the Clinton administration. The current agreement was finalized in 2016 near the end of the Obama administration — which touted the deal as “the largest single pledge of military assistance in U.S. history” at the time.
Tal Naim, a spokesperson for the Israeli Embassy in Washington, referred JI to Netanyahu’s comments to “60 Minutes” this month.
Looking ahead, Brian Romick, the president of Democratic Majority for Israel, said “there can and should be a discussion about how the U.S.-Israeli security relationship should change with the times, how our partnership must evolve as Israel’s own capabilities grow and its security needs change, and how we can align on a long-term vision for the region.”
“While a new MOU should reflect that Israel’s economy has grown, it should also recognize that Israel’s defense requirements have too, and Israel may struggle to fill the gap in its defense budget that the loss of FMF would create,” Justin Leopold-Cohen, a senior research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies’ Center on Military and Political Power who specializes in U.S.-Israel security cooperation, said.
But, he added, “that debate must bring a serious analysis grounded in prioritizing America’s interests and Israel’s security. It cannot shift with political changes or in the middle of a war, especially when American troops are actively deployed in the region. Ultimately this will be a negotiated agreement between two democratically elected governments.”
A spokesperson for the American Jewish Committee likewise used broad strokes to discuss a future MOU, saying it is “far more than a financial commitment.”
The agreement “is a cornerstone of a broader strategic relationship that advances both U.S. and Israeli national security interests, strengthens deterrence against shared adversaries, and reinforces America’s commitment to the security of its closest ally in the Middle East,” the spokesperson told JI. “At a time of growing regional volatility and evolving security threats, maintaining strong and sustained U.S.-Israel security cooperation remains critically important.”
Justin Leopold-Cohen, a senior research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies’ Center on Military and Political Power who specializes in U.S.-Israel security cooperation, said that “there will likely be a new, heavily modified MOU following the current agreement’s expiration.”
Netanyahu, he told JI, “already revealed his desire to phase out American military aid, granted primarily as Foreign Military Financing,” which typically must be used to purchase U.S. defense products and services.
“While a new MOU should reflect that Israel’s economy has grown, it should also recognize that Israel’s defense requirements have too, and Israel may struggle to fill the gap in its defense budget that the loss of FMF would create,” Leopold-Cohen said.
Dan Shapiro, a U.S. ambassador to Israel in the Obama administration who served as a top defense official in the Biden administration, speculated that “the next MOU — if there is an MOU — will look very different from the current one.”
“It will likely phase out FMF, which both Prime Minister Netanyahu and Americans from the left and right are calling for,” Shapiro added. “It will likely emphasize joint research and development, sharing technological advances, and expanded co-production to answer President Trump’s question of what’s in it for the United States. To garner bipartisan support, it should include a consultative mechanism to ensure U.S. weapons are only used in ways consistent with American laws and values and that minimize civilian casualties.”
Daniel Silverberg, a former top foreign policy advisor to Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-MD), characterized the MOU as “mutually beneficial,” saying that “it does not need to be exclusively assistance-based.”
“There are many ways to expand cooperation that involve more than giving aid,” he said. “The MOU is a key framework to do so, and it’s crucial to spell that out for a skeptical U.S. audience.”
But, he emphasized to JI, “We can’t want the MOU more than the Israelis want it.”
Prime Minister Netanyahu said he told President Trump that Israel has ‘come of age’ and ‘developed incredible capacity’
Joshua Sukoff/Medill News Service
President Donald J. Trump holds a joint news conference at the White House with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on February 4, 2025.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that Israel is seeking to end the military assistance it receives from the U.S. in the next 10 years, a move that he said is “in the works.”
In an interview with The Economist released Friday, Netanyahu said that during his December visit to President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Fla., he told Trump that Israel “very deeply appreciate[s] the military aid that America has given us over the years.”
But, he said, “we’ve come of age and we’ve developed incredible capacity. And our economy, which will reach, certainly within a decade, will reach about a trillion dollars — it’s not a huge economy, but it’s not a small economy. So I want to taper off military aid within the next 10 years.”
“And that’s not saying that I don’t want to fight for the allegiance and support of the American people — I do, you would have to be crazy not to,” Netanyahu continued.
“You want to taper it off to zero?” Zanny Minton Beddoes, editor-in-chief of The Economist, asked.
“Yes,” Netanyahu said.
“That would be a very dramatic shift,” Beddoes responded.
“Well, it’s in the works,” the prime minister replied.
Israel and the U.S. currently have a 10-year memorandum of understanding that provides Israel with $3.8 billion of security assistance annually, through 2028. Negotiations to establish the next MOU are underway.
Plus, Plus, Rahm's wake-up call for American Jews
Chesnot/Getty Images
PARIS, FRANCE - JUNE 16: Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) poses prior to a working lunch with French President Emmanuel Macron at the Elysee Presidential Palace on June 16, 2023 in Paris, France.
Good Monday morning.
In today’s Daily Kickoff, we look at Israel’s reported push for a new 20-year memorandum of understanding with the U.S., and report on President Donald Trump’s pledge to back a primary challenger to Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene amid an escalating feud between the two. We cover a new bill from 21 House Democrats accusing Israel of genocide that has the backing of Code Pink, and report on the firing of the New Jersey teachers’ union magazine editor over her antisemitic and pro-Hamas posts on social media. Also in today’s Daily Kickoff: Rahm Emanuel, Tua Tagovailoa and New York City Mayor Eric Adams.
Today’s Daily Kickoff was curated by Jewish Insider Executive Editor Melissa Weiss and Israel Editor Tamara Zieve with an assist from Marc Rod. Have a tip? Email us here.
What We’re Watching
- The U.N. Security Council is expected to vote today on a U.S.-proposed resolution backing the White House’s plan for Gaza and showing support for the creation of an International Stabilization Force in the enclave. More below.
- Outgoing New York City Mayor Eric Adams continues his trip to Israel today. Earlier today, Adams held separate meetings with Israeli President Isaac Herzog, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar and New York Consul General Ofir Akunis. He’s slated to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at 3 p.m. local time, followed by meetings with Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana and Jerusalem Mayor Moshe Lion. Tonight, he’ll attend a dinner hosted by the Israel Export Institute honoring the New York City-Israel Economic Council.
- The Jewish Federations of North America’s General Assembly kicked off yesterday in Washington. Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA), Rabbi Angela Buchdahl and Commentary’s John Podhoretz are among the speakers slated to take the main stage in today’s plenaries. Are you at the GA? Say hello to JI’s Gabby Deutch!
- The House is set to vote today on a resolution introduced by Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-WA) “disapproving the behavior” of Rep. Chuy Garcia (D-IL), who announced plans to retire on the last day for candidates to file, hours after his chief of staff had filed her own paperwork to run for the seat. House Democratic leaders have said they plan to kill the resolution.
What You Should Know
A QUICK WORD WITH JI’S LAHAV HARKOV
The members of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s governing coalition spent much of the weekend arguing over something on which they all ostensibly agree — opposition to a Palestinian state.
They may have been expressing their long and openly held opinions, but the timing could be damaging, coming days before Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is set to visit the White House. In the meeting, slated for Tuesday, President Donald Trump is expected to push for normalization between Riyadh and Jerusalem — something the Saudis have long conditioned on tangible steps towards a Palestinian state.
The latest debate started with far-right Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who recently apologized for saying the Saudis can “keep riding camels” rather than normalize ties with Israel in exchange for a Palestinian state. On Saturday night, Smotrich said that Netanyahu was responsible for a “dangerous” increase in pressure on Israel, criticizing the prime minister for not speaking up more forcefully after nearly a dozen countries recognized a Palestinian state earlier this year. “Immediately come up with an appropriate and decisive response that will make clear to the entire world that a Palestinian state will not be established in our homeland,” Smotrich wrote on X.
Next came Likud ministers. “Israel will not agree to the establishment of a terror state in the heart of the Land of Israel,” Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar asserted. “Israel’s policy is clear: A Palestinian state will not be established,” chimed in Defense Minister Israel Katz.
The impetus for reiterating their position was the U.S.-proposed resolution at the United Nations Security Council backing Trump’s plan for Gaza and the formation of an International Stabilization Force, leading to a scenario in which “the conditions may finally be in place for a credible pathway to Palestinian self-determination and statehood.”
It’s unclear where these Cabinet ministers were in late September, when Netanyahu signed onto Trump’s 20-step plan, which uses the exact same language.
The Saudis saw Netanyahu’s agreement to a horizon for Palestinian statehood as satisfying their demand for a step in that direction, an Israeli diplomatic source who frequently advises Netanyahu said earlier this month.
MILITARY MATTERS
With Israel’s current 10-year memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the U.S. set to expire in 2028, Jerusalem is reportedly seeking a renewed and expanded agreement that would run through 2048 — though questions remain over the deal’s final framework and the future of U.S.-Israel assistance, Jewish Insider’s Matthew Shea reports. Israel is looking to finalize a new 20-year agreement that entails more in annual assistance, with hopes of securing the deal within the next year. Negotiations were previously delayed due to the war in Gaza; however, Israeli and U.S. officials confirmed to Axios that initial discussion began in recent weeks. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, however, denied the report.
Time is of the essence: “MOU negotiations typically take a long time, and waiting for both countries to get through their respective 2026 elections puts the start of these talks well into fiscal year 2027,” said Dana Stroul, a senior fellow at The Washington Institute for Near East Policy. “If there are going to be changes in the funding levels, Israeli and American budgeteers will want this information as early as possible.” Experts argued that it would be in Israel’s best interest to secure a deal now amid the uncertainty over future support from U.S. officials. Stroul said Israel “may be calculating that it is better to get out ahead of this trend and lock in U.S. commitments before the midterm elections.”
TROUBLING TIMES
Longtime Democratic official Rahm Emanuel offered a word of warning on Sunday night to the thousands of Jewish communal leaders gathered in Washington to kick off the Jewish Federations of North America’s General Assembly: Don’t expect 2028 presidential candidates to visit Israel like his old boss, Barack Obama, did on the campaign trail in 2008, Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch reports.
Out of flavor: He used an ice cream metaphor to make his point. “If in 2024 the Democrats didn’t have a choice, in 2028 it’s going to be like Baskin-Robbins. There’s gonna be, like, 31 flavors. Some of us are gonna be chocolate mint. Nobody is going to Jerusalem,” Emanuel said at the opening plenary. “Nobody is leaving America to go travel to Jerusalem. That’s the politics. And it’s not just in the Democratic primary.” Emanuel, Obama’s former chief of staff and the former U.S. ambassador to Japan, beseeched the attendees to reckon with the shifting political winds on Israel and work to make a stronger case for the U.S.-Israel relationship.
On the main stage: Four former Israeli hostages — Noa Argamani, Avinatan Or, Evyatar David and Guy Gilboa-Dalal — shared accounts of their time in Hamas captivity, some of which had never before been revealed, at the JFNA’s opening plenary, eJewishPhilanthropy’s Nira Dayanim reports.
CHANGES IN ATTITUDE
President Donald Trump on Friday night publicly disavowed Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), once one of the president’s closest and most committed allies on Capitol Hill, saying he was withdrawing his endorsement of Greene and is prepared to support a primary challenger to the far-right Georgia congresswoman, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
The latest: Trump said on his Truth Social platform that he has heard that “wonderful, Conservative people are thinking about primarying Marjorie” and that “if the right person runs, they will have my Complete and Unyielding Support,” accusing her of having “gone Far Left.” In one of her posts in response, Greene highlighted the fact that she has not received support from pro-Israel groups and suggested that a foreign country is pressuring Trump to distance himself from her.
ON THE HILL
A group of 21 House progressives, led by Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), introduced a resolution accusing Israel of committing genocide in Gaza, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports. The resolution is backed by a slew of anti-Israel groups, including the Democratic Socialists of America, Jewish Voice for Peace, IfNotNow, the Quincy Institute, Sunrise Movement, Amnesty International, Code Pink, CAIR, American Muslims for Palestine, American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee and DAWN.
Sponsor list: The legislation is co-sponsored by Reps. Becca Balint (D-VT), Andre Carson (D-IN), Greg Casar (D-TX), Maxine Dexter (D-OR), Maxwell Frost (D-FL), Chuy Garcia (D-IL), Al Green (D-TX), Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), Hank Johnson (D-GA), Ro Khanna (D-CA), Summer Lee (D-PA), Jim McGovern (D-MA), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Mark Pocan (D-WI), Ayanna Pressley (D-MA), Delia Ramirez (D-IL), Lateefah Simon (D-CA), Nydia Velazquez (D-NY) and Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ).
MINORITY ALERT
Representatives of Syria’s Druze, Christian and Alawite communities warned members of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom on Thursday about the systematic targeting, persecution and atrocities their communities have endured under the new Syrian government led by President Ahmad al-Sharaa, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
Pump the brakes: They urged the U.S. to condition the removal of remaining sanctions on Syria and its evolving partnership with the Syrian government on the government’s efforts to protect religious minorities and prevent further atrocities. Members of the commission, an independent body created by Congress, likewise expressed alarm about the pattern of violations against Syria’s minorities.
Bonus: A spokesperson for Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY), who is leading a bill in the House to condition the lifting of human rights sanctions on Syria under the Caesar Act, told JI he continues to oppose the unconditional repeal of sanctions. “Congressman Lawler continues to believe that any changes to the Caesar sanctions must be tied to meaningful benchmarks and strict accountability to ensure the al-Sharaa regime cannot exploit relief. He is actively working with the administration to advance a responsible, conditional approach with snapback measures rather than a blanket repeal,” spokesperson Ciro Riccardi told JI.
EDITED OUT
New Jersey’s largest teachers’ union, the New Jersey Education Association, cut ties with an editor of its magazine on Friday, following criticism from top state officials over her antisemitic and pro-Hamas posts on social media. Ayat Oraby’s since-deleted posts on X, screenshots of which were viewed by JI, claimed Israel “killed many of its citizens” during the Oct. 7, 2023, terror attacks and voiced her support of Hamas, praising its actions on social media as “resistance,” among other views, Jewish Insider’s Haley Cohen reports.
Chain of events: Oraby, who started at the NJEA Review magazine in August, told the New Jersey Globe, the first outlet to report her termination, that her “intent has always been humanitarian: to stand against the killing of civilians and to advocate for peace. When compassion is politicized, even empathy can be misread.” Local Jewish elected officials voiced worry about Oraby’s appointment in October, sending a letter to NJEA with 24 signees, expressing “deep concern.” The letter followed one sent by Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) to the NJEA, which also voiced concern. Oraby told the New Jersey Globe that Gottheimer was unfair to condemn her for a post she deleted that compared Israel to Nazi Germany, a claim she said “reflects public opinion and legitimate criticism, not hatred.”
Worthy Reads
What MBS Wants: In The New York Times, former U.S. Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Michael Ratney previews tomorrow’s meeting between President Donald Trump and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Washington. “After two years as U.S. ambassador to the kingdom, and after conversations with many Saudis, it is clear to me where the crown prince’s priorities now lie: He would rather focus on attracting international business and investment to the kingdom than become enmeshed in the region’s interminable conflicts. He would rather accept an imperfect Syrian leadership than fuel a civil war that will exacerbate the region’s ills. He would rather reach an uneasy détente with Iran than antagonize it and draw its ire and missiles. And he would rather end the Gaza war on less than ideal terms than have it continue as a source of inspiration for extremists.” [NYTimes]
Tucker Takes on the Bible:The Washington Post’s Jason Willick posits that conservative commentator Tucker Carlson is, in his own rhetoric and platforming of extremist voices, explicitly targeting the Judeo-Christian consensus. “That Jewish-Christian pairing, though not uncontroversial, has proved remarkably resilient over the decades. Carlson sees an opening to undo it. A recent theme of the podcaster is that the Old Testament (the part of the Bible subscribed to by both Jews and Christians) is dark and tribal, while the New Testament (the part subscribed to only by Christians) is the fount of enlightened Western values. … His Fuentes provocation successfully prompted massive recriminations on the institutional right. His gamble is that in the turmoil, he can pry more conservatives away from the Judeo-Christian settlement that arose in the past century and toward his own narrower sect on the right.” [WashPost]
Water Woes: In The Wall Street Journal, Seth Siegel, author of Let There Be Water: Israel’s Solution for a Water-Starved World and Troubled Water: What’s Wrong with What We Drink, looks back at the role that Israel played in building water infrastructure in Iran prior to the 1979 revolution. “The first few water engineers to arrive in Iran were followed by dozens, and ultimately hundreds. So many Israeli water experts worked on Iran’s water restructuring and rethinking of agricultural practices that by the late 1960s Hebrew-language schools for their children were established in several locations in Iran. Shops in some areas had signs in Hebrew. I interviewed several Israeli water engineers who worked in Iran before the 1979 revolution. They described a warm environment in which Israelis and Iranians worked together. Other than at a soccer match involving a visiting Israeli team, none of the interviewees had any memory of anti-Israel or antisemitic conduct or speech.” [WSJ]
Word on the Street
Axios reports that Sen. Ted Cruz’s (R-TX) vocal opposition to Tucker Carlson is part of the Texas Republican’s plans to mount a 2028 presidential bid in which he’ll speak out against the party’s isolationism, setting him up on a collision course with Vice President JD Vance…
In a Washington Post op-ed, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Mike Waltz calls on the U.N. Security Council to pass an upcoming resolution backing President Donald Trump’s peace plan for Gaza, saying that doing so will create an opportunity “for the United States and our international partners to take concrete action and renew our commitment to the project of peace and build a future in which Gaza is governed by the Palestinian people — not Hamas”…
Politico spotlights Michael Needham, who is serving as a top strategist to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, describing Needham as “Rubio’s chief policy filter, surfacing America First proposals that blend ideology with implementation”…
Puck looks at tensions between Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll, the latter of whom Puck describes as “a rare Trump appointee who commands bipartisan respect and affection”…
The New Yorker profiles Kash Patel, noting that in his high school yearbook, the FBI director quoted Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, saying “Racism is man’s gravest threat to man—the maximum of hatred for a minimum reason”…
In comments made at a Combat Antisemitism Movement reception in Tel Aviv on Sunday night, outgoing New York City Mayor Eric Adams suggested that the city’s Jewish community “must prepare itself” for New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, saying, “If I were a Jewish New Yorker, I’d be concerned about my children”…
A staffer on Mamdani’s campaign who served as director of Muslim engagement and now claims to have a senior role on Mamdani’s transition team is facing criticism for a series of antisemitic and homophobic social media posts…
Columbia University’s Advisory Committee on Socially Responsible Investing, which advises the school’s board of trustees on issues related to investments, rejected three proposals calling on Columbia to divest from Israel; the committee found that the proposals failed to secure a broad consensus…
A federal judge blocked the Trump administration from collecting $1.2 billion in fines from UCLA that were imposed over the school’s handling of antisemitism on campus, its admissions process and its recognition of transgender students…
A new study from the Institute of International Education found that international student enrollment in American universities dropped by 17% this year…
The Wall Street Journal looks at how WhatsApp is surpassing Apple’s iMessage as the messaging app of choice for large groups…
Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, speaking at a press conference in Madrid following the NFL’s final international game for the season, said, “it would be pretty cool to go play in Jerusalem” after being asked where the league should play its next international game…
“Succession” actress Dasha Nekrasova was dropped by the Gersh agency following an episode of her podcast in which she interviewed antisemitic conspiracy theorist Nick Fuentes…
The Washington Post reviews the Arlington, Va., Signature Theatre’s production of “Fiddler on the Roof”…
University College London suspended researcher Samar Maqusi following the distribution of video taken during a lecture in which Maqusi shared antisemitic blood libel; the school also announced it will reopen its investigation into a student who is alleged to have told a Jewish student that the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks were “justified and reasonable” and that Hamas was not a terrorist entity…
Germany confirmed plans to lift its restrictions on military exports to Israel that went into effect in August, citing last month’s ceasefire between Israel and Hamas and the increasingly stabilized situation in the Gaza Strip…
The Wall Street Journal reports on how increasing support for Hamas in Gaza since the implementation of a ceasefire last month has complicated efforts to disarm the terror group…
Israel’s GDP rose 12.4% in the third quarter of 2025, rebounding from the second-quarter drop attributed in part to the Israel-Iran war in June…
Iran began cloud-seeding operations to spur rainfall in an effort to address the country’s severe drought…
Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Saeed Khatibzadeh said on Sunday that the country’s nuclear program was “still intact,” the same day that Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi denied that the country was still enriching uranium, citing the damage sustained during the 12-day war with Israel in June…
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps seized a Marshall Islands-flagged oil tanker carrying petrochemicals near the coast of the United Arab Emirates en route to Singapore from Sharjah, UAE…
Lebanon is preparing a complaint against Israel to the U.N. Security Council over the construction of a concrete barrier that Beirut said crosses the “Blue Line” between the countries; Israeli officials denied that the barrier crossed the line of demarcation…
The New York Times’ Vows section spotlights the recent wedding of Sausalito, Calif., City Councilmember Melissa Blaustein and real estate investor David Saxe, who were set up by a matchmaker Blaustein connected with at a Yom Kippur break fast…
New York City attorney Sid Davidoff, a founding partner of Davidoff Hutcher & Citron LLP who was included on President Richard Nixon’s “enemies list,” died at 86…
Elizabeth Franz, who won the 1999 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play for her portrayal of Linda Loman in “Death of a Salesman,” died at 84…
Poet and performance artist Hal Sirowitz, honored in the early 2000s as the poet laureate of Queens, died at 76…
Psychologist Arline Bronzaft, whose work focused on the effects of urban noise, died at 89…
Pic of the Day
Birthdays
Film and television director, writer and producer, Jon Avnet turns 76…
Rabbi of Agudath Israel of Baltimore and rabbinic administrator of the Star K Kosher supervision service, Rabbi Moshe Heinemann turns 88… Original creator and producer of “Saturday Night Live,” Lorne Michaels (born Lorne Lipowitz) turns 81… Philanthropist and director of the William Davidson Foundation, Karen Davidson… Editor-at-large for Washingtonian Magazine and author of a biography of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Harry Jaffe… Founder and principal of ourCovenant, Diana Aviv… Operations manager at NPC Global, Daniel Gastaldi… Author and journalist, he lectures in the graduate journalism program at Stanford University, Gary M. Pomerantz turns 65… Attorney and business executive who once played on the South African national teams in both cricket and field hockey, Mandy Yachad turns 65… U.S. senator (R-PA) until 2023, Pat Toomey turns 64… Former director of the Domestic Policy Council in the Biden administration and former national security advisor in the Obama administration, Susan Rice turns 61… Attorney General of the United States, Pam Bondi turns 60… “The Travelling Rabbi” of the South African Jewish Board of Deputies who serves 11 sub-Saharan countries, Moshe Silberhaft turns 58… U.S. ambassador to Switzerland during the Obama administration, Suzan Gail Davidson (Suzi) LeVine turns 56… Editor at large of Talking Points Memo, David Kurtz turns 56… Segment producer at HBO’s “Real Time with Bill Maher,” Michele Tasoff… Chief communications officer at American Hotel & Lodging Association, Ralph Posner… Human resilience coach, Michael Ostrolenk… President of Stanford University, Jonathan David Levin turns 53… Former president of NBC News, Noah Oppenheim turns 47… President of Thematic Campaigns, Isaac Baker… CEO of the Jewish Democratic Council of America, Halie Soifer… MLB player for 14 seasons, NL Rookie of the Year, five-time NL All-Star and NL MVP in 2011, Ryan Braun turns 42… NFL fullback for six seasons with the Bucs and Saints, he has since earned an MBA from Wharton, Erik Lorig turns 39… Diplomatic correspondent at Politico, Felicia Schwartz… Mortgage lender at River Holdings, Zack Teichman… Chief of staff at America250, Aidan Golub…
Jerusalem is looking to secure a new MOU – which would reportedly run through 2048 and includes 'America First' provisions – amid growing skepticism in U.S. politics over foreign aid
Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty Images
President Donald Trump, right, and Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's prime minister, during a news conference in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, DC, US, on Monday, Sept. 29, 2025.
With Israel’s current 10-year memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the U.S. set to expire in 2028, Jerusalem is reportedly seeking a renewed and expanded agreement that would run through 2048 — though questions remain over the deal’s final framework and the future of U.S.-Israel assistance.
The current memorandum between the two countries was signed in 2016 under President Barack Obama and provides Israel with $3.8 billion in military aid and missile-defense funding annually.
The first 10-year framework agreement between the two countries, for $21.3 billion, went into effect in 1998, during the Clinton administration. The second, for $32 billion, began in 2008 under President George W. Bush.
Israel is looking to finalize a new 20-year agreement that entails more in annual assistance, with hopes of securing the deal within the next year. Negotiations were previously delayed due to the war in Gaza; however, Israeli and U.S. officials confirmed to Axios that initial discussion began in recent weeks. In an interview with journalist Erin Molan last week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said of the Axios report, however, “I don’t know what they’re talking about. My direction is the exact opposite.”
“MOU negotiations typically take a long time, and waiting for both countries to get through their respective 2026 elections puts the start of these talks well into fiscal year 2027,” said Dana Stroul, a senior fellow at The Washington Institute for Near East Policy. “If there are going to be changes in the funding levels, Israeli and American budgeteers will want this information as early as possible.”
“If the Israelis have any concerns about the strength of support in the U.S. or in the subsequent administrations, securing an agreement now is smart,” said Elliott Abrams, a former diplomat and senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations. “2028 is an election year, and it’s better to resolve this now. In addition, they may believe that President Trump will be friendlier than any likely successor.”
In his second term, President Donald Trump’s administration has significantly reduced foreign aid spending, and members of both parties have become increasingly skeptical of U.S. assistance to Israel.
Experts argued that it would be in Israel’s best interest to secure a deal now amid the uncertainty over future support from U.S. officials. Stroul said Israel “may be calculating that it is better to get out ahead of this trend and lock in U.S. commitments before the midterm elections.”
“If the Israelis have any concerns about the strength of support in the U.S. or in the subsequent administrations, securing an agreement now is smart,” said Elliott Abrams, a former diplomat and senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations. “2028 is an election year, and it’s better to resolve this now. In addition, they may believe that President Trump will be friendlier than any likely successor.”
Chuck Freilich, Israel’s former deputy national security advisor and an associate professor of political science at Columbia University, echoed those sentiments, and said the agreement will not be a “done deal” as it has been in the past.
“I don’t think it’s going to be easy this time,” Freilich told Jewish Insider.
“It’ll still be a very tough sell,” said Jonathan Ruhe, a fellow at the Jewish Institute for National Security of America. “Israel’s solid value proposition as a U.S. partner falls flat with Trump’s base, which tends to reject the premise that we need strong international partnerships.”
Abrams, who served under several Republican presidents, including as Iran envoy during the first Trump administration, said that despite growing skepticism, he does not view the right wing as a problem to Israel’s security agreement ambitions.
“Trump has been insistent that he and he alone defines what MAGA means,” said Abrams. “I don’t think the problem will be the Trump administration or the MAGA voters, who in all polls are strongly supportive of Israel. It will be the Democrats, whose representatives in Congress have cast votes in the last two years that suggest limiting aid to Israel.”
However, some experts argue that such a package still might not be palatable to the MAGA base.
“It’ll still be a very tough sell,” said Jonathan Ruhe, a fellow at the Jewish Institute for National Security of America. “Israel’s solid value proposition as a U.S. partner falls flat with Trump’s base, which tends to reject the premise that we need strong international partnerships.”
In response to debates over foreign aid, Israel’s proposal reportedly includes “America First” provisions, designed to appeal to the president and his base. This includes using some of the money for joint U.S.-Israeli research and development, rather than direct military aid.
“The reported changes deal with development and duration,” said David May, a research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. “The new MOU would include provisions for funding joint U.S.-Israel research and development projects. Israeli research and ingenuity are part of what makes the relationship so beneficial for the United States, so it is natural to emphasize this fruitful aspect.”
Stroul said these parts of the proposed framework would benefit both parties moving forward.
“Israel and the U.S. can clearly benefit from more co-production, and more joint research,” said Stroul. “The U.S. military should already be learning from the IDF, who are coming out of two years of continuous, multi-front, all-domain warfare, including establishing complete air superiority over Iran.”
“The reality is that military aid is spent in the United States after approval by the U.S. government,” Stroul added. “This is critical for maintaining military production lines in the U.S. Trump is focused on revitalizing U.S. manufacturing and industry, and creating jobs for Americans. His team is focused on upgrading and streamlining the defense industry. President Trump has a solid track record of bucking the voices in his MAGA coalition questioning Israel and U.S. commitments in the Middle East when it works for Americans.”
U.S. aid agreements are viewed in Israel as vital to preserving its qualitative military edge over regional adversaries. Washington has either jointly developed or financed all three layers of Israel’s missile-defense architecture — the short-range Iron Dome, medium-range David’s Sling and long-range Arrow systems.
Israel is the largest recipient of U.S. aid since 1946 and remains among the top recipients of U.S. arms sales. Brad Bowman, a senior director at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, said the perception that U.S. foreign assistance to Israel is a gift with no return on investment is a misguided approach.
“I think there’s a misperception in some circles in Washington that this is like a charity handout,” said Bowman. “Americans get far more than we give in the relationship with Israel. Some of our allies and partners actually know how to throw a punch against common adversaries, and I put Israel near the top of that list. So when you have an ally or partner like that helping them throw more effective punches it is not charity. It’s a wise investment.”
“Remarkably, the U.S.-Israel defense partnership has only deepened over the past two years despite increasing criticism of its approach to Gaza,” said Dana Stroul, a senior fellow at The Washington Institute for Near East Policy. “It would be an unmistakable signal to Iran and its degraded network for the U.S to signal through a longer MOU that it will continue to stand with, and invest in, Israeli’s offensive and defensive capabilities.”
By strengthening Israel, Bowman argues that American diplomacy is reinforced and Iran is likely to take the U.S. “more seriously.”
While U.S. aid once accounted for a large share of Israel’s defense budget, it has declined in recent years as Israel’s economy and domestic defense industry have expanded. Still, Israel depends on American weaponry and security assistance.
“Remarkably, the U.S.-Israel defense partnership has only deepened over the past two years despite increasing criticism of its approach to Gaza,” said Stroul. “It would be an unmistakable signal to Iran and its degraded network for the U.S to signal through a longer MOU that it will continue to stand with, and invest in, Israeli’s offensive and defensive capabilities.”
Analysts said Israel’s reliance on U.S. defense systems is not likely to fade anytime soon, expressing that security ties between Washington and Jerusalem will remain indispensable, even as Israel works to grow its domestic defense capabilities.
“Israel learned from the Gaza war that it needs to manufacture what it can at home — some forms of ammunition, for example — and stockpile what it can,” said Abrams. “But it cannot be independent from the U.S. because it does not manufacture jets or much of the ordinance they use, as well as other weapons systems.”
Bowman echoed these sentiments, telling JI that Israel is “never going to be completely independent in terms of producing its own weapons.”
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has denied reports about the framework of a new aid agreement, and has increased calls for an “independent” defense industry.
“Netanyahu may want to deny it at the moment until he wraps things up with Trump,” said Freilich. “This may have gotten out earlier than he wanted it to, and maybe in a way that he didn’t want it to.”
Freilich said that Trump is unlikely to approve just “any new deal,” and said Israel will need to prepare for a future in which it gradually weans off U.S. assistance.
“[Israel’s] not going to be able to get massive aid forever — at some point it has to end,” Freilich said. “You have to differentiate between the financial aspect and the arms supply aspect. Israel will depend on American weapons for the very long term, if not forever. But that doesn’t mean they have to be funded forever by the U.S.”
Plus, the minutia of a new U.S.-Israel MOU
Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY) leaves a House Democratic caucus meeting on February 14, 2024, in Washington, D.C.
Good Tuesday morning.
In today’s Daily Kickoff, we look at questions around a potential new Memorandum of Understanding between Jerusalem and Washington ahead of the 2028 expiration of the Obama-era MOU, and report on a push by major Jewish groups to encourage applications to the Nonprofit Security Grant Program despite the Trump administration’s imposition of additional conditions on the funds. We cover the release of a new Humash with writings from Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks that were edited and organized posthumously, and look at how Sergio Gor’s departure from the White House to become ambassador to India could affect the administration’s hiring decisions. Also in today’s Daily Kickoff: Rep. Jerry Nadler, Joseph Kahn and Zach Witkoff.
What We’re Watching
- We’re keeping an eye today on a number of weekend developments across the U.S. and Middle East:
- Congress is back in session today in Washington after the August recess. Driving today’s news is Rep. Jerry Nadler’s (D-NY) announcement last night that he will not seek reelection next year. More below.
- The Senate is slated to hold a procedural vote on the National Defense Authorization Act this evening. On the other side of the Capitol, the House Foreign Affairs Committee is holding a virtual briefing with U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee focused on the West Bank.
- In the Middle East, tensions remain high following Israeli strikes late last week that killed a dozen senior Houthi officials, including Prime Minister Ahmed al-Rahawi. The Iran-backed group retaliated several times over the weekend with ballistic missile attacks, all of which fell short or were intercepted.
- In Gaza, an Israeli strike killed Abu Obeida, Hamas’ spokesman, over the weekend. President Donald Trump, who is slated to speak from the White House at 2 p.m. today, addressed Israel’s predicament in Gaza, telling the Daily Caller on Sunday that Israel “may be winning the war, but they’re not winning the world of public relations, you know, and it is hurting them.”
- Belgium became the latest European nation to announce plans to recognize a Palestinian state at the U.N. General Assembly in New York later this month. In response to the Palestinian statehood push, Israel is reportedly considering annexing parts of the West Bank.
- Missing from the UNGA this year will likely be the Palestinian delegation, after Secretary of State Marco Rubio revoked the visa of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and dozens of other officials, who had planned to attend the General Assembly as well as an international gathering focused on Palestinian statehood.
What You Should Know
A QUICK WORD WITH JI’S JOSH KRAUSHAAr
Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY), a progressive stalwart and a longtime Democratic pillar on the House Judiciary Committee, announced his retirement Sunday evening, opening up a recently redrawn Manhattan district that the congressman has held for over three decades.
Nadler, whose district has one of the largest Jewish constituencies in the country, has long positioned himself as a progressive pro-Israel advocate, even as he broke with the organized Jewish community on some issues — most notably his support for former President Barack Obama’s Iran nuclear agreement in 2015.
But in recent months, he has emerged as being at odds with the New York Jewish community on some high-profile issues. Even as most of the leading New York state Democratic voices have held back any endorsement of far-left New York City Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani, Nadler was one of the first House Democrats to offer the anti-Israel candidate his support — and has worked to secure support from a deeply skeptical Jewish community towards Mamdani.
Nadler has also lately become a sharp critic of the Jewish state, in contrast to his pro-Israel Jewish Democratic colleagues from his home state. In a New York Times interview announcing his departure, he accused Israel of committing mass murder and war crimes in Gaza “without question.” He told the paper that when he returns to Congress, he will support legislation withholding offensive military aid to Israel, joining a growing roster of progressive Democrats in doing so — a move that could give cover for other colleagues to follow suit.
mou minefield
In September 2016, when President Barack Obama announced that the U.S. and Israel had signed a 10-year deal pledging a total of $38 billion in military assistance to Israel, the news was generally uncontroversial and greeted with bipartisan plaudits. That deal, known as the U.S.-Israel Memorandum of Understanding, is now close to expiring, and the next one — if there is a next one — will be negotiated in an entirely different political environment. Israel remains deeply enmeshed in a nearly two-year war in Gaza, with little indication of an end in sight, making forward-looking negotiations more difficult. A new MOU is not a given. U.S. support for Israel has dramatically declined on the left, and it is fracturing in isolationist corners of the right as well. Even some staunchly pro-Israel Republicans have grown wary of foreign aid in general, a shift that could affect U.S. policy toward Israel, Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch reports.
Message and meaning: “Ten-year MOUs have communicated an ongoing, consistent and bipartisan commitment to support Israel’s security by crossing administrations and demonstrating that it’s an ongoing relationship,” said former U.S. Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro. “It allows planning for big-ticket acquisitions.” The long-standing commitment allows Israel to plan to make large purchases that could take several years to acquire, such as fighter jets. The MOU is not actually a binding agreement, it’s a framework. Congress must still approve the $3.3 billion in military financing and $500 million in missile defense laid out in the MOU each year during the annual appropriations process, and could do so even in the absence of an MOU.
HAWKEYE STATE POLITICS
The newly open Senate race in Iowa could pit a House Republican seen as a conventional conservative against challengers likely to attack her from the right. The race could also be an early bellwether of the GOP’s direction as it moves toward the post-Trump era, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
In contention: Rep. Ashley Hinson (R-IA), a former local news anchor and state representative elected to Congress in 2020, is widely seen as likely to make a run for Ernst’s seat. In the House, Hinson has a consistent record of support for the U.S.-Israel relationship and legislation to combat antisemitism, and has signed onto congressional letters criticizing international legal cases against Israel and supporting the Abraham Accords. She supported the U.S. strikes on Iran earlier this summer. Should she enter the race, she’ll face the prospect of running against lesser-known, right-wing Republicans like Jim Carlin, a former state senator who entered the race to challenge Ernst from the right. Joshua Smith, a former libertarian and podcast host, also declared his candidacy against Ernst. He has a record of anti-Israel and antisemitic commentary.
Seeing opportunity: Democrats are expected to make an aggressive bid for the seat in the general election, and several have already entered the primary race, including state Rep. Josh Turek, state Sen. Zach Wahls and Des Moines School Board Chair Jackie Norris. David Yepsen, a longtime former political writer, editor and columnist at the Des Moines Register, predicted a “really good race” in the general election, given that Democrats have already fielded several contenders, have put up strong showings in recent state special elections, have been energized by opposition to the Trump administration and have an advantage in the midterms.
NEW BLOOD
Sergio Gor’s expected departure from a key role in the White House, where he has vetted thousands of candidates for political jobs as the influential leader of the Presidential Personnel Office, is raising some questions about how his litmus tests and isolationist views will compare to his newly announced replacement, particularly with regard to national security hires. Gor, 38, was nominated by President Donald Trump last week to be U.S. ambassador to India. If confirmed by the Senate, Gor, who was also tapped as special envoy for South and Central Asian affairs, will leave behind a powerful post at which he built a reputation as an ideological gatekeeper, Jewish Insider’s Matthew Kassel reports.
Stepping into his shoes: Throughout his time in the White House, Gor has drawn attention for his unyielding focus on loyalty to Trump and — more singularly — a fierce commitment to elevating national security and foreign policy hires who share his skepticism of American engagement abroad. His successor, Dan Scavino, as the White House confirmed this week, is likewise a longtime Trump confidante who now serves as White House deputy chief of staff. But unlike Gor — whose background suggests an interest in imposing ideological litmus tests on job applicants — Scavino, 49, “has no ideology other than Trump,” according to a former top administration official.
FUNDING FRICTION
Jewish orgs urge institutions to apply for NSGP grants, regardless of questions about new conditions
A series of Jewish community groups, in a joint statement released on Tuesday, urged Jewish organizations to apply for Nonprofit Security Grant Program funding, in spite of ongoing concerns from some in the community about potential new immigration and DEI-related conditions on the funding, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
What they’re saying: “While we are aware that questions have arisen on the part of certain religious institutions regarding the current year’s program criteria, our organizations strongly urge all eligible institutions to apply for this critical resource,” the Jewish Federations of North America, Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, Anti-Defamation League, Secure Community Network, Community Security Initiative and Community Security Service said in a joint statement. The groups said they have been “in regular contact with government officials who have affirmed their continued commitment to protecting the safety of all faith-based institutions and the values they hold.”
NORWEGIAN WOULDN’T
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) on Thursday floated the possibility of punitive tariffs and visa restrictions in response to the decision by Norges Bank Investment Management — the Norwegian sovereign wealth fund — to sell its stake in the American machinery company Caterpillar in response to the Israeli military’s use of its products in the West Bank and Gaza, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
Retaliation threat: “To those who run Norway’s sovereign wealth fund: if you cannot do business with Caterpillar because Israel uses their products, maybe it’s time you’re made aware that doing business or visiting America is a privilege, not a right,” Graham said on X. “Maybe it’s time to put tariffs on countries who refuse to do business with great American companies. Or maybe we shouldn’t give visas to individuals who run organizations that attempt to punish American companies for geopolitical differences.”
State Department responds: “We are very troubled by the Norwegian sovereign wealth fund’s decision, which appears to be based on illegitimate claims against Caterpillar and the Israeli government,” a State Department spokesperson told JI. “We are engaging directly with the Norwegian government on this matter.”
WISDOM CARRIED FORWARD
Former British Chief Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks was a towering figure in Jewish life whose unique blend of Torah and Western wisdom attracted adherents around the world for many years before his death in 2020. Now, with Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, approaching later this month, and the restarting of the cycle of reading the weekly Torah portion a few weeks later, Rabbi Sacks’ longtime Jerusalem-based publisher, Koren, is releasing a posthumously completed Koren Shalem Humash, with a new translation and insights to encourage deeper understanding of the Five Books of Moses, Jewish Insider’s Lahav Harkov reports.
How it started: The story of the Koren Shalem Humash begins in 2006, Joanna Benarroch, president of The Rabbi Sacks Legacy, told JI last week. At that time, Sacks began working on his popular series of books about the weekly Torah portion, Covenant and Conversation. “He started writing it online every week,” Benarroch recalled. “He was the chief rabbi of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth, based in London, but he started to build a global audience.” Sacks’ goals for Covenant and Conversation were “to make Torah relevant to us today, so it’s not just wisdom from 2,000-3,000 years ago today, but wisdom we can also take with us. It was very important to him for us to be proud, knowledgeable Jews and to share that with the next generation … to create new leaders who were proud, knowledgeable Jews. These were the things permeating his mind when he was writing,” Benarroch said.
Worthy Reads
Rahm Com(munism): In The Wall Street Journal, former U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel, who is mulling a 2028 presidential bid, warns that domestic political division is providing an opening to malign actors, such as China, that seek to capitalize on the moment. “By 2011, the country was beset by two movements defined almost exclusively by anger and resentment. Occupy Wall Street’s antipathy to capitalism fixed the sentiment now driving Zohran Mamdani’s campaign for New York mayor. The tea party simultaneously metastasized into the MAGA movement and the riots of Jan. 6, 2021. With real violence in the offing, politics are worse than they have been in decades. … In some Shakespearean sense, China’s long shadow has appeared at exactly the right moment. But Xi Jinping is much more than a foil poised to unite Americans who would otherwise remain defined by their blue and red affinities. The China threat is both real and potent. The U.S. has never before been asked to face down a country that has three times our population, is fueled by an advanced economy, and is capable, as its leaders intend, of replacing us atop the global hierarchy.” [WSJ]
What the Australia Attacks Signal: The Atlantic’s Arash Azizi considers the motives behind Iran’s attacks on Jewish and Israeli targets around the world, following Australia’s expulsion of Iranian diplomats over Tehran’s involvement in recent antisemitic attacks in the country. “The elements organizing the attacks are ideological. They seek to burnish Iran’s image as an aggressive, revisionist actor, determined to destabilize the West and unconstrained by practical concerns. Inside the regime, this faction competes with a more pragmatic group that prioritizes trade and seeks to improve relations with the West. Those behind the hits on Australian targets may even see their activities as having a dual use: By striking synagogues and restaurants in Western countries, they intimidate their global enemies and help stymie the diplomatic agenda of pragmatists at home.” [TheAtlantic]
Hanging With Hezbollah: In The Free Press, Winston Marshall reflects on a recent trip to Lebanon and meeting with a Hezbollah member in Baalbeck. “Believe it or not, I feel sadness for the jihadi at the Baalbek mosque. His was a worldview almost completely inverted from mine. For him the good guys are Nasrallah, Assad, Khamenei, and Hitler. The bad guys are Donald Trump, Jews, and Jolani. Only on Jolani might we have found some common ground. His eyes glazed with the delirium of his cult. Rarely in my life have I come face-to-face with a man possessed with such evil. How exactly does one offer a golden bridge of reconciliation to a cult hell-bent on fighting and martyrdom? That is the impossible question Lebanon has to answer.” [FreePress]
Word on the Street
The Trump administration is planning to cut $4.9 billion in foreign aid from the State Department, USAID and other international aid groups without congressional approval, under the auspices of the Impoundment Control Act…
The Trump family’s World Liberty Financial cryptocurrency garnered $5 billion following its launch earlier this week; Zach Witkoff, a son of Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff who serves as WLF’s CEO, distanced the private company from the Trump administration but added, “clearly President Trump is the greatest president of all time”…
The U.N. Security Council voted unanimously to end the mandate of the United Nations Interim Forces in Lebanon (UNIFIL), which has been operating along the border between Israel and Lebanon for five decades, at the end of 2026…
The Washington Post reports on a postwar plan for Gaza, days after President Donald Trump convened a White House meeting on the issue, that would see the enclave enter into a 10-year trusteeship with the U.S. that would involve the temporary relocation of its residents both within and outside the Strip during the rebuilding effort…
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard is reportedly clashing with senior CIA officials after she disclosed the name of a currently serving undercover CIA officer in a list of current and former officials whose clearances were being revoked by the ODNI…
Sens. Mark Kelly (D-AZ), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), Peter Welch (D-VT), Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) urged the Trump administration to “use its full power and authority to immediately facilitate a massive surge in all humanitarian aid, and in particular infant formula, into Gaza to address this crisis”…
A Florida man was sentenced to 25 years in prison for planning attacks on Jewish and Black community sites as well as on Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-FL)…
The Boulder chapter of “Run for Their Lives,” an organization that arranges weekly marches to advocate for the hostages held in Gaza, will no longer publicly advertise its walking route, the group announced last week, saying the decision was made “following weeks of escalating harassment and threats,” less than three months after a Molotov cocktail attack on the group left a participant dead and injured 15 others,Jewish Insider’s Haley Cohen reports…
Unknown vandals graffitied the Greenwich Village apartment building where New York Times Executive Editor Joseph Kahn lives, writing in red paint, “Joe Kahn lies Gaza dies”…
The superintendent of the Beverly Hills Unified School District struck down a school board vote to display the Israeli flag in schools and administrative buildings in the district for one month every year; Superintendent Alex Cherniss said that only the U.S. and California flags would be flown on school properties, citing “heightened safety concerns”…
The New York Post reports on financial ties between the Qatari royal family and filmmaker Mira Nair, the mother of New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani; Sheikha Al-Mayassa bint Hamad Al-Thani, the sister of the Qatari emir, has repeatedly posted on social media in support of Mamdani’s candidacy…
Police in Ontario, Canada, are investigating the stabbing of a Jewish woman at a kosher supermarket as a hate crime; days later, 32 officials from Canada’s Liberal Party, led by MP Anthony Housefather, issued a statement condemning the “deplorable rise of antisemitism in Canada”…
U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer tapped former Columbia University President Minouche Shafik to serve as his chief economic advisor; Shafik, an economist, departed Columbia last summer amid widespread criticism of her administration’s handling of campus antisemitism…
A Holocaust memorial in Lyon, France, was vandalized with graffiti reading “Free Gaza”…
The Wall Street Journal looks at how the IDF is struggling to get reservists, many of whom have served months of reserve duty, to continue reporting as the war grinds on toward a third year…
A flotilla of nearly two dozen boats attempting to reach Gaza departed on Monday after a failed start on Sunday due to adverse weather conditions; climate activist Greta Thunberg, who was detained and deported from Israel in May, is participating in the new flotilla effort…
The New York Times reports on concerns from Israeli tourists of harassment abroad as a result of escalated tensions resulting from the Israel-Hamas war…
GOP fundraiser Elliott Broidy, who settled a lawsuit with Qatar after being hacked, is reportedly a partner in the Israeli company KOIOS, which ran a public relations campaign on behalf of Doha…
A second former International Criminal Court staffer accused the court’s chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, of sexual misconduct; Khan, who had requested arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, was placed on administrative leave in May following earlier allegations that he’d acted inappropriately toward a staffer…
Gallant said in an interview with Israel’s Channel 12 that Israel should kill Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in the next round of conflict between Israel and Iran…
The New York Times reports on how Israel tracked the movements of senior Iranian officials through the phone activity of their bodyguards…
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it arrested eight people accused of sending sensitive information regarding Tehran’s military and its nuclear program to Mossad agents…
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan encouraged Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian to continue nuclear talks with the West and reiterated Ankara’s support for Tehran…
The International Atomic Energy Agency said that a building in Syria that was destroyed by Israel in 2007 was found to have trace amounts of uranium, deepening speculation at the U.N. nuclear watchdog that the site had been used as a nuclear reactor…
Houthi terrorists stormed the Sanaa, Yemen, offices of UNICEF and the World Food Program, detaining staffers from both organizations…
Ruth Marks Eglash is now the editor of The Jerusalem Report…
Pic of the Day
At the funeral of her son Idan Shtivi on Monday, Dalit Oron mourned over the body of Shtivi, who was killed on Oct. 7, 2023. IDF forces operating in Gaza last week recovered Shtivi’s body as well as the body of hostage Ilan Weiss, who was killed on Oct. 7 while defending his community in Kibbutz Be’eri.
Birthdays
Television producer, attorney, legal analyst and celebrity reporter, he is the founder of TMZ, Harvey Levin turns 75…
Trustee of a foundation started by her husband, Harold Grinspoon, she is on the PJ Library Book Selection Committee, Diane Leshefsky Troderman turns 84… Attorney who was part of the “Dream Team” that successfully defended O.J. Simpson in 1995, he is a co-founder of three businesses, LegalZoom, Shoedazzle and RightCounsel, Robert Shapiro turns 83… One of Israel’s earliest high-tech entrepreneurs, Yossi Vardi turns 83… Rabbi of Baltimore’s Shearith Israel Congregation since 1987 and president of the Baltimore Vaad HaRabonim, Rabbi Yaakov Hopfer turns 81… Lincolnwood, Ill., resident, Tobi Rebecca Kelmer… Tech entrepreneur and consultant at Xynetics Group, Richard Mandelbaum turns 79… Member of the Knesset for the United Torah Judaism party from 1999 until 2022, Yaakov Litzman turns 77… SVP at Southern Bank & Trust, he is an honorary director of Ohef Sholom Temple in Norfolk, Va., Steven Kocen… CEO of Lionsgate Entertainment, the leading Canadian independent film studio, Jon Feltheimer turns 74… Retired president and CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Houston from 1987 to 2017, Lee Wunsch turns 73… Author, entrepreneur and venture capitalist, Nick Hanauer turns 66… Investigative producer for CBS News, Daniel Klaidman… Chief Washington correspondent for Newsmax, James Rosen turns 57… Founder of Israeli media organization TheMarker and a deputy publisher of the Haaretz daily newspaper, he is also a clinical professor at the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business, Guy Rolnik turns 57… Serial entrepreneur, co-founder and chairman of Groupon, he is also the founder and CEO of Tempus AI, Eric Lefkofsky turns 56… Executive producer at PBS’s “Frontline,” Raney Aronson-Rath turns 55… Chair of Sight Diagnostics, he was previously director general of the Israeli prime minister’s office, Eliyahu David (Eli) Groner turns 55… Contemporary Jewish religious music vocalist, known by the mononym “Ohad,” Ohad Moskowitz turns 51… Chief of staff for Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Jess Fassler… D.C.-based U.S. tax policy reporter for The Wall Street Journal, Richard Rubin… Actor, comedian and impressionist, Jonathan Kite turns 46… Executive editor of news for Bloomberg, the co-anchor of “What’d You Miss” on Bloomberg Television and co-host of the “Odd Lots” podcast on Bloomberg Podcasts, Joseph Weisenthal turns 45… Partner at Axiom Strategies, Ethan Zorfas turns 40… Co-lead of the U.S. tech practice at Edelman, Margot Edelman… Chief of staff at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School, Seth Zweifler… Former MLB baseball pitcher, he was a first-round pick in the 2013 MLB draft, now playing for the Staten Island FerryHawks, Rob Kaminsky turns 31…
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum: ‘All the incredible technological leadership, the great entrepreneurship, the incredible startup community that's strong and vibrant in Israel, all of this bodes well for the future’
Avi Ohayon/GPO
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, Secretary of Energy Chris Wright, U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee and Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter attend a signing ceremony of a U.S.-Israel MOU on AI and energy cooperation at Blair House in Washington on July 8, 2025.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu signed a memorandum of understanding with Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and Secretary of Energy Chris Wright on Tuesday, advancing U.S. and Israeli cooperation in energy and artificial intelligence research and integrating AI into the Abraham Accords.
“Artficial intelligence is the thrust of innovation now and will create unbelievable things in the future,” Netanyahu said during the signing ceremony at the Blair House in Washington. “It’s both challenging, because there could be bad things in it, but there could be unimaginable good things. I think we can lead this.”
The MOU calls for integrating artificial intelligence into the power grids of the U.S. and Israel, in addition to building joint policies around artificial intelligence usage. Regional agreements, including the Abraham Accords and the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor, will also be strengthened through the memorandum, according to a press release from the Prime Minister’s Office.
The move comes on the heels of the AI giant Nvidia announcing it will expand its presence in Israel, including opening a new R&D center, and the company’s acquisition of Israeli AI start-up Run:ai for $700 million.
During the ceremony, U.S. officials touted the benefits of the MOU, including minimizing the dangers within developing advanced AI models and its security-focused applications.
“This step takes us into the future around collaboration because we know that defense would not be working without artificial intelligence,” Burgum said. “But all the incredible technological leadership, the great entrepreneurship, the incredible startup community that’s strong and vibrant in Israel, all of this bodes well for the future. The first kind of agreement that Chris [Wright] and I have signed with any country is this one and we think it’s a great place to start.”
The defense secretary told lawmakers that the deal ‘remains to be signed’ and said he could not divulge information about the timeline or cost
Win McNamee/Getty Images
Air Force One sits on the tarmac on May 12, 2025, at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth confirmed on Wednesday that the memorandum of understanding between the Trump administration and Qatar for the gift of a luxury jet worth $400 million to join the Air Force One fleet has not been completed and signed.
Hegseth and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Dan Caine were pressed repeatedly on the terms of the contract allowing for the U.S. to formally accept the Boeing 747 jumbo jet from Qatar while testifying before the Senate Appropriations defense subcommittee on the Pentagon’s proposed fiscal year 2026 budget. The two largely declined to answer questions on the subject given the public setting, though the defense secretary acknowledged that the MOU was still being worked on.
“Any specifics about future aircraft that could be Air Force One can’t be discussed here, but there is a conversation about a memorandum of understanding. A memorandum of understanding remains to be signed,” Hegseth said in response to Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI) asking if the U.S. was currently in possession of the jet.
Hegseth declined to answer Reed’s subsequent questions about the price of the contract to reconfigure the aircraft, saying he would provide it to the senator’s office but could not divulge that information in public. He offered the same response when Reed asked about the delivery time for the reconfiguration contract.
Reed pointed out that the terms of the contract originally signed with Boeing to deliver the next Air Force One jets were public while criticizing the secrecy around this deal.
“The Boeing information was public knowledge — the delivery date, the cost, the course overruns — but this is not, because this is not only a bad deal for the American public, it is just gratifying the presidency, that’s all it is,” Reed said.
Later in the hearing, Hegseth again confirmed to Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) that the MOU was still not signed. The Connecticut senator then pressed the defense secretary on the need for the Qatari jet, noting that the extensive modifications and security enhancements may keep it from being usable before Boeing’s new fleet of Air Force Ones are ready in 2028.
“It doesn’t stand to reason that you will be able to retrofit the plane from Qatar much sooner than 2028 so I’m trying to understand what the gap is that we’re trying to fill. If this contract ends up being a half a billion dollars and the gap only ends up being six months, that doesn’t sound like a wise investment for this committee to make,” Murphy said.
Hegseth replied by pointing to the repeated delays from Boeing in delivering on their new fleet. “I don’t know that’s a firm fixed date yet, unfortunately, that can be counted on,” Hegseth said.
A senior Air Force official testified at a House Armed Services subcommittee hearing last month that Boeing had told the service that it could potentially deliver the fleet by 2027 if certain requirements were lifted.
After Hegseth told Murphy it was his understanding that the plane would be transferred to Trump’s presidential library at the conclusion of his term, the Connecticut senator replied: “Why would we ask the American taxpayer to spend upwards of $1 billion on a plane that would then only be used for a handful of months and then transferred directly to the president?”
Hegseth emphasized the importance of the modifications to “ensure the safety and security of the president of the United States,” but did not address Murphy’s question directly.
Sen. Brian Schatz (D-HI) pressed Hegseth on whether the Department of Defense or the Qataris initiated conversations about the jet and how the transaction came to be. Hegseth said he would need to “go back and review” the details and did not go into specifics, to which Schatz asked, “I think it kind of matters who’s asking, doesn’t it?”
“I think this is illegal and unconstitutional and I won’t rant about that, but I actually think from the standpoint of our collective responsibilities it very much matters what the paper flow was. Who started these conversations? Did it come out of the White House, did it come out of the secretary of state or the president or the SEC Def [secretary of defense] or at a lower level or ambassadors?” Schatz asked.
“We’re entitled to know, because we can agree or disagree about the propriety of this, but my basic request of you is that if we’re going to disagree, let’s disagree with the same set of facts. Let’s have the documentation on the Qatari aircraft,” he continued.
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