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J Street president Jeremy Ben-Ami embraces Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas following his making statements at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Midtown Manhattan on Feb. 11, 2020.





A J Street Hug for PA’s Abbas






This week, the leader of a left-wing Jewish group that has embraced the Palestinians’ anti-Israel narrative literally embraced Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian dictator. As JNS reports <[link removed]> (video at the link): 

J Street president Jeremy Ben-Ami embraced Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas after the latter made statements at a hotel on Tuesday following his remarks earlier at a U.N. Security Council session denouncing the Trump administration’s Mideast peace plan.

The RJC called it “absolutely disgusting <[link removed]>” in a thread on Twitter: 

“Absolutely disgusting that @jstreetdotorg’s @JeremyBenAmi would embrace Mahmoud Abbas. Abbas funds terrorists to kill American and Israeli Jews. He is a virulent anti-Semite. Ben-Ami isn’t a head of state, he doesn’t have to pretend Abbas is legitimate,” tweeted the Republican Jewish Coalition in a thread.

“The man @JeremyBenAmi kisses on both cheeks says Jews are to blame for the Holocaust … Good job @jstreetdotorg …

Joel Pollak at Breitbart reminds us that many of the Democratic Party’s presidential contenders have close ties with J Street <[link removed]>, which has been supported by billionaire left-wing philanthropist George Soros in the past. 

The RJC wants to tell Jeremy Ben-Ami that he should be standing up for the hundreds of Jews that Abbas has ordered killed, instead of embracing him. Add your name here <[link removed]> to tell Jeremy Ben Ami that he doesn’t represent us. He doesn’t speak for American Jewish interests. 







The Egged bus company is one of the businesses on the UN Human Rights Council blacklist.

UNHRC Blacklists Companies Doing Business Over the Green Line






The Washington Postreports <[link removed]>: 

The United Nations released a long-anticipated, and explosive, list of companies doing business with Israeli settlements in the West Bank on Wednesday, a compilation hailed by activists as potential leverage against expanding communities they see as illegal and condemned by Israeli officials as biased and, by some, as anti-Semitic.

The U.N.’s Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva said it had reasonable grounds to identify 112 businesses — most based in Israel but several from the United States and Europe — that have business ties with the settlements. The companies range from multinational cereal giant General Mills to an Israeli bakery chain.

… The BDS movement itself immediately called on its followers to use the report as a target list. “These companies must be held to account, including through strategic boycotts and divestment campaigns,” the group said in a statement.

The list includes some American businesses, including Airbnb, Booking.com, Motorola, TripAdvisor, General Mills, and Expedia, as well as a few European companies and 94 Israeli businesses.

CNS news quotes UN Watch Executive Director Hillel Neuer, who notes <[link removed]>: 

“Dictatorships initiated this blacklist not because they care about human rights, but to divert attention from serial rights abuses committed by council members like Venezuela, Libya, and DR Congo, by scapegoating the Jewish state…”

“Curiously, out of more than 100 territorial disputes in the world today, including in Tibet, Kashmir, Crimea, Western Sahara and Northern Cyprus, the U.N. chose only to blacklist companies doing business in Israel's disputed territories…”

Former US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley, who will be a featured speaker at the RJC annual leadership meeting in Las Vegas next month, denounced the UN move, tweeting <[link removed]>: 

"The @UN hit a new low today publishing its Antisemitic blacklist of companies it claims are involved in Israeli “settlement activity.” The timing of this after the U.S. released a peace plan is conniving & manipulative at best. Shameful.”

More reading:

- UN Watch reports on the blacklist, myths and facts.  <[link removed]>


- International law expert Eugene Kontorovich explains some key points on Twitter.  <[link removed]>


- Read the full UN statement and see the list here.  <[link removed]>








In Memoriam: Richard J. Fox






The RJC notes with great sadness the passing this week of Richard J. Fox of Pennsylvania, a founder of the RJC who served as the organization’s first national chairman.

RJC Executive Director Matt Brooks delivered remarks at the memorial service for Mr. Fox held at Temple University on Tuesday. Brooks said that the establishment of the RJC was a groundbreaking idea in 1985, because there were no specifically partisan Jewish organizations at that time:

Why is that important? It’s a testament to Dick and his visionary ability to see things that others don’t. He understood that the existing model for Israel and Jewish issue advocacy was flawed, in that when representatives of various organizations would come to lobby in Washington, many of them had no relationship with the folks they were coming to see. Dick knew, before anyone else, that if the same meetings were held with supporters and allies then the tone, tenor, and likely effectiveness of the advocacy would be much different. And he was right.

… I was always struck by how Dick understood that getting a meeting with political leaders wasn’t the end goal; having the influence to make an impact was the true goal.

This distinction was a hallmark and a guiding principle of the Republican Jewish Coalition since day one, and it’s one of the real reasons we have been so successful.

At the same time, Brooks pointed out, Mr. Fox put principle above politics and didn’t flinch on those occasions where Republican leaders needed to hear constructive criticism and thoughtful disagreement. For example, Mr. Fox and the RJC stood up for Israel when the George H.W. Bush administration wanted to withhold loan guarantees from Israel. In the end, the loan guarantees went through, and Israel was able to successfully resettle millions of Soviet Jews who had fled the USSR.

Mr. Fox made a real difference through his personal life, his work, his philanthropy, and his political activism. We are grateful for his leadership, guidance, and friendship. May his memory be a blessing.







Ron Weiser, Charlie and Lisa Spies, and former Gov. Rick Snyder.



Two Great RJC Debaters






The Jewish Insiderreports <[link removed]> on a special recognition given to RJC's dear friends Charlie and Lisa Spies:

Once described as “the powe couple of Republican Jewish money in politics,” Charlie and Lisa Spies attended a ceremony naming the University of Michigan's Debate offices the “Charles and Lisa Spies Debate Director’s Office." Board of Regents Chairman Ron Weiser and former Governor Rick Snyder both spoke at the ceremony. Also attending was strategist and former RJC staffer Stu Sandler.



















REGISTER NOW FOR THIS SPECIAL EVENT





<[link removed]>

March 13-15 in Las Vegas: RJC National Leaders are invited for a terrific weekend of politics, policy, and poker at the fabulous Venetian/Palazzo Resort and Hotel. Attendees will have the opportunity to hear from – and be heard by – some of the country’s foremost politicians, policy makers, and leaders, including featured speaker Ambassador Nikki Haley. It’s time to reserve your spot! Visit RJCVegasMeeting.org <[link removed]> for details and reservations. (This event is open to RJC Leaders; Leadership dues begin at the $1,000 donor level.)























• The Republican Jewish Coalition is hiring field staff for our advocacy efforts in support of President Donald Trump’s reelection in various battleground states.CLICK HERE <[link removed]> for details and application information. 

• The RJC PAC has endorsed a terrific slate of House and Senate incumbents, and we need them to continue their work on Capitol Hill! CLICK HERE to donate through the RJC PAC portal and show your support for our great candidates! <[link removed]>

And don't forget your RJC/Trump kippah!
Our extremely popular red Trump kippah is now for sale for just $18. This includes shipping and handling. Supplies are limited. 


BUY YOUR KIPPAH HERE. <[link removed]>















— Short Takes —

















Abbas’ Palestinian Authority Hurts Everybody <[link removed]>Yosef Kuperwasser, senior project director at the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs, and RJC Board of Directors member Sander Gerber write that the Palestinian Authority’s poor performance and deep corruption prevent progress toward peace. The Trump administration’s new peace plan signals clearly that this Palestinian Authority has to be replaced with a PA that first and foremost cares about the well-being of its citizens and respects their rights, fights corruption, and has well-functioning institutions.

White House or Fight House? Tevi Troy’s new book looks at tiffs and turf wars among White House staffers <[link removed]>

Jewish Insider’s Melissa Weiss interviews Tevi Troy, whose latest book, Fight House, takes a close look at the sometimes tumultuous relationships among White House staffers. In detailing the relationships between key administration members — from George Marshall and Clark Clifford during the Truman years to Obama staffers Rahm Emanuel and Valerie Jarrett — Troy seamlessly weaves West Wing gossip with significant moments in modern history.


















































— Tweets —





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— Events — <[link removed]>



















COMMUNITY EVENT WITH PROF. ALAN DERSHOWITZ
Beverly Hills, CA- February 17, 2020

RSVP <[link removed]>

LEADERSHIP BRIEFING WITH REP. ELISE STEFANIK (NY-21)
Midtown Manhattan, NY - February 18, 2020

RSVP <[link removed]>

NEW DATE - AN EVENING WITH SEN. TED CRUZ
Houston, TX - February 19, 2020

RSVP <[link removed]>

DISCUSSION ON CHALLENGES FACING THE JEWISH COMMUNITY FEATURING ALAN DERSHOWITZ
Aventura, FL - February 23, 2020

RSVP <[link removed]>

IDF BRIEFING: SECURITY IMPERATIVES OF APPLYING ISRAELI SOVEREIGNTY TO THE JORDAN VALLEY
Bala Cynwyd - February 24, 2020

RSVP <[link removed]>

REGISTRATION IS OPEN! RJC NATIONAL LEADERSHIP MEETING
Las Vegas, NV - March 13-15, 2020

REGISTER TODAY <[link removed]>





























































































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