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The RJC Weekly Newsletter

August 15, 2019


 

Your weekly look at the latest news, analysis,
and RJC activities around the country.


 

 




— Featured —

Reps. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) and Ilhan Omar (D-MN).

Tlaib and Omar Barred from Entering Israel

The Israeli government announced today that it would deny entry to Reps. 
Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) and Ilhan Omar (D-MN), two outspoken supporters of the
Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel.

 

The two congresswomen intended to arrive in "Palestine" this weekend and visit
Hebron, Ramallah, Bethlehem, and East Jerusalem, including the Temple Mount,
according tomedia reports
<[link removed]>
. The trip was planned under the auspices of Miftah, an organization headed by
a longtime Palestinian activist and Palestinian National Council legislator,
Hanan Ashrawi.

 

In July, Reps. Omar and Tlaib sponsored a House resolution
<[link removed]>
supporting boycotts, which was aimed atsupporting boycotts of Israel
<[link removed]>.

 

Two years ago, Israel passed a law that forbids granting entry visas
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 to foreign nationals who call for economic, cultural or academic boycotts of
Israel or of Jewish businesses in the West Bank.

 

Over the past week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed 41 Democratic
members of Congress and 31 Republican members
<[link removed]>
to Israel, including dozens of freshmen members. The overlapping trips, led by
House Majority LeaderSteny Hoyer (D-MD) and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy
(R-CA), respectively, were specifically designed to introduce members of
Congress to Israel. Reps. Tlaib, Omar, andAlexandria Ocasio-Cortez refused to
participate in the trip.

 

In a statement today, Prime Minister Netanyahu said
<[link removed]>:

As a free and vibrant democracy, Israel is open to critics and criticism, with
one exception: Israeli law prohibits the entry into Israel of those who call
for and work to impose boycotts on Israel, as do other democracies that
prohibit the entry of people who seek to harm the country. In fact, in the past
the US did this to an Israeli member of Knesset, as well as to other public
figures from around the world.

 

Congresswomen Tlaib and Omar are leading activists in promoting the
legislation of boycotts against Israel in the American Congress. Only a few
days ago, we received their itinerary for their visit in Israel, which revealed
that they planned a visit whose sole objective is to strengthen the boycott
against us and deny Israel’s legitimacy. For instance: they listed the
destination of their trip as Palestine and not Israel, and unlike all
Democratic and Republican members of Congress who have visited Israel, they did
not request to meet any Israeli officials, either from the government or the
opposition.

 

A week ago, Israel warmly welcomed some 70 Democratic and Republican members
of Congress, who expressed broad bipartisan support for Israel, which was also
demonstrated a month ago in a resounding bipartisan vote against BDS in
Congress.

 

However, the itinerary of the two Congresswomen reveals that the sole purpose
of their visit is to harm Israel and increase incitement against it.

 

In addition, the organization that is funding their trip is Miftah, which is
an avid supporter of BDS, and among whose members are those who have expressed
support for terrorism against Israel.

 

Therefore, the Minister of Interior has decided not to allow their visit, and
I, as Prime Minister, support his decision.

The RJC supported the Israeli decision, stating
<[link removed]>
:

[T]his decision is about Israel following Israeli law, and two freshman
Democratic Members of Congress that choose to support BDS and traffic in
anti-Semitism. Their itinerary shows that they had no plans to meet with Prime
Minister Netanyahu, anyone in his cabinet, anyone in the Knesset, or anyone
from any opposition party. The purpose of their trip was to use Israel as a
backdrop to promote their radical agenda; they clearly had no intention of
going to visit Israel with an open mind. The fact that these two are members of
Congress doesn’t excuse their choice to support a movement that seeks to
destroy the only democracy in the Middle East. It would be unfair to expect
Israel to treat them differently than anyone else applying to visit the country.

Our support for Israel's decision has been cited by ABC News
<[link removed]>
,JTA
<[link removed]>
,Jerusalem Post
<[link removed]>
,The Algemeiner
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,The New York Jewish Week
<[link removed]>
, and the left-wing outletVox
<[link removed]>,
among others.

Auschwitz concentration camp.

Countering Anti-Semitism

There were two important developments in the fight against anti-Semitism in
the US this week.

First, the US State Department updated its definition of anti-Semitism. The
previous definition
<[link removed]>
listed ten examples of anti-Semitism, including: "making mendacious,
dehumanizing, demonizing, or stereotypical allegations about Jews;" "denying
the fact, scope, mechanisms, or intentionality of the genocide of the Jewish
people at the hands of National Socialist Germany and its supporters and
accomplices during World War II (the Holocaust);" and "denying the Jewish
people their right to self-determination, e.g., by claiming that the existence
of a State of Israel is a racist endeavor."

The revised definition <[link removed]> adds
this example: "Drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of
the Nazis."

In July, Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) made a speech on the floor of the US House
in opposition to the anti-BDS resolution (which later passed 398-17). In those
remarks Tlaiblikened boycotts of Israel to boycotts against Nazi Germany
<[link removed]>
during World War II and against South Africa during apartheid.

Marc A. Thiessen goes straight to the heart of the Israel-Nazis comparison in
an op-ed this week at theWashington Post. He writes
<[link removed]>:

Just a few days ago, I sat in the former SS headquarters of the Auschwitz
concentration camp withPiotr Cywiński, director of the Auschwitz-Birkenau State
Museum. Speaking beside a window overlooking the gas chamber and crematorium
where countless souls perished, he explained that there is no difference
between hatred of Israel and hatred for Jews.

 

“It's the same old story with some different words,” he said. “If you are
speaking with somebody who is defending some anti-Israeli ideologies, maybe not
in the first minute, maybe not in the second minute, but in the third minute
you will find that the same old story accusing Jews of every bad thing in the
world. For me, that's very, very clear. I never saw any anti-Israeli theory
that was not anti-Semitic.”


...I can’t see why people feel free to compare Israel to the Nazis,” Cywiński
said. “I don’t want to comment on it on an intellectual level. It’s simply an
insult. It’s an insult to the victims and an insult to the survivors and an
insult to a whole country, to a whole society.

 

...In Washington, congressional Democrats have struggled to confront
anti-Semitism within their own ranks. Cywiński said the rise of left-wing
anti-Semitism is not surprising. “Do not forget that the Nazi Party in Germany
was a party of workers,” he said. “We are many times thinking about the Nazis
as far-right. They were also very deeply speaking … to the left, using some
leftist language.”

The whole article
<[link removed]>
is well worth your time.

 

The second noteworthy development was the decision by the California State
Board of Education (SBE)to scrap a proposed Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum
(ESMC)
<[link removed]>
and replace it with an entirely new draft.

 

The proposed ethnic studies curriculum was riddled with anti-Jewish and
anti-Israel issues. The Associated Pressreports
<[link removed]>: 

Jewish lawmakers complained that the proposed lessons are anti-Semitic, while
a conservative critic says capitalism is presented as a “form of power and
oppression.” The clash comes as a law requires the state to adopt ethnic
studies, which view history through the lens of diverse cultures.

 

...For instance, the proposed curriculum has lessons on identifying
Islamophobia and other forms of discrimination but does not include ways to
identify anti-Semitism. Song lyrics included in the draft also seem to support
the stereotype that Jews control the news media, the caucus said.

 

“It would be a cruel irony if a curriculum meant to help alleviate prejudice
and bigotry were to instead marginalize Jewish students and fuel hatred and
discrimination against the Jewish community,” the 14 caucus members said in a
recent letter.

The curriculum also included a suggested lesson asking student groups to
research social movements. One prompt leads to the Boycott, Divestment, and
Sanctions (BDS) movement, according to theSacramento Bee
<[link removed]>. 

 

Eighty-three
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Jewish and pro-Israel organizations signed an August 7letter
<[link removed]>
urging the California Department of Education to take action to change the
proposed curriculum, saying:

...[T]here is considerable evidence showing that the kind of anti-Zionist
propaganda and activism promoted in the ESMC is strongly linked to acts of
anti-Jewish hostility...

 

Unless and until safeguards are put in place for ensuring that its drafters
will not be permitted to use the model curriculum to promote political, ethnic
or religious enmity towards any group, or to weaponize high school students to
take action based on such enmity, we fear that whatever model curriculum is
adopted by the IQC will have an enormously negative impact on the state’s high
schools, colleges and universities for years to come.

The effort to stop the proposed curriculum united a wide range of Jewish
communal groups, pro-Israel organizations, and groups concerned about
anti-Semitism on college campuses.

RJC is Hiring Field Staff for 2020 Outreach

The Republican Jewish Coalition is hiring field staff for our advocacy efforts
in support of PresidentDonald J. Trump’s reelection in various battleground
states.

 

If you (or someone you know) have relevant political experience and a strong
desire to make an impact at the grassroots level that willwin the White House
in 2020, CLICK HERE <[link removed]> for
details and application information.

— Tweets —
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— Events —

LEGISLATIVE UPDATE WITH REP. DOUG COLLINS

Sandy Springs, GA - August 25, 2019
RSVP <[link removed]>



BRIEFING ON ISRAEL AND IRAN WITH JONATHAN SCHANZER

Beachwood, OH - August 27, 2019
RSVP
<[link removed]>



LEADERSHIP BRIEFING ON RJC'S 2020 PLANS WITH EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR MATT BROOKS

Los Angeles, CA - September 4, 2019
RSVP
<mailto:[email protected]?subject=RSVP%20for%20Sept.%204%20event%20with%20Matt%20Brooks>



SAVE THE DATE: 2020 NATIONAL LEADERSHIP MEETING

Las Vegas, NV - March 13-15, 2020
REGISTER TODAY! <[link removed]>



— Connect —

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becoming an RJC member <[link removed]>. Ensure
that your voice is heard in our Party and our community!


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