What to Watch

October 19, 2020

Election Day 2020 is just 15 days away, and here is your update on the stories and trends to watch this week. Let us have your feedback at [email protected].

Top News from the Week:
RJC Leaders and Members Speak Out

We encourage you to explore these stories by and about RJC leaders and members:

A Jewish parent recoils at attacks on Barrett's faith
RJC National Chairman Senator Norm Coleman rises to defend the religious freedom of Judge Amy Coney Barrett and the People of Praise religious community of which she is a member. Coleman, who has personal connections to that community, writes that he feels compelled “to respond to the bigotry extended to an entire community of people doing nothing more than practicing their faith.” Read more here.

Deeds versus words: Why Jews should support Trump
RJC Atlanta Chapter Chairman Chuck Berk asserts that President Donald Trump is a man of action who has helped minorities, Jews, and Israel. Berk offers the facts to back up that claim one hundred percent. Read more here.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo plays a dangerous double game with New York Jews
RJC Leader Melissa Braunstein gives the back story to the conflict between NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo and leaders of the Orthodox Jewish community in Brooklyn. The governor told the community one thing, then increased limits on gatherings, specifically and only in Jewish neighbors, while neighboring blocks continue to open up. Cuomo is not making his Covid policy based on science, Braunstein writes. “Rather, Cuomo wants to do something visible to allay public anxiety. True leadership would require sustained, good-faith engagement with leaders in New York's Orthodox Jewish community, as well as any other community that faces an uptick in cases.” Read more here.

A pro-Trump Reform rabbi tells his story
RJC Member Rabbi Cary Cozberg, a Reform rabbi from Columbus, OH, became an active Republican in the 2000s. In this video, he says that he supports Pres. Trump and the Republican Party, “because what they stand for is more in line with what the Torah teaches. Emphasizing identity and intersectionality, progressive Democrats don’t believe what the Torah teaches, that justice must be pursued in just ways and that due process cannot be based on subjective feelings. It’s my view that Democrats aren’t pursuing justice; they’re really running away from it.” Watch the video here.

Florida rabbi: Donald Trump is a friend of the Jews and Israel
RJC Leader Rabbi Sanford Olshansky, a Reform rabbi from Florida, has been writing about President Trump for the Heritage Florida Jewish News. In his latest op-ed, Rabbi Olshansky writes that “Donald Trump has done more than any president to support Jews in the US and to safeguard the State of Israel, where many of us have relatives and friends and where many American Jews visit as tourists or students. He deserves our votes in November.” Read more here.

‘Supporting him from the bottom of our hearts’: Jewish Bay Area Trump fans eager for the president’s re-election
RJC Leaders like Ricki and Zvi Alon are among the enthusiastic GOP supporters quoted in this news story about San Francisco Bay Area Jews who stand squarely with President Trump in 2020. Read more here.

RJC in the News

The Washington Times reported on the Jewish vote in America, and RJC spokesman Neil Strauss stressed President Donald Trump’s strong pro-Israel record as an important consideration:

As far as Jewish Republicans are concerned, it shouldn’t be a close call. “President Trump has been the most pro-Jewish president in history,” said Neil Strauss, communications director of the Republican Jewish Coalition.

…A Direct Polls/i24 survey released Monday found 63% of Israelis believed Mr. Trump would be “better for Israel,” versus 19% for Mr. Biden.

…At the same time, Mr. Strauss said nobody should be surprised by Mr. Trump’s support among Israelis, who “know who will stand with them and the Gulf States against Iran, ISIS, and other radical Islamic terrorist organizations.”

“To Israelis, this is an existential issue,” he said, “and they know who will stand up of Israeli safety and security.”

Recommended Reading

• How Donald Trump’s developer dad and a Brooklyn rabbi saved a synagogue
  "I would say that the Beach Haven Jewish Center would not be what it is today, if not for Mr. Fred Trump," Rabbi Shimmy Silver told The Post. "We are grateful for his kindness and forever indebted to him for what he has done for our community."
  
  
• Donald Trump ads throughout Tel Aviv aim to bring out American-Israeli voters
  The Israeli Trump campaign's Hebrew logo was designed in the spirit of the American election campaign logo, but the message with the double meaning is clear: Addressing the Israeli-American public, most of whom are conservative, and emphasizing the need to thank the president for his achievements toward the State of Israel and to acknowledge that this is the right choice for the Israel.
  
  
• PA bakery claims cookie sales have predicted past presidential elections — and here's how it looks for 2020
  A family-owned bakery in the town of Hatboro claims that its election-themed cookies — which are currently flying off the rack — have accurately predicted the outcome of the past three presidential elections. So far, they say sales indicate a clear leader for the 2020 race, too.

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