J Street

Friend --

Four years ago today, President Trump announced his nominee for US Ambassador to Israel: a settlement-funding bankruptcy lawyer who’d openly disparaged J Street supporters as "worse than kapos."

Our staff holiday party was wrapping up when we got the news. We gathered around a table and drafted a statement to the press vowing to oppose David Friedman with everything we had. Our office was nearly full the next morning before the sun was up, all of us ready to begin the fight.

Over the next few weeks, we -- you, us, allies we didn’t know we had -- put up an incredible fight to block Friedman’s confirmation. And though we mustered unprecedented opposition, the hearings provided an early preview of just how obsequious many Senate Republicans would be to the new president. All of them voted yes to an obviously unfit nominee, and some even used the camera time to attack J Street (see you in 2022, Marco Rubio).

We were not successful in blocking the confirmation. But together, we fought back against Friedman’s push for annexation and permanent occupation. Together, we defeated Trump and put an end to Friedman's tenure as ambassador.

So many of you stood with us through these battles. Now I'm asking you to stand with us again as we fight to reverse Friedman's destructive policies and usher in a new era of US engagement with Israel and the Palestinians.

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Over the past four years, all of our warnings about Friedman have been borne out. Even in this lame-duck period, he’s continued to push for more giveaways to the settlement movement. But early on in Biden’s administration, we believe we can successfully reverse many, if not most, of his initiatives. With your help, we’ll advocate for the Biden administration to:

Withdraw Trump’s annexation plan and reaffirm US opposition to annexation and support for a two-state solution;
Reopen the US diplomatic mission in Jerusalem serving Palestinians (Friedman pushed for it to be closed, and refused to investigate or push back on human rights abuses in the West Bank);
Reaffirm the longstanding US position that settlements are illegal under international law;
Accordingly, revert to the pre-Trump policy of excluding settlements from grants and joint projects with Israel;
Correctly refer to the West Bank and Gaza as ‘occupied’ in relevant documents;
And reverse the new labeling policy which incorrectly refers to goods produced in settlements as ‘made in Israel.’

Friedman may have had his chance to boost the settlement movement, but together, we can block his legacy from carrying on into future administrations. We can repair relations with the Palestinians, re-empower Israeli supporters of a two-state solution and reset US policy.

Will you stand with us again on this anniversary and in the months ahead to ensure we’re successful? Our Hanukkah matching funds haven't been exhausted yet, so anything you can give will be doubled.

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Thanks so much for continuing to stand with J Street.

- Ben Silverstein
Digital Director, J Street

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J Street is the political home for pro-Israel, pro-peace Americans who want Israel to be secure, democratic and the national home of the Jewish people. Working in American politics and the Jewish community, we advocate policies that advance shared US and Israeli interests as well as Jewish and democratic values, leading to a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

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