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[2]Street Talk: J Street's Monthly Newsletter

Friend,

With Labor Day behind us and the midterms ahead, this week the starting
gun was fired on the race to hold and expand pro-democracy majorities in
the House and Senate.

As President Biden made clear in a clarion call last week, this marks a
high-stakes battle for the future of our nation. The appalling number of
election-denying, QAnon supporting, openly white nationalist candidates on
the ballot is a warning siren for the future health of our democracy.

J Street is all in on this fight, and we know the overwhelming majority in
our community are with us. We know that elevating conspiracy theorists and
hate-mongering leaders will end badly for Jewish Americans and other
minorities. We know that those who don’t care about democracy and equality
at home won’t show the courage to defend it abroad.

A recap of our work this past month is below. If you value strong
pro-democracy, pro-diplomacy leadership at home and abroad, [ [link removed] ]please
consider a contribution of any amount to fuel our work at this crucial
moment >>

Thank you for being a part of this movement,

Ben Winsor
Digital Director

AROUND J STREET

J Street Goes All In to Protect Freedoms, Fight for Democracy

[2]J Street Goes All In to Protect Freedoms, Fight for Democracy

J Street is focused on defeating the threat MAGA candidates pose to our
community, our country and our democracy. Unlike AIPAC -- which has
endorsed and is fundraising for 109 candidates who voted to overturn the
2020 election results -- J Street will never give a dime to
anti-democratic candidates. The stakes are too high. The threat is too
great.

As J Street President Jeremy Ben-Ami said in a recent email, “We’ve seen
the damage these people can do in Congress. From Pittsburgh to El Paso to
Buffalo, we’ve seen the danger their far-right rhetoric poses. We cannot
afford to let their ranks grow further.”

In recent months, JStreetPAC has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars
for pro-democracy candidates in key House and Senate races. Working with
frontline incumbents like Mark Kelly, Catherine Cortez Masto and Maggie
Hassan, and with leading challengers like John Fetterman, Tim Ryan and
Mandela Barnes, we’re committed to fortifying and expanding the
pro-democracy majority in the House and Senate.

We’ll continue to lead our community in showing the stakes of this
election and the importance of voting to protect our freedoms. [ [link removed] ]If you
feel able, please consider a contribution to help fuel this campaign today
>>

J Street Celebrates Exciting Slate of Old Friends and First-Time Endorsees

[4]J Street Celebrates Exciting Slate of Old Friends and First-Time
Endorsees

With primary season drawing to a close, this moment offers a chance to
reflect. Over the course of this primary season, J Street has endorsed 131
candidates, with 126 winning their races.

Our movement recently celebrated the twin victories of both Jamaal Bowman
and Jerry Nadler in hotly contested races in New York, capping off a
significant strengthening of pro-Israel, pro-peace representation in the
next Congress. They will join new endorsed candidates including Summer Lee
in Pittsburgh, Delia Ramirez in Chicago, Greg Casar in Texas and Andrea
Salinas and Jamie McLeod Skinner in Oregon.

“No matter how much [groups like AIPAC] spend, they won’t be able to stop
the growing shift we’re enabling toward a more principled vision of
pro-Israel, pro-peace leadership,” said J Street President Jeremy Ben-Ami.
“They can’t stop the growing recognition that safety, freedom and
self-determination are rights deserved equally by Israelis and
Palestinians.” [ [link removed] ]Read Jeremy’s full reflections here >>

[ [link removed] ]Make a contribution to support our congressional advocacy here >>

Petition: Israeli Government Must Reverse Crackdown on Human Rights Groups

[7]Petition: Israeli Government Must Reverse Crackdown on Human Rights
Groups

With the Israeli authorities continuing to crack down on a number of
Palestinian civil society groups on the West Bank, J Street has joined
Israeli human rights groups, international rights groups and many
governments abroad to make clear that this behavior is deeply inconsistent
with Israel’s own aspirations on respect for democratic freedoms.

Rallying with Jewish groups in the Progressive Israel Network, we wrote to
President Biden urging for stronger action. "We condemn the recent raids
on the West Bank offices of these Palestinian human rights organizations
and the detention of the organizations' directors as well as the original
decision to brand them as ‘terrorist organizations,’” the letter read.

We’ve also launched a petition so members of our movement can send a
message loud and clear: Human rights advocacy is not terrorism. [ [link removed] ]If you
agree, add your name to our petition today >>

J Street Welcomes Gaza Ceasefire, Calls for Action To Address Underlying
Conflict

As tensions between Israel and Gaza militants escalated into open conflict
several weeks ago, J Street pressed for urgent diplomacy and strong
American leadership to prevent the situation from spiraling further. We
welcomed the swift ceasefire and called for independent and credible
investigations into all civilian casualties.

As yet more innocent families fall victim to recurrent bouts of violence,
it is clearer than ever that more work needs to be done to de-escalate
Israel-Gaza tensions and improve living standards for the people of Gaza
-- conditions that inflict needless suffering and foster extremism. The US
must show diplomatic leadership to broker a future that alleviates
economic restrictions, promotes respect for human rights and enhances
security for all Israelis and Palestinians.

“There is no military solution to this conflict,” we wrote following the
flare-up. “Only a resolution to the conflict that fulfills the legitimate
national rights of both peoples can ensure lasting security. Those who
care about the lives and well-being of Israel and Palestinians must work
with urgency to set out a means -- and a clear political horizon -- for
bringing that about.”

[ [link removed] ]Read and share our full statement here >>

J Street Condemns Antisemitism From All Corners

The FBI's search of Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate unleashed a
disturbing torrent of antisemitic attacks and conspiracy theories against
members of the FBI and the judiciary.

"Political leaders across the spectrum must loudly and unambiguously
condemn these smears and attacks," said J Street President Jeremy Ben-Ami.
"It is beyond alarming that right-wing political leaders and media figures
continue to traffic in antisemitic dog whistles about 'globalists' and
George Soros, and continue to lean into deadly antisemitic conspiracy
theories, including the 'Great Replacement' theory."

August also saw Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas make the
appalling comparison between Israeli actions and the Holocaust in a speech
delivered just blocks from the Berlin Holocaust Memorial. International
leaders and Jewish groups around the world, including J Street,
immediately condemned the comments and called on President Abbas to
apologize. He subsequently attempted to walk back the remarks.

J Street Leads Congressional Staff Delegations to Israel, West Bank

To fully understand the security and human rights situation for Israelis
and Palestinians on the ground, there’s no substitute for being there.

This summer, the J Street Education Fund brought dozens of congressional
staffers to Israel and the West Bank. The comprehensive itinerary pulled
no punches. They met with Israeli and Palestinian leaders and peace
activists, visited Yad Vashem and heard the story of Israel’s founding,
heard first-hand accounts of settler violence and home demolitions,
visited Israeli border communities to see the impact of rocket threats,
and visited the divided city of Hebron to see some of the sharpest edges
of the occupation.

Time and again, we see staff and Members of Congress returning from our
trips with a more in-depth, nuanced understanding of the conflict -- ready
to push for strong, principled US leadership in Washington.

Grassroots donors help fund our ongoing engagement with congressional
offices once participants return. [ [link removed] ]Please consider helping fund this
vital work with J Street today >>

J Street Pushes Back On Hawks, Campaigns for Return to Obama’s Iran Deal

J Street is proud to be a leader of the advocacy campaign to repair one of
President Trump’s most disastrous foreign policy failures: withdrawing
from President Obama’s Iran Deal. The move has allowed Iran to get closer
than ever to a nuclear bomb and has been slammed as a “catastrophic
mistake” by a [ [link removed] ]slew of former Israeli military and intelligence
officials.

As President Biden continues to engage in hard-fought diplomacy to restore
the agreement and block Iran’s path to a nuclear weapon, the same old
right-wing hawks are continuing their campaign to undermine his prospects.
From John Bolton to Mike Pompeo to AIPAC, opponents continue to
regurgitate hawkish talking points -- and we continue to respond with the
facts and messaging necessary to build and maintain political support for
the deal.

"We're backing Biden's efforts 100%,” J Street's SVP Dylan Williams told
[ [link removed] ]The Jerusalem Post. “J Street is ready to lead the campaign in our
community, in Congress and across the country to build support and get
this done."

[ [link removed] ]Visit J Street’s ‘Iran Diplomacy Works’ website for more information
on the deal and to sign up for updates from our campaign >>

[ [link removed] ]Contribute to our Diplomacy Defense Fund here >>

Israeli Election Heats Up: Register for Updates

With less than two months until Israel’s election -- and polls giving
right-wing parties a narrow edge -- competition is heating up as former
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vies for a return to the top job while a
coalition of opposing parties attempt to block his path.

J Street is pleased to offer regular updates on what can be a complex and
confusing mix of processes, political debates and parliamentary math with
updates delivered directly to your inbox. [ [link removed] ]Subscribe to J Street’s
Israeli Election Updates here >>

You're Invited! The 2022 J Street National Conference and In-Person Advocacy
Day!

[ [link removed] ]Register to join us at our National Conference this December.

The J Street National Conference is the year's largest gathering of
pro-Israel, pro-peace activists -- and one of the most important,
talked-about annual events in the world of foreign policy and progressive
politics.

We're happy to announce that following this year's conference, we will be
hosting an in-person Advocacy Day in Washington, DC on Tuesday, December
6. It will include a full slate of meetings with Members of Congress in
the House and Senate as we press our priorities for peace, justice and
equality -- and we’d love to have you with us!

This will be our first opportunity to come together in person in three
years. With these meetings taking place right after the midterm elections,
it will be more important than ever to show that we are there to
participate in and protect our democracy.

[ [link removed] ]Reserve your tickets now, and use the code REPRESENT to take 20% off
>> >>

Must Reads

* [ [link removed] ]AIPAC Needs to Rethink Its Strategy Before It Does Any More
Damage, Philadelphia Jewish Exponent

* [ [link removed] ]Ignore Bibi’s Bluster: Israel Must Back Biden on Iran Deal, Haaretz

* [ [link removed] ]Israel must become the state for all its citizens, The Jesrusalem
Post 

* [ [link removed] ]After the latest clash with Israel, Gazans’ struggle continues, Vox


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© 2022 J Street | [ [link removed] ]www.jstreet.org | [email protected]

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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