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CNN reports:

For years, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries has told a similar story: he was off at college and shielded from controversies surrounding his uncle, Black studies professor Leonard Jeffries, who eventually lost his job over incendiary comments about Jewish people. Hakeem Jeffries has said he had only a "vague recollection" of the controversy, saying he couldn’t even recall coverage of it in local press.

But a CNN KFile review of material from a 30-year-old college campus incident sharply undermines Jeffries’ claims.

In a statement today, RJC National Chairman Senator Norm Coleman and CEO Matt Brooks condemned Jeffries' lies:

The disgusting remarks Leonard Jeffries made include: comparing Jews to "dogs" and "skunks", saying that "rich Jews" financed the slave trade, and saying that Jewish Hollywood executives "planned and plotted and programmed" a conspiracy to denigrate Black Americans in films. At the time, these statements were widely condemned, including by the ADL, former New York Governor Mario Cuomo, and former New York City Mayor David Dinkins.

But not by Hakeem Jeffries. Not only was Minority Leader Jeffries well aware of his uncle’s vile antisemitism, he invited his uncle to speak on the campus of Binghamton University – and after Jewish student groups protested the visit, Jeffries led a press conference in support of his uncle, and also penned an editorial where he forcefully defended his antisemite uncle and notorious bigot Louis Farrakhan...

Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries owes the Jewish community an explanation as to why he lied and attempted to cover up his defense of these revolting antisemites.

The added hypocrisy here is particularly jarring: Jeffries recently falsely accused Republicans of not wanting to teach children about the Holocaust, but he’s been exposed as defending antisemites who have said Hitler was a "great man" and called Judaism a "dirty religion."

Unfortunately, this is yet another disturbing data point of the Democratic Party embracing and promoting antisemites, from Leonard Jeffries and Louis Farrakhan to Ilhan Omar.

The Jewish Insider reported this morning that Jewish Democrats are shamefully supporting Hakeem Jeffries, instead of standing up against antisemitism in their party. Among those speaking publicly in support of Jeffries are Reps. Brad Schneider (D-IL), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), and Dean Phillips (D-MN), and former Rep. Steve Israel (D-NY).

The RJC joins in mourning the four people killed at the start of Passover in terrorist attacks in Israel: British-born sisters Maia and Rina Dee of Efrat, murdered in a roadside shooting attack in the northern Jordan Valley; their mother, Lucy Dee, who succumbed to her injuries three days after that attack; and Italian tourist Alessandro Parini, killed in a ramming attack in central Tel Aviv. Five others were injured in the Tel Aviv attack.

The RJC stands with Israel and calls on the Biden administration to support and implement legislation to withhold US funds from the Palestinian Authority and to sanction financial institutions that facilitate the PA’s notorious “pay for slay” policy that rewards terrorists.

The Republican Party is gearing up for 2024 – and so is the RJC!

The Republican National Committee has announced that the first 2024 Republican presidential primary debate will be hosted by Fox News, which reported:

The debate, titled the "Fox News Republican Primary Debate with partners Young America’s Foundation and Rumble," will take place during the month of August in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, which is the host city for the 2024 Republican National Convention.

... [RNC Chair Ronna] McDaniel emphasized that "the next President of the United States will be on our debate stage, and we look forward to hosting a fair and transparent platform for our great candidates to debate and share our winning Republican message with voters across the country."

Katie Walsh Shields notes at The Daily Caller:

Recently, the RNC recently took a crucial step forward for general election debates when they voted to walk away from the biased Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD), something that was long overdue. Asking for unbiased monitors, debates to start before Early Voting, and neutral members of the CPD are commonsense solutions towards creating a freer and fairer platform, something even Jake Tapper agrees with, yet the CPD refused to meet these demands. So Republicans, rightfully, walked away.

The Republican Jewish Coalition is already hiring staff, meeting with presidential candidates, and ramping up our grassroots outreach program in preparation for the 2024 elections.

At the same time, the RJC PAC is upgrading its state-of-the-art candidate donation portal, so that RJC members can support the presidential candidates of their choice, as well as their preferred GOP Senate and House candidates, through the RJC PAC.

Watch your email for more information about all our election cycle activities. And please consider upgrading your membership to the Leadership level, so you can join us in Las Vegas in October to hear from great GOP candidates for President, Senate, and House at the RJC Leadership Summit!

Third Democrat lawmaker switches to Republican within a month

Fox News reports: "According to a Monday report by The Advocate, a Louisiana-based newspaper, state Rep. Jeremy LaCombe announced he had left the Democratic Party and would be registering as a Republican. [H]e is now the second Louisiana Democrat in less than a month to switch party affiliations, and the third nationwide after another state lawmaker in North Carolina did the same.

"Last month, Louisiana state Rep. Francis Thompson gave Republicans in the state House a supermajority after he switched his party affiliation, and earlier this month, North Carolina state Rep. Tricia Cotham gave Republicans in the state House a supermajority with her switch as well."

When it comes to America’s image abroad, it all starts from the top

RJC Board of Directors member Ambassador Jeffrey Ross Gunther writes: “In politics, perception is reality. When it comes to foreign policy, perception is vitally important — in fact, it’s critical. The perception of America’s commander-in-chief has a direct influence on other countries’ actions and foreign policy. When it comes to the sitting US president, the importance of how the president of the United States is perceived on the international stage can determine the course of action for foreign nations when it comes to diplomatic relations. Simply put, a weak US presidency destroys foreign policy.”

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