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The Jewish News Syndicate (JNS) reports:

The Republican Jewish Coalition has endorsed Reps. David Kustoff (R-TN), Michael McCaul (R-TX) and Max Miller (R-OH) for re-election in 2024.

The three are "patriots, who have been stalwart supporters of strengthening the US-Israel alliance and leaders in the fight against rising antisemitism," stated Norm Coleman and Matt Brooks, national chairman and CEO, respectively, of the RJC.

Read more here.

Governor Ron DeSantis and Senator Tim Scott are now CONFIRMED to attend the RJC's Annual Summit in Las Vegas from October 27-29!

PREVIOUS ANNOUNCED SPEAKERS INCLUDE:

Vice President Mike Pence

Ambassador Nikki Haley

Vivek Ramaswamy

Governor Chris Christie

Governor Sarah Sanders

Senator Steve Daines

Senator Lindsey Graham

Senator Rick Scott

There are more big speaker announcements coming, too!

Register before September 18 and get the Early Bird rate of $1,500 per person.

(This event is for RJC Leaders. Leadership dues begin at the $1,000 level.)

President Joe Biden has named Jack Lew to serve as US Ambassador to Israel. Lew served as director of the Office of Management and Budget in President Bill Clinton's administration, as chief of staff to President Barack Obama and then as his Treasury secretary, and as a member on the National Security Council under both presidents. Lew is an observant Orthodox Jew and would be the fourth Jewish ambassador to Israel in a row, after Tom Nides, David Friedman, and Dan Shapiro.

While Lew has gotten good reviews from some national Jewish organizations, Republicans are more wary. Marc Rod reports at the Jewish Insider on the long road ahead for Lew as his nomination moves forward in the US Senate:

Given that Democrats hold a majority in the Senate, they will likely have the votes to confirm Lew, barring Democratic defections, but Republicans could drag the process out for months and pressure the administration over its Israel policy.

…Tensions between the administration and Senate Republicans prompted a July letter, led by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and signed by 13 other lawmakers, including seven of the 10 Republicans on the [Senate Foreign Relations] committee. The letter accused administration officials of promulgating "policies designed to undermine" the US-Israel relationship.

…Before Lew’s nomination was made official, a group of House Republican lawmakers urged Biden not to nominate him, citing his involvement with the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, criticisms of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and defense of the Obama administration’s decision not to veto a United Nations Security Council resolution condemning Israeli settlements.

While the House members have no formal role in Lew’s confirmation, those criticisms are likely to find purchase among Senate Republicans as well.

…With numerous high-priority bills, including government funding, still to be processed this year and a long backlog of other nominations, it’s unclear whether Senate leadership would be willing to dedicate floor time to Lew’s nomination in the near future.

RJC is proud to endorse:

Rep. Michael McCaul (TX-10)

Rep. David Kustoff (TN-8)
Rep. Max Miller (OH-7)

These three patriots have been stalwart supporters of strengthening the US-Israel alliance and leaders in the fight against rising antisemitism. Learn more about them here.

You can support the re-election of these outstanding members of the US House at the RJC PAC Portal.

The RJC PAC Portal is the best way for RJC members to contribute to Presidential, Senate and House candidates.

Bookmark the RJC PAC Portal and be sure to use that link whenever you’re making a political donation in this crucial election cycle!

Five years ago, President Donald Trump withdrew the US from the UN Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) because of its anti-Israel bias. Between 2009 and 2014, UNESCO passed 47 resolutions, 46 of which were directed against Israel. President Joe Biden recently brought the US back into UNESCO and promised to pay more than $600 million in outstanding dues to the UN organization.

The Times of Israel reports:

Biden’s choice to become the US permanent representative to the Paris-based UNESCO, with the rank of ambassador, is longtime aide Courtney O’Donnell… O’Donnell currently wears two hats in the administration: She’s a senior adviser in Vice President Kamala Harris’ office and acting chief of staff for Harris’ husband, second gentleman Doug Emhoff.

Elliott Abrams writes at the Wall Street Journal that President Joe Biden’s negotiations for the release of five American hostages held by Iran, in exchange for $6 billion in frozen Iranian assets, are a bad idea. With an estimated 1,000 or more Americans visiting Iran each year, Iran has far too many opportunities to hold Americans captive for ever-growing amounts of ransom. Abrams suggests that the US cut off the supply of potential hostages by keeping Americans out of hostage-taking countries. He writes:

This has largely been achieved with respect to North Korea. The State Department says "all US passports are invalid for travel to, in, or through the DPRK unless specially validated for such travel under the authority of the Secretary of State." Such validations are approved "only in very limited circumstances."

Yet the US hasn’t yet done the same with Iran, which has been unjustly imprisoning Americans for decades.

…Washington can take at least two actions in response to Tehran’s blatant policy of turning hostage-taking into a cash machine.

First, invalidate the use of US passports for travel to the regime. There is no reason to permit Americans to travel to Iran for business or "adventure" tourism.

…Second, ensure that no American student goes to Iran [for either study or research purposes].

Biden backdoors Israel in the UN, rescinding Trump’s recognition of sovereignty over the Golan

Tony Badran, writing at Tablet Magazine, provides a disturbing analysis of some complex diplomatic machinations by the Biden administration that will harm Israel and US interests in the Middle East. Badran explains how the Golan Heights fit into President Joe Biden’s efforts to undo President Donald Trump’s pro-Israel achievements and pursue the pro-Iran agenda begun under President Barack Obama.

Why the US Marines love (and purchased) Iron Dome

Christian Orr writes that it’s well known that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) purchase US military hardware, but another part of the US-Israel military partnership gets less attention, namely American purchases of Israeli-made equipment. A recent example is the US Marine Corps plan to acquire three Iron Dome batteries from Israel, including 44 launchers and 1,840 Tamir interceptors. Since 2011, the Iron Dome system has protected Israeli civilians from Katyusha rockets and other artillery shells shot into Israel by Hezbollah and Hamas. The Marines will soon have an expanded air and missile defense capabilities for its deployed units.

Israel opens Bahrain embassy, three years after normalizing ties

Israel officially opened its embassy in Bahrain on Monday, three years after both sides normalized ties. Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen attended an official ceremony for the opening of the diplomatic mission during a visit to Bahrain which included a delegation of businessmen and government officials.

Contact information for our offices can be found on our website. Please visit us online for the latest RJC news, to see details of upcoming events, and to donate to the RJC. Read past editions of this newsletter here.