Remembering Norman Podhoretz
Plus, Ben Shapiro raps Heritage's Tucker ties
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In today’s Daily Kickoff, we talk to friends and former colleagues of Norman Podhoretz, who died on Tuesday, and report on Ben Shapiro’s call for the Heritage Foundation to distance itself from Tucker Carlson. We interview Rory Lancman, who is positioning himself as a centrist looking to rehabilitate the Democratic Party’s brand on Long Island as he mulls a state Senate run, and have the scoop on the House of Representatives’ reintroduction of the Protecting Students on Campus Act. Also in today’s Daily Kickoff: Daniel Flesch, Jared Isaacman and Benjamin Lee.
Today’s Daily Kickoff was curated by Jewish Insider Executive Editor Melissa Weiss and Israel Editor Tamara Zieve, with assists from Danielle Cohen-Kanik and Marc Rod. Have a tip? Email us here.
What We’re Watching
- Turning Point USA’s AmFest kicks off today in Phoenix, Ariz., and runs through Sunday. Speakers at the conference, the group’s first major gathering since the assassination of its founder, Charlie Kirk, in September, include Vice President JD Vance, Erika Kirk, Tucker Carlson, Steve Bannon, Donald Trump Jr., Ben Shapiro, Jesse Watters, Megyn Kelly, Glenn Beck, Vivek Ramaswamy, Matt Walsh, Russell Brand, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson, Roger Stone, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, Jack Posobiec and Reps. Byron Donalds (R-FL), Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL), Andy Biggs (R-AZ) and Mike Collins (R-GA).
- The Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington is holding the last in its series of “Lox and Legislators” events. This morning’s gathering will feature remarks from D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser and D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb, as well as panel discussions with local councilmembers and nonprofit leaders.
- In New York, the Brooklyn Nets, who face off against the Miami Heat tonight, will pay tribute to those killed in the terror attack on Sunday in Sydney, Australia. A nephew of slain Chabad Rabbi Eli Schlanger will participate in the tribute.
- German and Israeli defense officials are signing an expanded agreement today that will see Berlin purchase an additional $3.1 billion worth of Arrow 3 interceptors and launchers.
- We’re tracking events in Sydney, Australia, after police in the New South Wales capital detained seven men earlier today who were believed to be connected to what a police department spokesperson said was “information received that a violent act was possibly being planned.”
What You Should Know
A QUICK WORD WITH JI’S MATTHEW KASSEL
Norman Podhoretz, the pugnacious editor and neoconservative pioneer who died on Tuesday at the age of 95, charted a protean trajectory through American politics and intellectual discourse, rising to prominence as a leading champion of a muscular foreign policy vision conjoined with a fierce support for Israel that influenced such presidents as Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush.
Despite his early political conversion from staunch liberal to conservative trailblazer, Podhoretz — the always-ambitious son of a Yiddish-speaking milkman from Eastern Europe who was born in Brownsville, Brooklyn — remained consistent in his commitment to defending Israel as well as promoting the Jewish ideals that guided his social and professional ascent.
During his 35-year tenure helming Commentary — from 1960 to 1995 — he established the periodical as a lightning rod of disputatious ideas that helped drive the conservative movement, while at the same time building his reputation as an estimable thinker in Jewish American debate of the mid-20th century.
Under his editorial stewardship, Podhoretz transformed the magazine — then published by the American Jewish Committee — into a pro-Israel force that significantly shaped American foreign policy in the Middle East while helping steer the GOP to a more instinctive embrace of the Jewish state as a key ally.
“The neoconservatives played a pivotal role in providing the intellectual firepower for the case for Israel,” Jacob Heilbrunn, the author of a book about the movement Podhoretz founded, They Knew They Were Right: The Rise of the Neocons, told Jewish Insider in an interview on Wednesday. “They did that not only by arguing that Israel was a vital outpost in opposing the spread of communism in the Middle East, but also in forging and defending the rise of the evangelicals who supported Israel.”
Absent Podhoretz and his ideological comrades including Irving Kristol, another neoconservative leader, “I don’t think that you would have had the intellectual justification for defending Israel inside the GOP,” Heilbrunn said, noting that the party had previously been “hostile to Israel.”
FRIENDLY FIRE
At Heritage HQ, Ben Shapiro calls on think tank to draw red line against Tucker Carlson
When Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts posted a controversial video in October defending Tucker Carlson and his interview with neo-Nazi influencer Nick Fuentes, Ben Shapiro quickly became one of the most prominent conservative voices criticizing the venerable conservative think tank. Shapiro furthered that criticism in a fiery speech on Wednesday at the Heritage Foundation’s Washington headquarters, where he called on the institution to draw lines against Carlson and ensure that the right-wing podcaster is not considered to be part of the conservative movement, Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch reports.
Taking on Tucker: Carlson, Shapiro said, “has become, by any honest assessment, an opponent of conservatism, an outsider masquerading as an insider and destroying the character of the conservative movement in the process.” Shapiro laid out exactly why believes Carlson and his conspiratorial worldview run counter to the ideals of American conservatism: Carlson called on America to ally with Russia; Carlson “has unending critiques of the free market, mirroring Marxist thinkers”; Carlson “promotes a conspiracy theory by which the American people have lost total control of their lives and thus have no real ability to shape policy”; Carlson has spoken of Iran with admiration and treated Qatar “as America’s foremost ally in the Middle East”; and he has hosted “America’s foremost Hitler apologist,” Nick Fuentes.
SELF REFLECTION
Amid Carlson controversy, Heritage staffer sounds alarm on right-wing antisemitism
Amid the fallout from the Heritage Foundation’s embrace of Tucker Carlson after his controversial interview with neo-Nazi Nick Fuentes, Daniel Flesch — a senior policy analyst at the conservative think tank — has emerged as a critical voice raising the alarm on right-wing antisemitism from within the institution. On Monday, Flesch received the Young Maccabee Award from Young Jewish Conservatives, a political group founded in 2011 as a political home for Jewish conservatives in Washington. In a brief speech, Flesch warned of the dangers of growing antisemitism on the American right, and urged fellow conservatives to do more to take a stand against it. Otherwise, Flesch said gravely, the survival of America is at stake, Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch reports.
What he said: “The last couple of years, really for longer than that, the threat of antisemitism has largely been the domain of the left,” Flesch said. “Now, in some ways, the call is coming from inside the house … And those like Tucker Carlson and others present the greatest threat, I think, on the right. They are anti-conservatives in the conservative movement, seeking to destroy our movements, and in so doing, destroy the future of the United States.”
JERUSALEM’S CALL
Following Sydney attack, Israel urges Western governments to get serious about rising antisemitism
In the wake of the deadly terrorist attack in Sydney, Australia, on Sunday in which 15 people were killed, Israel is imploring Western governments to heed its warnings about the potential for violent acts of antisemitism. One of the recurring themes in Israeli officials’ statements after the attack on Bondi Beach, following condolences to the community, was “we told you so.” While Israel did not have intelligence pointing specifically to Sunday’s attack, it had provided information to Canberra about threats to the Australian Jewish community, Jewish Insider’s Lahav Harkov reports.
Official statements: In a video statement on Tuesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, “I demand that Western governments do what is necessary to fight antisemitism and provide the required safety and security for Jewish communities worldwide. They would be well-advised to heed our warnings. I demand action from them now.” Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said that “the Australian government, which received countless warning signs, must come to its senses.” President Isaac Herzog recalled that Israel “repeat[ed] our alerts time and again to the Australian government to seek action and fight against the enormous wave of antisemitism which is plaguing Australian society.”
CENTER PUSH
Moderate N.Y. Democrat Rory Lancman hoping to reinvigorate party’s centrist wing in the suburbs
While the Democratic Party’s far-left wing has gained ground in New York City — an ascendance reflected in Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani’s victory — in the moderate-minded suburbs outside of the city, Democrats are reeling from the party’s embrace of its radical elements. Rory Lancman, a civil rights attorney and former state assemblyman, is among the moderate Democrats looking to showcase the other side of the party. He launched an exploratory committee on Monday in a heavily Jewish state Senate district in Long Island, which is currently held by Republican state Sen. Jack Martins, Jewish Insider’s Haley Cohen reports.
Notable quotable: “The Democratic brand has been severely damaged by Mamdani and others, particularly [for] those Democrats like myself who are deeply committed to the safety and security of Israel, and deeply committed to the safety and security of the American Jewish community — whether it’s in our synagogues or on college campuses,” Lancman told JI in an interview. In addition, Lancman said, “I confess to being disappointed that Democrats aren’t making a bright line litmus test out of whether someone supports the existence of the Jewish state,” adding that his work at Brandeis Center since the Oct. 7, 2023 terrorist attacks has “reinforced” the belief that “anti-Zionism is antisemitism and that if you hate the Jewish state, you hate the Jewish people.”
EXCLUSIVE
Bipartisan House group reintroduces bill to aid Title VI complaints on campus antisemitism
A bipartisan group of House members is re-introducing the Protecting Students on Campus Act on Thursday, legislation that aims to assist students facing discrimination in filing federal civil rights complaints and requiring greater transparency from colleges about complaints they receive, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports. The latest version of the bill in the House is being led by Reps. Lois Frankel (D-FL), Don Bacon (R-NE), Lucy McBath (D-GA), Juan Ciscomani (R-AZ) and Haley Stevens (D-MI).
What is does: Formulated as a response to antisemitism on campus, the legislation would require colleges to prominently display on their homepages a link to the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights page where students can file Title VI discrimination complaints, and to display informational materials in high-traffic locations on campus. Any schools receiving federal funding would also be required to report annually to the Department of Education’s inspector general about the number of Title VI complaints they received in the previous year and the actions taken by the school.
SCOOP
House resolution calls for safeguards to address antisemitism in artificial intelligence
A bipartisan group of House members is introducing a resolution that sets out recommendations for tackling the spread of antisemitism through artificial intelligence models and highlights the ways those programs have been used to spread a variety of forms of anti-Jewish hate, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
The goal: The resolution states that combating antisemitism is a national priority and that technology companies have a “responsibility to implement robust safeguards” including transparency measures, working with antisemitism experts and taking steps to prevent the spread of antisemitism or violent content targeting Jewish people. Rep. Sara Jacobs (D-CA), the resolution’s lead sponsor, told JI in an interview this week that AI is accelerating conditions of rising antisemitism and danger for the Jewish people “with the rapid creation, spread and amplification of antisemitic content that makes us actively less safe.”
Bonus: Asked about how leaders should address rhetoric around the war in Gaza that has helped drive some recent attacks on the Jewish community, Jacobs — who has been a vocal critic of Israeli operations in Gaza — said that “it’s incredibly important that we separate out the very real criticisms that people have with the government and state of Israel from the very real rise of antisemitism that we’re seeing. I don’t believe that all anti-Zionism is inherently antisemitic, and I actually think that when we say that it is, we feed into the narrative that all Jews are responsible for the actions of the State of Israel, which is, I believe, making us less safe.”
Worthy Reads
The Dem Divide: In The Atlantic, former U.S. Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro warns about elements of the Democratic Party that are shifting toward the fringe left’s stance on Israel, citing recent criticism of the party’s position on Israel by his former colleague, Obama administration official Ben Rhodes. “But there is a darker danger to the approach that Rhodes and others endorse. Nearly by definition, calls for ending all U.S.-Israel security cooperation draw those making them into alignment with others on a much more extreme fringe—those for whom it is not enough to end U.S. military assistance to Israel, who fundamentally believe that there is no legitimacy for Israel to exist as a Jewish state. They have found their voice and are making it heard. If the test of fealty for the Democratic Party becomes supporting international efforts to pressure Israel to define itself out of existence, or expressing indifference to the campaign of Israel’s enemies to destroy it, we will be in a much uglier place.” [TheAtlantic]
No-show of Support: In The Washington Post, Alon Meltzer, the associate rabbi of Sydney’s Bondi Mizrachi Synagogue reflects on the lack of mass gatherings opposing antisemitism and showing support for the Jewish community, compared to large-scale shows of support for Palestinians. “In August, an estimated 100,000 people marched across the Sydney Harbor Bridge to protest a conflict thousands of miles away. Many marched out of genuine concern for human suffering. … If 100,000 people can mobilize for a distant war, surely a million could rise up today and say: enough. Not with flowers alone. Not with thoughts and prayers. But with action. With a collective demand that antisemitism — in all its forms — is wrong and must stop now. This needs to occur in every country claiming to live by Western democratic values. We need to hear your voice! I fear that such a vision exists only in my imagination.” [WashPost]
Word on the Street
The Senate confirmed Jared Isaacman to be the administrator to NASA in a 63-30 vote; read our profile of Isaacman here…
FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino announced that he will depart the agency next month…
A spokesperson for Sen. James Lankford (R-OK), a co-chair of the Senate antisemitism task force, told Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod on Wednesday that the Coast Guard had assured Lankford that the service would be correcting its policy to make clear that swastikas would be banned — before reverting this week to a previous policy that had prompted criticism from Lankford and other lawmakers…
The Qatar Investment Authority is purchasing part of philanthropist Laurene Powell Jobs’ stake in Monumental Sports & Entertainment, which owns the Washington Wizards, the Washington Mystics, the Washington Capitals and the G League’s Capital City Go-Go…
Elliott Investment Management has amassed a stake of more than $1 billion in Lululemon Athletica as it works to position former Ralph Lauren senior executive Jane Nielsen as a potential successor to the athleisurewear company’s CEO Calvin McDonald, who is stepping down next month…
Police in San Francisco arrested a man in connection with a suspected arson attack at San Francisco Hillel earlier this month that significantly damaged the structure…
Time interviews U.S. Ambassador to France Charles Kushner about Paris’ response to antisemitism in the country…
In the wake of the Bondi Beach attack, popular Sydney bagel shop Avner’s, owned by Australian Jewish celebrity chef Ed Halmagyi, announced its closure, citing “two years of near constant antisemitic harassment”; a note posted to the door of Avner’s said that “[i]n the wake of the pogrom at Bondi, one thing has become clear – it is no longer possible to make outwardly, publicly, proudly Jewish places and events safe in Australia”…
Pope Leo XIV spoke by phone with Israeli President Isaac Herzog on the occasion of the holiday season; a readout from the Vatican said the pontiff restated the “Catholic Church’s firm condemnation of all forms of antisemitism, which, throughout the world, continues to sow fear in Jewish communities and in society as a whole”…
The police forces of London and Manchester, U.K., announced their officers would arrest demonstrators who use the term “globalize the intifada,” saying in a statement, “Violent acts have taken place, the context has changed — words have meaning and consequence”…
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu signed off on a $37 billion deal with Cairo that will see Israel supply natural gas to Egypt…
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said Israel plans to open an embassy in Fiji next year, months after the Pacific island nation opened an embassy in Jerusalem…
Israel denied entry to the West Bank to a delegation of Canadian officials whom Israeli officials said were linked to the NGO Islamic Relief Worldwide, which Jerusalem classifies as a terror group…
Sweden confirmed Iranian reports that a Swedish national had been arrested in Tehran on suspicion of spying for Israel…
The Washington Post does a deep dive into Israel’s Operation Narnia, the June 2024 effort to assassinate top Iranian nuclear scientists…
The New York Times reports on recent speeches by Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian acknowledging that he is unable to fix the country’s mounting problems, including a struggling economy, water-deficit issues and corruption…
Benjamin Lee has been tapped to serve as the international media advisor for Israeli President Isaac Herzog; Lee succeeds Jason Pearlman, who is concluding his second stint in the position…
Pic of the Day
Rabbi Levi Shemtov spoke at yesterday’s Capitol Hill Hanukkah event hosted by Jewish legislators. Behind Shemtov, from left to right: Reps. Dan Goldman (D-NY), Brad Schneider (D-IL), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), Craig Goldman (R-TX) and Steve Cohen (D-TN).
Birthdays
Film critic, historian and author of 15 books on cinema, Leonard Maltin turns 75…
Founder of supply chain firm HAVI, active in over 100 countries, in 2019 he and his wife Harriette pledged $25 million to BBYO, Theodore F. Perlman turns 89… Professor emeritus of Islamic and Middle Eastern studies at the Hebrew University, Moshe Sharon turns 88… Winner of the 1989 Nobel Prize in Medicine, he served as director of NIH for seven years and then director of the National Cancer Institute for 15 years, Harold Eliot Varmus turns 86… Office manager in the D.C. office of Kator, Parks, Weiser & Wright, Ramona Cohen… Co-founder of DreamWorks Studios, Academy Award-winning director of “Schindler’s List” and “Saving Private Ryan” plus many other box-office record-setters including “E.T.” and “Jaws,” Steven Spielberg turns 79… Member of the U.S. House of Representatives (R-FL) from 2009 until 2025, William Joseph “Bill” Posey turns 78… Former CFO of the Pentagon in the Bush 43 administration, he is presently a senior advisor at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, Dov S. Zakheim turns 77… Winner of the 2012 Nobel Prize in economics, he is a professor at Stanford and professor emeritus at Harvard, Alvin Eliot Roth turns 74… Network engineer sometimes called “the mother of the Internet” for her inventions of the spanning-tree protocol (STP) and the TRILL protocol, Radia Joy Perlman turns 74… Diplomat and ambassador, David Michael Satterfield turns 71… Television writer, producer and director, best known as the co-creator and executive producer of the award-winning series “24” which ran for eight seasons on Fox, Joel Surnow turns 70… Labor leader and president of the American Federation of Teachers, Randi Weingarten turns 68… Founder and chief executive of Third Point LLC, Daniel S. Loeb turns 64… Retired editor of The Jewish Chronicle, Stephen Pollard turns 61… Member of the Board of Governors of the Jewish Agency for Israel, Gael Grunewald turns 61… Associate director of development at Ohel Children’s Home, Erica Skolnick… Partner at the communications firm 30 Point Strategies, Noam Neusner… Former special envoy of Israel’s Foreign Ministry to combat antisemitism and member of the Knesset, Michal Cotler-Wunsh turns 55… Motivational speaker and teacher, his book about his own coping with Tourette syndrome was made into a Hallmark movie, Brad Cohen turns 52… Member of the House of Representatives (D-FL), Jared Moskowitz turns 45… Director of policy for New York Gov. Kathy Hochul until earlier this year when he successfully ran for the state Assembly, now running to succeed his former boss, Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY), Micah Lasher turns 44… Manager of public policy and government relations for Wing, Jesse Suskin… Executive producer at CNN’s “State of the Union,” Rachel Streitfeld… Multi-instrumentalist, composer and educator, known for his double bass performances, Adam Ben Ezra turns 43… Winner of four straight NCAA Women’s Water Polo Championships while at UCLA, Jillian Amaris Kraus turns 39… AVP of external affairs at the Jewish Federation of Cleveland, Marc Ashed… Eliezer H. “Elie” Peltz… Consultant at Brussels-based Trinomics, Jessica Glicker… Intelligence lead at ActiveFence, Emily Cooper…
Belated birthday (was last week): Founding national campaign director for the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, he was a presidential appointee to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council from 2008-2013, Joe Brodecki turned 78 last Friday…
