Sen. Bob Casey Opposes Effort to Block Funding for Israel amid Accusation He ‘Failed to Stand’ with Jewish Pennsylvanians

Sen. Bob Casey

Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) on Monday declared his opposition to the proposal by Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) to block $20 billion in aid to Israel, reportedly calling it “reckless and irresponsible” in a statement.

The senator’s statement came after Sanders introduced legislation that would block a $20 billion arms deal with Israel, which Sanders called “immoral” and “illegal” under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 and the Arms Export Control Act.

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Anti-Defamation League Slams Kamala Harris Campaign for Failing to Address ‘Antisemitic Smear Campaign Against’ Gov. Josh Shapiro

Kamala Harris, Josh Shapiro

The president of the controversial Anti-Defamation League (ADL) condemned Vice President Kamala Harris, her presidential campaign, and the White House for failing to address antisemitism allegedly hurled toward Governor Josh Shapiro, who was on the short-list to be her vice presidential running mate, but was eventually passed over in favor of Minnesota’s governor, Tim Walz.

ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt told the New York Post on Saturday it was “shameful” for President Joe Biden, Harris nor her campaign to fail to address the “antisemitic slander campaign against Governor Shapiro.”

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Biden Claims Netanyahu Not Doing Enough to Secure Release of Hostages in Israel Ahead of Pennsylvania Rally with Harris

Joe Biden in the Indian Treaty Room

President Joe Biden on Monday said Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is not doing enough to secure the release of hostages in brief remarks made after the recovery of the bodies of six who were captured by Hamas terrorists on October 7, 2023, including U.S. citizen Hersh Goldberg-Polin.

Biden made the remarks ahead of his Monday rally in Pennsylvania with Vice President Kamala Harris, who Republicans have suggested was influenced by concerns of antisemitism within the Democratic Party when she passed over Governor Josh Shapiro and instead picked Governor Tim Walz to complete her presidential ticket.

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Biden Claims Netanyahu Not Doing Enough to Secure Release of Hostages in Israel Ahead of Pennsylvania Rally with Harris

Joe Biden in the Indian Treaty Room

President Joe Biden on Monday said Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is not doing enough to secure the release of hostages in brief remarks made after the recovery of the bodies of six who were captured by Hamas terrorists on October 7, 2023, including U.S. citizen Hersh Goldberg-Polin.

Biden made the remarks ahead of his Monday rally in Pennsylvania with Vice President Kamala Harris, who Republicans have suggested was influenced by concerns of antisemitism within the Democratic Party when she passed over Governor Josh Shapiro and instead picked Governor Tim Walz to complete her presidential ticket.

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Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro Said Bucks County Will Determine House, Senate Control; It Now Has More Registered Republicans than Democrats

Josh Shapiro

During a Monday campaign event, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro said the fate of the control of the U.S. Congress will fall to Bucks County, where Republicans have gained a lead among registered voters for the first time in over a decade.

Shapiro delivered the remarks at a Bucks County campaign event in support of Senator Bob Casey, who will face former Trump administration official Dave McCormick in November, according to by The Philadelphia Inquirer.

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Gov. Josh Shapiro Denies Antisemitism Played Role After Being Skipped by Harris Campaign in VP Search

Josh Shapiro

Governor Josh Shapiro on Thursday denied that antisemitism played a role in the decision by Vice President Kamala Harris to skip over him in favor of Governor Tim Walz in her bid to find a running mate for the 2024 presidential election.

Shapiro made the remarks to German-owned Politico from the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago, Illinois, where he delivered a speech on Wednesday.

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Police Confirm Investigation After Swastika Graffiti Left on Property Owned by Pennsylvania Boarding School

FarmerJawn

Pennsylvania police department confirmed it is investigating after a swastika was spray painted on the floor of a barn owned by the private Westtown School but rented by the FarmerJawn regenerative organic farm.

An August 6 press release published on Monday by the Westtown-East Goshen Regional Police Department confirms FarmerJawn owner Christa Barfield called officers after an employee discovered “a swastika had been spray painted on the floor of one of the barns that she leases from the Westtown School.”

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Dave McCormick Suggests Harris Campaign Sidelined Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro over ‘Strong Stand on Israel,’ ‘Jewish Background’

Josh Shapiro

Republican U.S. Senate nominee Dave McCormick argued on Tuesday that Vice President Kamala Harris decided against selecting Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro to complete the Democratic presidential ticket due to the governor’s “strong stand on Israel” and “Jewish background.”

In a post to the social media platform X, the McCormick campaign revealed the candidate made the remarks during a Jewish community round table in Philadelphia after Harris selected Minnesota Governor Tim Walz to complete her ticket.

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Northwestern University President Admits to Getting an ‘F’ from ADL with Combatting Antisemitism

Northwestern University President Michael Schill

Northwestern University President Michael Schill admitted Thursday that he got an “F” rating from the Anti-Defamation League during a back and forth between him and Rep. Elise Stafanik, R-N.Y. during a hearing to address antisemitism.

“Isn’t it also true that Northwestern earned an ‘F’ for your failure to respond and combat antisemitism and they called for your resignation?” Stefanik asked Schill.

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Drexel University President Vows Zero Tolerance for ‘Harassment or Intimidation’ After Construction of Anti-Israel Encampment

Drexel University President John Fry

Drexel University President John Fry said in a Saturday statement that harassment, intimidation and other antisocial behavior will not be tolerated following the formation of an anti-Israel encampment on the university’s campus.

An encampment was constructed on Saturday at the Philadelphia campus of Drexel. Those involved with the anti-Israel protest have reportedly claimed they intend to “keep it peaceful.”

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Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro Bans ‘Scandalous’ Conduct amid Israel-Hamas Debate, Months After Admin’s Sexual Harassment Settlement

Josh Shapiro

Governor Josh Shapiro introduced updates on May 8 to his administration’s code of conduct that prohibits “scandalous or disgraceful” acts from state employees, a Tuesday Spotlight PA report revealed.

The report noted that Shapiro quietly signed an executive order that changed his administration’s code of conduct for all state employees amid intense public debate over the conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.

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Commentary: Milgram in the Modern Day and the Psychology of Antisemitism in Higher Ed

Palestinian Protesters

Mere days after Columbia’s president testified the university was doing “everything it can” against antisemitism, extremist protestors took over the campus, threatening and attacking Jewish students, encouraging others to become “martyrs” like the Hamas terrorists who committed the Oct. 7 massacre, and calling for Oct. 7 to become “every day” for Jews worldwide. After Jewish community leaders called for Jewish students to leave Columbia, President Shafik moved all classes online.

Now, similar antisemitic extremism is spreading to other campuses, including Harvard, the University of Southern California, Yale, and Princeton. The police are getting involved. The protests are being praised by Iran’s Ayatollah and even Hamas.

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Antisemitism in Public K-12 Schools Spotlights Activist Teachers and Radicalized Students

Kids in a classroom

Prominent acts of antisemitism at K-12 schools nationwide since the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel are raising questions about what students may have been learning before the Hamas attack that could have sparked such a quick radicalization.

School “walkouts” with praises of Hamas, student shouts of “F*** the Jews,”  and teacher-led bullying of Jewish students have been reported at Berkeley Unified School District in California. On the other side of the country, the New York City Education Department has also been hit with massive walkouts and is facing a lawsuit from Jewish teachers who say they were subjected to severe, repetitive acts of antisemitism that were perpetrated by students and ignored by other faculty members. Meanwhile, Maryland’s Montgomery County School District, which borders Washington, D.C., has been accused of repeatedly failing to punish antisemitic student behavior.

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Pennsylvania U.S. Senate Candidate Dave McCormick Reveals 500 Protesters Still at Penn Anti-Israel Encampment, Urges Admin to ‘Get Control’

Dave McCormick

Dave McCormick, Pennsylvania’s Republican nominee for U.S. Senate, estimated there are about 500 protesters who remain at at the anti-Israel encampment constructed at the University of Pennsylvania on Wednesday.

McCormick made the remarks following his visit to the Penn campus last week, telling The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show what he witnessed was a “disgrace” and a “travesty.”

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Pennsylvania State Sen. Mastriano Introduces Bill to Defund Colleges Providing ‘Safe Harbor’ for Antisemitism

Pro-Palestine Protest

State Senator Doug Mastriano on Thursday introduced legislation that would strip state funding from Pennsylvania colleges and universities that become a “safe harbor” for antisemitism in the months since the October 7 attack by Hamas against Israel.

Mastriano introduced SB 1185 in response to the “pro-Hamas and anti-Israel protests and encampments” his office noted “recently took root at the University of Pennsylvania, University of Pittsburgh and other Pennsylvania colleges and universities that benefit from tax dollars.”

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Associated Press Under Fire for Calling Antisemitic Anti-Israel Demonstrations ‘Anti-War’ Protests

Pro-Palestine protest

The Associated Press is under fire for portraying the protests wracking college campuses across the United States as “anti-war demonstrations” while omitting how many of the demonstrations include violent rhetoric and have been connected to the assault of Jews.

“When people are chanting in their protests, ‘intifada now,’ simply look up the definition of ‘intifada’ – that is not anti war,” said Natalie Sanandaji, a New Yorker who survived the Nova music festival massacre, where more than 360 people were killed by Hamas terrorists on Oct. 7, 2023. “To downplay it is to make these people feel like what they’re doing is okay. We need to talk about how serious it is. Downplaying it is just putting more people at risk,” she said on the “Just the News, No Noise” TV show.

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University Antisemitism Reaches Fever Pitch with Calls for Violence Against Jews

Anti-Israel protest

A Jewish Yale student was reportedly stabbed in the eye with a Palestinian flag during a pro-Hamas protest on campus over the weekend, the latest incident highlighting the ongoing tensions on college campuses since the Hamas terror group attacked Israel Oct. 7 and ignited an ongoing war.

Amidst ongoing calls for violence, lawmakers have ramped up calls for accountability for the taxpayer-funded universities as well as groups supporting Hamas, which the State Department has officially labeled a terrorist organization.

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Columbia University Shifts Classes Online After Pro-Palestinian, Anti-Israel Protest Takes Over Campus

Columbia University President Nemat “Minouche” Shafik ordered classes to be held virtually on Monday following an unauthorized pro-Palestinian encampment on campus late last week, calling for a “reset.”

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Commentary: ADL’s Partisanship Harms the Fight Against Antisemitism

Jon Greenblatt

For over a century, the Anti-Defamation League has enjoyed a reputation as the preeminent Jewish organization combating antisemitism and all forms of hate. Its acronym, ADL, has “household name” status—and not just in Jewish homes. This makes its current penchant for partisanship extraordinarily dangerous for, and beyond, the Jewish community.

Last December, Senate Republicans learned that a Joe Biden nominee for a lifetime judicial appointment, Adeel Mangi, was previously a board member and generous supporter of the antisemitic Center for Security, Race and Rights at Rutgers University Law School.

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Republican State Lawmakers Block University of Pennsylvania Funding over Antisemitism Response

The Pennsylvania House of Representatives voted down legislation Wednesday providing over $33 million in state funding for the University of Pennsylvania (UPenn) veterinary school due to concerns about antisemitism on campus, according to The Associated Press.

Former UPenn President Liz Magill stepped down alongside Scott Bok, the chairman of UPenn’s Board of Trustees, on Dec. 9 after the university faced heavy criticism for UPenn’s handling of antisemitism on campus and Magill’s testimony to Congress earlier this month. The state’s House of Representatives passed the funding measure in the first two votes but failed to clear the necessary two-thirds majority required by the state’s Constitution, according to the AP.

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Harvard Board Says President Claudine Gay Will Remain Despite Calls for Her Ouster

The Harvard board on Tuesday said Claudine Gay would remain as president of the university despite calls for her ousting following her answers about antisemitism before Congress last week as well as allegations she plagiarized parts of her Ph.D. thesis. “As members of the Harvard Corporation, we today reaffirm our support for President Gay’s continued leadership of Harvard University,” the board, known as the Harvard Corporation, said in a statement signed by all members except for Gay. “Our extensive deliberations affirm our confidence that President Gay is the right leader to help our community heal and to address the very serious societal issues we are facing.”

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House Panel Opens Probe into Ivy League Schools Following Anti-Semitism Hearing

The House Education and Workforce Committee is opening an investigation into Harvard University, MIT, University of Pennsylvania and other schools, following a recent congressional hearing about antisemitism on college campuses. 

House GOP Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik R-N.Y., called the testimony of the universities’ presidents “morally bankrupt.” Democrats and Republicans have condemned the universities’ presidents’ responses to questions about how their respective schools combat hate speech and antisemitism on campus. 

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Tlaib Faces Michigan Bar Complaint for Alleged Antisemitism, Spreading ‘Terrorist Propaganda’, Lies

Rep. Rashida Tlaib faces a formal complaint asking the State Bar of Michigan to open an investigation into the Michigan Democrat, an active member of the state bar, over her alleged “repeated false statements, anti-Semitic comments, and spread of foreign terrorist propaganda” following Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel, which resulted in about 1,200 deaths.

“Attorney Tlaib’s public statements have shown a complete disregard for the truth and serve only to enflame anti-Semitic hatred rather than promote the ends of justice,” the Coolidge Reagan Foundation, a free speech nonprofit, wrote in the complaint Monday to the Michigan bar.  

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Biden Admin Unveils New Tools to Counter Antisemitism, Islamophobia in Schools

The Biden administration announced new resources on Tuesday to counter antisemitism and Islamophobia at schools across the U.S. following the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attacks on Israel, according to a White House press release.

College students signed letters blaming Israel for the Hamas terrorist attacks and multiple student groups led pro-Palestinian protests with imagery associated with violence against Israel. The White House released a series of guides and resources to “help protect students, engage school and university leaders, and foster safe and supportive learning environments.”

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Commentary: So-Called ‘Ethnic Studies’ Promote Antisemitism, Bigotry in U.S. Schools

Parents are understandably concerned with the divisive curricula now taught in America’s schools. Ideas like critical race theory and extreme gender ideology often replace the subjects traditionally taught in core classes like science and social studies. Students no longer learn the importance of our nation’s history. They learn a warped worldview that divides us into the oppressors and the oppressed.

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U.N. Adopts Resolution Defining Holocaust Denial, Iran Disassociates from the Process

The United Nations General Assembly has agreed on a definition of Holocaust denial, and moved to urge social media companies to “take active measures” to combat antisemitism.

“The General Assembly is sending a strong and unambiguous message against the denial or the distortion of these historical facts. Ignoring historical facts increases the risk that they will be repeated,” Germany’s U.N. Ambassador Antje Leendertse said Thursday.

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