The Democratic Party is increasingly failing the “Israel Test” because their ideology is fundamentally at odds with the values that made America and their own party historically strong.

Posted on August 27, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

JERUSALEM POST
Mamdani and the Israel test of the Democratic party
Adam Milstein
August 20, 2025

…After years of ideological indoctrination by foreign powers, Democrats are increasingly viewing Israel not as a trusted ally but as an oppressor, colonizer, and occupier that threatens minority communities rather than standing with them. Democratic voters’ views on Israel now mirror the stance of their elected leaders. According to a recent Gallup poll, only 33% of Democrats view Israel favorably, a stunning drop from 63% just three years ago. Meanwhile, 45% view the Palestinian territories favorably. This inversion of moral judgment is not the result of careful analysis or principled foreign policy debate. It’s the result of ideological capture. It’s based on a blunt worldview that instinctively sides with those who claim to be oppressed, regardless of nuance, truth or values. READ MORE

CBS NEWS New poll shows Cuomo beating Mamdani in NYC mayor’s race if all other candidates drop out A new poll shows what could happen if the New York City mayor’s race was a head-to-head matchup between former Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani. The poll says if they went at it mano a mano, Cuomo would beat Mamdani, 52% to 41%.

JEWISH INSIDER Pro-Israel groups go from offense to defense ahead of the midterms The political environment appears somewhat choppier in the Jewish world, amid growing anti-Israel sentiment in the Democratic Party, an anti-establishment, transgressive mood in both parties and the reticence of moderate voices to speak up

THE INTERCEPT Even Former AIPAC Democrats Are Signing On to Block Arms Sales to Israel Three House Democrats who collected thousands from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee in recent election cycles have signed on to a bill that would block arms sales to Israel in the latest sign that support for the U.S. ally has become a political liability amid its ongoing genocide in Gaza. The Block the Bombs to Israel Act would prohibit the Trump administration from providing Israel with specific U.S.-made weapons that the Israeli military has used in documented war crimes against Palestinians.

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Florida won’t tolerate discriminatory DEI, critical theory and antisemitism in higher ed.

Posted on August 24, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

WALL STREET JOURNAL
The Stop WOKE Act Makes Florida Campuses Safe for Jews
Marc Sarnoff
August 22, 2025

…In Florida, free speech doesn’t mean the right to shut down classes or menace classmates. In early 2024 Mr. DeSantis warned administrators that protests and intimidation won’t be tolerated at commencement. At FIU, multiple screenings of “Bearing Witness to the October 7th Massacre”— Hamas’s own footage of rape, torture, kidnapping and murder—went forward despite attempts to hijack the room. Florida has protected viewpoint diversity against the woke wave while attacking the machinery of ideological control; DEI preferences in faculty hiring are out. Final hiring authority now rests with university presidents, and tenure comes with accountability: a five-year post-tenure review. READ MORE

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Gee, ya think? “Twenty-six lawmakers call for removal of coordinator who warned that hostile policies toward Israel fuel antisemitism in Europe”

Posted on August 24, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

ISRAEL HAYOM
EU antisemitism coordinator faces ouster campaign after defending Israel
Nissan Shtrauchler
August 22, 2025

A campaign by European Parliament members seeking to dismiss the EU’s antisemitism coordinator is intensifying after she warned that hostile policies toward Israel contribute to rising antisemitism, Israel Hayom learned from sources familiar with the situation. Twenty-six European Parliament members recently submitted formal correspondence to the European Commission requesting the dismissal of Katharina von Schnurbein, who has served nearly ten years in her role and maintains strong support from Jewish organizations throughout the continent. The correspondence, obtained by Israel Hayom, specifically criticizes her professional performance, particularly focusing on statements from a leaked protocol of a meeting conducted in late May with von Schnurbein’s participation. READ MORE

ISRAEL HAYOM Major European universities foster ‘climate of fear’ for Jewish students, report finds A new report published by B’nai B’rith International, the European Union of Jewish Students, and the German think tank Democ found that in nine of Europe’s key countries there is “a climate of fear and exclusion at European universities.” The report reveals a coordinated, transnational network strategically disguising an antisemitic agenda in the language of human rights to gain legitimacy. The report gathered insights from experts on the ground regarding the situation in Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. Its conclusion states that in those nine countries, there is “clear and repeated patterns of antisemitic or otherwise harmful behaviors.”

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The UJA’s $1 million Gaza donation isn’t about the money. It’s a choice between pandering to Jews defined by their unease or standing with the untroubled few who will carry Jewish life forward.

Posted on August 22, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

TABLET MAG
The Troubled and the Committed
Liel Leibovitz
August 21, 2025

…If you’ve so much as dipped your toe in Jewish communal life this past decade or so, you know precisely who the troubled committed are. They are excellently credentialed and unimpeachably affiliated with some of our finest legacy organizations. They are rabbis and presidents and leaders of shuls Orthodox, Conservative, and Reform. Some have a history of voting Republican, others are staunch Democrats. What they all have in common is that they are, well, very troubled. They’re troubled by Israel’s judicial overhaul. They’re troubled by settler violence. They’re troubled by extremist ministers in Netanyahu’s cabinet. They’re troubled by the government’s failure to negotiate with Hamas. They’re troubled by the unethical conduct of the war. They’re so troubled, in fact, and so busy presenting their troubledness as a sign of intellectual and moral sophistication and superiority, that they usually have little patience for facts. READ MORE

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“Children are wildly suggestible. Ask repeatedly if she might be mentally ill—and she just might decide that she is”

Posted on August 22, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

FREE PRESS
Stop Asking Kids If They’re Depressed
Abigail Shrier
August 11, 2025

Illinois intends to crop-dust its public schools with mental-health diagnoses. Last week, Illinois governor JB Pritzker signed into law mandatory annual mental-health screenings for all public school children in third through twelfth grades. “Illinois is now the first state in the nation to require mental health screenings in its public schools,” the governor trumpeted on X. “Our schools should be inclusive places where students are not just comfortable asking for help—they’re empowered to do it.” Empowered to “ask” for help by submitting to mandatory and invasive mental-health surveys, that is. If basic literacy hadn’t already collapsed in Illinois, kids might pose spirited objections to Pritzker’s sales pitch. READ MORE

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“No American city has a worse public pension problem than Chicago. It carries more pension debt than 43 U.S. states and is home to seven of the ten worst-funded local pension systems in the nation”

Posted on August 22, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

CITY JOURNAL
Chicago Is on the Verge of Fiscal Collapse
Austin Berg
August 25, 2025

Chicago’s finances were already on life support. Now, with a single piece of legislation, the state of Illinois has pushed the city closer to fiscal collapse—and put every American taxpayer at risk of footing the bill. On August 1, Governor J. B. Pritzker signed a bill that ranks among the most financially reckless in Illinois history. It includes pension “sweeteners” for Chicago police and fire employees hired after 2011. Experts estimate that it creates $11 billion in new liabilities and drops the “funded ratio” of Chicago police and fire pensions to just 18 percent, meaning that they have just 18 cents on hand for every dollar owed. (Actuaries consider funded ratios below 40 percent as being at the point of no return.) READ MORE

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“Both Israel and the Palestinians have competing aspirations for the land, but because E1 is located in Area C, Israel is within its rights”

Posted on August 21, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

JPOST
Israel resumes construction of settlement project that would divide West Bank
Pesach Benson
August 20, 2025

Israel’s Civil Administration approved major construction projects in West Bank, marking a significant expansion in Ma’aleh Adumim in an area known as E1 and the recognition of a new community in Asahel south of Hebron. The E1 plan, long delayed, will add approximately 3,400 housing units, while Ashahel’s project includes 342 units along with public buildings and infrastructure. Finance and Defense Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who led both initiatives, described the approvals as “historical facts on the ground,” calling them a defining moment for settlement, security, and the State of Israel. “Today we are finally realizing what has been promised for years in E1,” Smotrich said, adding that the developments represent concrete steps toward full Israeli sovereignty in the West Bank. READ MORE

I24NEWS 21 nations condemn Israel’s settlement project, urging immediate reversal 21 countries, including several of Israel’s closest allies, issued a joint statement Thursday condemning Israel’s approval of a major settlement project in the E1 area, east of Jerusalem [kind of like Hillary Clinton chastising Israel in 2012].  The foreign ministers of Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom signed the statement, calling the move “unacceptable” and “a violation of international law.”

REUTERS Israel approves settlement plan to erase idea of Palestinian state A widely condemned Israeli settlement plan that would cut across land that the Palestinians seek for a state received final approval on Wednesday, according to a statement from Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich. The approval of the E1 project, which would bisect the occupied West Bank and cut it off from East Jerusalem, was announced last week by Smotrich and received the final go-ahead from a Defence Ministry planning commission on Wednesday, he said.

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The capture of Gaza City represents the most ambitious phase of Israel’s campaign against Hamas since the October 7 attacks

Posted on August 21, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

URBAN WARFARE
What to Expect in the 2025 Battle of Gaza City
John Spencer
August 21, 2025

On August 20, Defense Minister Israel Katz formally approved the Israel Defense Forces’ (IDF) plan to capture Gaza City under the operational name Gideon’s Chariots B…The first step would be the evacuation of civilians. Between 800,000 and one million people remain in and around Gaza City, with many already moving southward. The IDF has begun issuing warnings to medical authorities and aid organizations in northern Gaza, telling them to prepare for a full transfer of patients and equipment to the south…Once most civilians are evacuated, the IDF will seek to isolate Gaza City before moving in. The operation will test Israel’s ability to fight in the most challenging urban terrain it has ever faced. READ MORE

TIMES OF ISRAEL 60,000 IDF reservists to be called up in coming days ahead of Gaza City takeover Reserve troops will get at least 2 weeks’ notice before reporting for duty, with some sent to replace standing army elsewhere; Katz meets top defense officials to approve IDF’s plans

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“If Hamas is ready to accept a ceasefire, the reason isn’t because it wants to stop the death and destruction in the Gaza Strip. Rather, Hamas wants to ensure that it can continue ruling the Gaza Strip after the war (and keep killing Jews)”

Posted on August 21, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

GATESTONE
Do Not Be Fooled By Hamas’s ‘Positive Response’
Khaled Abu Toameh
August 21, 2025

The Iran-backed Palestinian terror group Hamas said earlier this week that it has delivered a “positive response” to mediators on the latest US proposal for a Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal with Israel. The group’s leaders, however, continue to talk about the need to continue the “armed struggle” against Israel. For Hamas, the “armed struggle” means launching more terror attacks against Israel and murdering as many Jews as possible. Hamas leaders, in addition, continue to stress that they refuse to lay down their weapons…Hamas leaders seem to believe that they can deceive Israel and the rest of the world again by pretending that they want an end to the war with Israel. They might accept a ceasefire, but it would be only on a temporary basis until they were ready for the next attack on Israel. READ MOREi

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“The disclosure may be a trial balloon from the government, hoping to gauge how the Syrian public might react should an agreement with Israel materialize”

Posted on August 21, 2025 by ArchitectGuy

FDD
For the First Time in 25 Years, Syria Acknowledges Direct Talks With Israel
Ahmad Sharawi
August 21, 2025

Israel and Syria are talking — and for once, no one is denying it. Syrian Foreign Minister Assad al-Shaibani met with an Israeli delegation in Paris on August 19, the Syria’s official news agency announced. The unprecedented encounter between Shaibani and Israeli Minister for Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer focused on “enhancing stability in the region.” This was actually the second meeting between Shaibani and Dermer, but the first did not appear in the official press. The meeting — and the official recognition of it — comes amid widespread anger toward Israel for bombing the Ministry of Defense in Damascus, and against the backdrop of growing chaos around the country. Israel has laid down red lines for the new government in Damascus: no military deployments south of Damascus, and protection for the Druze community in the country. READ MORE

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