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ELECTIONS MATTER
JOIN/RENEW YOUR JAC MEMBERSHIP
DONATE TO CANDIDATES
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The Iran Nuclear Deal Resources
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White House Iran Deal Fact Sheet 
The White House has assembled fact sheets, a Twitter account (@TheIranDeal) and more to answer your questions about the Iran Nuclear Deal.
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Here are some of JAC's long-time friends who are running for the Senate in 2016
Former Ohio Governor Ted Strickland is running for the Senate (l to r: Marcia Balonick, Ted Strickland, Hollis Wein, Linda Rae Sher, and Andrew Boron)
Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) at the
2010 JAC Conference in Washington, DC
Senator Michael Bennet (D-CO) addressing
JAC in Washington, DC in 2010
2016 Senate Candidate Rep. Patrick Murphy (FL-17) with Betty Kane delivering JAC support in 2012
Former Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI) running for reelection - with former JAC President Gail Yamner and her daughter Lisa in Washington, DC in 2010
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Do you have photos from JAC events or with JAC-supported candidates? Send them to [email protected] to be included in future EZ Reads!
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 We need you! Join the JAC Los Angeles Steering Committee Lunch & Meeting
11:30 am
Encino, CA
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Talking Points Highland Parkwith special guest Rep Ted Deutch (FL-21)
September 21
Highland Park, IL Details to come_______________ Detroit Membership Event
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Want to host a JAC event near you? Please contact the JAC office and we will help coordinate.
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For more information and to RSVP, contact the JAC office at 847-433-5999 or [email protected]
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MEET THE CANDIDATES
 Senator Michael Bennet (D-CO)
Sen. Bennet is one of the Senate's chief champions of access to reproductive care for women. He co-sponsored the Protect Women's Health from Corporate Interference Act, which would restore the contraceptive coverage requirement guaranteed by the Affordable Care Act and protect coverage of other health services from employers who want to impose their beliefs on their employees by denying benefits. He is a strong supporter of the US-Israel relationship; Bennett was the driving force behind honoring former Israeli President Shimon Peres with the Congressional Gold Medal awarded last June. He is up for reelection in 2016 and will have a tough race. Bennet will need JAC's support to win re-election.
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HOW SAFE WILL YOUR STUDENT
BE AT SCHOOL THIS YEAR?
10 universities or colleges across the country allow guns on campus, and more will by the end of the year
Guns will NOT prevent sexual assault
- Perpetrators often use alcohol/drugs to incapacitate victims and/or prey on intoxicated women.
- 89% of campus sexual assaults involve drugs and/or alcohol. Guns will not protect victims in these situations.
- Sexual assaults are rarely perpetrated by strangers.
- 90% of college sexual assaults are committed by someone the victim knows.
- 33.9% of targeted sexual assaults on campuses are perpetrated by intimate partners.
Only the NRA want guns on campus
- 79% of students said they would not feel safe if concealed weapons were allowed on campus.
- 94% of faculty opposed concealed carry.
- 95% of college presidents opposed concealed weapons on campus.
Guns do NOT belong on campus
- 50% of college students binge drink or abuse drugs.
- Alcohol impairs aim when firing and judgment about when to fire.
- Intoxication and firearms are a deadly combination.
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Join with Hillary
If you would like to support Hillary,
please contact the JAC office at
847-433-5999 or [email protected]
Our combined contributions make our voices stronger. There IS POWER in GIVING TOGETHER.
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UN nuclear watchdog rejects AP report that Iran will do own inspections
The International Atomic Energy Agency, which will control inspections of Iran's nuclear program under the recently finalized agreement, said a report that Iran will conduct its own inspections is inaccurate. The Associated Press reported Wednesday on an agreement signed between the IAEA, the nuclear watchdog of the United Nations, and Iran that would let experts and equipment chosen by Iran inspect the Parchin military complex on behalf of the IAEA. Iran has been suspected of nuclear weapons research at Parchin. The Iranian inspectors would then report their findings to the IAEA. But the head of the IAEA said the report "misrepresents" the arrangement.
In Letter, Obama Tells Congress U.S. Will Still Press Iran
In his most comprehensive effort to assure wavering Democrats, President Obama wrote in a letter to Congress that the United States would unilaterally maintain economic pressure and deploy military options if needed to deter Iranian aggression, both during and beyond the proposed nuclear accord.
How New York's Schumer & Gillibrand Split on Iran Deal
Within a few hours on August 6, New York's two U.S. Democratic senators took sides on the heated debate over the nuclear deal with Iran. Kirsten Gillibrand, the junior senator, announced she'd vote for the controversial agreement. Chuck Schumer, the veteran who is slated to take over next year as Democratic leader of the Senate, declared that same evening that he would oppose the deal.
True bipartisanship - oppose the deal,by JB Pritzker
Ending Iran's nuclear threat and bringing it into the international community of law-abiding nations is one of the most pressing U.S. foreign policy objectives. And so I was relieved and grateful to watch President Obama and Secretary of State Kerry work tirelessly over the past several months to achieve a diplomatic agreement with Iran over its nuclear program. This work was made all the more complicated by the need to coordinate the widely disparate interests among the P5+1 countries of Russia, China, France, Germany and the United Kingdom. Anyone who has been in business negotiations with multiple parties, as I have, knows how difficult it can be to find common ground with so many strong voices in the room. US concerned about Russian arms sales to Iran U.S. officials are concerned that Russia is moving ahead with plans to sell Iran a sophisticated missile defense system that could undercut Washington's ability to challenge Tehran's airspace.Read Full ArticleThe 6 biggest myths about the Iran nuclear deal It can be easy to get lost in all of those myths, and hard to separate them out from what this deal actually does. Here, then, are a few of the most common myths about the Iran deal - debunked.
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One Year After Gaza War, Israel Turns Focus to Anti-Tunnel Technology
A year after Hamas used cross-border tunnels to launch deadly attacks during the Gaza war, Israel is testing new techniques to detect the hidden passages as a "top priority", sources say, but has yet to announce the system fully operational.
Read Full Article Hamas political chief confirms negotiations with Israel Hamas political chief Khaled Meshaal confirmed that his organization is negotiating with Israel over a long-term truce and described the talks as "very positive." In an interview with a London-based Qatari newspaper published Friday, Meshaal said former British Prime Minister Tony Blair is one of the mediators and that talks have not yet produced an agreement.
 Photo credit: Jorge Novominsky/Flash 90
Hamas claims to nab Israeli spy dolphin
The Israeli Navy maintains a fleet of Dolphin class submarines. But the Army Radio report made clear that Hamas was talking about a mammal, not a boat.
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Matisyahu Debacle Highlights 'Anti-Jewish Bigotry' of BDS in Europe
The recent fiasco surrounding a Spanish reggae's festival's ban on Jewish-American reggae star Matisyahu underlines concerns that the anti-Israel boycott, divestment and sanctions movement (BDS) has overreached its purported goal of promoting Palestinian rights and become a front for "anti-Jewish bigotry," the Wall Street Journal declared in an editorial on Wednesday.
Activists Say Historical Black Struggle 'Hijacked' After 'Black Lives Matter' Leaders Endorse BDS
African-American pro-Israel activists on Wednesday blasted a group of 1,000 civil rights leaders who sought to connect the "Palestinian struggle" to the plight of blacks in the U.S., with a statement endorsing the anti-Israel Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement.
Read Full ArticleNavigating the Complex Politics of Israel on Campus: Advice from a Parent
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How Texas Could Set National Template for Limiting Abortion Access
Efforts to defund Planned Parenthood and calls for tighter abortion laws at the Republican presidential debate have moved abortion rights back into the national spotlight. But the real fight is at the state level. The next big Supreme Court case involving abortion is expected to come from Texas, where a 2013 law led to the closing of many clinics and inspired abortion opponents around the country to propose similar restrictions.
National Clinic Access By Distance source: NY Times
(click map to see in detail)
Much of the Republican 2016 Field Has Actually Moved to the Right on Abortion
Three out of four Americans say a woman should be able to obtain a legal abortion if she becomes pregnant as a result of rape. Since the Supreme Court's ruling in Roe v. Wade, in 1973, not a single Republican presidential nominee has opposed exceptions to abortion in cases of incest, rape, or threat to the life of the mother. Until now.
A Promising New Birth Control Device Is Specifically Meant To Help Low-Income Women
The cost of buying, inserting and caring for an IUD can cost upwards of $1000. With Liletta, many clinics nationwide are selling the device to low-income patients for just $50. That dramatically lower cost has big, promising implications for a future where more women have access to birth control and the opportunity to prevent unplanned pregnancies. Read Full ArticleThese States Are Illegally Defunding Planned Parenthood
Earlier this month, the Senate fell seven votes short of defunding the organization. And in the following weeks, the GOP candidates' once-unified sentiment against the women's health provider has become a muddled mess of gaffes, pitfalls, and shifting stances. Read Full Article
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Separation of Religion & State
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'Megareverend' John Oliver trolls televangelists with new tax-exempt church
"Last Week Tonight" host John Oliver launched his own fiery brand of televangelism on Sunday (Aug. 16) to criticize the Internal Revenue Service's hands-off approach to faith-based fraudsters who promise prosperity, at a price. Houses of worship must theoretically refrain from participating in political campaigns to maintain their tax-exempt status. But in reality, the risk of having tax breaks revoked is slim to none.Read Full ArticleBroad Coalition Of 130 Organizations Asks President Obama To End Taxpayer-Funded Discrimination
President Barack Obama's White House website stresses that he is a civil rights president who is "leading the fight to protect everyone - no matter who you are, where you're from, what you look like, or who you love." Yet, the president continues to enforce a policy that allows taxpayer-funded religious discrimination. This troubling policy allows faith-based organizations to take government funds to perform social services for the public and ignore laws that prohibit employment discrimination on the basis of religion.
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Don't let the NRA set policy on guns and mental health
Do we really want to make it easier for people with dangerous mental illness to get guns? That's what a new, NRA-backed bill introduced by Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) does.
End 'Birthright Citizenship?' If So, We'd All Need to Find Another Home
Thomas Paine, the most radical of the nation's Founders, wrote in 1795: "The right of voting for representatives is the primary right by which other rights are protected."Eighty years later, feminist Susan B. Anthony quoted Paine's exact words to defend herself-and make the case for women's suffrage-when she was being prosecuted for having persuaded her local poll-keepers in upstate New York to allow her to cast a ballot.
Read Full Article
Think Your Voting Rights Are Guaranteed? Think Again.
Heavily-armed members of a controversial right-wing "patriot" group added an extra dose of unease to protests in Ferguson, Missouri. The Oath Keepers organization says its members - all former military, police and first responders - pledge to "defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic." However, St. Louis County Police Chief Jon Belmar described their presence as "both unnecessary and inflammatory."
 EPA unveils plan to slash methane emissions
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed new rules Tuesday to limit emissions of the potent greenhouse gas methane from the oil and gas sector. The draft rule is part of an Obama administration strategy to cut methane emissions by up to 45 percent from 2012 levels over the next decade.
A set of polls conducted for the Human Rights Campaign found incumbents would imperil their re-election chances if they oppose a bill that bans discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals.
Read Full ArticleWhite House appoints first openly transgender official
Former National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE) staff member Raffi Freedman-Gurspan became the first openly transgender official to work in the White House on Tuesday.The Obama administration appointed Freedman-Gurspan to serve as Outreach and Recruitment Director in the White House Office of Presidential Personnel.
Read Full Article
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In 2016, your vote counts for Supreme Court
One of the campaign issues that went underdiscussed during the first prime-time Republican presidential debate should really be at the top of the list: the future of the Supreme Court. Why? When the next president is inaugurated in January 2017, three of the nine Supreme Court justices will be 80 or older. Anthony Kennedy, the swing vote, and Antonin Scalia, the bombastic conservative, will be almost 81, and Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the liberal icon, will be 83. These 3 Senators Want To Change How You Think About U.S. Foreign Policy
Sens. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) put forth their own philosophy of foreign policy in a joint essay for Foreign Affairs this summer . Like it or not, it's a clear, coherent approach that is markedly different from the current conversation about the U.S.'s role in the world. They call for much greater U.S. foreign aid, an idea that seems revolutionary but was the touchstone of Washington-assured stability in the years following World War II.The secret Republican love affair with Planned Parenthood: A history
Believe or not, the Republican Party and Planned Parenthood used to be best friends. It was Republican activists who helped establish Planned Parenthood and the Republican Party that got federal funding for the organization in the first place. Read Full Article
Retiring Reid Will Loom Large in Nev. Senate Race
When Nevadans vote next year for their U.S. senator, Harry Reid's name won't appear on the ballot for the first time in three decades. But even though the powerful and polarizing Senate minority leader is retiring, that doesn't mean he won't have a role in in, and impact on, next year's election.
Republicans Spending Early to Boost Chances to Keep Senate More than a year out from Election Day 2016, Republican incumbents and GOP-aligned outside groups have shelled out at least $13.3 million to boost their re-election prospects and attack potential Democratic challengers in Senate contests across the map. That's seven times more than the $1.9 million Republicans spent by this point last cycle - when the GOP was looking to win the Senate majority for the first time since 2006.
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A Great Life That Matters
Julian Bond, a leader in the Civil Rights movement, former chair of the NAACP, professor, and pragmatic gentleman, dies at 75. Julian was the opposite of narrow. He was, in fact, precisely the sort of citizen whom Hamilton, Madison, and Jay envisioned as a leader of the Republic in their Federalist Papers, leave aside that in 1789 he would not have qualified to vote, let alone serve, in most of the United States of America. Thanks to the exemplary acts of citizenship pursued by the civil rights movement, it came to pass that in 1965, because of the Voting Rights Act, and against the skepticism of many in SNCC, he ran for an Atlanta seat in the Georgia House of Representatives.
Read Full ArticleHow Iran's Jews Survive in Mullahs' World
The first thing I noticed about Shahab Shahamifar as we strolled to synagogue on a Saturday morning in July was his yarmulke. It was a medium-size, black knitted one, and he was wearing it as we walked the busy streets of Tehran. Then I noticed that no one looked up.
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Our members count on JACPAC to provide information on current events, candidates, and elections. JACPAC depends on membership support to make this possible. If you have not renewed your membership, please consider doing so today, to help us pursue a strong US-Israel relationship, reproductive rights, and separation of religion and state. Together we can make this a better world! Sincerely,
Janna Berk, President
Marcia Balonick, Executive Director
Joy Malkus, Research Director |
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