JAC members were out and about across the country this week. Here are a few highlights.
JAC members with Rep. Bill Foster (IL-11) and his daughter at a DCCC event in Chicago.
JAC gave Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi one of our 'No Guns' t-shirts at DCCC meeting for Brad Schneider in Chicago.
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Talking Points Highland Park with Gidi Grinstein October 28
9:30 am Glencoe, IL
Detroit Membership Event with Senators Gary Peters (D-MI) and Debbie Stabenow (D-MI)
Monday, November 23
11:30 am - 1:00 pm
Details to come
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Talking Points Highland Park
with
Rep. Jared Polis (CO-2)
Monday, November 16
Highland Park, IL
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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JAC is honored
to be recognized by
Personal PAC with the
Irving B. Harris Spirit of Choice Awardat next week's luncheon
for our work on reproductive rights.
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November 13
Event with
Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY)
Chicago
Details to follow
November 15
Brunch with
Rep. Jared Polis (CO-2)
and
Brad Schneider
(candidate for IL-10)
Chicago 12:30 - 2:00 pm November 2 Conversation with Hillary Clinton
Chicago
12 - 2 pm November 2 Conversation with Hillary Clinton
Evanston, IL 5 - 7 pm ___________________
For more information and to RSVP, contact the JAC office at 847-433-5999 or [email protected]
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THE SUPREME COURT AND YOUR LIFE
Supreme Court judges are appointed for life-time terms and consequently their ability to affect change in our country far surpasses that of the Presidents who appoint them. Two of the current Justices were appointed by President Obama. - There are 9 Justices on the Supreme Court
- Four are in their late 70s or early 80s
- The next President may nominate up to four new Justices
ELECTIONS MATTER. The Supreme Court's decisions impact every aspect of our lives from education, health care, religion, marriage and privacy. The Supreme Court hears 100-150 of the over 7,000 cases it is asked to review each year. SCOTUS decisions have even changed the political landscape in our country.
Next week, the Supreme Court will decide if it will hear a case on whether a community, such as Highland Park, IL, can legally ban assault weapons. If the Supreme Court rules on this matter, their decision will impact gun safety laws nationwide.
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ELECTIONS MATTER
JOIN/RENEW YOUR JAC MEMBERSHIP
DONATE TO CANDIDATES
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Order your 'No Gun'
T-Shirt Today!
Support JAC's call for #gunsense - donate $100 and get your own 'No Gun' t-shirt!
Click on the order now button and note your requested size and mailing address in the "donation detail" box.
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MDA Update: 10 Israelis killed, 112 hurt in 3 weeks of terror
In the near-daily attacks that include stabbings, shooting and vehicular attacks, 11 Israelis have been seriously wounded, 17 moderately hurt, and 84 lightly wounded.
Read Full Article
Prime Minister and Secretary of State Meet in Berlin
Kerry was beginning a four-day trip to Europe and the Middle East aimed at deescalating the violence which has seen ten Israelis killed in terror attacks and dozens of Palestinian attackers and rioters killed by Israeli forces.
Sec. Kerry and PM Netanyahu meet in Berlin Washington Plans Up to $3 Billion in Military Aid to Israel
The two countries are looking to agree on a 10-year military aid package, worth $3 billion a year, to extend current U.S. grants to Israel, which are due to expire in 2017.
Read Full Article
Netaynahu's Holocaust distortion obscures Mufti's collaboration, say historians
Leading Israeli historians and survivors' advocates on Wednesday accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of distorting the Holocaust, following a speech in which he claimed that Adolf Hitler had been convinced to murder Europe's Jews by the leader of the Palestinian nationalist movement.
How Israel and the Palestinians got to this explosive moment
For months now Israelis and others have been asking whether the sporadic acts of terror on the West Bank and in Jerusalem officially herald the Third Intifada--a Palestinian uprising against Israel. Its intensity will depend on the overall atmosphere of despair, the level of motivation of the Palestinian security forces, and whether one individual initiative prompts others to try (copycat).
House Jewish Caucus Rips UNESCO on Temple Mount vote
19 members of US House of Representatives condemn UN body for approving resolution charging Israel with changing status quo at holy site.
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Yair Lapid on the "Media Intifada"
The second category of persecutors are those in the media covering this wave of violence. In a long series,(too long to be coincidental) of false reports and distortions of the truth they create the impression that the victim is the aggressor, that the ones protecting themselves are the murderers, that Israel has no right to defend itself.
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Israel needs cultural bridges, not boycotts - letter from JK Rowling, Simon Schama and others
Cultural boycotts singling out Israel are divisive and discriminatory, and will not further peace. Open dialogue and interaction promote greater understanding and mutual acceptance, and it is through such understanding and acceptance that movement can be made towards a resolution of the conflict.
Texas A&M Student Senate Passes First Pro-Israel Resolution
The Student Senate of Texas A&M University unanimously passed the country's first pro-Israel student government resolution on Wednesday, October 7. The resolution, "A resolution supporting the nation of Israel from the Student Senate of Texas A&M University," called upon the university to invest in Israel and to expand study-abroad opportunities for A&M students in Israel.
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EACH Woman Act is long overdue
This week, people across the country will mobilize in support of the EACH Woman Act - a bill that will restore funding for abortion for millions of women covered by public and private health insurance. The legislation, spearheaded by Reps. Barbara Lee (D-CA), Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) and Diana DeGette (D-CO), is a long-overdue step toward dignity for women.
Read Full Article
NARAL Wants Abortion Clinic Attacks Investigated as Domestic Terrorism
In July, employees at a clinic in the Chicago suburb of Aurora, Illinois, reported an attempted arson. In August, firefighters found half a burning car at the construction site of a future clinic in New Orleans. On Sept. 4, a clinic in Pullman, Washington, was set ablaze at 3:30 a.m., and on Sept. 30, someone broke a window at a Thousand Oaks, California, clinic and threw a makeshift bomb inside.
TX: Planned Parenthood to No Longer Receive Medicaid Funds
The Texas Health and Human Services Commission notified Planned Parenthood on Monday that it will terminate the reproductive health provider's Medicaid contract
Shuttered: The End of Abortion Access in Red America
Roe v. Wade - the 1973 Supreme Court opinion legalizing abortion - started in Texas. Now, as abortion rights are under unprecedented attack, it's Texas that could trigger the end of Roe v. Wade. At stake: The reproductive rights of millions of American women, across the entire country.
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Separation of Religion & State
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Decisions should be between Patients & Doctors - not Catholic Bishops
As a medical professional, the oath I take is to first "do no harm." I take that to mean that my job and that of my colleagues is to take the best care possible of our patients. Hospital policies such as the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services that limit what physicians can tell and offer our patients can be extremely dangerous-and sometimes even life-threatening.
Read Full Article House GOP passes DC school vouchers; White House objects
The Obama administration and House Democrats are opposed to the legislation, as is a majority of the D.C. Council, which has urged Congress to spend federal dollars on public, not private, schools in the city.
Read Full Article
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JAC members canvassing in Highland Park to promote gun safety with
Mayor Nancy Rotering.
Groups Wants All HP Businesses to Display 'No Gun' Signs
"When it comes to stores that have given us a definitive 'yes' or 'no,' 95 percent have said yes and displayed the sign," said Dana Gordon, marketing and outreach coordinator for the Joint Action Committee, noting that over 100 stores in downtown Highland Park and the city's Ravinia District have placed the signs in their windows over just the past week when the group began canvassing.
Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/op-ed/article35371278.html#storylink=c
Read Full Article
Clinton, Trump seize on guns
Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are focusing heavily on guns, believing the divisive issue will energize base voters in their respective parties and help them capitalize on their front-runner status as they fight to take the White House in 2016.
The NRA Is Making Sure Scientists Can't Tell You the Truth about Guns
Since 1968, 1.5 million Americans - more than all the dead from all the wars in U.S. history - have perished after being shot. But since the mid-1990s, the federal government has done exceptionally little to investigate the threat posed by firearms, thanks largely to successful efforts by the National Rifle Association to intimidate, threaten and harass the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Institutes of Health and other federal agencies.
TX allowed to deny birth certificates to US-born children of undocumented parents
Israel-California Green-Tech Partnership Launches at Google
"Just over five years ago, Israel had fears of turning on the tap and no water coming out. In just a few years, Israel has innovated its way to becoming the world leader on water innovation."
Read Full Article Adaptation: The Missing Piece in Climate Change Solutions
U.S. Representative Mike Quigley (IL-05) urged his colleagues on the House floor that changing our actions to reduce climate change is only one piece of the solution, we also need to adapt.
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The Strange Laws that Dictate What Your Doctor Tells You
Across the country, states are passing laws that determine what doctors can and cannot discuss with their patients. Doctors might be prevented from asking patients about politically sensitive topics, like guns or fracking, or they might be forced to give patients medically inaccurate information, in the case of abortion.
Read Full Article
Democrats are in denial; their party is actually in deep trouble
The presidency is extremely important, of course. But there are also thousands of critically important offices all the way down the ballot. And the vast majority - 70% of state legislatures, more than 60% of governors - are in Republicans hands. And, of course, Republicans control both chambers of Congress.
Paul Ryan prizes family time, opposes family leave
One of Paul Ryan's conditions for becoming speaker is that he be able to spend time with his family. But when it comes to federal policies on family leave, Ryan has opposed virtually every measure proposed over the past several years.
NH Senate race is ground zero for women's issues
The race is less than three weeks old, but already Senator Kelly Ayotte, a Republican, and Governor Maggie Hassan, a Democrat, as well as several outside interest groups and super PACs, are quickly trying to define these issues for voters in their own terms.
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Yitzhak Rabin's Murder: The holes left behind
The assassination of President John F. Kennedy shocked the American public; the assassination of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin reshaped Israel's.
Read Full Article
Syrian Refugees are not Jewish, but we are
Because of our history and experience, the plight of the Syrians, and refugees everywhere, resonates. Refugees fleeing danger and searching for a safe place to call home is a Jewish issue, and significant voices in the Jewish community are stepping up to demand that we not turn our backs. We know what it means to be strangers in a strange land. We also know the impact we can have when we come together to speak out for the rights of vulnerable people.
Read Full Article
Whatever happened to Obama's executive actions on immigration?
Nearly a year ago, President Obama announced a sweeping plan to shield millions of illegal immigrants from deportation, arguing that a mass exodus of undocumented migrants "would be both impossible and contrary to our character." But it remains in legal limbo, sitting in a New Orleans federal appeals court that heard arguments in July but has yet to issue a decision.
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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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