January 15, 2019

Gov. DeSantis Threatens Airbnb With Sanctions Over Judea and Samaria Policy

Leave a Comment / Online, United States / Aaron Bandler

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) threatened Airbnb with sanctions on Tuesday if the company doesn’t end its policy to de-list from Israeli homes in Judea and Samaria.

DeSantis said at a press conference that Florida has a “moral obligation” to oppose Airbnb’s policy, which he decried as anti-Semitic.

“Airbnb claims it’s a company of inclusion and yet this policy only affects Jews who have homes on the West Bank,” DeSantis said. “It doesn’t appear to apply to anyone else on the face of the earth.”

DeSantis added that his administration would investigate Airbnb to see if it violates state law, which would result in the company being blacklisted by the state. If this were the case, then “the state would not invest its pension fund in the company if it goes public” and “municipalities might also not be able to enter into contracts with Airbnb,” according to WCJT.

“That would not be good, if you’re already on Florida’s hit list before you even got off the ground,” DeSantis said.

In the meantime, DeSantis has already barred state workers from using Airbnb for work purposes.

“BDS [Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement] is nothing more than a cloak for anti-Semitism,” DeSantis said, “and as long as I’m governor, BDS will be DOA (dead on arrival).”

DeSantis also announced that that he would ensure that Jewish day schools would receive at least $2 million in state funding in order to have proper security in light of the October shooting at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh and said that his first trip to a foreign country as governor would be to Israel.

Airbnb spokesperson Dan Breit responded to DeSantis by saying, “Airbnb has unequivocally rejected the BDS movement and we remain deeply committed to our more than 20,000 hosts in Israel.”

“We have worked with the Florida State Board of Administration on this matter, we remain committed to the more than 45,000 Airbnb hosts in Florida who share their homes with over 4.5 million visitors, and we’ll continue to do all we can to support our community,” Breit said.

Israeli-American Coalition (IAC) for Action chairman Shawn Evenhaim praised DeSantis’ “strong leadership” on the matter.

“He has positioned Florida as a leader, at a time when many states around the country have begun the process of evaluating Airbnb’s discriminatory new policy,” Evenhaim said. “As the anti-Semitic BDS Movement continues to pressure companies into adopting discriminatory practices, states have a responsibility to protect their interests by enforcing their anti-BDS laws.”

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Rep. Tlaib Seen in Photo With Man Who Praised Hezbollah Leader

Leave a Comment / Online, United States / Aaron Bandler

Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) was seen photographed recently with a man who has repeatedly praised Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.

Abbas Hamideh, who is the co-founder and vice chair of an organization called Al-Awda, tweeted out the following:

I was honored to be at Congresswoman @RashidaTlaib swearing in ceremony in #Detroit and private dinner afterward with the entire family, friends and activists across the country. #Palestine #TweetYourThobe #RashidaTlaib pic.twitter.com/caJPN12ODX

— Abbas Hamideh (@Resistance48) January 12, 2019

According to a StandWithUs report, Hamideh has issued myriad social media posts praising Nasrallah, including a tweet from September 2016 where he wrote, “Long live Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah! Long live Syria and Palestine!” above a photo of Nasrallah holding up a firearm. Hamideh also wrote in a February 2016 Facebook post that Nasrallah is “the most honorable man on the face of the Earth.”

Max Samarov, executive director of research and campus strategy for StandWithUs, told the Journal in a phone interview that Nasrallah once said, paraphrasing, that “it’s good for Jews to gather in Israel so then they [Hezbollah] won’t have to hunt them around the world to kill them, they can kill them all in one place” and has been “cooperating with the dictator in Syria to slaughter his own people.”

Additionally, according to the StandWithUs report, Hamideh liked a June 2014 comment on Facebook that read, “Grrr… Shoot a Zio!!!” “Zio” has been used as an anti-Semitic slur after former Ku Klux Klan (KKK) leader David Duke’s frequent use of the term.

“This is somebody that no political leader should be associating with,” Samarov said.

Al-Awda is an organization that advocates for the “right of return” for Palestinians and their generations of descendants to return to Israel, which would “eliminate Israel as a Jewish democratic state,” Samarov argued.

According to the StandWithUs report, when former Israeli President Shimon Peres died, Al-Awda wrote on Facebook, “We will make sure to honor him with a public toilet in a Free Palestine! To hell with the war criminal!” Al-Awda also re-tweeted a tweet from Hamideh that had photos of Israeli flags burning with the caption “Real Jews.”

“They could accurately be described as a hate group,” Samarov said.

Samarov called on Tlaib to “unequivocally condemn” Hamideh.

“People like that shouldn’t be given any kind of platform or connection with important political leaders like members of Congress, Republican or Democrat,” Samarov said.

The Jewish Democratic Council of America (JDCA) told Jewish News Syndicate (JNS) that they stand “unequivocally against Abbas Hamideh’s radical record and his extremist anti-Israel views.”

“JDCA has repeatedly stated our strong policy disagreements with Rep. Rashida Tlaib and we urge her to make clear where she stands with regard to Abbas Hamideh,” the organization said.

Tlaib’s office did not respond to the Journal’s request for comment as of publication time.

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Progressive Jewish Groups Praise DNC for Dropping Women’s March

Leave a Comment / Online, United States / Aaron Bandler

The Zioness Movement praised the Democratic National Committee (DNC) for dropping its partnership with the Women’s March on Tuesday.

According to Jewish News Syndicate (JNS), the DNC decided to nix the partnership “over anti-Semitism concerns.”

In a statement sent to the Journal via email, the Zioness Movement praised the move as sending “a clear message that there should be no room for bigotry or anti-Semitism in progressive spaces.”

“We are grateful for the DNC’s leadership,” the progressive Zionist organization said. “Our Zioness community has been organizing across the country to fight anti-Semitism – on the left and the right – and advance our progressive values. We will continue this work this weekend by joining local marches that have officially disassociated from Women’s March, Inc.”

Similarly, the Progressive Zionists for the California Democratic Party said in a statement to the Journal, “We are pleased that the Women’s March leadership is being held accountable, and facing consequences for their toxic rhetoric against Jews, the LGBTQ community, and disabled folks.”

“This momentum briefly extended across the political aisle — the Republican National Committee has finally stripped Steve King of his committee assignments,” the statement continued. “We hope they will continue to drive out the roots of hate in their caucus. It is time for leaders to take a firm stand against white supremacy and anti-Semitism — and we’re so glad Democrats are leading the way.”

Halie Sofer, executive director of the Jewish Democratic Council of America, also said in a statement, “JDCA supports the objectives of the Women’s March and stands with sister marches across the country this weekend. At the same time, we welcome the DNC, SPLC (Southern Poverty Law Center), Emily’s List, and other organizations’ decision to not sponsor and participate in the Women’s March and take a principled stand against anti-Semitism.”

The national Women’s March leaders have been criticized for their associations with Nation of Islam Louis Farrakhan. On Monday’s episode of ABC’s “The View,” Women’s March co-president Tamika Mallory repeatedly said, “I don’t agree with many of Minister Farrakhan’s statements” when pressed by program co-host Meghan McCain if she condemns Farrakhan’s rhetoric.

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Two Nice Jewish Boys- Episode 122: Dr. Michael Oren on 4 Years in Government

Leave a Comment / Podcasts, Two Nice Jewish Boys / Naor Meningher and Eytan Weinstein

Israel is headed to elections. On April 9, Israelis will be called to the ballot box to support their political party. Bibi, the incumbent prime minister, is once again asking for Israelis trust and support.

With tensions rising along the border with Syria and Gaza, and internal pressure building up between the left and the right here at home, this election is bound to be dramatic.

In an attempt to understand the upcoming elections, the players and the current state of affairs, we’re joined by Deputy Minister Michael Oren, who by now, we’re happy to say, is a regular on the podcast.

Dr. Michael Oren is a Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s office, Member of Knesset in the Kulanu Party and he served as the Israeli ambassador to the United States in the years 2009-2013. In a previous life, Oren also taught history as a visiting professor at Harvard, Yale and Georgetown. He is the author of several books, both fiction and non-fiction, which we’ve discussed here on the podcast. We are honored to be joined by Deputy Minister Oren to discuss what’s in store for Israel and for him.

Michael Oren’s Facebook, and his books on Amazon