Daily Kickoff
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2026
Good Tuesday morning.
In today’s Daily Kickoff, we spotlight the tight California congressional race where Rep. Doris Matsui is focusing the final weeks of the campaign on challenger Mai Vang’s ties to antisemitic streamer Hasan Piker, cover an Illinois state Senate race where Democrats are putting money behind an anti-Israel candidate, and report on the launch of a new state-level PAC in New York that is seeking to fight antisemitism and anti-Zionism. Also in today’s Daily Kickoff: Pete Hegseth, Julie Menin and Rachel Greenberg.
Today’s Daily Kickoff was curated by JI Executive Editor Melissa Weiss, with assists from Tamara Zieve, Danielle Cohen-Kanik and Marc Rod.
Today's Agenda
This afternoon, Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY) is sitting in conversation with Yeshiva University President Rabbi Ari Berman.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) is holding a virtual fundraiser this afternoon for Democratic Socialists of America-aligned Florida Democratic Senate candidate Angie Nixon, a critic of Israel who has called Israel's war against Hamas a genocide.
Former New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, who is expected to win his congressional race next month in New York’s 10th District, is in Israel and the West Bank this week, participating in the “Protect the Harvest” coalition that assists Palestinian farmers as they harvest olives.
The inaugural “Together at the Crossroads: A Congress for Allyship & Unity” conference hosted by the David Merage Foundation for Confronting Antisemitism in Denver wraps up today.
The Soufan Center and the Qatar International Academy for Security Studies are hosting the Global Security Forum today in Doha. U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack spoke this morning at the gathering, later praising on X the Gulf state’s “steady intervention and mediation” and noting that “Doha has shown what a trusted partner looks like: patient, discreet, and willing to carry hard work to a result.”
One Thing to Know
By Haley Cohen
Hillel’s Georgia affiliate is disputing allegations made by Rabbi Nikki Golomb, a former campus rabbi at Emory University Hillel, saying that she was terminated due to her failure to be “truthful or transparent during the interview process,” and not, as she has claimed, because of her fiancé’s anti-Israel activism.
In a statement to Jewish Insider responding to what it called “false and misleading statements” that Golomb, 31, made last week to Jewish Currents, which first covered her firing, Hillels of Georgia said she had not been transparent during the hiring process about potential conflicts with the organization’s mission and values.
But the organization declined to tell JI what information Golomb failed to disclose during the hiring process, what conduct prompted leadership to lose confidence in her and whether it asked Golomb about her position on Israel.
The Big Reads
sacramento showdown
Rep. Doris Matsui continues to highlight Hasan Piker links to far-left opponent Mai Vang
As the general election race approaches between Rep. Doris Matsui (D-CA) and her far-left opponent, Sacramento City Councilmember Mai Vang, Matsui is continuing to lean into attacks linking Vang to far-left streamer Hasan Piker, running ads highlighting that Vang campaigned with Piker, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports. The two are running in California’s 7th Congressional District, which includes much of Sacramento and its suburbs, stretching out into more rural areas. Matsui’s best hope for victory likely lies in winning over some of the more conservative voters redrawn into the district in the outlying areas.
Piker problem: A planned event in Minneapolis featuring antisemitic streamer Hasan Piker, Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) and far-left state Sen. Omar Fateh, set to take place days before the midterm election, is facing growing backlash inside the state.
prairie state priorities
Illinois Democrats spend big for anti-Israel candidate running for state Senate
Illinois Democrats are pumping significant cash into a state Senate race in the Chicago suburbs, hoping that an anti-Israel state representative can take down a Republican appointed to the seat, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports. Since Labor Day, Democratic leadership has put more than $2 million — a substantial investment for a state-level race — behind state Rep. Nabeela Syed, boosted further by more than $500,000 in individual contributions. Syed was one of several Illinois Democratic legislators who issued a joint statement on Oct. 8, 2023, which appeared to point blame for Hamas’ deadly terror attacks the day prior toward Israel.
albany alliance
Jewish New York Dems launch PAC to counter antisemitism and anti-Zionism
Three Jewish politicos from New York’s Capital Region — all women, and all Democrats — have launched a new state-level committee dedicated to supporting candidates with liberal social views who also push back on anti-Jewish and anti-Israel forces, Jewish Insider’s Will Bredderman reports. Aleinu-NY PAC, named for the Jewish prayer that translates to “our duty,” registered with the New York Board of Elections in late September and officially launched its website last week. It describes itself as “a new nonpartisan political action committee in NYS established to support candidates who stand up against Antisemitism and the scourge in violence against the Jewish community throughout New York.”
The Rundown
The rest of today’s original stories from Jewish Insider — full stories, all published on the site.
On Our Radar
● The Live Briefing. Word on the street, clips, podcasts and quick updates — the items we’re tracking all day in our Live Briefing on our app (on Apple and Android) and website.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth made an unannounced trip to Israel on Monday, during which he met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz, eight days before Israel’s election and a day after President Donald Trump endorsed Netanyahu; CNN reported that representatives from the United Arab Emirates were present at one of the meetings…
Vice President JD Vance declined on Monday to endorse Netanyahu ahead of Israel’s election, saying in an interview with journalist Mark Halperin, “The president has the most effective endorsement in American or international political history. I endorse American candidates, and that’s where I’m focused on in the midterms. So I’m not getting involved in Israeli elections”; Vance’s comments came six months after he traveled to Budapest to campaign on behalf of Viktor Orbán in Hungary’s election...
Trump invoked an antisemitic term during a campaign rally in Kansas on Monday, saying that recent reporting that Sen. Roger Marshall (R-KS), a doctor, had sued clients for unpaid bills, presented the Kansas Republican as "some kind of a Shylock-type guy”; Trump, who followed up his remark with, "I don't know if I should be saying it," had last year faced criticism for using the term, the antisemitic context of which he said he had been unaware of at the time...
Federal prosecutors said the Saudi national accused of bugging the headquarters of OpenAI was in communication with a member of the Saudi royal family, and that the Saudi government and a member of the country’s military booked flights for the alleged perpetrator’s wife and son to leave the U.S.; the pair flew to Qatar the day after his arrest…
New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin, City Comptroller Mark Levine and Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY) unveiled a street sign on Monday co-naming East 47th Street and Second Avenue “Jewish Community Relations Council of New York Way”; the location has seen pro-Israel rallies, demonstrations supporting Soviet Jewry and a recent protest against antisemitism during the U.N. General Assembly…
The NYPD is investigating as a hate crime the vandalism of a Capital One bank on the Upper East Side that had a window smashed in and was graffitied with the words “Drop Elbit,” referring to the Israeli defense firm, and “Pal Action,” a reference to the U.K.-based anti-Israel activist group that has been designated by the U.S. as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist…
Director and producer Rachel Greenberg has begun filming “The Emissary of Light,” a documentary about Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson told through his effort to promote public menorah-lightings…
University of Pennsylvania associate professor Simcha Gross was named the school’s inaugural Georgia and Jesse Feldman associate professor of Jewish studies following a $3 million gift from Feldman, who graduated from the school in 2000, and her husband; the gift will go to expand the university’s Jewish studies program…
Former Columbia University protest leader Mahmoud Khalil appealed to the Supreme Court in an effort to halt the ongoing deportation case against him…
The U.K.’s Metropolitan Police arrested a man in northeastern London in connection with the assaults of three Jewish women, including one pushing a stroller, in the city’s Stamford Hill neighborhood; authorities are investigating the incidents as hate crimes…
The Israeli Foreign Ministry and the World Jewish Restitution Organization decried the sale of a Nazi-looted fragment of a Torah scroll at a public auction in Norway…
Former Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz, the leader of the Blue and White party, withdrew from the upcoming Israeli election, after polls showed Blue and White consistently failing to meet the electoral threshold to enter the Knesset…
The Israel Police are looking into a complaint made against ultranationalist Religious Zionist Rabbi Dov Lior who issued a religious decree last week permitting Jews to harvest olives from Palestinian-owned properties in the West Bank…
Israel plans to resume commercial goods shipments to the Gaza Strip after a dayslong pause over a tax dispute between Hamas and local merchants…
Officials from Yemen’s internationally recognized government said that more than four dozen soldiers were killed in a Houthi ballistic missile attack targeting a military camp in the southern part of the country…
Christiane Amanpour, chief international anchor for CNN, announced on Monday that she will end her 43-year tenure with the network in June…
Jon Stewart inked a deal to stay on as host of "The Daily Show" for one episode a week through the end of 2028...
JI Live Briefing · Free preview
You’re seeing a snippet of the Live Briefing.
The Live Briefing is JI’s real-time feed — breaking news, notable content from across the web, video clips, images and more, all day. The items above are just a taste.
French Failings: In The Free Press, Simone Rodan-Benzaquen raises concerns about French authorities’ ability to address the wave of riots and violence prompted by far-left activists that has swept through the country. “The government needs to protect officials and teachers, prosecute their attackers, and get schools open. It needs to investigate police abuses seriously, without accepting that those abuses justify an assault on anyone in uniform. And it needs to keep doing this after the immediate crisis has passed. People will believe the state can protect them when they see it happening, consistently, in their own lives.” [FreePress]
Words as Weapons: In The Wall Street Journal, Elisha Wiesel, the son of Nobel Peace Laureate Elie Wiesel, reflects on former President Barack Obama’s recent controversial comments regarding the foundational years of the state of Israel. “My father’s life was a testimony to what words can do. History is replete with speeches, lectures, editorials and textbooks turning neighbors into intruders and murder into justice. Mr. Obama’s place isn’t with those who call Jewish survival excessive. His place is with the murdered of Hebron and of Oct. 7, and with a people that has been waiting, since 1947, for someone across the table to stop choosing hate. I hope Mr. Obama reconsiders his words and takes them back.” [WSJ]
Coalition Conundrum: In Foreign Policy, the Atlantic Council’s Shalom Lipner, who served in the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office for 26 years under seven prime ministers, considers the most likely outcome of next week’s election. "In the convoluted and cacophonous Israeli political system, the vote alone will not determine what comes next. Instead, arguments over policy and personality will fade after election night, as attention shifts to the technical and procedural questions that will shape the future of Israeli politics. … Israel’s election appears destined to end in a structural deadlock: one where Netanyahu loses his clear majority but his opponents fail to win one of their own.” [FP]
Picture of the Day
Former White House official Brett McGurk spoke last night at America Abroad Media's 13th annual awards dinner. AAM honored historian Niall Ferguson, Saudi actress and filmmaker Fatima al Banawi, Netflix series “The Diplomat” and Abu Dhabi-based AI company G42 and its Bee:wild initiative at the dinner, before an audience including several ambassadors to the United States, current and former U.S. officials and others.
Attendees at the dinner included: Amb. Jim Jeffrey, Morgan Ortagus and Amb. Bill Burns (via video) — who presented the award to "The Diplomat" creator Debora Cahn and actors Ali Ahn and Ato Essandoh — Adrienne Arsht, Elliott Abrams, Under Secretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy and the Environment Jacob Helberg, John Jovanovic, Brendan Hanrahan, United Arab Emirates Ambassador to the U.S. Yousef Al Otaiba, German Ambassador to the U.S. Jens Hanefeld, Egyptian Ambassador to the U.S. Mohamed Hamdy El-Molla, Kuwaiti Ambassador to the U.S. Sheikha Al-Zain Al-Sabah, Omani Ambassador to the U.S. Talal bin Suleiman Al Rahbi, former White House official Amos Hochstein, Aaron Lobel, Esin Erkan, Marty Edelman, Daphne Oz, Yitz Applbaum, Elliot Ackerman, Lea Ackerman, Jennifer Isham, Chris Isham, Juan Zarate, Jonathan Greenblatt, Rabbi Levi Shemtov, Barak Ravid, Jason Isaacson, Michael Hayden, Jay Mens and Joel Rayburn.
Birthdays
Hilla Vidor, Israeli actor, turns 51
CHARLEY GALLAY/GETTY IMAGES FOR NETFLIX
Henry Kaufman, economist who earned the nickname “Dr. Doom” during his tenure as the chief economist at Salomon Brothers, turns 99
Robert Pinsky, former poet laureate of the U.S., he is a professor emeritus at Boston University, turns 86
Tsvia Walden, professor emerita at Ben Gurion University, she is the daughter of former Israeli President and Prime Minister Shimon Peres, turns 80
Rabbi Aharon Teitelbaum, one of two grand rebbes of Satmar, turns 79
Russell Galbut, Miami Beach-based real estate developer, turns 74
Melanie Mayron, actor and director of film and television, turns 74
Thomas Newman, music composer for many films, winner of six Grammys and an Emmy Award, turns 71
Thomas Salter Kahn, former longtime House Budget Committee staff director, now an adjunct professorial lecturer at American University
Sheldon Whitehouse, U.S. senator (D-RI), turns 71
Jordan Heller, managing director and partner at Beacon Pointe Advisors
Rabbi Binyamin "Benny" Lau, former rabbi of the Ramban Synagogue in Jerusalem's Katamon area and a leading figure at the Israel Democracy Institute, turns 65
Kamala Harris, 49th vice president of the United States, turns 62
Brian Schatz, U.S. senator (D-HI) and his identical twin brother, Stephen Schatz, the executive director of the University of Hawaii's P-20 programs, both turn 54
Leila Josefowicz, classical violinist, she is a 2008 winner of a MacArthur Genius fellowship, turns 49
David Caspe, film and television writer, turns 48
Mike Levin, member of the U.S. House of Representatives (D-CA-49), turns 48
Eric Post, Long Island regional director at AJC Global
Alona Tal, Israeli-born actor, she was a recurring character on Paramount+’s “Seal Team,” turns 43
Misha Nonoo, fashion designer, best known for her eponymous line of women's ready-to-wear, turns 39
Michael Clark, director of fundraising and events for the National Association of Realtors' political action committee
Evan Zuckerman, partner in the NYC office of Simpson Thacher & Bartlett
Avi and Rafi Granoff, twins from Ra'anana and avid JI readers, turn 22
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