A Jewish Primer on Kamala + Biden meets Bibi

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How do you turn a week that began with the attempted assassination of a presidential candidate and ended with the sitting president dropping out of the race, into five points? Let’s give it a try.

1. The Kamala Harris Jewish primer 

For those who have been living under a rock the past four years—the second gentleman of the United States is Jewish. And yes, if indeed VP Kamala Harris officially becomes the Democratic presidential nominee—as now seems very probable—and if she wins the election in November, then on January 20, Doug Emhoff will enter the White House as America’s first First Gentleman—Jewish or not.

Harris, whose stepchildren, Emma and Cole Emhoff, refer to her as “Momala,” is well versed in Jewish life. Her iconic imitation of her Jewish mother-in-law, Barb, went viral long ago. Harris and Emhoff affixed the first mezuzah ever installed at the Naval Observatory, the official residence of the vice president, and host yearly receptions for Jewish holidays.

Emhoff, a lawyer, has played a leading role in the Biden administration’s initiatives aimed at combating antisemitism, and he never shies away from telling stories about his Jewish Brooklyn upbringing.

But wait, there’s more: How about a Jewish Veep?

As of Sunday night, there are a couple of interesting names circulating as possible picks for Harris’s running mate.

One of them is Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, a rising star in Democratic politics who could also help Harris carry his battleground home state. Shapiro is Jewish. Another rising star from a swing state is Arizona Senator Mark Kelly, a former astronaut and the husband of former congresswoman Gabby Giffords, who is Jewish and who was severely injured in a 2011 assassination attempt in Tucson. A third name sometimes mentioned is Jared Polis, the Jewish (and gay) governor of Colorado, whose husband is also Jewish.

So come January, it’s possible that the White House could be occupied by a Jewish first gentleman and the Naval Observatory by either a Jewish vice president, a Jewish second lady or a Jewish vice president and Jewish second gentleman.

Better make some more room around the seder table.

2. What Harris said and did about Israel

Just over a month ago, VP Harris hosted an unusual White House event: she sponsored a screening of Screams Before Silence, a film produced by Sheryl Sandberg documenting the horrific sexual abuse carried out by Hamas against Israeli women during the October 7 attack. Before the screening, which was part of an event on combating sexual violence in conflict zones, Harris met in private with Amit Soussana, an Israeli woman who was sexually assaulted by a Hamas terrorist while held in captivity in Gaza.

This moving moment highlighted Harris’ complex approach to the Gaza war and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. On the one hand, just like her boss Joe Biden, Harris has expressed endless empathy for Israelis impacted by the terror attack and has fully supported Israel’s right to defend itself against Hamas.

On the other hand, she has served at times as the White House’s “tough cop” on Israel, making critical statements about Benjamin Netanyahu and his government that Biden himself avoided airing. These included, as described by Gabby Deutch of Jewish Insider, a warning directed at Israel that there would be “consequences” if the IDF invaded Rafah, and an early call for a cease-fire before other administration officials voiced this position.

Before the war, Harris caused a bit of an uproar when she stated, during her speech at the Israeli embassy’s 75th Independence Day reception, that Israel “needs an independent judiciary.” At a time when the Netanyahu government was in the midst of pushing forward a controversial judicial overhaul, her comment was seen as the most pronounced expression of dissent to come from a top level official to date.

Harris, who served on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee before becoming vice president and who in her current position takes part in driving U.S. policy toward Israel and the Middle East, is fully immersed in the issue. Her positions on the Middle East are far from those of some in the Democratic Party’s left wing who advocate for a tougher stance toward Israel. But she is also not Joe Biden, who describes himself as “a Zionist.”

A common line when describing Biden’s approach to Israel is that he is the last Democratic president to be such a staunch supporter of the Jewish state. If elected, Harris could be the first of a new generation of centrist Democrats who come to the issue with a basic supportive approach to Israel but who don’t feel uncomfortable criticizing, or even pressuring, the Israeli government.

3. As if he hasn’t been through enough—Biden meets Bibi

What a week Joe Biden has had. As of now, he’s scheduled to return to the White House on Tuesday from his Delaware beach house, ending his self-imposed quarantine after testing positive for COVID. When stepping into the Oval Office, Biden will go through his schedule and see that he has a twelve o’clock (or perhaps a bit earlier or later appointment) with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The two have had a strained relationship, to say the least, and disagree on many of the issues regarding Netanyahu’s conduct of the Gaza war.

Biden could cancel, and no one would say a word. But he seems determined, according to both Israeli and U.S. sources, to keep the meeting and get a chance to sit down with Netanyahu, who will be in town for his planned Wednesday address to Congress.

Why?

First, because Biden needs to show the world he is up to the job and that he is fit to serve as president for the remaining six months. Republicans, including their presidential candidate Donald Trump, have questioned this.

But beyond that, Biden is still fully committed to getting a hostage release deal which will also lead to a cease-fire and an end to the war. He feels it is in arm’s reach and knows that there’s a need to nudge Bibi toward signing the deal. But now, achieving such a deal won’t help Biden politically. He’s doing it for the cause.

4. The Begin precedent

Menachem Begin served as Israel’s prime minister from 1977 to 1983. He was the first Likud leader to win the election, he ended three decades of Labor and center-left political domination, and he turned the Likud into Israel’s ruling party, which it still is.

But by the end of 1982, he began to feel isolated and detached. Begin, some of his advisers later said, was ill with clinical depression. The war in Lebanon, which he approved as a 48-hours operation, dragged on and exacted a heavy toll. Begin was seen in public less and less, and while his inner circle tried to keep up a facade of business as usual, all cabinet members knew that something was wrong. In August 1983 Begin handed in his resignation. “I can no longer fulfill my duties,” he said. Begin retreated to his Jerusalem apartment and left only to attend the annual memorial for his wife. He died in 1992.

Joe Biden’s case is very different. He is competent and engaged. When Biden steps down on January 20, he will have earned a reputation as a respected and beloved American leader.

But there is an unavoidable parallel. Both Begin and Biden were surrounded by close advisers and family members who must have noticed their decline. Under normal circumstances, these are the people who should have told their boss that things are taking a turn for the worse and that it would be best to consider the future of their career earlier rather than later. But they didn’t. The bubble, being a bubble, sustains itself—all those inside the bubble know that their own careers depend on that of the politician they surround.

While very different in the circumstances of their stepping down, both Begin at the time and Biden now would have benefited greatly from close aides who weren’t afraid to tell them the truth.

5. Bibi’s speech – what to look for

Netanyahu will address Congress on Wednesday.

A week ago, the consensus was that this is one of the most important news events of the week, but now, it is almost a side note.

Still, here are some points to watch for when Bibi takes the dais at 2 p.m Eastern time.

– How does he treat Biden and his administration? Netanyahu is expected to praise Biden for his support for Israel while also arguing his case where his policies differ from Biden’s. The trick is to keep the right balance between the two, but it is yet to be seen whether Netanyahu is willing or able to do so.

– What will be the focus of the speech? Netanyahu, being Netanyahu, will try to pay as much attention as possible to Iran and will portray the Islamic Republic as the evil mastermind behind the regional puppets attacking Israel. The Biden administration agrees but would like to see Bibi focus on the hostage deal, which is on the table. Will Netanyahu use the floor to make a dramatic announcement on signing a deal? Israeli sources say that’s not in the cards. But the White House would like to hear him focus on this issue and make a clear commitment to close the deal soon.

– Politics: Will Netanyahu mention Donald Trump? Will he give a nod to Republican members of Congress and the house speaker who invited him? Here, too, it’s all about the balance.

– Headcount: How many Dems will boycott the speech? A good guideline for assessing Democrats’ feeling toward the Israeli leader is looking back to 2015. Then, when Netanyahu came to speak against Obama’s nuclear deal with Iran, 58 Dems refused to attend. If the number is significantly higher this time, it will show that Netanyahu did nothing in the past nine years to rebuild bridges with the party.