Steve Sheffey

Literally every country involved in this stupid war has a government I’d love to see removed from power, and for none of them is the right way to do it military action by the other two.

On Purim, we read the story of Esther, who, at her cousin Mordecai's bidding, used her position of favor with the king to save Jews from a plot by the king's evil advisor, Haman, to kill them all.

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AIPAC’s cash complicates crowded Illinois primaries The more than $1 million in outside spending could prompt a familiar outcome for those who followed the NJ-11 primary earlier this year.

Important @politico.com reporting by @shiakapos.bsky.social on AIPAC's role in the upcoming Illinois primaries, including #IL09. Proud to be quoted. www.politico.com/news/2026/02...

So Trump, and not the "anonymous staffer," actually did post the Obamas/apes video?

This is the ad that Fox News does NOT want you to see.

Fox News rejected our newest ad, which demonstrates that Trump has “gone too far” with ICE.

But we will not remain silent in the face of these attacks.

Share our ad and follow @usjewishdems.bsky.social to join us in the fight.

The Blogs: Senator Cassidy’s IHRA Crusade Is a Political Stunt, Not a Plan to Protect Jews From the blog of Kevin Rachlin at The Times of Israel

"Senator Cassidy’s letter asks Mayor Mamdani many questions, but here is one question the senator must answer himself: What tangible action has he taken—beyond letters and press releases—to make Jewish Americans safer?"

- @sikevin99.bsky.social, our VP of Government Relations & Washington Director

I'm not one to boost content from Bari Weiss' The Free Press, but today FP posted a *wild* interview which they think makes Mamdani look bad but inadvertently exposes just how extreme and warped some of the "mainstream" Jewish world has become on issues of Israel and antisemitism. 1/9

🧵 We are the Nexus Project, an advocacy organization fighting both antisemitism and the weaponization of the Jewish community's very real fears for political gain.

Senior ADL antisemitism researcher leaves to lead competing effort at watchdog Nexus - Jewish Telegraphic Agency Aryeh Tuchman will direct a new Nexus research center focused on improving data, definitions and public understanding of antisemitism.

NEW: Today, we’re excited to announce the creation of the Nexus Center for Antisemitism Research (NCAR), which will work to improve the quality of research, data, and analysis available to advance the broader mission of confronting hate and promoting Jewish safety.

The Nexus in the Shadow of the ADL Last month, I read an article in the JTA which described the Nexus Project as having been "launched ... as a progressive alternative to th...

Everybody on all sides is playing it cool, but it strikes me as a big deal that a senior ADL antisemitism researcher is jumping ship to join @nexusproject.bsky.social.

Nexus really is becoming the place to go for mainstream liberal Jews who feel legacy orgs have abandoned them to coddle the right.

Where are the people with stopwatches timing how fast Mamdani responds when we need them?

Let The Mudslinging Begin Email from Steve Sheffey Steve Sheffey's must-read Sunday morning analysis of the week in politics from a pro-Israel perspective Click here and copy & paste the link to share this newsletter and view

For folks who got upset this week by the Shapiro story on his vetting, I gave my take as a DC person to @stevesheffey.bsky.social in his weekly newsletter.
myemail.constantcontact.com/Let-The-Muds...

There is an extremely moving moment in Mandy Patinkin’s Yiddish version of Paul Simon’s ‘American Tune’ in which he says “di Statue of Liberty” and you are reminded of how profound and universal and powerful that phrase was to so many of the huddled masses. I’ve been thinking about it constantly:

Mamdani Condemns Slurs and Pro-Hamas Chant at Heated Queens Protest

Mayor Mamdani got it right. Chanting support for Hamas outside a synagogue in a Jewish neighborhood is dangerous and wrong.

We're grateful he said so clearly. Fighting for Jewish safety means naming threats when they happen, whoever is responsible.

Screenshot of a Jewish Insider headline says “Gov. Phil Murphy killed New Jersey antisemitism legislation, sources say Murphy and other Democrats were reportedly concerned that support for the legislation would fuel primary campaigns against incumbents. By Marc Rod. January 9, 2026.”

Gov. Murphy made the right call.

The IHRA definition describes itself as non-legally binding. Its own author opposes codifying it into law. Yet for years, some Jewish organizations have poured political capital into state-level IHRA fights that divide coalitions & produce little beyond controversy.

If you repeat a lie often enough it becomes Republican policy.

The Blogs: Here We Go Again: Why We’re Still Fighting about Antisemitism Definitions From the blog of Kevin Rachlin at The Times of Israel

NYC is about to have the same #IHRA fight we've been having for years. There are proven ways to protect Jewish communities without relitigating the same argument. Here's why we need to move on. blogs.timesofisrael.com/here-we-go-a... #antisemitism @nexusproject.bsky.social

Don’t Adopt the IHRA Definition Adopting the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s non-legally binding working definition of antisemitism (the IHRA definition) is…

.@zohrankmamdani.bsky.social's revocation of Adams' executive order adopting the IHRA definition was the right decision. I recently updated my piece on why the IHRA definition should not be adopted, at least not if we want to effectively fight antisemitism. medium.com/@SteveSheffe...

Speaking of typos, someone should direct Ms. Dhillon to U.S. v. Murphy, 406 F.3d 857, 859 n.1 (7th Cir. 2005), aka the greatest footnote in appellate court history.
scholar.google.com/scholar_case...

Ever wonder what would happen if you took what could have been a 30-minute Twilight Zone episode and stretched it out over nine episodes? You can find out by watching Pluribus.

THREAD: While Jews mourn the deadliest antisemitic attack in Australian history, disinformation and justification narratives are spreading on the left, and progressive silence is enabling it.

The Blogs: Distinguishing Anti-Zionism from Antisemitism From the blog of Steve Sheffey at The Times of Israel

If you're spelling "anti-Zionism" as "antizionism," you're doing it wrong. blogs.timesofisrael.com/distinguishi...

Some thoughts on the Bondi Beach Hanukkah Massacre. 🧵

He blamed the increase in antisemitism on immigration and the demographic makeup of younger Americans. “‘We imported a lot of people with ethnic grievances prior generations didn’t have. We celebrated this as the fruits of multiculturalism. Now we’re super surprised that the people we imported with ethnic grievances still have those ethnic grievances,’” Vance wrote, arguing that “the most significant single thing you could do to eliminate anti-semitism and any other kind of ethnic hatred is to support our efforts to lower immigration and promote assimilation.”

VP Vance says we should fight antisemitism by… echoing the very same anti-immigrant conspiracy theories that have directly fueled antisemitic violence — like Charlottesville and Pittsburgh, the deadliest attack on Jews in US history.

This is so dangerous.

Screenshot of a tweet by Congressman Randy Fine says "Rep. Fine on How to Deal with Mainstream Muslims: “I don’t know how you make peace with those who seek your destruction, I think you destroy them first.” And then 3 flame emojis. It is dated December 11, 2025.

Here is Congressman Randy Fine explicitly calling for the genocide of Muslims.

This is abhorrent. We are disgusted by Congressman Fine's persistent and rampant anti-Muslim racism and call on all American Jewish leaders to speak out.

My statement on Northwestern's settlement with the Trump Administration.

In a speech Tuesday, Harmeet Dhillon, the Justice Department’s civil rights chief, defended Tucker Carlson’s hosting of white nationalist Nick Fuentes. She said the answer to offensive speech is “more speech,” and praised Elon Musk for removing guardrails on X, despite studies showing a rise in antisemitic content since the billionaire took ownership.

Fascinating: The Trump administration claims that the answer to offensive speech is “more speech” when the offensive speech comes from Tucker or Musk — but when it’s on college campuses, the administration’s answer is to attack civil liberties, due process, and academic freedom. 🤔

Northwestern settles with Trump administration in $75M deal to regain federal funding The university will pay $75 million over three years to end the Trump administration's investigations into antisemitism on its campus and to have millions of dollars in federal funding restored.

Unfortunately, this is yet another example of the administration misusing the cause of "fighting antisemitism" to extract concessions from institutions of higher learning, a move that will not make Jewish students any safer or more secure on campus.

Event flyer for Responding to Antisemitism Amid Rising Authoritarianism on December 9 at 5 p m eastern time. A virtual briefing with Ambassador Susan E Rice and Ambassador Rabbi David Saperstein. In the top right corner are the Nexus and 70 Faces Media logos.

Join us on Tues., December 9 @ 5pm ET for our virtual briefing, “Responding to Antisemitism Amid Rising Authoritarianism,” with Amb. Susan Rice and Amb. Rabbi David Saperstein.

Together we’ll examine how antisemitism and authoritarianism fuel one another.

RSVP here: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...

The Blogs: Everybody’s Hero: A Book for Our Times From the blog of Steve Sheffey at The Times of Israel

I just finished reading an advance copy of Alex Sinclair's new novel, Everybody's Hero. I highly recommend it, and I just published my interview with him in Times of Israel. Read my review/interview, pre-order his book (it comes out December 1), and enjoy! blogs.timesofisrael.com/everybodys-h...