When Hope Isn’t Enough & Silence Isn’t an Option
This week was tumultuous and painful for the vast majority of Jewish Americans, and no development brought more anguish than news related to Ariel and Kfir Bibas (z”l).
For more than a year, we hoped and prayed that the Bibas children would be returned safely home in the loving arms of their mother, Shiri. Their return in coffins and confirmation of their brutal murder is devastating beyond measure. Our hope and prayers were not enough to overcome the evil and barbarism they endured in Gaza, and our hearts collectively break for the Bibas family and that of Oded Lifshitz (z”l).
We will never forget the image of the Bibas family’s abduction – the children’s beautiful red hair blazing almost as much as Shiri’s fierce determination to protect them. We only wish that we could have protected all of them, and we still don’t know the fate of Shiri, whose body was not returned in accordance with the deal. Instead, there was an unidentified body in the coffin, demonstrating yet again the utter depravity of Hamas. Their barbarism and inhumanity know no bounds.
It has been 504 days too many since October 7. May the memories of baby Kfir and Ariel Bibas be a blessing, and may all of the hostages – including Shiri – be returned home now.
SILENCE ISN’T AN OPTION
When something horrific like this occurs, we share a sense of grief and find comfort in community, lifting our voices together. Silence isn’t an option, and there is strength in numbers. Our collective action is stronger than speaking out alone. This is why, at JDCA, we’ve created a community that fights for our values and stands with Israel.
At home, we are facing daily attacks on our democracy from this White House. Silence in the face of these threats is complicity, and speaking out is an act of defiance.
As The Contrarian co-founder Jen Rubin told JDCA members this week, “courage is contagious,” and we urge you all to join us in writing to your members of Congress, imploring them to assert their constitutional authority. Jen also advised us to document what’s happening each week, as we’re doing with these weekly emails. Know someone else who should join our list? Here’s a link to sign up, and we hope you’ll continue to invest in our work.
WE DON’T HAVE A KING – OR DO WE?
On Wednesday, the White House shared an image of the president with a crown and a message: “LONG LIVE THE KING!” Perhaps this was intended to aggravate and distract, but unfortunately, it was accompanied by executive orders that indicated these aren’t just words. They are the actions of someone who believes he is a dictator – or apparently a monarch. The president proclaimed this week that the law doesn’t apply to him because he’s “saving the country,” and he’s reshaping the federal government accordingly.
An executive order (EO) signed this week declared that the president “and the Attorney General, subject to the President’s supervision and control, will interpret the law for the executive branch.” In other words, the president – and the president alone – will interpret the law as he sees fit for the entirety of the federal government.
The order also stripped the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Federal Communications Commission (FCC), and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of their independence and threatened all 80 federal agencies designed by Congress to be independent of the White House, including two related to elections.
Why does this matter? Because in our democracy, arms of the federal government perform some functions – including overseeing elections, communications, and regulating financial markets – fully independent of the White House’s political influence and power. A government fully controlled by a single “unitary executive” is no longer a democracy. It’s a dictatorship.
THE TIDE IS TURNING
The United States has never had a king in its nearly 250 years of independence, and the American people don’t want one now. A new Washington Post-Ipsos poll indicates that 57 percent of Americans believe the president has exceeded his authority, 66 percent believe he should get Congress’s approval to freeze spending, 83 percent oppose his pardoning of those convicted of violent crimes in connection with January 6th, and 84 percent believe the president should follow court rulings.
These are the worst polling numbers for this White House since inauguration, indicating that the tide is turning on the wave that Trump rode to power. According to the Washington Post, this poll suggests that “Americans increasingly see Trump as misplacing his priorities.” Americans disapprove of Trump’s handling of the economy, 53-45, his worst economic numbers since 2017.
This is evident with an increased number of Americans speaking out against the White House’s massive budget cuts and firings – including in solidly red districts – and we encourage you to continue to make your voice heard. Senate Democrats held the floor for ten hours, until 4:30 a.m. this morning, attempting to block the most damaging budget cuts and fight for the American people, and we’ll continue to fight with them. Nothing less than the future of our democracy is at stake.