(JTA) — A Mormon candidate for a Utah state House seat running against a Jewish incumbent urged residents to vote “in memory of our God” and “our religion.” Todd Zenger, a Republican facing Democratic Rep. Patrice Arent, the state legislature’s only Jewish representative, included those words on a campaign flier. It was widely criticized on…
Earlier this month, Stephen Walt marked the 10th anniversary of his and John Mearsheimer’s book, “The Israel Lobby,” with a column in the Forward. In it, he restated his thesis that “unconditional U.S. support for Israel — the so-called ‘special relationship’ — is not explained by U.S. strategic interests or by shared values, as is…
Last month, a group of activists rallied at a Flea Market in Utah to protest what they said was a swastika-decorated blanket on sale. But flea market organizers said this this was no swastika — but instead a sacred Native American symbol. “I know antiques and I knew exactly what it was when I saw…
When I became a Mormon at age 16 in Los Angeles, I didn’t convert from Judaism. It was when I finally made a trip “back east” at age 21 and met my relatives that I fully realized I was Jewish. Although I had spent day and night glued to the radio during the Six Day…
Jason Chaffetz will not be winning an award for his bedside manner, after the Utah Republican said that low-income people would have to choose between electronics and medical attention under his party’s replacement for Obamacare. The GOP’s proposed replacement swap Obamacare’s mandate that individuals buy insurance with a penalty for letting insurance lapse. “Maybe rather…
Since the November election, there’s been a lot of talk among journalists about the way our profession overlooked and misunderstood populist, pro-Trump America. It’s a challenge for us at the Forward, as well. That is why we are launching “Red State Jews.” Our aim is to use all the platforms of the Forward — news,…
After the head of the government’s ethics office, Walter M. Shaub Jr., expressed doubts about President-elect Donald Trump’s commitment to avoiding conflicts of interest, Trump received an assist from Rep. Jason Chaffetz, head of the House’s Oversight and Government Reform Committee. Chaffetz is threatening to investigate Shaub’s agency, the Government Ethics Monitor. Here are a…
A Mormon and a Jew walk into a bar. What sounds like the beginning of a joke is an important political reality in 2016 — at least in Utah. Last month, independent candidate Evan McMullin chose Mindy Finn as his running mate. Finn is a veteran GOP strategist who runs a feminist non-profit. The Texan…
100% of profits support our journalism
