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Friends,

The Senate trial brings to mind Noah, of whom we read in Genesis 6:9, "Noah was a righteous man; he was blameless in his age." Our sages wonder why the Torah adds "blameless in his age." Is it to tell us that his righteousness was exceptional because he managed to live righteously in an age of depravity, or is it to tell us that compared to the evil-doers he lived with he was righteous, but had he lived in another age, he would not have been exceptional?

I wonder the same about the seven Republican Senators who voted to convict Trump and the ten Republicans (out of 211) who voted to impeach him. Are they heroes for standing up to their depraved party, or are we giving them credit for what would have been expected and unexceptional at other times in our history? 

None of the Republicans who voted to impeach this time voted to impeach last time, even though the case against Trump was just as clear, albeit not as emotional or personal. Only Mitt Romney voted to convict last time, and only on one charge. Their policy positions are terrible. These are not people we want in Congress. Compared to the vast majority of their Republican colleagues, they are righteous. But compared to the Democrats in the House and Senate, they are at best unexceptional. I guess it depends on whether you think we should grade Republicans on a curve.

January 6 should be a national day of remembrance. It should be taught in schools and remembered the way we remember Pearl Harbor Day and 9/11. This video, as hard as it is to watch, precisely because it is hard to watch, should be required viewing, along with the final Senate vote on Trump's conviction--the Senators who voted against convicting Trump too must answer to history and be remembered for their disloyalty to our country and the Constitution they swore to protect.

Nearly half the country will watch the video not with revulsion, but with pride. Our democracy is based on Enlightenment theories about free debate and the truth winning in the marketplace of ideas, but when an entire political party abandons American values for fear that its base will vote against them in primaries, one wonders if reason can win elections and one must tremble for our democracy.

A shift of less than 22,000 votes across three states could have made Donald Trump the lawful winner even though he would have still lost the popular vote by more than seven million. Imagine another four years of Donald Trump. Imagine if those 22,000 Biden votes had been suppressed. If Republican state legislators have their way, they will be suppressed in 2022 and beyond--dozens of states are considering new GOP-sponsored voter suppression proposals.

Rather than give up on democracy, we must go all in on democracy. Gerrymandering and vote suppression are winning strategies for Republicans. They might succeed unless Congress passes the voting protections in H.R. 1 and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, which would counter efforts at the state level to deny Americans their right to vote.

That's why, as Greg Sargent explains, "the single most consequential decision for Democrats is whether to end the legislative filibuster to pass reforms that would expand voting rights and unwind GOP counter-majoritarian advantages going forward."

Unless Democrats abolish the filibuster, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) will have the votes to block any legislation subject to the filibuster, including legislation necessary to preserve our democracy.

The Biden administration opposes the ICC's attempts to claim jurisdiction over the Palestinian situation. The Biden administration reiterated that the U.S. "has always taken the position that the court’s jurisdiction should be reserved for countries that consent to it, or that are referred by the UN Security Council."

Alon Pinkas advises us to neither dismiss the ICC ruling nor blow it out of proportion. The ICC decision is probably wrong, but the reasoning of the court is not as far-fetched as some have suggested.

The Biden administration will reengage with the U.N. Human Rights Council. The Trump approach did not work. The anti-Israel bias of the UNHRC will not disappear if we pretend it doesn't exist. As Secretary of State Tony Blinken explained, "our withdrawal in June 2018 did nothing to encourage meaningful change, but instead created a vacuum of U.S. leadership, which countries with authoritarian agendas have used to their advantage."

What about those Biden appointments? People who never spoke out when Trump appointed a white nationalist, a neo-Nazi sympathizer, and someone with ties to Louis Farrakhan to key posts are upset because Biden is assembling a team of competent, intelligent professionals, some of whom disagree with each other.

But as Rep. Tom Malinowski (D-NJ), the new Vice Chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee pointed out, “policy is going to be set by the president with strong support from Secretary Blinken and National Security Adviser [Jake] Sullivan. All of them are strongly pro-Israel and well known to supporters of Israel. They are all open to surrounding themselves with folks who have different points of view to their right, to their left… But I would not be concerned about the fundamental commitment of this administration to the U.S. relationship with Israel or to any other core principles that President Biden embraced during the campaign and over his long career.”

Sullivan had a long call with his Israeli counterpart about Iran on Thursday. Biden and Netanyahu had a warm conversation on November 17. But if you are concerned that Biden has not called Bibi since January 20, you owe it to yourself to read this thread from former U.S. Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro and chill out.

JCUA opposes government use of the IHRA definition of antisemitism. Add the Jewish Council on Urban Affairs to the long list of Jewish organizations concerned about this definition. As JCUA points out, adopting the IHRA definition "at the city or state level is not an effective strategy to fight antisemitism as it exists today" and "legal tools to prosecute hate crimes against Jewish people already exist."

The Progressive Israel Network and Americans for Peace Now oppose codification. Ken Stern, the author of the definition, opposes codification.

American Jewish Congress, ADL, Central Conference of American Rabbis, HIAS, National Council of Jewish Women, Rabbinical Assembly, Union for Reform Judaism, and World Jewish Congress have warned that using the IHRA definition to trigger federal or state anti-discrimination laws "could be abused to punish Constitutionally protected, if objectionable, speech."

Did you see the Bruce Springsteen Jeep ad? You're not alone if his Super Bowl ad creeped you out. Read this thread from David Roberts, this post from Rabbi Peter Stein, and this article by Chris Richards. And what the heck is a speedball?

Still, I don't expect the people who make the music I like to share my political opinions any more than I expect the people who share my political opinions to make the music I like (although Secretary of State Tony Blinken does have a couple of songs on Spotify).

Last week's short newsletter.

ICYMI. Inside the Republicans' Phony War on Antisemitism, by Joshua Shanes.

Tweet of the Week. Tom Watson (watch with the sound OFF).

Twitter Thread of the Week. Heidi Li Feldman.

Video Clips of the Week. Kitten Zoom Filter Mishap and Congressional Zoom Mishap.

Upcoming Events. The Decalogue Society of Lawyers is presenting a CLE taught by yours truly on BDS and Free Speech this Thursday, February 18, from 12:15 to 1:15 CT. Register here.

Alexi Giannoulias is running for Illinois Secretary of State. His listening tour is coming to our Zoom screen on Wednesday, March 3 at 3:00 CT. The event is free, but RSVP is required.

Join Dana Gordon and me for a special event in support of Sen. Tammy Duckworth's (D-IL) 2022 reelection campaign. Tammy is not only a friend of the Jewish and pro-Israel communities, but she is a special friend of ours, and we hope you will attend on Thursday, March 11, at 3:30pm CT. Contributions are encouraged but not required. However, you must RSVP to get the Zoom link.

I guess this is a good problem to have: This list is now so large that while many people are local, even more live outside the Chicago area and have no interest in local news. If you want to be on a list that will receive infrequent newsletters about local issues and events, reply to this email and I'll add you.

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The Fine Print: This newsletter usually runs on Sunday mornings. Unless stated otherwise, my views do not necessarily reflect the views of any candidates or organizations that I support or am associated with. I reserve the right to change my mind as I learn more. Intelligent, well-informed people may disagree with me; read opposing views and decide for yourself. A link to an article doesn't mean that I agree with everything its author has ever said or that I even agree with everything in the article; it means that the article supports or elaborates on the point I was making. I take pride in accurately reporting the facts on which I base my opinions. Tell me if you spot any inaccuracies, typos, or other mistakes so that I can correct them in the next newsletter (and give you credit if you want it). Advertisements reflect the views of the advertisers, not necessarily of me, and advertisers are solely responsible for the content of their advertisements. I read, value, and encourage replies to my newsletters, but I don't always have time to acknowledge replies or to engage in one-on-one discussion. Don't expect a reply if your message is uncivil or if it's clear from your message that you haven't read the newsletter or clicked on the relevant links. © 2021 Steve Sheffey. All rights reserved.