By Donald H. Harrison
SAN DIEGO – News of Jewish interest broke on Tuesday at the International, National, State and Local Levels:
INTERNATIONAL
A recent issue of the Jewish online Tablet magazine includes an article by Marc Weitzmann setting out research by Italian historian Carlo Vecce that Leonardo da Vinci had a Jewish mother, and as a matter of halacha, was himself Jewish. According to the article, da Vinci’s mother Caterina, daughter of Jacob, had been enslaved in the Caucasian Mountains, purchased by Donato di Filippo of Florence, Italy, and “borrowed” by Piero da Vinci, who fathered Leonardo and subsequently obtained Caterina’s freedom.
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U.S. President Joe Biden telephoned the family of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who is being held in Russia on espionage charges. The U.S. has formally declared Gershkovich to be “wrongfully detained.”
NATIONAL
CNN Political Correspondent Dana Bash reportedly will replace John King as the anchor of the cable network’s “Inside Politics” show. This shake-up may prove more awkward than most because Bash and King were married between 2008 and 2012 and have a son, Jonah King. CNN has been making changes to its on-air lineup since surveys showed it falling in the ratings.
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U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has appointed Matthew Miller to serve as the State Department spokesman, effective at the end of April. Miller, who worked previously at the National Security Council, will succeed Ned Price, who is being transferred to a policy-making position.
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U.S. Rep. Dan Goldman (D-New York) responded on Monday, April 10, to reports by The New York Times and CNN that House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-California) and House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) have been coordinating their attacks on Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg Jr., who is prosecuting former President Donald Trump on felony charges of business fraud. “If accurate, then House Republicans are using the awesome power of Congress as a taxpayer-funded legal defense team for Donald trump, a private citizen, who reportedly ‘directed’ the nature and pace of this interference,” Goldman said. “This gross abuse of power is far outside the jurisdiction of Congress, which has no authority to use Congressional Committees for political or non-legislative purposes.” He demanded that McCarthy and Jordan “immediately make available any documentation or correspondence that would shed light on this reported coordination, including any suggestion by Donald Trump’s lawyer, Joe Tacopina, to initiate an ‘investigation’ into Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg.” In a related development, Bragg brought suit in federal court against Jordan, asking Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil to halt a House Judiciary Committee inquiry into Bragg’s prosecution of Trump. The Judge scheduled a hearing on the matter for April 19. Bragg said there is no constitutional basis for Congress to involve itself in a lawsuit based on New York State laws. In response, Jordan said, “First, they indict a president for no crime. Then they sue to block congressional oversight when we ask questions about the federal funds they say they used to do it.”
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Reconstructionist Rabbi Sandra Lawson sang “Oh Freedom” at the 2023 White House Passover Seder, a virtual event that focused on food insecurity. “As a Black woman in America, the history of American slavery is much closer in our collective memory than Israelite bondage,” she said. “I often think of my ancestors, who were brought here in bondage, brought here as chattel. I imagine that they found comfort in the Biblical story of the Exodus.”
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Stephen Miller, formerly a White House senior advisor and speechwriter for then-President Donald Trump, appeared before the federal grand jury that is investigating the January 6, 2021, storming of the U.S. Capitol. MSNBC host Nicolle Wallace led a panel discussion on Tuesday, April 11, in which it was suggested that the grand jury probably would be interested in a 20-minute phone call on January 6th that Trump had with Miller, after which a paragraph was inserted into Trump’s speech about whether Vice President Mike Pence, who was soon to preside over the counting of electoral college votes, would reject the official tally showing President Biden the winner and setting into motion a recount that might lead to Trump being declared the winner of the 2020 presidential election.
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U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-New York) on Tuesday, April 11, announced he will schedule a vote next week on a resolution condemning former President Donald Trump’s call to defund the FBI and the Department of Justice. The gambit is to emphasize Democrats’ support for law enforcement and to force Republican senators to choose between their loyalty to Trump and support for law enforcement.
CALIFORNIA
State Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) sponsored a law (SB 357) that repealed misdemeanor penalties against loitering in the belief that the repeal would protect from police harassment people who are often discriminated against for the way they appear However, according to an article by JW August in The Times of San Diego, the unintended consequence of the law has been an increase in pimping and street walking throughout California. The article quotes Greg Burt of the California Family Council that since SB 357’s passage the repeal has had the effect of “sacrificing Black and Brown women because you think the police department’s racist.” Sen. Brian Jones (R-Santee) has sought to void SB 357, but his bill was killed in a Senate committee. Assemblyman David Alvarez (D-San Diego) has introduced legislation that would give police the right to again question loitering pimps and prostitutes. It is before the Assembly’s Public Safety Committee.
SAN DIEGO COUNTY
The reelection campaign committee of Terra Lawson-Remer, discussing the Board of Supervisors unanimous 4-0 vote on Tuesday, April 11, that called on the absent Supervisor Nathan Fletcher to resign prior to his stated plans to do so on May 15, made this fundraising appeal: “With the resignation of Nathan Fletcher from the board, the Democratic [3-2] majority is now at risk and the stakes have never been higher. Without a strong progressive voice like Terra’s on the board, we risk losing the progress we’ve made and ceding control to Republican interests.” Meanwhile, Janessa Goldbeck, who has announced her candidacy for Fletcher’s 4th District seat, commented: “We don’t just need Fletcher’s immediate resignation—we need immediate action to bring justice to the women he victimized and protect County government from stalling out.” Fletcher has admitted having a relationship with former MTS public relations specialist Grecia Figueroa, but has described it as consensual. In a lawsuit, Figueroa said Fletcher without her consent groped her on two occasions. Goldbeck’s political consultant Dan Rottenstreich said the reference to “women” in Goldbeck’s statement did not mean to suggest that she was aware of any other woman who has accused Fletcher of sexual harassment. When Fletcher resigns, it will leave the Board with two Republican men and two Democratic women. They will have the option of filling the seat by appointment or by scheduling a special election. There will be pressure for both options, Rottenstreich said. If the Board chooses to have a special election, it must be scheduled between 76 and 99 days after the election is called. If no candidate receives a majority, then a runoff election would be held. Rottenstreich calculates that could mean the seat would be vacant until November or December, which some Board members may consider too long a time notwithstanding their preference for a special election. On the other hand, is there a candidate, even on an interim basis, who would be acceptable to the evenly divided board?
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Tad Parzen, President and CEO of the Burnham Center for Community Advancement, announced on Tuesday, April 11, that Malin and Roberta Burnham are donating $20 million for the center’s work. Malin Burnham, an insurance and real estate entrepreneur, commented “Community Before Self is more than just a motto or the title of the book I wrote, it is an ethos I live by. BCCA will carry that banner going forward to bring the community together to help solve the toughest challenges facing our region.”
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In Memoriam
Cartoonist Al Jaffee, who drew the Fold-In feature for Mad Magazine and “The Shpy” for The Moshiach Times, a Chabad publication, died Monday, April 10, in New York City. He was 102.
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Donald H. Harrison is editor emeritus of San Diego Jewish World. He may be contacted via donald.harrison@sdjewishworld.com
Any signs of Jewishness in Leonardo’s work?