Mamdani endorses Brad Lander over Dan Goldman in video calling out AIPAC

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📺 Mamdani endorses Brad Lander in video calling out AIPAC

• Brad Lander, who is challenging Rep. Dan Goldman for his Manhattan and Brooklyn district, got a boost from Mayor Zohran Mamdani in a video singling out their opposition to AIPAC, the pro-Israel lobby.

• In the video, shot in the cheeky style of Mamdani’s viral ads from his mayoral campaign, Mamdani asks, “A lifelong progressive? You mean you haven’t sold out to special interests?” Lander responds, “Or AIPAC either.”

• Lander, Mamdani’s most prominent Jewish ally, has centered Goldman’s support for Israel and ties to AIPAC in his attacks on the more moderate Democrat. Mamdani split from other prominent Democrats by endorsing Lander, as Gov. Kathy Hochul threw her support behind Goldman. Goldman also has the support of a range of progressive groups, including, as of Thursday, Planned Parenthood.

• The endorsement and video come as AIPAC has become increasingly radioactive among elected officials — though Goldman has a track record with the group, as he met his wife at an AIPAC event.

• Goldman characterizes his stances on Israel as progressive, emphasizing that he is critical of the current government while still supporting Israel’s right to exist securely as a Jewish state. “I do think there is an undercurrent of antisemitism in the degree to which AIPAC seems to be vilified,” he recently said in an interview.

💬 Goldman’s doubts on Mamdani

• Goldman said he sat out endorsing Mamdani because he never felt the mayor “fully got there” on addressing “the dramatic rise in antisemitism,” despite largely agreeing with his agenda, in an interview with The New York Editorial Board.

• “It is very important to recognize that we need to take proactive action so that there isn’t a permission structure for people to be on the streets chanting pro-Hamas chants,” he added.

🚨 Man who harassed Jewish couple convicted of assault

• A Brooklyn man who shouted “Dies, Jews, die” at a Jewish couple has been convicted of hate crime charges.

• Skiboky Stora, who was found guilty in New York state court on Wednesday, assaulted the couple after they photographed him tearing down posters of Israeli hostages in November 2023.

• Stora was also convicted for other assaults, including randomly punching a 23-year-old woman in March 2024. The incident went viral after the woman posted about it on TikTok and several other people described similar attacks.

🗣️ Pro-Israel and anti-Zionist Jews clash at hearing on ‘buffer zones’

• Jewish leaders and constituents showed up at the NYC Council’s public hearing on “buffer zone” legislation, introduced by Speaker Julie Menin in response to pro-Palestinian protests outside synagogues.

• The main floor of City Hall filled mostly with proponents of the bill, some of whom wore Israeli flags and carried signs with messages like “Protect our houses of worship.” Several Jewish lawmakers testified in support, along with representatives of the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York, 92NY, the ADL and UJA-Federation of New York.

• Meanwhile, the mezzanine was packed with activists — including from the anti-Zionist groups Jewish Voice for Peace and Shoresh — who wore keffiyehs and watermelon kippahs, with signs that said “Jews say stop land theft, not dissent” and “Protect our right to protest.

• Also protesting on the City Hall steps was PAL-Awda, the group whose demonstration outside Park East Synagogue contributed to calls for this legislation. Their protest in November responded to the synagogue hosting a nonprofit involved in West Bank land sales.

• The contentious hearing saw one person shout “Nazis” at critics of the legislation, while another shouted, “Sit down, white supremacists.”

• The NYPD’s deputy commissioner for legal matters, Michael Gerber, testified that the department had “no objections” to Menin’s proposal. The NYPD had opposed an earlier version of the bill mandating a perimeter of up to 100 feet around houses of worship, but a revision that removed references to distance and gave the NYPD discretion to implement buffer zones secured Commissioner Jessica Tisch’s endorsement.

🎭 Hamantaschen tasting

City Council members enjoy a hamantaschen tasting. (Gerardo Romo/NYC Council Media Unit)

• In preparation for Purim next week, City Council members and their staff had a hamentaschen tasting hosted by JCRC-NY on Tuesday. And the verdict is in: Menin’s favorite flavor is raspberry.

• “A small (and sweet!) way to say thank you to the public servants who show up for New Yorkers every day,” JCRC-NY said on X.