Washington
As Gaza war rages on, Israel focuses on petty politics over Washington – analysis
The juxtaposition of two items on the Kan Bet news reel Sunday morning was jarring.
One report dealt with the deaths on Friday of three soldiers and the wounding of 14 others, six of them in serious condition, in a booby-trapped house in Khan Yunis. The other report was that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu instructed the embassy in Washington not to help senior cabinet and war minister member Benny Gantz set up any meetings during his current trip to Washington.
On the one hand, a heart-wrenching reminder that a brutal war is grinding on that is extracting a painful toll in the daily deaths of Israeli soldiers. On the other hand, it is a squirm-worthy reminder that petty politics is once again clouding the vision of the country’s leaders.
Even as IDF soldiers continue to fall in Gaza, Netanyahu and Gantz are sparring over protocol, prestige, and power – definitely not a good look right now. If you are fighting in Gaza, if you have a relative being held hostage in Gaza, if you have relatives fighting in Gaza, to see a return of this type of politics seems very small.
If the country’s top leaders cannot come to an agreement on an issue as straightforward as a trip by a senior minister to Washington, then what does that say about their decision-making ability regarding other aspects of the war?
On October 11, four days after Hamas invaded Israel, Gantz did what a majority of the public wanted him to do and joined a national emergency government, saying that it was a time for unity to fight a barbaric enemy.
Message of unity
At a joint press conference with Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant at the time, Gantz said, “Our standing here today, shoulder to shoulder, is a clear message to our enemies, and more important than that, a message to all the citizens of Israel, that we are together, that we are all mobilized.”
This was a powerful message. And there was something reassuring – as the war progressed in the early stages – seeing Netanyahu, Gallant, and Gantz, bitter political rivals, sitting on the same podium at joint press conferences and essentially reading from the same page. That conveyed a sense of solidarity to the country that, as a result of October 7, the country’s political rivals were – at least for the time being – looking at the bigger picture, at winning this war.
Slowly, the bigger picture is becoming clouded by politics.
Just as the sight of Netanyahu, Gallant, and Gantz holding joint press conferences for a few weeks conveyed a message of working together, their failure to have held these joint press conferences since late December sends the opposite message: that they aren’t working together.
And that is a worrisome message to send a nation at war; a nation that thirsts for reassurance, as its sons and daughters are risking their lives fighting, that its leaders are working together harmoniously.
But, apparently, the leaders are not working together harmoniously. If they were, then Gallant would not have done an end-around Netanyahu last week, giving Gantz veto power – unbeknownst to Netanyahu – of any new plan to draft haredim.
If they were working together harmoniously, Gantz would not have decided on his own to travel to the US for talks with administration officials and congressional representatives, and Netanyahu would not have strenuously objected and reportedly told Gantz that “Israel only has one prime minister.”
All those are signs of disharmony.
Neither Netanyahu nor Gantz comes out of this Washington affair looking particularly good.
Why is Gantz insistent on going to Washington over the prime minister’s objections? Why does the prime minister object so strenuously?
Gantz’s supporters will say that he is motivated by the country’s interests. They argue that as Israel’s legitimacy for continuing the war diminishes in Washington with each passing day, and with incidents such as the humanitarian aid tragedy last week, it is important for Gantz to go there and shore up support in the administration.
According to this argument, Gantz is better able to do this than Netanyahu, whose relationship with US President Joe Biden is believed to be strained and who is anathema to some Congressional Democrats. Israel, Gantz’s camp argues, needs America’s continued support – moral, diplomatic, and material – and Gantz can help ensure it.
Washington
Hulking four-star Arizona OL commits to Cal over Washington football
The Washington Huskies saw one of their most hotly contested offensive line targets in the 2027 class go elsewhere on Saturday afternoon when four-star offensive lineman DaJohn Yarborough announced his pledge to the California Golden Bears
The 6-foot-5, 340-pound product of Basha High School in Arizona, who is ranked as the nation’s No. 426 overall prospect and No. 25 interior offensive lineman by the 247Sports Composite, picked coach Tosh Lupoi and the Golden Bears out of a final four that also included Florida State, Mississippi State, and UW.
Although his junior year was cut short due to a fractured ankle, Fisch and offensive line coach Michael Switzer kept up a strong relationship with the hulking prospect, who has the size, physicality, and skill set the pair looks for from early contributors up front. However,
“The big man slides smoothly in pass protection and balances his weight well, always finding himself on the winning end of collisions with defenders,” Huskies Wire’s Alex Katson wrote in an evaluation of his film. “With such prototypical size and technique, Yarborough profiles as a player who could find himself in the NFL rather quickly with the right coaching staff during his time in college.”
As Washington continues to build up its offensive line for the rigors of the Big Ten, Yarborough would have been viewed as a promising building block alongside Freshman All-American John Mills, former five-star Kodi Greene, and former four-star Champ Taulealea, who should make up the core of Switzer’s unit in 2027.
While the Huskies had consistently been viewed among the top suitors for Yarborough’s services, but Lupoi’s staff has shown early that it can make a big impact quickly on recruits all over the West. Without Yarborough, Washington’s 2027 class consists of three offensive linemen: four-star interior prospect Gecova Doyal, four-star center Reis Russell, and three-star offensive tackle Tye Kennedy.
Washington
Chisholm’s homer keys 3-run 9th as the Yankees rally past Washington 5-3 – WTOP News
Jazz Chisholm Jr. hit a two-run homer in the ninth inning to lift the New York Yankees over the Washington Nationals 5-3 on Friday night.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Jazz Chisholm Jr. hit a two-run homer in the ninth inning to lift the New York Yankees over the Washington Nationals 5-3 on Friday night.
The Yankees and Nationals rank 1-2 in the major leagues in home runs, and all but one run in this game came via the long ball. Ben Rice hit his 29th of the season for the Yankees, and Jasson Domínguez and Austin Wells also went deep for New York.
Keibert Ruiz and James Wood homered on consecutive pitches in the seventh to give Washington a 3-2 lead, but in the ninth, the Nationals brought in left-hander Matt Krook — who had allowed 22 earned runs in 12 2/3 big league innings dating to 2023. Krook (0-1) yielded a one-out single by Domínguez, and Chisholm followed with his 13th homer.
Wells added a solo shot off Justin Lawrence to make it 5-3.
David Bednar (3-3) won in relief, working the final two innings. The Yankees remained four games behind first-place Tampa Bay in the AL East.
Rice homered in the first off Carson Palmquist, but the New York designated hitter fouled a pitch off his right leg in the fifth and was shaken up. He was able to stay in the game.
By that time, Domínguez had given the Yankees a 2-1 lead with a homer off Zack Littell (8-6) in the fourth.
The game was delayed two hours at the start, and a wet field might have prevented Washington from tying it in the sixth. New York starter Ryan Weathers allowed a one-out double to CJ Abrams. Then Jacob Young followed with a single. Abrams looked likely to score, but he slipped rounding third and had to stay there.
Fernando Cruz then replaced Weathers and struck out the next two hitters to strand both runners.
New York’s Paul Goldschmidt singled in the first to snap an 0-for-34 drought, and he also reached on an infield hit in the sixth.
Amed Rosario of the Yankees struck out in all three of his plate appearances and made two errors at third base before being lifted for a pinch-hitter.
Up next
Cam Schlittler (9-5) was scheduled to start for New York on Saturday against Miles Mikolas (3-7) of the Nationals.
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Washington
Washington State Democratic Party draws criticism over reparations, antisemitism language
OLYMPIA, Wash. — Party platforms are typically lengthy documents intended to define political values, not enact law.
But language adopted by the Washington State Democratic Party is drawing scrutiny from Republicans, some Jewish community leaders, and even some Democrats who say they were left out of the conversation.
The debate centers on two planks in the party’s newly approved platform: one supporting continued work on a state reparations study and another linking a recent rise in antisemitism, in part, to actions by the Israeli government.
Stephen Reed, a spokesperson for the Washington State Democratic Party, said the platform is developed every two years by delegates selected from communities across the state.
“They develop the platform. They write all the planks. They debate the planks,” Reed said.
Last month, the Washington State Democratic Party announced that more than 1,000 delegates at its 2026 convention in Spokane unanimously adopted language supporting reparations for descendants of victims of U.S. chattel slavery. The party described the move as the first such addition to a state Democratic Party platform.
The approved language says Democrats support “the study and implementation of reparative action, remedies and reconciliation” for descendants. The party also said Democrats had previously passed a 2024 resolution urging Washington leaders to create and fund a statewide study on reparations, which is currently underway and being managed by the Department of Commerce. A final report with recommendations is due in June 2027.
Reed said the party’s platform does not settle the question of whether Washington should provide direct payments as reparations, noting that other proposals include offering free college tuition to descendants.
But it is the platform’s language on antisemitism that has prompted criticism from both inside and outside the party. The approved platform states: “There has been a dramatic resurgence in antisemitism in recent years on all sides of the political spectrum, due in part to actions taken by the Israeli government. History shows us the dangerous repercussions suffered when collective action to combat antisemitism and promote understanding is not taken. We must ensure that the Jewish community is protected from misinformation, harassment, and violence.”
It is unclear whether the Washington State Jewish Democratic Caucus was consulted before the language was adopted. The Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle criticized the provision.
“By ascribing the rise of antisemitism in the United States, even partially, to the actions of the Israeli government, the Washington State Democratic Party has rationalized, and given cover to, the actions of antisemites rather than full-throatedly condemning them. At a time where the Jewish community, which makes up only 2% of the U.S. population, is the target of nearly 70% of religion-based hate crimes, we urge the Washington State Democratic Party to do everything in its power to reduce antisemitism rather than justify it,” Solly Kane, president and CEO of the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle, said in a statement to KOMO News.
The State GOP, which is no stranger to incorporating national public policy into its regional platform either, criticized the Democrats.
“I read the Washington State Democratic Party platform, and it’s a banquet of trust-fund leftist nonsense,” Washington GOP Chair Jim Walsh said. “A lot of it is just not grounded in any real policy issue facing Washington families.”
Walsh said the platform contains “very little coherent stuff about tax reform or safe communities or improving K-12 schools,” while highlighting what he called “a very bizarre commitment to reparations for slavery.”
Asked why the Washington Republican Party’s 2024 platform includes language calling for limiting federal funding for programs that support critical race theory or The 1619 Project and for ending birthright citizenship, Walsh said, “We’re talking about not spending public resources. That means forcing taxpayers to pay for programs of various controversial sorts.”
“There is really no moral equivalence here,” he added.
Reed said he personally interprets the Democratic platform’s language as criticism of the Israeli government, not of Jewish people.
“I take this language personally to mean that the government of Israel is engaging in actions that are making Israel less safe, that are causing untold harm in the Palestinian community, especially among civilians,” Reed said. “That simply isn’t the right behavior for an ally of the United States.”
Reed acknowledged that the language has prompted concern and debate. He said the party has a Jewish caucus and that party officials tried to provide proposed platform language to caucuses before the convention, but he conceded the process may have fallen short.
“We did our best, and we hear that we may have come up short in those outreach efforts to give them enough time to digest everything,” Reed said. “If we fell short, we apologize to those communities.”
Reed said party platforms are designed to show voters where the party’s grassroots stand, even when the issues are complicated, controversial, or beyond the scope of state government.
“It’s a statement of values,” Reed said. “This lets Washingtonians know where the Democratic Party’s grassroots are, how they’re thinking, and the values they’re going to bring.”
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