IN THIS EPISODE:
- Anti-Semitism increased in the United States since the Hamas attack on Isreal
- Houston area mayoral runoff election - what people are saying, who’s in the lead and more
- Black Entrepreneurs Week is coming up on Nov. 25
Watch Houston Newsmakers at 10 a.m. on KPRC 2+ and KPRC 2.
Hamas attack triggers confounding anti-Semitism
Rabbi Brian Strauss, the Senior Rabbi at Congregation Beth Yeshurun, said the attack by Hamas is responsible for the pronounced response by Israel. He is perplexed by the resulting rise in anti-Semitism.
“On Oct. 7, 1,200 Israeli Jews were murdered and over 240 people were taken hostage. You would think antisemitism would go down,” he said. “Look at this horrific attack perpetrated by terrorists, and yet, antisemitism has been up in this country by 400%.”
Rabbi Strauss said the state of Israel has no choice but to go after Hamas to wipe them out. He said the enemy is Hamas, not Palestinians.
“A majority of Americans still support Israel. They understand what Israel is up against. I think most Jews, an overwhelming majority of Jews, understand what Palestinians are up against. They’re up against a corrupt leadership that doesn’t care if they die and doesn’t care if Jews die.”
See more of Rabbi Strauss’s interview, which also deals with possible solutions.
The mayoral poll may not be believable
State Senator John Whitmire got a healthy 11-point lead in the Nov. 7 election, a lead that many analysts say will be tough to beat for Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee. But, Former Harris County GOP Chair Gary Polland said it’s not a sure thing.
“The number of votes that Congresswoman Lee and Senator Whitmire got are more than enough to win the runoff,” Polland said. “The turnout the first time was 17%. I’m expecting this time it will be 10 or less, which means either of them can win and the real race is about who can turn out their voters.”
Professor Mark Jones, Ph.D., the Political Science Fellow at the Baker Institute for Public Policy has a different take when looking at the way the undecideds played a role in the first election.
“All the undecideds were breaking far more for Whitmire and the minor candidates than Jackson Lee,” he said. “The thing about the Congresswoman is, she has a pretty high floor. A third of the electorate loves her. She has a pretty low ceiling in that the rest of them do not.”
Other races were also discussed, including the Trump factor in the Presidential race.
Black Entrepreneurs Week is coming up
Black Entrepreneurs Week is Nov. 25 - Dec 2 in Houston with 12 events designed to encourage and help entrepreneurs who want to take the next step in solidifying their businesses.
Phillip Yates, the Founder and CEO of Equiliberty and one of the sponsors of the event, said there are at least 40 thousand reasons to sign up to take part.
“If you want to participate in the pitch competition, we’ll be giving away $40,000,” he said. “I want to repeat that, $40,000. If you’re an entrepreneur, you register on the website and that’s an opportunity to go to the pitch competition and participate in the wealth summit and have a good time.”
See the full interview on this week’s program and find out how to sign up for this free event here.
For more information on this week’s Houston Newsmakers
· Rabbi Brian Strauss, Congregation Beth Yeshurun
· Website: https://www.bethyeshurun.org/welcome/clergy/rabbi-brian-strauss-senior-rabbi
· Gary Polland, Former Harris County GOP Chair and Editor, Conservative Texas Review
· Website: https://www.texasconservativereview.com/editor.html
· Mark Jones, Ph.D., Political Fellow, Baker Institute for Public Policy at Rice University
· Website: https://www.bakerinstitute.org/expert/mark-p-jones
· Phillip Yates, Founder & CEO, Equiliberty
· Website: https://equiliberty.com/
· Cheri Green, Chase Bank VP of Community Business and Development
· Website: https://www.blackentrepreneursweek.com/