Elected Republicans and Trump administration officials reiterated in Las Vegas on Monday that the U.S.-Israel alliance remains steadfast amid war in the Middle East and what they described as festering antisemitism on both sides of the political spectrum.
The Republican Jewish Coalition’s Leadership Summit — held annually at the Venetian Resort — was addressed by House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana, Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo and many other pro-Israel lawmakers and conservative personalities.
Vice President JD Vance is scheduled to speak Monday night. Air Force 2 arrived in Las Vegas at about 4:45 p.m.
The RJC describes itself as an advocacy group that aims to “foster and enhance ties between the American Jewish community and Republican decision-makers.”
Its two-day Las Vegas conference kicked off Sunday.
RJC is a ‘powerful voice’
Monday’s speeches centered around Jewish identity, U.S.-Israel relations, antisemitism and politics as Republicans attempt to maintain control of the U.S. House and Senate in the upcoming midterm elections, when the ruling power tends to lose seats.
Johnson, however, said that President Donald Trump can “defy history” with the help of the RJC and Jewish Americans.
Speaking from a live video feed, he expressed confidence that Republicans can flip the seats of Reps. Dina Titus and Susie Lee, the Nevada Democrats being challenged by state Sen. Carrie Buck and Marty O’Donnell.
The crowd cheered at the mention of the candidates’ names. A Democratic campaign spokesperson challenged Johnson’s remarks on Monday evening.
“D.C. Republicans spent the past year and a half voting to raise costs on working families, kick Nevadans off their health care, and hurt Las Vegas’ economy,” Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee spokesperson Lindsay Reilly wrote in a statement. “Speaker Johnson is delusional if he thinks voters are going to do anything but resoundingly reject Republicans at the ballot box this November.”
Johnson also spoke about the Israel-U.S. alliance in which both nations share defense strategies and technology to keep a stable democracy in the Middle East, he said.
“There are religious reasons, of course, that many of us have a conviction from scripture that Israel must remain our close ally, but there’s all sorts of reasons beyond that,” Johnson said. “There’s lots of economic and political reasons to do this, but increasingly people don’t understand that,” he added.
Lombardo said he had promoted policies to honor and protect Jewish Nevadans.
“The Republican Jewish Coalition has long been a powerful voice for the principles that strengthen our nation: strong leadership, economic freedom, and that belief that government exists to serve its people,” said the Republican governor.
He noted that he signed a bill that gave antisemitism an official definition used in discrimination investigations, and that the state had enshrined Nevada’s version of International Holocaust Remembrance Day into law.
“As long as I’m in office, I remain committed to ensuring Nevada can live, worship, and raise its families safely,” Lombardo said.
Some speakers were unsparing in admonishing critics of Israel, saying that they see attacks against the nation state as attacks on all Jewish people. They said Republicans have been better than Democrats with sidelining antisemitic voices from its ranks.
Sens. Dave McCormick, R-Penn., and Tim Sheehy, R-Mont.; acting Secretary of Labor Keith Sonderling; Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin, and Ohio gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy also spoke Monday.
Attendees enjoy the experience
A few hundred convention attendees mingled on the convention grounds.
Ruth Gold was at her sixth RJC event in Las Vegas.
The speeches spoke to her as a daughter of holocaust survivors, she told the Review-Journal.
“They’re telling truths,” Gold said.
Yuval Jorov traveled from Houston, Texas, for his second leadership summit.
He enjoys the camaraderie of meeting other Jewish people face to face, he said.
“This is really awesome,” Jorov said. “You get to meet a lot of great people from different backgrounds.”
Omer Cicelsky, a UNLV fellow, said he liked the speeches that touched on his thinking on family and faith.
“It’s impressive to hear them,” he said.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
Contact Ricardo Torres-Cortez at rtorres@reviewjournal.com.
