Why does Ritchie Torres always support Jews?

all right this is a very special moment I have a very very special guest on today's podcast Mr Richie tus Congressman to United States government thank you so much for joining us today I really really appreciate it I'm happy to be here and uh I I I've been chasing your your people for about a week now because I've been seeing incredible work that you've been putting out on the internet um just really a a a beacon of of light a Beacon of Hope for us for the Jewish people I want to let you know the the title of what I want to call this podcast which is a heart-to-heart between Richie torus and the Jewish Community because that really is that's really what I think that we need right now is we feel we feel as a community although by the way I will admit that Congress as a whole has been very very supportive and really impressed to see um the debates that are going on really impressed to see the overwhelming support but nonetheless sometimes it feels we feel lonely and especially going through our feeds and when we see somebody like yourself who is not Jewish who is standing with us it it really warms our heart and that's really the blanket of what I want to call our talk today a heart-to-heart between the Jewish community and Richie to so I I want to um I want to just ask you a couple questions why why you doing it why you why now why you stand it up why you're why you're making your voice heard I would love to hear uh the the simple answer is that it's the right thing to do you know I knew you were going to say I knew you were going to say that by the way well the proper question is not why the proper question is why not you know they were Jews like Michael schwarner and Angel Goodman who put their lives at risk who were murdered in the Mississippi Burning so that people who look like me could have the right to vote and I feel strongly that one of the lessons of history is that we all have an obligation to fight extremism to fight racism to fight anti-Semitism and that moral obligation is not only based on the particularity of our identity it's based on something Universal which is our common humanity and so I speak out against anti-Semitism because it is the right thing to do because it is a defense not only of the Jewish Community but of our common humanity and you know we we appreciate that more than uh more than you can know you know I guess after thousands of years of persecution we look at people who stand up for us and we're like why you doing it one of the things that we say to people when they're converting to Judaism is we say to them if you're being persecuted by the Germans or by whoever it is that you know of the time of the day will you stand as a Jew or not and it's so ingrained in our culture not that I want to paint us as victims or paint because we're so much more than that but it's just something that has always been a part of our of our history so have you got in I I I I I saw AOC a few weeks ago you know she mentioned you by name at a uh at a rally at a conference and she called you up by name and you just your moral Clarity is so strong where does that come from does it come from your parents does it come from your religious upbringing does it come from where does your Guiding Light come from well I was not aware that she uh called me out by name so that's that's interesting I'll I'll send you the I'll send you the clip I would be eager to see it um I although I suspect I think you're referring to representative ilon Mar sorry yes correct yes yes which I did see yes um I I don't you know my moral Clarity comes from my upbringing you know I i' I've spent almost all my life in poverty and I was raised by a single mother who had to raise three of us on minimum wage which in the 1990s was $4.25 in New York City wow and I grew up in molded in leaking conditions in public housing uh and so I've had enough suffering in my life to have empathy for the plight not only of my own people but communities beyond my own so I feel like I have an empathy that's deeply rooted in my own lived experience but then part of it is common sense you know Common Sense tells me that butchering babies is morally wrong it's morally abhorent and that every person has an obligation to condemn him um and what I find on college campuses what I find among academics and activists is the the suspension of critical thinking in common sense and you know I feel the United States is the greatest country on Earth but not even a country as great as the United States can survive the loss of moral Comm in well Sid do you mind if I ask you your religious background or beliefs so my I am not a particularly religious person I'm I would describe myself as culturally Christian uh I've I have alternated between Catholicism and protestantism but I I'm part of the cultural tradition that is the abrahamic tradition or the judeo-christian tradition um but my Zionism is not based on religion at all interesting my Zionism is based on a study of history I think when you are a student of History you realize that there has been a long and ugly pattern of Oppression against Jews there's been a long and ugly history of Exile and rahs and inquisitions and Crusades and genocide and ethnic cleansing and I feel like a proper study of history enables us to see clearly the moral and historical necessity of Israel as a Jewish state so you know there are people for whom support for Israel is Central to their faith uh I am not one of those people um um my my my Zionism is historically rooted interesting and would did you say that you're a person that believes in God uh I haven't believed in God yet very nice so so what message I guess would you give to the Jewish Community who right now feels isolated feels under attack I'm I'm originally from Montreal my sister sent me two two clips from uh from the from the news yesterday that two schools were come under were come under Fire they shot at two schools uh early yesterday morning and late last night two different schools two different Jewish schools everything that's going on on campus you know what message would you give to the Jewish community that uh is is scared right now you know a lot of Jews are question questioning a lot of Jews are questioning their future in America right now my message to the Jewish Community is never lose hope never lose hope know there's no doubt in my mind that the Jewish community and the Jewish state will emerge from this TR better and stronger more resilient and more resourceful than ever before like resilience is both the DNA and Destiny of the Jewish people it's the DNA and Destiny of the Jewish State and everyone should have Supreme confidence that Israel will live on for the next 75 years and Beyond you know I'm Israel High you know I wish I wish as many Jews had the has had had as much what we would call as you which means trust trust that everything is going to be okay you know from but we cannot take it for granted we have to act to shap the world in the image of our ideals but but there are few communities that can do it as powerfully and as effectively as the Jewish community so never lose faith in your own resilience you know it's it's humbling and inspiring and it makes me want to be a better person listening to you speak because I want to be there for other communities for your community for other communities in their times of need just like you are there for our community and our time of need and that's a beautiful thing it's a be beautiful thing we we we should just it for me it's simple just do what's right do what you feel is right um You Know It This is not a quit proquo this is not a transaction like do right by every Community including your wrong but beyond your wrong because in the end we're part of the same Human family and morality moral Common Sense transcends particular cultures and particular societies it is universal what Hamas did to Israel was a was a crime against humanity itself and it was a crime so barbaric that it cannot be ignored it cannot go unpunished Hamas must be brought to Justice and I will defend unequivocally Israel's right to defend itself and to bring Hamas to Justice and rid the world of its Terror thank you for that what are you hearing in the whole of Congress regarding the subject look rhetorically Congress is supportive of Israel by the overwhelming majority of members of Congress both Democrats and Republicans are rhetorically supportive of Israel but for me there is a disconnect between the reality and the rhetoric MH uh the reality is that Congress is playing political games and that Congress to spent more time censuring members of Congress about Israel than actually providing Aid to Israel and we're we're we're not acting like a serious institution like tomorrow actually today if if the speaker would have put on the floor a standal bill providing Aid to Israel with no poison pills it would pass almost unanimously in both the house and the Senate wow that could happen today but what stands in the way of that kind of over overwhelming show of unity is politics Petty politics in a time and and I you know the practice of politicizing Israel in a time of war is disgraceful and so what we need from Congress is not gamesmanship but statesmanship I I guess you're referring to um congresswoman Talib that they voted to censor her did it go through in the end and I voted for it you voted I saw saw voted for it I was but but I feel like we should be prioritizing providing Aid to Israel in a time of you know we have an expression in Yiddish it's called on the Tish it means get your butt on the table which means stop playing games and do what has to get done and and I I see you know I I didn't look at it from that perspective I guess you're in it and you're in you're knee deep in it so you understand the political aspect of it from my perspective on my social media I was like yeah what a win but what you're saying is what would have been more effective is let's get the bill passed and let's play politics later that's that's my view because that's that's the stance that Israel is taking right now so in the beginning a lot of people were pointing fingers how could it be how could there be a security breach how could we have missed it how could we and everyone just put down the politics for for a minute and said let's focus on the task at hand and I think that's that's why we're seeing that decisive action from the Israeli government right now are we here to feel good or are we here to do good I like it and and I would prefer to do good for Israel than debate and pass Feelgood legislation or resolutions that have no real world effect that's very interesting so what's your what's your let's go to you for a moment yeah I want my viewers to know a little about a little about a little bit more about you personally what's your long-term aspirations I mean you're a young guy how old are you if you don't mind me asking uh I'm 35 which is only Young by Congressional standards okay 35 a gerontocracy right I'm I'm also 35 years old um so you're young guy you know you have your whole life ahead of you and you know you're you're you're you're probably one the one of the youngest people in in in Congress right now so there's I have one colleague who's a who's almost a decade younger than I am but I am in the top five or 10 right which I love walking into a room and they call me hey kid you know come over here it's a great feeling so I guess what's your aspirations you know are you do you have what are your goals what are your dreams what are your hopes what are your what is what is your future look like you know I never I take it one day at a time um my My Philosophy is that if you over calculate if you overthink the politics if you put the politics ahead of the governing it will ultimately backfire uh and so my role is to be as effective a congressman as I can be and if you govern effectively then maybe you know people will want to see you graduate to the next level whatever that level might be but but I refuse to calculate like 20 30 40 steps ahead because when you do so it has a distorting effect on your decision making right then the question you're asking yourself is not whether you're doing the right thing but whether you're doing what is best for your political Ambitions and and and and if I had that kind of mindset maybe I would would not be as peral as I am right because to be blunt I am not clear that the position that I've taken will benefit me politically I could be planning the seeds of my own decline but there are moments in life when you have to do what you think is right where you have to stand for what is right even if it means standing alone and even if it means sacrificing your career uh and so I I prefer to think morally and governmentally rather than politically you know what you're saying is so aligned with the Jewish thought process there was a moment in history where there was one man named Abraham the whole world knows about him and the whole world was on one side they were on the side of idolatry the side of immoral immorality adultery and paganism and here came one man and it was extremely politically uh incorrect to say that there is one God and he was ultimately he was thrown into a furnace because of it and they tried to you know they tried to kill him and his own father disowned him but he did what was right what he felt was right and politically it was not a strong move but we see that when a person sticks to their convictions even when it's not popular but they believe it to be true then ultimately that truth will carry them all the way through and they'll be able to influence so many more in that way so what you're saying is so in line with Jewish values like I I feel like you have to lead by example and and I came to Congress to be a leader rather than a follower that was one of the questions I asked you by the way um you know your your people had asked me to submit some sample questions before the uh before the interview and one of the questions I had asked you which you had just answered was you know are you scared that the your stance on Israel will hurt your political career and I guess you you answered you're saying you're not in it for the political career you're in it to do what's right and I and it could it likely will cost speak because the next generation of Americans are have been increasingly indoctrinated with a hatred for Israel well I have good news for you the good news is is the Torah also says that whoever blesses the Jewish people is blessed and whoever curses the Jewish people is cursed and I promise you this is that God sees everything that you're doing he appreciates everything that you're doing he appreciates your light he appreciates your Clarity your honesty and he will not let your feet falter that is guaranteed you can't lose you can't lose when you're on God's side and I don't want you to worry about that for a second because you're going to be just fine he's going to take care of you well this might be a moment when you're more optimistic than I am you know I spoke to my Rabbi when this whole thing started and um I said I'm scared I I said I think you know this might be it you know maybe so before we wrap it up I want to ask you um do you have any Orthodox Jewish Friends by the way I have plenty of do you I'm sure I'm sure you do now I I well even I some my my many of my closest friends are orth that's so interesting how did that happen uh obviously the commitment to Israel is a Common Thread but I also I like to think I'm a good person who's who whose company is bearable and uh I I could attest that your company is relatively bearable yes I maybe it's because I'm Shish I I don't uh one of my one of my rabbis in Riverdale uh Obby Weiss renamed me Richie Torah that's so funny that's so funny you're definitely an honorary member of the tribe 100% you're welcome to my house for Shabbat anytime you want okay you're in I feel like I have a Shabbat every week for the rest of my life that's so funny I'm covered that's so funny that's so funny and what's your what's your um do you have any questions for me I'm curious everything's on the table Orthodox Jewish wise everything's on the table what what else can public officials like myself uh and Ordinary People non-jews what the Jewish community in this bullet you know it's it's such a nice question um it's one that I haven't even processed because I was going to ask you the same question which is what could we do in this moment I think a lot of people are scared to speak up right now my business partner is one of them um you know he's a Greek Orthodox Christian and he was under a lot of pressure um to be quiet because a lot of his circles are pramas as as crazy as those words sound and I said to him at a certain point I'm like hey dude we're getting clobbered out there if you're not going to say something who's going to say something and he's like you're so right he's like I I I've been scared to you know ruin relationships or to put something out there or and I think that I think that we're we need we need a voice we need we need we need a voice we're so we're so small there's 15 million of us we're so small have you ever seen those videos of those guys walking around on on the streets of New York asking how many Jews you think there are in the world one guy says 500 million 100 million a quarter million and no there's there's 15 million and they how they can't believe how that could be possible we're so small that we need people to have a voice and even if you don't support Jews or the state of Israel at least don't support the next best thing which is which is Hamas and make your stance known even if that will cause you to lose a few followers because the few followers that the people will lose will pale in comparison to the base that they will gain you know your base right now Richie Congressman Torres sorry um your base right now is so Rock Solid at least your Jewish base I can't speak for anybody else is so Rock Solid for you and I'm happy to help any time that you need to Rally That Base by the way most of my followers are in New York um most of them are Orthodox Jewish if you ever need us for anything we are there million per toe-to-toe with you shoulder toosh shoulder so to answer your question you don't have to be pro-israel and pro-jewish you like us you don't like us uh not every Jew is perfect most are but most aren't is just be anti Hamas be against Hamas and the Jews will figure themselves out but don't don't create a moral comparison between the two I think that's what I would say you know for me this is not about this is not only about the Jewish community in Israel this is about human decent and and if we cannot summon the Courage the moral courage to condemn barbarism and terrorism with moral Clarity then we're lost yes we're lost we're going to rot from within we are rotting from with what do you think happened what do you think happened since 911 until today meaning 911 happened and there was zero tolerance for this type of behavior and now there seems to be a tolerance not only a tolerance there seems to be a a righteousness behind this type of Behavior this type of cause what do you think happened from then until now the greatest difference between then and now is social media and Academia which has undergone a transformation uh you know I said earlier that I worry about the next generation of Americans being indoctrinated with a hatred for Israel the process of anti-israel indoctrination is largely unfolding on social media platforms and on college campuses and and those are the two drivers of of anti-Semitism that are much more pronounced today than they were two decades ago and I'm gonna I'm gonna have to go out because I ever one o'clock yes yes um we're already six minutes over um Congressman Torres thank you so much for your time thank you for your heart-to-heart with the Jewish Community I really appreciate your time I appreciate your Insight we appreciate everything you're doing I want to leave you with a blessing the god of Abraham Isaac and Jacob should continue to bless you your family your career your health your children your children's children and protect you and guide you and be with you and allow you to continue doing your great work and spreading your great light in this world and you should continue to be a shining example for everybody around you God bless you have a great day thank you