Leland Vittert’s War Notes: 2 Years Later

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NewsNation Chief Washington Anchor and On Balance host Leland Vittert was a foreign correspondent for four years in Jerusalem. He gives you an early look at tonight's 9 p.m. ET show, delivered straight to your inbox.

2 Years Later

‼️It's October 7.

😱Two years ago today, Hamas' brutality not only stunned Israel but also the entire world.

😔We saw the worst massacre against Jews since the Holocaust — over 1,200 killed, and 251 were taken hostage by Hamas.
- ⏩But 730 days later, no one could have imagined where we are right now.
  - ‼️Israel has defeated most of its enemies like Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran — yet the outward call for the killing of Jews has only increased.
    - 🗣️The killing of thousands of Jews has only led to calls for the killing of more Jews — WOW.

🌆Now, New York City — a city with the largest Jewish population in the world outside of Israel — is about to elect a mayor who is openly sympathetic to Hamas.

🎤Zohran Mamdani released a statement today saying:
- "Two years ago today, Hamas carried out a horrific war crime, killing more than 1,100 Israelis and kidnapping 250 more. I mourn these lives and pray for the safe return of every hostage still held and for every family whose lives were torn apart by these atrocities…In the aftermath of that day, Prime Minister Netanyahu and the Israeli government launched a genocidal war: a death toll that now far exceeds 67,000; with the Israeli military bombing homes, hospitals, and schools into rubble. Everyday in Gaza has become a place where grief itself has run out of language. I mourn these lives and pray for the families that have been shattered. Our government has been complicit through it all…"
  - 📝Only two sentences in Mamdani's statement focus on the victims of Hamas' atrocious attack — the rest just point blame at Israel and the United States.
    - 😶That's where we are at.
    - Not to mention accusing Israel of war crimes.

Watch tonight📺: Much more on the show tonight, two years later.

Look back👀: "War Notes" started as an internal note I sent to our management and anchors in the days after October 7.

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Coming Showdown‼️

🔥Republicans might have blown their chances of coming out on top in this shutdown battle.

🛑The White House is looking to cancel backpay for furloughed workers — which would affect a quarter-million Americans.
- 🎤"For the most part, we're going to take care of our people. There are some people that really don't deserve to be taken care of, and we'll take care of them in a different way," said President Trump.
  - 🤷🏼‍♂️This would give Democrats a strong negotiating hand.

Watch tonight📺: Speaker of the House Mike Johnson joins us tonight on how his party can gain the upper hand.

🔥When push comes to shove on federal firings, President Trump will argue he campaigned on downsizing the federal government.

Look back👀: President Trump is calling his Office of Management and Budget director "The Reaper."
- 🤦🏼This is really only popular on the MAGA base — but even Republican members of Congress are done with the meme war.
  - 🎤"Not a single Republican in leadership talked to us about this or has given us a plan to help Americans deal with their health insurance premiums DOUBLING!!!" Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene posted on X.
    - 😶When Republicans have lost Greene, we know there's a problem.

Have the Democrats Lost Their Minds? 🧠

🤷🏼‍♂️I never thought this would happen. President Trump and The Atlantic actually agree on something — the Democrats are a mess.

📰The magazine dropped some pretty harsh words on the party's current state:
- "Democrats Still Have No Idea What Went Wrong"

🤷🏼‍♂️Even CNN's Harry Enten admitted that President Trump is doing what he promised the American people.

🎤"Is Trump doing what he promised in the 2024 campaign? Yes! 52%, the majority of Americans say that Donald Trump is doing what he promised compared to 48% who said no," said Enten on CNN.
- 🤬This is just making the Left infuriated.

Watch tonight📺: Democratic Florida Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz joins us.

Gen Z's Hyperfocus on Mental Health 🔍

📈We have seen a trend in Gen Z being hyperfocused on mental health and therapy.

❓But how much of this "mental health" conversation is actually helping Gen Z?
- 🎤"73% of boomer men disagree with the statement 'mental health challenges are an important part of my identity.' 72% of gen z women said the opposite. 'They agree mental health challenges are an important part of my identity,'" said Bill Maher.
  - 👀It's fascinating the difference in view on this.
  - How did mental health become part of our identity?

Watch tonight 📺: Dr. Gail Saltz, psychiatrist, psychoanalyst and clinical associate professor of psychiatry at Weill Cornell Medical College, joins us.

WATCH ON BALANCE WEEKNIGHTS AT 9P/8C

Every night during On Balance, Leland Vittert asks "why?" about the most pressing matters of the day, with an intellectual, balanced and sometimes irreverent take on the news.

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