
Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
Rafi Schwartz has worked as a politics writer at The Week since 2022, where he covers elections, Congress and the White House. He was previously a contributing writer with Mic focusing largely on politics, a senior writer with Splinter News, a staff writer for Fusion's news lab, and the managing editor of Heeb Magazine, a Jewish life and culture publication. Rafi's work has appeared in Rolling Stone, GOOD and The Forward, among others. He is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin, Madison, with a major in religious studies, and a minor in integrated liberal studies.
Rafi lives in the Twin Cities, where he does not bike, run or take part in any team sports. He does, however, have a variety of interests, hobbies and passions.
Latest articles by Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
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Wave of cancellations prompt Kennedy Center turmoil
IN THE SPOTLIGHT Accusations and allegations fly as artists begin backing off their regularly scheduled appearances
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
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Why is Trump’s alleged strike on Venezuela shrouded in so much secrecy?
TODAY'S BIG QUESTION Trump’s comments have raised more questions than answers about what his administration is doing in the Southern Hemisphere
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
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Why recognizing Somaliland is so risky for Israel
THE EXPLAINER By wading into one of North Africa’s most fraught political schisms, the Netanyahu government risks further international isolation
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
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Shots fired in the US-EU war over digital censorship
IN THE SPOTLIGHT The Trump administration risks opening a dangerous new front in the battle of real-world consequences for online action
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
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All roads to Ukraine-Russia peace run through Donetsk
IN THE SPOTLIGHT Volodymyr Zelenskyy is floating a major concession on one of the thorniest issues in the complex negotiations between Ukraine and Russia
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
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Oklahoma fires instructor over gender essay grade
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By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
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Bari Weiss’ ‘60 Minutes’ scandal is about more than one report
IN THE SPOTLIGHT By blocking an approved segment on a controversial prison holding US deportees in El Salvador, the editor-in-chief of CBS News has become the main story
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
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Trump halts wind power projects, citing ‘security’
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By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
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The MAGA civil war takes center stage at the Turning Point USA conference
IN THE SPOTLIGHT ‘Americafest 2025’ was a who’s who of right-wing heavyweights eager to settle scores and lay claim to the future of MAGA
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
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‘Lumpy skin’ protests intensify across France as farmers fight cull
IN THE SPOTLIGHT A bovine outbreak coupled with ongoing governmental frustrations is causing major problems for French civil society
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
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Trump HHS moves to end care for trans youth
Speed Read The administration is making sweeping proposals that would eliminate gender-affirming care for Americans under age 18
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
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Trump aims to take down ‘global mothership’ of climate science
IN THE SPOTLIGHT By moving to dismantle Colorado’s National Center for Atmospheric Research, the White House says it is targeting ‘climate alarmism’
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
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Jack Smith tells House of ‘proof’ of Trump’s crimes
Speed Read President Donald Trump ‘engaged in a criminal scheme to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election,’ hoarded classified documents and ‘repeatedly tried to obstruct justice’
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
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Why does Susie Wiles have MAGA-land in a panic?
TODAY’S BIG QUESTION Trump’s all-powerful gatekeeper is at the center of a MAGA firestorm that could shift the trajectory of the administration
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
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Hegseth rejects release of full boat strike footage
Speed Read There are calls to release video of the military killing two survivors of a Sept. 2 missile strike on an alleged drug trafficking boat
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
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Son arrested over killing of Rob and Michele Reiner
Speed Read Nick, the 32-year-old son of Hollywood director Rob Reiner, has been booked for the murder of his parents
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
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The Alps start the countdown to ‘peak glacier extinction’
IN THE SPOTLIGHT Central Europe is losing ice faster than anywhere else on Earth. Global warming puts this already bad situation at risk of becoming even worse.
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
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DOJ targets ‘disparate impact’ avenues of discrimination protections
IN THE SPOTLIGHT By focusing solely on ‘intentional discrimination,’ the Justice Department risks allowing more subtle forms of bias to proliferate
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
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A running list of RFK Jr.'s controversies
In Depth The man atop the Department of Health and Human Services has had no shortage of scandals over the years
By Brigid Kennedy Last updated
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Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem might not be long for Trumpland
IN THE SPOTLIGHT She has been one of the most visible and vocal architects of Trump’s anti-immigration efforts, even as her own star risks fading
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
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Abrego García freed from jail on judge’s order
Speed Read The wrongfully deported man has been released from an ICE detention center
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
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Democrat files to impeach RFK Jr.
Speed Read Rep. Haley Stevens filed articles of impeachment against Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
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Japan’s Princess Aiko is a national star. Her fans want even more.
IN THE SPOTLIGHT Fresh off her first solo state visit to Laos, Princess Aiko has become the face of a Japanese royal family facing 21st-century obsolescence
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
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Australia’s teen social media ban takes effect
Speed Read Kids under age 16 are now barred from platforms including YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat and Reddit
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
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