Rafi Schwartz
Splinter
Contact Rafi
Discover and connect with journalists and influencers around the world, save time on email research, monitor the news, and more.
| Recent: |
|
| Past: |
|
Past articles by Rafi:
Trump Is Gaslighting the Hell Out of Jews
Just hours after glowingly referring to himself as the “King of Israel” and the “second coming of God,” President Donald Trump doubled down on—and ramped up—his blatant anti-Semitism, making clear to the White House press corps that he thinks Jewish Americans who vote for Democrats are being disloyal to Israel. → Read More
The NRA's New President Seems Like a Great Person
Newly elected National Rifle Association President Carolyn Meadows may only be a few days into her job, but she’s already leapt headfirst into the NRA’s proud tradition of saying very bad things. → Read More
House Hearing on White Nationalism Devolves Into Stomach-Churning Hellscape
It didn’t take long for Tuesday’s House Judiciary Committee hearing on the rising threat of white nationalism to devolve into a complete farce, thanks to a pair of ultra-conservative witnesses and a trove of Republican congressmen eager to appease them while paying lip-service to condemning hate. → Read More
A Guide to the Mueller Investigation for Anyone Who's Only Been Paying Half-Attention
If you’re a thankfully normal human being living an actual life there’s a decent chance you’ve only been sorta paying attention to the labyrinthine ins-and-outs of what President Donald Trump has calls a “witch hunt,” and everyone else calls “that Russia thing, I guess?” AKA the Mueller investigation. → Read More
Missouri GOP Lawmaker Files Bill For Mandatory AR-15 Ownership
Photo: George Frey (Getty) Missouri Republican state Representative Andrew McDaniel wants to force every 18–35 year old in his state to own an AR-15 and a handgun. At least, that’s what two bills, quietly filed by McDaniel in the Missouri legislature late last month, would have you believe. The truth, however, is that McDaniel is a cynical dickhead using these mandatory requirements as a scam… → Read More
Sarah Huckabee Sanders Is Back and Shameless As Ever
It’s been a long time since Sarah Huckabee Sanders graced the White House Press Room’s briefing podium, but on Monday, the Trump administration’s chief liar was back—and just as bad as ever. → Read More
Cohen Straight To Hell: Splinter's Michael Cohen Testimony Liveblog
As President Donald Trump glad-hands with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Vietnam, his former attorney, fixer and close confidante Michael Cohen will be busy testifying on Capitol Hill for what could very well be his last major public appearance before getting locked away for a pretty long time for committing a ton of crimes. → Read More
Former Trump Campaign Staffer Alleges He Tried to Kiss Her Without Consent
A campaign staffer on President Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign alleges that he kissed her without her consent, according to a new lawsuit against the president. → Read More
We Now Go Live to BuzzFeed's 'Ask Jonah Anything' Slack Channel
This has been an agonizingly brutal week for digital media, with mass layoffs at HuffPost, Gannett, and as of Friday, internet juggernaut BuzzFeed. While it’s unclear at this time exactly how many employees BuzzFeed has let go, the numbers gleaned publicly suggest sweeping layoffs across multiple departments, with entire news desks—including their national news team—were simply shuttered in one… → Read More
Farewell Ryan Zinke, an Idiot Until the End
Today is Ryan Zinke’s last day as Secretary of the Interior in the Trump Administration, and I think I speak for most people when I say: Good. Great. Piss off. Next. → Read More
Someone Should Really Check on Rudy Giuliani (Not Me Though)
If any of you happen to run into former New York City mayor, raving lunatic, and presidential attorney Rudy Giuliani this morning, can you please do me a favor and ask if he’s doing alright? Does he need us to call someone for him? Can we get him some soothing tea, or a recording of whale sounds? Because, after last night, it’s pretty evident that Rudy isn’t in such a great headspace these days. → Read More
George Bush Being Dead Is Why You're Not Getting Mail Tomorrow
With Hanukkah in full swing and Christmas right around the corner, the government has decided that America’s gift givers-and-getters can probably stand to skip a day of standard mail delivery because former President George H.W. Bush died last week at the extremely ripe old age of 94. → Read More
Thousand Oaks Shooting: At Least 12 Dead At Borderline Bar In CA
At least 12 people were killed by a gunman at a bar in Thousand Oaks, CA, late on Wednesday night, local law enforcement said Thursday morning. One of the victims has been identified as a sheriff’s sergeant who responded to the shooting. The gunman is also dead. → Read More
Two Giant Idiots Hold the World's Worst Press Conference
As someone who writes for a living, please believe me when I say that there are no words to accurately describe the subterranean depths of stupidity plumbed by conservative conspiracy crackpot Jack Burkman and mulch-brained “wunderkind” Jacob Wohl during their circus of a press conference on Thursday afternoon, where they promised a bombshell report claiming Special Counsel Robert Mueller had… → Read More
Police Remove Ministers for Confronting Jeff Sessions With Bible Verses
Speaking at the Boston Lawyers Chapter of the Federalist Society on Monday, Attorney General Jeff Sessions was confronted by a Methodist minister who calmly and politely used Bible verses to remind Sessions just how harmful his tenure at the Department of Justice has been on some of the most vulnerable members of society. → Read More
Florida Man Arrested in Connection With Mail Bomb Attacks
According to multiple reports, law enforcement authorities in Florida have arrested one man in connection to the wave of at least 12 bombs which have recently been mailed to prominent Democrats such as Barack Obama, the Clintons, and George Soros, as well as other public figures and CNN. → Read More
Nikki Haley Reportedly Resigns as U.N. Ambassador
United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley will resign from her role in the Trump administration, according to multiple reports on Tuesday morning. → Read More
Indicted Congressman's New Campaign Ad Is Islamophobic Garbage
California Republican Rep. Duncan Hunter isn’t about to let a 48-page federal indictment stop him from scraping way down at the bottom of the barrel ahead of the midterm elections in an attempt to smear his Democratic opponent as a scary Muslim terrorist—despite the fact that he’s not even Muslim at all (though even if he were, the ad would still be bigoted trash). → Read More
Richard Nixon's Former Lawyer Testifies That Brett Kavanaugh Seems Kinda Crooked
The Senate Judiciary Committee hearings on Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh entered their final day on Friday, with both proponents and opponents of the conservative judge appearing as witnesses for and against his confirmation. Among them was John Dean, President Richard Nixon’s former White House counsel, who knows a thing or two about extremely shady political goings-on—the FBI once… → Read More
Republicans Reportedly Want to Try and Kill Obamacare Yet Again
In a sign of how utterly committed they are to taking healthcare away from people, reports suggest the GOP is gearing up to take yet another crack at fully repealing the Affordable Care Act should they retain control of Congress after the midterms. → Read More