Columnist Jennifer Rubin of The Washington Post delivered a talk Thursday evening at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga about the role of women in democracy.
In an interview prior to the event, Rubin discussed her decision to stop identifying as a conservative, how her Jewish faith connects to her politics and how she interprets a brutal Middle East war which has in less than two weeks reportedly left at least 1,400 people in Israel and 3,000 people in Gaza dead.
This conversation has been edited for concision and clarity.
Q: Were you raised as an observant religious Jew, or was it more of a cultural thing?
A: I was raised in a reform Jewish household. We celebrated all of the holidays. We belonged for a portion of my childhood to a synagogue, but not throughout.
