7 Facts about Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin

As President Donald Trump’s second impeachment trial commenced Feb. 9, all eyes were on Rep. Jamie Raskin, a Democrat representing Maryland’s 8th District.

A constitutional scholar, D.C. native and Reform Jew with a long career in Maryland politics, Raskin, 58, is the lead manager for the trial and impressed many TV viewers with his eloquence and poise. He particularly pulled heartstrings when talking about the visceral impact of the Capitol riot on his family.

In addition, Americans were stunned when Raskin accepted the trial manager position just days after his beloved son Tommy died by suicide on Dec. 31. Perhaps it was his lifelong belief in tikkun olam (repairing the world) that motivated him to step up despite such a devastating personal loss.

As Raskin explained to Jake Tapper of CNN on Jan. 17: “I did it really with my son in my heart and helping lead the way. I feel him in my chest.” In the same interview, Raskin said, “I’m not going to lose my son at the end of 2020 and lose my country and my republic in 2021. It’s not going to happen.”

Here are some facts about Rep. Raskin’s Jewish and not so Jewish connections.

1. It’s Not a Kippah

Watching the hearing on TV, many viewers thought they saw a yarmulke on Raskin’s head. Alas, it’s just a bald spot. However, Raskin did wear a torn black ribbon pinned to his lapel, a Jewish custom that symbolizes being in mourning, in the days following his son’s death.

2. Raskin’s grandfather was a major influence on the lawmaker’s Jewish identity

Samuel Bellman, Raskin’s maternal grandfather, was an attorney who became the first Jew ever elected to the Minnesota legislature. As Raskin told the Jewish News Syndicate in March of 2020, “He was a pillar in the community … and a strong Zionist.”

3. Raskin’s grandmother was also involved in the Jewish community

When it comes to the Jewish community, Raskin’s maternal bubbe was no slouch either. “She was the president of Hadassah in Minnesota and actually served in that capacity with Bob Dylan’s mother [Beatty Zimmerman],” the congressman told JNS.

4. Raskin married Sarah Bloom

Raskin met his future wife, a Jewish woman from Medford, Mass., at Harvard Law School when both were students there. They have been married for 30 years. During the Obama administration, Bloom Raskin became the first woman to serve as deputy treasury secretary. She gave birth to their three children, daughters Tabitha and Hannah, and son Tommy.

5. The Raskins are longtime members of Temple Emanuel

Temple Emanuel in Chevy Chase, Md., is where all of the Raskin children became b’nai mitzvah, and where Tommy Raskin taught religious school.

6. Raskin is also an author

A professor of constitutional law at the American University Washington College of Law for 26 years, Raskin has written two books: the Washington Post bestseller “Overruling Democracy: The Supreme Court versus American People” (Routledge) and “We the Students: Supreme Court Cases for and about America’s Students” (CQ Press).

7. The Raskin family started a memorial fund for Tommy Raskin

Just three days after Tommy died, the family announced the launch of the Tommy Raskin Memorial Fund for People and Animals. The fund will support charities that were meaningful to Tommy, including Oxfam, Give Directly, the Helen Keller Institute and Animal Outlook.