Former President Donald Trump’s unprovoked attack on former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is raising serious questions about whether Trump can lead the nation effectively on the world stage if he runs for president again in 2014.
Though he emphasized that he still supported Israel, regardless of his anger toward Netanyahu, Trump said he resented Israel’s former leader for recognizing Joe Biden as the winner of the 2020 presidential election after the networks called it.
Trump also said that he had not spoken to Netanyahu since then, and implied that if Netanyahu had supported him, other world leaders might have followed, and he would have stood a chance at contesting the election results more effectively.
Essentially, Trump said that Netanyahu ought to have interfered with an American election, and jeopardized his country’s relationship with the United States, in return for the help Trump gave Israel in general and to Netanyahu in particular.
Netanyahu responded without escalating the fight, noting that as Israel’s leader, he had no choice but to congratulate Biden. Left unsaid was that he was worried about the anti-Israel turn of the Democratic Party and could not afford to alienate it.
There is a chance that Trump could win in 2024 — and that Netanyahu could return as prime minister of Israel. That could have been an opportunity for renewed, stronger ties — but Trump has now placed that relationship in an awkward position.
Trump fans are alarmed that he continues to sit down with establishment media outlets and left-leaning reporters, such as Axios’ Barak Ravid, who broke the story of Trump’s attack on Netanyahu.
In the past, such outlets did nothing but attempt to undermine Trump’s presidency, and yet he seemed desperate for coverage by the likes of the New York Times. The fact that the pattern has continued suggests that he has learned little from the experience, despite his opposition to the “fake news.”
Pro-Israel advocates are also worried that Trump, in his recent remarks, seemed to accuse Netanyahu of trying to avoid a peace deal with Palestinians, while crediting Palestinian Authority Mahmoud Abbas for wanting one.
Not only is that statement untrue, but it suggests a future Trump administration could actually be more pro-Palestinian, out of spite.
Several other Republican hopefuls could run in 2024, and Trump has just given them material to make a case against him.
https://www.axios.com/trump-netanyahu-disloyalty-fuck-him-276ac6cc-3f70-4fba-b315-c82a59603e67.html
This is the portion that all journalists should love: the Torah tells the story of the 12 spies, only two of whom tell the truth when the other ten shade it in a negative away (perhaps to suit a political agenda that is opposed to Moses).
It's not that the ten "lying" spies misconstrue the facts about the Land of Israel; rather, they interject their opinions that the land is impossible to conquer, which strikes unnecessary terror into the hearts of the people.
We have many examples of such fake news today -- from the Iranian propaganda outlets spreading false claims that they are winning the war, to California politicians spreading false horror stories about ICE raids in L.A.
The people realize, too late, that they have been fooled, and once they are condemned to die in the desert, they try to rush into Israel -- only to be defeated by the inhabitants, as the spies predicted that they would be.
But as consolation, God gives the people new commandments -- focused on things they must ...
This week's portion discusses the procedure for lighting the menorah, the holy seven-branched lamp, in the Tabernacle (and later the Temple). It also describes an episode where the people crave meat, and God punishes them by giving it to them in excess. We also read the story of Miriam, Moses's sister, who is punished with the spiritual skin blemish of tzara'at for speaking about her brother, thus violating the prohibition against lashon hara (evil tongue).
I heard a fantastic sermon this week about the lighting of the menorah: that while only the priests were qualified to clean and purify the menorah, anyone could light it. A reminder that each of us can inspire others along the way.
This week we study the vow of the Nazirite; a reminder that sometimes trying to be too holy is excessive, and the best we can do is to be the best that we are.
https://www.chabad.org/parshah/torahreading_cdo/aid/2495720/p/complete/jewish/Naso-Torah-Reading.htm
