Joe Biden has never been interested in winning in Ukraine -- neither in deterring Russian invasion, nor in "reversing" it, which Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said Friday was the administration's new goal.
The clearest signs: Biden lifted sanctions on Russia's Nord Stream 2 pipeline last year; Biden essentially gave Russia a green light to invade by saying Putin had to do so; Biden created an absurd system of "tranches" of sanctions that all but admitted Putin would invade; Biden refuses to sanction Russia's energy industry; and Biden has ruled out the use of troops to help Ukraine.
What they've opted for, instead, is a set of sanctions that Putin has easily ignored in the past, and efforts to embarrass Russia on the international stage, which Putin has clearly demonstrated do not move him in the slightest way.
All Russia has ever understood is force, and the challenge is that force could trigger a nuclear confrontation. Trump's approach was to use limited, yet overwhelming, displays of force that helped avoid larger clashes. Putin decided the risk of incurring Trump's unpredictable wrath wasn't worth it.
Now we are the ones trying to figure out an unpredictable Putin, amid fear that he might go nuclear or somehow cause a Ukrainian nuclear "accident."
What is the strategy for victory? We've never had one. I think it begins by finding some indirect way to bleed Russia -- not economically, but literally -- such that Putin pulls back in Ukraine. What's the target -- Russian forces in Syria? Disputed islands in the western Pacific? Creative thinking needed.
This is my first broadcast from the new office and studio in Washington, DC, where I'll be for a couple of years my neighborhood back in L.A. cleans up -- and as we follow the Trump administration from a little closer up than usual.
Topics:
- The anniversary of the attempted assassination of President Donald Trump
- The escalating tariff battle with various different trading partners
- The future of the Middle East peace talks, and ongoing antisemitism
- The Jeffrey Epstein files and whether they mean anything at all
- The continued crisis of the Texas floods, and stories of heroism and survival
And more!
Special guests:
- James Rosen - Newsmax chief Washington correspondent
- Bob Price - Breitbart News Texas reporter, on the ongoing floods
- Robert Cahill - Trafalgar Polling, on a new alliance of reliable pollsters
- Rabbi Yaakov Menken - Coalition for Jewish Values - on Israel & antisemitism
Tune in: 7-10 p.m. ET, 4-7 p.m. PT
Call: 866-957-2874
This week’s portion tells the grand story of the prophet who tried to curse people of Israel and instead ended up blessing them.
I am reminded that these portions continue to be relevant anew, as this particular reading lent the title for Israel’s recent 12 Day War against Iran, “Operation Rising Lion.”
This week's portion includes the commandment of the red heifer -- one of the classic "irrational" commandments whose fulfillment is an expression of faith. It also includes the regrettable episode in which Moses strikes the rock.
I referred to this story in a wedding speech last night. Why was Moses punished for striking the rock in Numbers, when he struck the rock without incident in Exodus -- both for the purpose of providing water to the people?
The answer is that in the interim, the Jewish people had received the Torah, which is like the marriage contract between the people of Israel and God. In a marriage, you do not resolve things by breaking boundaries, but through love.
The additional reading, from Judges Chapter 11, is the story of Jephthah (Yiftach), a man whom the leaders spurn, but to whom they must turn to save the nation. The parallels to our present political circumstances are striking.
Shabbat Shalom and Happy Fourth of July!
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