Today is a very special day for me: it's my younger daughter's second birthday. She is a blessing and a delight. It's also ... a busy news day. Trump won the straw poll at the Turning Point conference, and RFK Jr. is causing enough problems for Biden that he's being attacked.
On that attack: it's garbage. RFK Jr. is being accused of saying that COVID-19 was engineered to spare Jews, presumably because the Jews were in charge. He said nothing of the sort: he said we need to be concerned about bioweapons that target certain groups, and that the differential impact of COVID-19 (scientifically supported) showed that such weapons could, in fact, be produced and were dangerous.
The people who spread the smear did it for clicks and laughs; they also intended to hurt Kennedy and help Biden. Not to defend Jews.
In fact, the antisemitic conspiracy theory that had to be made up to fill in for RFK Jr's lack of actual antisemitism was the only actual bit of antisemitism in the whole episode. Mazel tov to Team Outrage: you spread misinformation and bigotry for political points and yuks.
We'll talk about "Sound of Freedom," the independent hit film that dramatizes the effort to rescue child victims of human trafficking. Should it matter that the original story is not exactly as told? And what about the Hollywood actors' strike -- should we care at all?
Next -- we'll look at the week ahead. Israel's ceremonial president, Isaac Herzog, is going to speak to Congress and visit the White House. President Biden has yet to invite the country's elected leader, Benjamin Netanyahu. Is this just a ploy to divide and weaken Israel?
Democrats are seizing on the RFK Jr. moment: even though he's a fellow Democrat, he's a threat to Biden. But what about the bigots in their midst? Ilhan Omar is already boycotting Herzog -- who is a man of the left -- and Pramila Jayapal calls Israel a "racist" state.
All this plus the latest in the New York redistricting case, as Democrats try to use the courts -- which shut down their attempted gerrymander last year -- to win through the legislature what they could not win at the ballot box. And the latest from Wimbledon!
Special guests:
Patrick Courrielche -- co-founder of the Red Pilled America podcast
Jonathan S. Tobin -- editor-in-chief of Jewish News Syndicate
Rep. Claudia Tenney (R-NY) -- from New York's 24th district
Tune in: SiriusXM Patriot, 7-10 p.m. ET, 4-7 p.m. PT
Call in: 866-957-2874
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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