There has been a major change in Biden's policy on Israel, and that of Democrats more generally. Biden has reverted to the Trump policy of backing Israel 100%, rather than the old Obama policy of "distance."
Trump told Israel's enemies that he was going to give Israel free rein. Hence there were no wars against Israel for four years. Trump also moved the embassy, etc., and the result was the Abraham Accords.
Obama wanted "distance," and the Iran deal. So Israel had to face war after war. And in those wars, he told Israel to back down and even denied Israel weapons. Biden largely restored that approach.
But the Hamas terror attack on Israel last weekend -- with its ISIS-like, graphic brutality -- changed all of that. Now Biden is saying Israel has a "duty" to get rid of Hamas. Now Obama says we must support Israel as it "dismantles" Hamas. Now Jake Sullivan, the national security advisor, says the U.S. will back Israel's war "as long as they need to feel safe." Now Karine Jean-Pierre, the formerly anti-Israel press secretary, says that equivocating between Israel and Hamas is "disgraceful" and that there is only one side -- Israel's side.
This means the war is over, bar the fighting, and Israel will have won.
Perhaps it is difficult to trust Biden, Obama, and the others. And there is a very good argument that their policies led to this disaster.
It's too late to undo that. But this is a big change. I hope it sticks.
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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