It's Presidents' Day -- a substitute for Washington and Lincoln's birthdays, which once gave us even more public holidays in an already-short February. It's a bit generic, but I like to use the day to think about my own favorite president -- James Madison.
What I like about Madison is that he basically wrote the blueprint for the Constitution in his study after reading everything he could about government, then applying his mind and writing down his ideas. He was not a scholar; he was simply a public-minded intellectual.
I guess, at the risk of vanity, I see a bit of myself in that story, or at least the kind of writer I would like to be. And I have tried to write about certain subjects in that way -- notably the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. I have even stood in the room where Madison did it.
It's sad to hear that Madison's estate, Montpelier, has been taken over by "woke" revisionists who want to emphasize the fact that he was a slave-holder. (It wasn't his only failure; he arguably erred in going to war against Britain in 1812, and failing to conquer Ontario.)
https://www.heritage.org/progressivism/commentary/the-woke-takeover-james-madisons-montpelier
Still, it's worth remembering that America owes much to a president who cared enough about ideas to devote months at a time to their study and interpretation. Those ideas persist, and survive the flaws of the man who brought them together in so elegant a fashion.
I should have noted in my message about the weekly Torah portion that this week is Shabbat Chazon, the Sabbath of Vision. We are about to mourn -- but see through that pain to something better that lies beyond, on the other side.
Wishing you the best vision -- and an incredible reality to follow. It happens!
We begin the final speech of Moses to the people of Israel before they enter the Promised Land. He relates the ups and downs of the years of wandering in the desert, before, finally, the people have the merit to enter the land itself.
This Sabbath always precedes Tisha B'Av, the Ninth of Av, the saddest day on the Jewish calendar. It is the anniversary of the destruction of both of the Holy Temples, and a catch-all for many calamities that befell the Jewish people.
A word on Tisha B'Av. This year I am leaving for an overseas trip during the afternoon of the holiday -- in the middle of a fast day. Not idea, but there was no other choice. But my flight is in the afternoon, which is significant.
We relax some of the harsh, mournful customs of the day in the afternoon. We start to pray normally; we sit on regular chairs; we start to have hope again in the redemption that will, one day, lead us all back from exile to our home.
I'll be taking a trip to a land where an important part of ...
President Trump is in Scotland, playing golf and making big trade deals -- a major deal with the EU, in fact. Meanwhile, there is a global outcry about humanitarian aid to Palestinians (not about the Israeli hostages, mind you).
On top of that, Democrats are at their lowest polling numbers ever -- so they are trying to win control of the House by redistricting in the middle of a 10-year Census cycle. Oh, economic optimism is up, so they have a tough road.
And Tulsi Gabbard's revelations about the Russia collusion investigation make it clear that Obama's lieutenants lied to Congress. How deeply was he himself involved? The media continue to ignore the evidence, but we certainly won't.
Special guests:
Nick Gilbertson - Breitbart News White House correspondent, on EU deal
Frances Martel - Breitbart News foreign editor, on Trump abroad and Russia
John Spencer - urban warfare expert, on humanitarian aid and war in Gaza
Bradley Jaye - Breitbart News congressional correspondent, on the ...
