This week, I'm back in sunny Los Angeles -- remember last week, when I was near the action on the Israel/Lebanon border? Crazy stuff -- and I'll be looking at what the recent congressional votes mean for our politics, going forward.
Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) was elected after a revolt, led by Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), against Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), ostensibly because McCarthy had become an emissary of the DC establishment, the "uniparty."
As I noted at the time, McCarthy had passed a continuing resolution to fund the government without including funding for Ukraine. This was something the rebels overlooked. (I said Johnson would end up funding Ukraine; I was right.)
Anyway -- on Friday, Johnson pushed through a vote to reauthorize the much-abused FISA; and then on Saturday, he pushed through a bill to provide aid to Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan, while Democrats waved Ukrainian flags on the floor.
He had to do all of that with Democrat votes, as he did not have the majority of his caucus behind him for the FISA or Ukraine votes. So where does this put the GOP in the middle of an election year? We'll try to figure that out.
We'll also discuss the latest in the Trump trial in Manhattan, with the jury now fully selected. What are the prospects for a conviction, or a hung jury? An acquittal seems out of the question, given the venue. But we'll look into it.
We'll also discuss the Biden administration's decision to sanction an IDF unit that is composed of religious soldiers. It's a bizarre decision that sends all the wrong signals during wartime and could even put American soldiers at risk.
I'll also interview my cousin, Adrian Perkel, who has written a new book about the psychological roots of aggression. Aggressors often perceive themselves as victims; so in a conflict, how do we decide which side is really the victim?
Finally, we'll discuss the Passover holiday, the Jewish festival of freedom, which starts Monday night. This year, Passover is particularly poignant, because there are actual Jewish slaves in Gaza. Their freedom is an urgent priority.
Special guests:
- Matthew Boyle - Breitbart News DC editor, on Congress and the fallout
- Ken Klukowski - Breitbart News legal editor, on the Trump trial in Manhattan
- Adrian Perkel - clinical psychologist and scholar, on the nature of aggression
- Rich Goldberg - Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, on sanctions
Tune in: SiriusXM Patriot 125, 7-10 p.m. ET, 4-7 p.m. PT
Call in: 866-957-2874
It’s Purim time… time to get the sweet stuff baking.
This is for an apricot hamantaschen filling…
We’re still seeing “encampments” around the country, and now we know why Biden’s not doing anything about them: they’re funded by his own donors. We’ll talk about the crisis and what it means.
The Trump trial is officially silly, with Hope Hicks providing testimony that exonerates Trump, but the media claiming orherwise, because they’re so invested in the outcome.
We’ll talk about everything else going on — congressional infighting, Cinco de Mayo, and even some little league baseball if we get a chance.
With guests:
Matthew Boyle - Breitbart News political editor
Frances Martel - Breitbart News foreign editor
And more!
Tune in: SiriusXM Patriot 125, 7-10 p.m. ET, 4-7 p.m. PT
Call in: 866-957-2874
I'm sorry to say... I think I made a mistake. Last week was a special Passover reading. This week is Acharei. Here's my entry from last Saturday...
Shabbat Shalom!
https://joelpollak.locals.com/post/5562677/weekly-torah-reading-acharei-leviticus-16-1-18-30
It's been an up-and-down few days. I think the news cycle has finally hit me.
One thing I try to remind myself is that I might have some influence over how people understand debates, but I can't really change much. I can just observe.
And that chaos is baked into how this crazy world of ours seems to function.
