The Biden administration, the Democrats, and the media continue to treat Trump as if he were an "anomaly," in the words of PBS's Yamiche Alcindor. They will not acknowledge that there was public dissatisfaction with the status quo under Obama/Biden/Clinton and the center-left establishment; nor will they acknowledge Trump's successes, because to do so would mean to legitimize his presidency, and hence the public dissatisfaction, etc. In fact, the operating principle in the Biden Administration seems to be that if Trump did it, it was wrong. Hence Secretary of State Tony Blinken's refusal to confirm that the U.S. still recognized Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights, as Trump did (https://www.breitbart.com/middle-east/2021/06/07/watch-tony-blinken-declines-to-confirm-israeli-sovereignty-over-golan-heights/). This insistence on treating Trump's four years as an "anomaly" means that Biden will struggle to embrace successful policies that could help him be a more effective leader. But I do give some of the blame here to Trump -- let's say 5% -- because he could have used the post-election period defending his legacy (especially in the Georgia Senate runoffs) instead of contesting the past election, once the Electoral College had voted in mid-December. The events of January 6 are being exploited in an effort to erase the previous four years. They can't quite negate Trump's successes. But they are doing their best to ignore them. They are due for another reckoning -- and meanwhile, we suffer the consequences of their inability to see past their own prejudices, pride, and political interests.
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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