Trump initial second-term approval rating among lowest in decades

 https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5116132-trump-approval-rating-gallup/?tbref=hp

A poll, released Thursday by Gallup, found that 47 percent of respondents support Trump’s term so far, just above the 45 percent he earned at this point during his first term.

It’s a rating that places him below all other elected presidents since 1953. He remains the only elected commander in chief with an approval rating below 50 percent, the survey found.

Trump’s disapproval rating is 48 percent, which is 3 percentage points higher than in 2017 and marks a new high for that rating at the start of a president’s term.

Former President Biden received a 57 percent approval rating, the same as former President George W. Bush.

Don’t Blame DEI for Crash at Reagan National Airport. Blame Ronald Reagan

 https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-real-problem-at-the-core-of-dc-plane-collision/

As has been widely noted, and as an official with extensive experience in airport operations affirmed to the Daily Beast on Thursday, the whole system is still suffering from the firing of 11,000 striking air traffic controllers in 1981 by the president for whom Reagan National Airport is named. The new controllers who took their place had a mandatory retirement age of 56, and many of them have been departing in recent years. An early FAA report after Wednesday’s crash noted that a single air traffic controller was doing work that customarily would have been done by two.

Lying or Deceiving is like idolatry?

Sanhedrin (92a)  Rabbi Elazar says: With regard to anyone who amends the truth in his speech, it is as though he worships idols. As, it is written here, in the verse where Jacob sought to resist taking his father’s blessing from Esau: “And I shall seem to him a deceiver [metate’a]” (Genesis 27:12), and it is written there with regard to idol worship: “They are vanity, the work of deception [tatuim]” (Jeremiah 10:15). 

Rashi says it is one who changes his speech speech so he is not recognized

המחליף בדבורו - משנה בדבורו שלא יהא ניכר:

However there is another gemorah in Bava Metzia (23b) which indicates that the phrase means to lie. 

With regard to these three matters alone, it is normal for Sages to amend their statements and deviate from the truth: With regard to a tractate, if he is asked whether he studied a particular tractate, he may humbly say that he did not, even if he did. And with regard to a bed, if he is asked whether he slept in a particular bed, he may say that he did not, to avoid shame in case some unseemly residue is found on the bed.

Why did Rashi ignore the explanation of the gemora in his explanation here? 

Lace-Front Sheitels: An Exploding Controversy

 http://www.5tjt.com/lace-front-sheitels-an-exploding-controversy/

 Rabbi Yitzchok Berkowitz rules that since there is no ma’aris ayin in sheitels according to the responsum of Rav Moshe Feinstein, zt’l (Igros Moshe Even HaEzer Vol. II #12), there would be no problem in lace-front sheitels. Rav Moshe’s letter was written in the summer of 1962 to Rabbi Dovid Lappa, z’l (who lived in Bayswater at the end of his life), and contained a number of rationales as to why there is no ma’aris ayin regarding sheitels. (1) Ma’aris ayin is only for a lav and not an issur aseih; (2) Most of the time it is recognizable that it is a wig; (3) Even if men do not recognize that it is a wig, women do recognize it, and that is enough to prevent a ma’aris ayin, as we can see in regard to shaving with an electric razor; (4) Since she is known as an ishah kesheirah, no one would dare suspect her of not following halachah.

Every president but Trump always began with sympathy after a plane crash

R. Hirsch as a Modern Orthodox Leader

 https://etzion.org.il/en/philosophy/issues-jewish-thought/rabbinic-thought/r-hirsch-modern-orthodox-leader

      Modern Orthodox communities tend to be open to some level of working together with other Jewish denominations on issues of common concern, as long as the Orthodox retain their autonomy over their own religious institutions. In contrast, R. Hirsch was a fierce champion of austritt, or separation.  Several scholars have wondered why a rabbi with cultural openness toward Gentile wisdom would be closed to working with other Jewish denominations.  Prof. Mordechai Breuer enumerates various approaches, but I am partial to Breuer’s own approach.  R. Hirsch was a man of yosher or truth.  He did not deny the truth that Gentile wisdom had something to contribute and that we could benefit from studying it.  For the same reason, he could not work with a group whose ideology he viewed as a distortion of the truths of Torah.[1]

In teaching them the languages of the civilized nations and introducing them to their literature we give them the key with which, when they are grown up, they can gain entrance to the intellectual creations of the peoples and feed and enrich their minds with all that is good and noble and true in the contributions of the noblest spirits to the realm of knowledge. (Judaism Eternal, vol. 1, p. 219)

Rabbi Aharon Lichtenstein and Academic Talmud Study

 https://etzion.org.il/sites/default/files/2022-05/Rabbi_Aharon_Lichtenstein_and_Academic_T.pdf

It is well-known that he studied English literature at Harvard, and he never concealed the fruits of those studies; to the contrary, he incorporated them into his spiritual and educational doctrine, both written and oral. The first four chapters of By His Light are based on lectures he delivered to English-speaking students during their first year at Yeshivat Har Etzion, and the book attests reliably to the yeshiva’s general intellectual and educational atmosphere. I will cite a few short examples from these chapters, allowing readers to absorb some of the music that students at Yeshivat Har Etzion absorbed from Rabbi Lichtenstein’s classes and discourses.

Elsewhere in the book, he writes:This activist approach … parallels the activist Jewish approach with respect to spiritual endeavors. In Christian theology there is a time-honored tradition—rooted in the words of  Paul and transmitted by Augustine, Luther and others—that sees human redemption as being dictated solely from Above. In Luther’s formulation, any human attempt to achieve spiritual or ethical perfection is a grave error, for it bespeaks arrogance (121)

Trump launched air controller diversity program that he now decries

 https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/01/30/faa-dei-trump-fact-checker/

At news conference, Trump read a list of disabilities he calls disqualifying, but his administration started such hiring in 201

Jesse Watters Unloads Bizarre ‘Dwarves’ DEI Theory for D.C. Crash

 https://www.thedailybeast.com/jesse-watters-unloads-bizarre-dwarves-dei-theory-for-dc-crash/

“The staffing shortages, Donald Trump is arguing, are a result of DEI policies,” Watters began on The Five’s Thursday newscast, referring to the president’s unsubstantiated claims that DEI quotas lowered the standards of employees at the Federal Aviation Administration subsequently causing the crash. “You go back to the Obama-Biden administration and they rejected 1,000 well-qualified applicants for air traffic control because they weren’t diverse enough. Joe Biden had a DEI quota.”

“And this isn’t about Black people,” Watters continued. “A lot of people hear, ‘DEI,’ you think Black. No, he is trying to set quotas for people who are deaf to get jobs, people who are dwarves to get jobs, people with transgender issues to get jobs.

Tulsi Gabbard’s Surveillance Folly

 https://www.wsj.com/opinion/tulsi-gabbard-senate-intelligence-hearing-director-of-national-intelligence-section-702-478ef0e7?mod=hp_opin_pos_0

Tulsi Gabbard faced the Senate Intelligence Committee on Thursday for her confirmation hearing, and her performance wasn’t reassuring. Given a chance to walk back her opposition to Section 702 surveillance policy, she reinforced why she would be dangerous as White House director of national intelligence.

The Truth Behind The Viral Video Of The Public Protest Against Changes In The Igros Moshe

 https://www.theyeshivaworld.com/news/general/2358163/the-truth-behind-the-viral-video-of-the-public-protest-against-changes-in-the-igros-moshe.html

This week there was a video clip circulating of a visibly agitated Yid, publicly protesting a deliberate modification found in the pages of the responsa of Maran Harav Moshe Feinstein ZT”L. The video went viral and outraged many, while others silently gloated as the changes, or lack thereof, was consistent with their respective narratives. YWN initially shared in the outrage as well, as this appeared to be an invasion of the Holy of Hollies and a blatant act to desecrate the sacred works of the Gadol Hador.

Curtis Yarvin’s Ideas Were Fringe. Now They’re Coursing Through Trump’s Washington.

 https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2025/01/30/curtis-yarvins-ideas-00201552

Even the ball’s name spoke to Yarvin’s outsize influence over the Trumpian right: For over a decade, Yarvin, an ex-computer programmer-turned-blogger, has argued that American democracy is irrevocably broken and ought to be replaced with a monarchy styled after a Silicon Valley tech start-up. According to Yarvin, the time has come to jettison existing democratic institutions and concentrate political power in a single “chief executive” or “dictator.” These ideas — which Yarvin calls “neo-reaction” or “the Dark Enlightenment” — were once confined to the fringes of the internet, but now, with Trump’s reelection, they are finding a newly powerful audience in Washington

Trump blames DEI for weakening FAA in aftermath of Reagan National plane crash - Another tragedy used as a club by Trump without evidence

 https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5116332-trump-0faa-dei-plane-crash/

Trump was asked how he could be so sure diversity played a role in the crash when he acknowledged himself the air traffic controllers may not have done anything wrong, he told reporters it was because he has “common sense.”

No evidence US spent $50 million on condoms for Gaza - More Lies

 https://www.reuters.com/fact-check/no-evidence-us-spent-50-million-condoms-gaza-2025-01-30/

Statements from the Trump administration saying it discovered a plan to send $50 million to fund condoms in Gaza have been denied by the humanitarian group named as the recipient and by a former U.S. official.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt made the remarks at a Jan. 28 press briefing about President Donald Trump having temporarily suspended U.S. foreign aid pending reviews of existing development programs. Trump repeated the claim about $50 million on condoms for Gaza on Wednesday.

Leavitt had told reporters, opens new tab that the Elon Musk-led advisory group known as the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) had “found that there was about to be 50 million taxpayer dollars that went out the door to fund condoms in Gaza” (18:32 timestamp).

Posts online, opens new tab sharing a clip of Leavitt’s remarks said: “WILD: Karoline Leavitt EXPOSED that $50 MILLION in U.S. taxpayer money almost went to fund CONDOMS in Gaza before DOGE cut it.”

State Department ends Gaza program that Hamas used for 'explosive condoms' - More Lies

 https://www.israelhayom.com/2025/01/28/state-department-ends-gaza-program-that-hamas-used-for-explosive-condoms/

Secretary of State Marco Rubio's decision to freeze foreign aid over the weekend included pulling millions of dollars-worth of US funding for condoms in Gaza, Fox News Digital reported.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt addressed the funding pause during her first briefing Tuesday. "That is a preposterous waste of taxpayer money. So that's what this pause is focused on, being good stewards of tax dollars," Leavitt said, according to Fox News Digital.

Over the past decade, Hamas has used condoms to create IED-carrying balloons that winds would fly into southern Israel, raising the alarm on schoolyards, farmlands, and highways. These improvised explosive devices burned thousands of hectares of land and caused extensive damage.

The State Department's review comes in response to President Donald Trump's executive order, "Reevaluating and Realigning United States Foreign Aid," issued last week directing a 90-day pause on most US foreign assistance disbursed through the State Department.

Trump social media claim of using troops to force water flow is refuted by California

 https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-01-27/la-me-trump-water-military

President Trump on Monday night heightened his battle with California over water policy by suggesting U.S. military troops had arrived in the state to turn on pumps and send more water flowing — something state officials quickly denied.

On Monday evening, Trump wrote that the military “just entered the Great State of California and, under Emergency Powers, TURNED ON THE WATER flowing abundantly from the Pacific Northwest, and beyond,” in a post on his social media platform Truth Social.

Trump says military 'turned on the water' in California. State officials say that's false.

 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2025/01/28/donald-trump-california-wildfires-water/77989788007/

California officials said late Monday that the U.S. military did not enter the state and release a large flow of water, as President Donald Trump had earlier claimed in the latest back-and-forth between Trump and the state over water resources.

Learning a Few Good Middos from President Trump

yated

This criticism of Mr. Trump’s leadership has appeared in editorials, letters to the editor, and even major articles in frum publications since the election and inauguration. Without delving into these accusations, I personally have responded privately by explaining that none of us were voting to place Donald Trump on the Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah or to submit kvittlach to him for brachos. He was by far the best candidate for president, and his actions thus far have supported that hope and prayer. However, I believe that there is at least one middah—and as we will see, many more—that are worth highlighting for several reasons. It is something we can all learn from and emulate. It is an admirable trait for a leader and one to be proud of. Most importantly, the Torah itself recommends that we follow this approach to life.

Schumer hits Trump over funding freeze memo reversal: ‘Americans made their voices heard’

 https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/5115038-schumer-trump-funding-freeze-memo/

The reversal followed massive blowback on Capitol Hill, as lawmakers were bombarded with calls from constituents who had questions about which programs would be affected and about access issues to web portals, including for Medicaid.

“When the Trump administration announced this awful directive on Monday night, we knew immediately it was shortsighted, disastrous, cruel, and dumb,” Schumer said at the press conference.

5 questions about Trump’s federal employee buyout offers

https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5114659-trump-buyouts-government/

Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) warned federal workers against taking the offer in a Senate floor speech Tuesday night.

“The president has no authority to make that offer. There’s no budget line item to pay people who are not showing up for work,” he said. “If you accept that offer and resign, he’ll stiff you.”

Arbel Yehoud, Agam Berger, Gadi Moses, five Thai nationals to be released today

 https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/2025-01-30/live-updates-839868

According to information presented to mediators of the deal, five Thai citizens are also expected to be released by Hamas.

Elizabeth Warren Exposes RFK Jr.- another "victim"

 https://www.wsj.com/opinion/rfk-jr-senate-hearing-health-and-human-services-drugmakers-lawsuits-elizabeth-warren-36691b47

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. pledged during his confirmation hearing on Wednesday to root out corruption between industry and government. Yet the man who wants to be the nation’s Secretary of Health and Human Services refused to rule out personally making money from lawsuits against drug makers. This ought to be disqualifying

Trump White House reverses course, rescinds freeze on federal grants

 https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/01/29/white-house-budget-office-spending-freeze/

The White House budget office on Wednesday rescinded an order freezing federal grants, according to a copy of a new memo obtained by The Washington Post, after the administration’s move to halt spending earlier this week provoked a backlash.

The original White House order freezing federal grants, which became public on Monday, caused mass chaos and confusion across Washington, appearing to imperil government programs that fund schools, provide housing and ensure low-income Americans have access to health care. States reported issues accessing funds under Medicaid, and even as of Wednesday, public housing authorities reported being locked out of their funding portal. White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said Tuesday that assistance for individuals would not be affected.

As a Rising Political Star, Gabbard Paid to Mask Her Sect’s Ties to Alleged Scheme

 https://www.wsj.com/politics/policy/tulsi-gabbard-science-of-identity-qi-group-ed51c890?mod=hp_lead_pos7

Years before Tulsi Gabbard became Trump’s pick to coordinate U.S. spy agencies, she tried to evade unwanted scrutiny

Caroline Kennedy and the Kennedy family's views on RFK Jr. over the years

 https://www.newsweek.com/caroline-kennedy-rfk-jr-video-letter-family-2022650

Caroline Kennedy alleged Kennedy Jr. "put baby chickens and mice in the blender to feed his hawks," adding that "it was often a perverse scene of despair and violence."

Kennedy Jr.'s use of drugs was also brought up by Caroline Kennedy, who accused him of leading his siblings and cousins "down the path of substance abuse, addiction, illness, and death," while he went on to "cheat his way through life."

Two of his siblings and his niece wrote an op-ed saying he has "helped to spread dangerous misinformation," and is "complicit in sowing distrust of the science behind vaccines."

Tulsi Gabbard Pictured at Altar Dedicated to Her Wacky Anti-Gay Guru

 https://www.thedailybeast.com/tulsi-gabbard-pictured-at-altar-dedicated-to-her-wacky-anti-gay-guru-chris-butler/

The photograph of President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to be director of national intelligence shows how a teenage Gabbard took part in a ritual dedicated to Chris Butler, the leader of the Science of Identity Foundation, while she was a student at one of its boarding schools.

Gabbard was around 15 when the photograph of her at Butler’s altar, the first visual evidence of her participation in the group, was taken in the Philippines. Her parents, both deeply enmeshed in Butler’s movement, had sent her to one of the group’s boarding schools there.

Religious sect followers prayed and sang as an 8-year-old died. All 14 have been found guilty of manslaughter

 https://edition.cnn.com/2025/01/29/australia/australia-sect-elizabeth-struhs-guilty-intl-hnk/index.html

Fourteen members of a small religious sect in Australia have been found guilty of the manslaughter of an 8-year-old girl, who died after they withheld insulin needed to treat her diabetes because of their unwavering belief that God would heal her.

Instead, as she lay dying, they turned to prayer and song, maintaining a vigil around her bed, and even after she’d stopped breathing, sought divine intervention to raise her from the dead.

A central tenet of their faith was the healing power of God, and they rejected conventional medicine, which some members described as “witchcraft,” the ruling said.

Why Trump’s funding freeze is deepening fears that he seeks unlimited power

 https://edition.cnn.com/2025/01/29/politics/donald-trump-funding-freeze-analysis/index.html

US District Judge Loren L. AliKhan summed up a surreal and baffling day after pressing a Justice Department attorney, saying: “The government doesn’t know the full scope of the programs that are going to be subject to the pause.”

In seeking to freeze loans and grants and align them with his priorities laid out in a blizzard of executive actions, Trump was seeking to redirect or halt funding already appropriated by Congress.

“It is a direct challenge against Congress and its ability to be able to approve and authorize its expenditure of money,” Kettl said.

But presidents and their advisers are not kings and don’t get to decide what is constitutional. If they did, the system of US democratic governance would collapse.

“What democracy requires isn’t that as soon as the president comes into power, they could wipe away everything that came before,” said Corey Brettschneider, author of “The Presidents and the People: Five Leaders Who Threatened Democracy and the Citizens who Fought to Defend it.”

“The idea of a democracy is that when laws are passed, take the 1964 Civil Rights Act or environmental protection, that those laws bind not just citizens, but bind even the president,” said Brettschneider, a constitutional law and politics professor at Brown University.

Abuse - Beating children

Igros Moshe(E.H. 4:68): You and your wife have such great stress from raising your children that you beat them. However it is obvious to everyone that there is absolutely no beneficial purpose in beating them – in fact it makes raising them much more difficult. Therefore it is an irrational behavior caused by nerves and because of this you cannot handle the stress and you do this crazy behavior of viciously beating your small children without any rationale. You are fully aware that you are transgressing a Torah prohibition every time you hit them because it is clearly not justified educationally. Furthermore these beating from rage are without any limit and are just an attempt to dominate them. It is also possibly dangerous because you don’t avoid hitting them on places of the body which are very dangerous to the child. Consequently I give you have permission to use birth control …for two years…This permission also is granted because of the danger to the mother. It is obvious that she is sick with nerves and all this is very stressful to her. Therefore the difficulty of raising children is possibly dangerous not only to the children but also to her life.

What is a serious defect to annul marriage without a get?

 There are ignorant people who claim they are relying on Rav Moshe Feinstein to annul a marriage because the husband has an incurable psychological issue. It is clear that not every personality order justifies such an approach. This can be seen clearly in one of the classic tshuvos where he annuls a marriage when it was discovered that the husband was a homosexual and he states that this applies only if the husband were exclusively homosexual. 

 

Igros Moshe (E.H. 04:113): Concerning the present matter where the wife has discovered that her husband has had homosexual relations since we find that this is considered a major defect the marriage is a mistake also for the wife as I have explained in Igros Moshe (E.H. 1:79 and 1:180).. It is also reasonable that the fact that the husband is involved in homosexual relations - which are the worst possible abomination and most disgusting thing - it is a disgrace to the whole family. And surely it is extremely degrading to his wife that her husband prefers this disgusting intercourse rather than intercourse with his wife. Thus it is definitely a mistaken marriage. It is clear to us that no woman would be willing to marry such a disgusting, repulsive and debased man as this. Consequently if immediately after she was informed about this she left him - that if it is impossible for her to receive a divorce from him - that she should be permitted to remarry because of having a mistaken marriage. However if it is possible to obtain a divorce, it is necessary to try with all that is possible in order to obtain a kosher get. On the other hand, if he is not fully immersed in homosexuality - but only occasionally because of the influence of his lust - perhaps this should not be considered to be a mistaken marriage. So even though he is a complete rasha (wicked) - even for the sake of a single incident – there are those who mistakenly imagine that this is called a mistaken marriage. However if he is fully immersed in homosexuality - in that he gets more pleasure from homosexual intercourse than from relations with women – it is definitely a mistaken marriage. All of this is if she left him immediately when she found out. But if she remains with him even after being notified, then it is difficult to nullify the marriage. If his behavior is the result of foolishness, since this is something which is unnatural it is definitely a defect. Since it is from foolishness it is likely that there are other manifestations of foolishness. However in essence it is from wickedness and is repulsive - which also makes it a mistaken marriage.

Capital punishment

Igros Moshe (C.M. 2:68): … The Torah reserves capital punishment for those sins which are very serious such as murder, kidnapping, sexually prohibited relations and idolatry. The perpetrator in these cases is unrestrained and is capable of doing whatever disgusting and cruel acts in the world that are in his heart that he thinks are for his benefit. However the death penalty is not administered out of hatred to evildoers or fear for the welfare of society because Bava Metzia (83b) tells us that G‑d will punish transgressors. That in fact is the halacha as poskened by the Rambam (Hilchos Chovel u’Mazik 8:9) as well as all other poskim. So on the one hand the purpose of capital punishment is to let people know the severity of these prohibitions so that they will not transgress them. On the other hand the laws of capital punishment emphasize the importance of each soul and other concerns. Therefore we are commanded that only the Sanhedrin with proper semicha can judge these cases. Only the greatest people in Torah scholarship and other knowledge receives this semicha. In addition to their knowledge they also need to have perfected their character and be very humble as well as G‑d fearing people. They also need to hate money and love the truth as well as wonderful people who are beloved by all…They don’t have any imperfections or bad reputations and they are very merciful. That is why very old people are not appointed judges because they have forgotten the stress of raising children. Also people without children are not appointed because they lack mercy to some degree and they will be too angry at those who have committed sins.

Even these great and good people cannot judge unless they constitute a Sanhedrin of 23 people.However it is not enough there are 23 such people to make a Sanhedrin. They also need to have before them 3 rows of very great Torah scholars who are not yet great enough to be part of the Sanhedrin – but are almost great enough. This is to protect the Sanhedrin from making a mistake in judgment. That is because when these three rows of scholars think that the Sanhedrin is mistaken in their ruling of innocence they will protest and will not listen at all to their words. Another safeguard against making a mistake is that they do not convict based on circumstantial evidence – no matter how convincing. They only convict a person based on two valid witnesses who have not the slightest bias in the matter... Furthermore the witnesses are warned concerning the severity of the sin of false testimony as well as the seriousness of the sin of murder so that they are very afraid of mistakenly convicting or mistakenly declaring the suspected murderer innocent. Even with all of this the witnesses also have to warn the person against murder and the suspected murderer has to acknowledge the warning by saying that even though he is aware of the seriousness off the crime he is still doing it. As a consequence of all these safeguards, only once in many years would someone be convicted of murder. In addition it was impossible to judge capital cases unless the Temple existed and that the Sanhedrin of 71 of the greatest scholars was in session on the Temple Mount. In fact capital cases were not judged even in those countries where the king gave the Jews permission to judge their own people according to the law of the Torah.

As a consequence of these two factors there were almost no Jewish murderers because of the awareness of the severity of the prohibition of murder and because they were educated by means of the Torah and the punishments of the Torah to understand the seriousness of the crime. They were not simply afraid of punishment in the sense of getting caught but were afraid of the crime itself.

However this use of the Torah system to run society was only when the crime of murder was not common but was simply the result of someone’s great lust or some quarrel concerning money or honor. But when people killed simply because it was viewed as an insignificant thing and the murderer was simply a callous and cruel person or similarly if there was a great deal of murders and wickedness – then a different system of law was utilized that was concerned with the pragmatic question of stopping killing and the goal became saving the society.

Hegseth readies actions against Trump foe Mark Milley - Baby Trump's revenge

 https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/01/28/mark-milley-hegseth-trump/

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has decided to remove retired Gen. Mark A. Milley’s security detail, suspend his security clearance, and order an inspector general inquiry into his behavior as the Pentagon’s top officer, senior defense officials said Tuesday, taking extraordinary action against a frequent target of President Donald Trump.

Shortly after Trump was sworn in as president this month, administration officials sent a message by having a portrait of Milley memorializing his time as Joint Chiefs chairman removed from a wall in the Pentagon. Fox News reported Tuesday that another portrait of Milley recognizing him for his previous role as chief of staff of the Army was to be removed soon. The senior defense official confirmed that is the case, too.

US Senate blocks bill to impose sanctions on International Criminal Court to protest Netanyahu arrest warrant

 https://www.ynetnews.com/article/sylymr8u1e

It passed the House earlier this month 243-140, as 45 Democrats joined Republicans in voting "yes."

In the Senate, Democrats said they agreed with much of the bill, but said it was too broad and risked alienating important U.S. allies and imposing sanctions on lower level workers at the court in the Netherlands.

Urging colleagues to vote "no," Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, who is Jewish, accused the ICC of having "an anti-Israel bias that cannot be ignored." However, he said the bill was poorly crafted and also could target U.S. companies, such as those whose products help protect the court from foreign hackers.

Tulsi Gabbard, Edward Snowden and Intelligence

 https://www.wsj.com/opinion/tulsi-gabbard-senate-hearing-director-of-national-intelligence-edward-snowden-julian-assange-3e7b2476?mod=hp_opin_pos_0

Voters want disruption in Washington, but it’d be something else entirely for the Senate to confirm a director of national intelligence who has a record of defending those who subvert U.S. interests. When former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard testifies Thursday, will Republicans pose questions that serve the public interest, or go along to get along with President Trump?

Trump pledged to bring down food prices on Day One. Instead, eggs are getting more expensive

 https://edition.cnn.com/2025/01/28/economy/trump-inflation-price-promises/index.html

 In August 2024, then-candidate former President Donald Trump delivered a press conference surrounded by packaged foods, meats, produce, condiments, milk and eggs.

“When I win, I will immediately bring prices down, starting on Day One,” he said at the time.

It was a pledge he repeated on the campaign trail, often followed by the phrase, “drill, baby, drill.” And to many voters, inflation was a justifiable target: Years of sharply rising prices had taken a toll on their hard-earned pay and their livelihoods.

But Day One has turned into Day Seven, and those eggs are getting even more expensive.

Despite a flurry of executive actions, Trump’s price-related promises have gone unfulfilled, Democratic lawmakers wrote in a letter addressed to the president.

“You have instead focused on mass deportations and pardoning January 6 attackers, including those who assaulted Capitol police officers,” according to the letter signed by Sen. Elizabeth Warren and 20 congressional Democrats. “Your sole action on costs was an executive order that contained only the barest mention of food prices, and not a single specific policy to reduce them.”

In fact, the lawmakers added, Trump appears to be “backtracking” on those promises, conceding in recent weeks that it’s “hard to bring things down.

Donald Trump's Freeze on Federal Grants and Loans Halted by Judge

 https://www.newsweek.com/donald-trump-grants-loans-halted-federal-judge-2022493

A federal judge temporarily blocked a Trump administration order freezing federal grants and loans.

The judge issued a "brief administrative stay" while the matter is litigated

Trump pauses federal loans and grants, putting trillions at risk: ‘Waste of taxpayer dollars’

 https://nypost.com/2025/01/28/us-news/trump-admin-pausing-federal-loans-grants-amid-spending-overhaul-waste-of-taxpayer-dollars/

Back in 1974, Congress passed the Impoundment Control Act, which imposes limits on a president’s ability to refrain from spending on items that the legislative branch has appropriated.

“The president ran on the notion that the Impoundment Control Act is unconstitutional,” Vought told senators during his confirmation hearing earlier this month. “I agree with that.”

Democrats erupted in fury and outrage over the move.

“Donald Trump’s Administration is jeopardizing billions upon billions of community grants and financial support that help millions of people across the country,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) fumed in a statement.

“It will mean missed payrolls and rent payments and everything in between: chaos for everything from universities to nonprofit charities.”

Officials Scramble to Interpret White House Pause on Federal Financial-Assistance Programs

 https://www.wsj.com/politics/policy/white-house-orders-pause-of-federal-financial-assistance-programs-8362a8e0?mod=hp_lead_pos4

Agencies parse through two-page order—down to the footnotes—to try to understand which programs would be halted

Federal, state and local government officials scrambled Tuesday to assess the impact of a broad and far-reaching order by the White House to pause hundreds of billions in federal grants, loans and other financial assistance-programs pending a review by the Trump administration.

Trump spending freeze upends Washington, triggering legal threats and delays

 https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/01/28/trump-spending-freeze-upends-washington-triggering-legal-threats-delays/

Hours after the Trump administration announced a sweeping freeze on federal spending, the U.S. government fell into chaos Tuesday, as officials braced for potential interruptions to programs that promote food safety, combat crime, provide college aid, produce medical research and respond to natural disasters.

Few in Washington appeared to understand the scope and intention of a White House memo that had directed them to “temporarily pause” the disbursement of key funds, leaving thousands of government services — totaling billions of dollars and dedicated primarily to Americans’ health, safety and well-being — at risk of shutting down, at least temporarily.

Trump administration announces freeze on all federal grants - to demand loyalty

Murphy on Trump Freezing All Federal Grants: This is What a King Does

Lawrence and Chris Hayes discuss the thing Trump most wants from you — and what you can do about it

We tried out DeepSeek. It worked well, until we asked it about Tiananmen Square and Taiwan

 https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/jan/28/we-tried-out-deepseek-it-works-well-until-we-asked-it-about-tiananmen-square-and-taiwan

Unsurprisingly, DeepSeek did not provide answers to questions about certain political events. When asked the following questions, the AI assistant responded: “Sorry, that’s beyond my current scope. Let’s talk about something else.”

A shocking Chinese AI advancement called DeepSeek is sending US stocks plunging

 https://edition.cnn.com/2025/01/27/tech/deepseek-stocks-ai-china/index.html

US stocks dropped sharply Monday — and chipmaker Nvidia lost nearly $600 billion in market value — after a surprise advancement from a Chinese artificial intelligence company, DeepSeek, threatened the aura of invincibility surrounding America’s technology industry.

DeepSeek, a one-year-old startup, revealed a stunning capability last week: It presented a ChatGPT-like AI model called R1, which has all the familiar abilities, operating at a fraction of the cost of OpenAI’s, Google’s or Meta’s popular AI models. The company said it had spent just $5.6 million on computing power for its base model, compared with the hundreds of millions or billions of dollars US companies spend on their AI technologies.

That sent shockwaves through markets, in particular the tech sector, on Monday.

Cholov Yisroel - Commercial milk in America

 Igros Moshe (YD I #47) Commercial milk in America In general milk needs to be supervised by Jews to be regarded as fully kosher.  So regarding the kashrus of commercial milk in America which while not being supervised by Jews nonetheless has a government inspector and anyone who adds the milk of an unclean animal will be punished and will also their business will be closed. Consequently the companies are definitely afraid to mix unkosher milk in the kosher milk and that is a major reason to permit as kosher their milk even according to the view of the Pri Chodesh even though there is no actual Jewish supervision.  Since a clear awareness of the consequences is the same as being watched as is stated in the gemora Shavuos regarding monetary issues. An additional proof can be found in Tosfos (Yevamos) concerning the requirement that conversion requires the direct watching by beis din of the immersion of the ger in a mikveh and it says that common knowledge is considered actually observing. This is the well known concept known as Anon Sahadi. Even in the case of witnesses for a marriage, even if they didn’t actually witness the event but only that the couple were secluded together, it is considered as if they actually witnessed the intercourse and the couple is halachacly married. And they would even get the death penalty if they are involved in an adulterous relationship afterwards and they are not allowed to marry someone else. Another case is the principle that a person is assumed not to be involved in fornication and this is treated as actually witnessing in order to validate a marriage even for a liency of not requiring a Get in the case of a child without miyun who is now an adult and she married another person.  There is also the case of adultery in which the witnesses do not have to see the actual intercourse but we rely on circumstantial evidence.  This is also the case for the crime of murder and other capital crimes that we rely on circumstantial evidence.  From all these cases we can conclude that knowledge is considered seeing even for the death penalty except where there is a derasha which requires actually witnessing an event. Consequently in the case of milk which is prohibited if a Jew has not watched it, it should be considered kosher simply by the clear awareness that a Jew has that is considered as witnessing  The awareness that if the milk is mixed with unkosher milk the company will be punished and the business will be closed and they will endup losing a lot of money and that the government is supervising them, this is clearly awareness and is considered as actually witnessing and there is no prohibition according to everyone. .Therefore, there is a major justification for someone to rely on this leniency and it is fitting as in fact the majority of religious Jews and also many rabbis in fact do. G-d forbid to claim that this is against the halacha!. Nevertheless a baal nefesh should be strict and not rely on this leniency and ir is nor viewed as sinful pride. I myself am strict not to rely on it. However all those not restrained by a neder derived from custom if they wish to utilize this leniency is not considered ridiculing prohibitions. .A person who was strict 3 times it constitutes a neder unless he was strict only because he thought he was required to by halacha. He does not have to annul the mistaken neder

Senators, vote ‘no’ to RFK Jr. — who’s still a ‘radical left lunatic’ hazardous to our health

 https://nypost.com/2025/01/27/opinion/senators-vote-no-to-rfk-jr-whos-still-a-radical-left-lunatic-hazardous-to-our-health/

On Thursday, Senate hearings begin on RFK Jr.’s nomination as secretary for Health and Human Services.

But nothing has changed about Kennedy from last spring. He’s still a radical left lunatic who is anti-energy, a “big time” taxer and completely incoherent about our nation’s health.

No Republican can vote for this guy. No senator should.

Wall Street Journal labels RFK Jr. ‘dangerous to public health’ ahead of hearings

 https://thehill.com/homenews/media/5108598-wall-street-journal-rfk-jr-hhs-trump-anti-vax/?tbref=hp

The editorial board of The Wall Street Journal is coming out in opposition to Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

“Senate Republicans have an obligation to scrutinize his giant closet of business conflicts and dubious ideas,” the Journal wrote in an editorial published Sunday ahead of Kennedy’s hearings with the Senate Finance Committee on Wednesday and the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions on Thursday.

The newspaper’s op-ed board said it expects Kennedy to “obfuscate about his ties to trial lawyers, anti-vaccine views, and support for sundry progressive causes,” while also “presenting himself as a truth-teller and slayer of government corruption, [even though] he’s as slippery as Anthony Fauci.”

“Most troubling is his long record of anti-vaccine advocacy,” the Journal wrote, noting the former presidential candidate has “tried to soften his vaccine skepticism since being nominated, and he now says he won’t take away anyone’s vaccines.”

Are Kohanim Allowed To Visit the Graves of the Righteous?

 https://outorah.org/p/26830/

1) The Midrash (Yalkut Shimoni 944) records an episode that occurred immediately following the brutal murder of Rav Akiva. Eliyahu Hanavi came to bury Rav Akiva. As Eliyahu carried Rav Akiva’s body on his shoulders, Rav Yehoshua, one of Rav Akiva’s main disciples, wondered how this is permitted if in fact Eliyahu was a kohen (as was indicated previously in the Midrash). Eliyahu responded: “Rav Yehoshua, my son, heaven forbid for tumah does not exist when it comes to talmidei chachamim or their students.” Some poskim feel that the statement of Eliyahu can serve as a source to allow kohanim to visit the graves of tzadikim.

Har Habayis - Entering

Igros Moshe (OH II:113) The question was raised  why the Tur and the Shulchan Aruch do not mention that it is prohibited to spit today on the Temple mount? The answer given that it is irrelevant since it is prohibited for those who are impure from the dead  (as everyone today has that status) to go there. In fact, however, there are places on the Temple mount that it is permitted for those impure from the dead to enter even according to Rabbinic prohibition. That is until the Chayel which is before the Soreg.  The Rambam writes that the Soreg encloses and possibly the Chayel encloses as is explained by Tosfos Yom Tov. That would mean it would be permitted from all sides even on the west, for those who are spiritually impure to enter up to the Soreg which is a number of amos wide. I couldn’t find the exact measure.  However according to the Rosh the Soreg is only on the east  from north to south it is possible that the Chayel is only there, if so then on the other sides after 10 amos of the Chayel behind  the Ezras Nashim it would be permitted. Also on the western side it would be permitted for the impure from the dead as well as other impurities since they can go to mikveh. If you are concerned for zivah they can count seven clean days and then tovel in a mikveh and after the sun sets they would be spiritually pure. Even if they didn’t bring a korban, they are allowed in the Ezras Nashim and surely on the rest of the Temple Mount as stated by the Rambam. .In conclusion we find that regarding the prohibition of spitting on the Temple Mount, those places where it is prohibited to spit it is also prohibited for the impure from the dead to enter Perhaps the problem is that it is not so clear which wall. If there is a clear tradition that it is the Western Wall of the Temple Mount or the Wall of the Ezara behind the Kapores then it would definitely be prohibited for the impure from the dead.  It is also possible that it is the lower wall which is prohibited even according to the Rosh.  I seem to recall that Rav Dovid Karliner was uncertain which wall. Perhaps this is the reason that they say about the Brisker Rav that he did not go to the Western Wall because of concerns for spiritual impurity. But I find that astounding! The place that Jews have prayed for many generations, obviously has a tradition from the ancient rabbis that it is permitted top go there – so how can anyone disagree with them? 

Igros Moshe (OH II #113)  ומה שתירצת מה שהקשה בספר אומר השכחה מה שבטור וש"ע לא הוזכר הדין דאסור לרקוק בזה"ז בהר הבית, משום שלא יצוייר למעשה דאסור ליכנס טמאי מתים לשם וכולנו טמאי מתים, הנה הא יש מקום בהר הבית שמותרין טמאי מתים ליכנס לשם אף מדרבנן שהוא עד החיל שהיה לפנים מהסורג. ולמה דאיתא ברמב"ם פ"ה מביה"ב ה"ג שהסורג היה מקיף סביב אפשר גם החיל היה סביב ובתי"ט מדות פ"ב מ"ג מפורש כן בשם הראבי"ה, הרי מותר מכל צד אף במערבי ליכנס טמאי מתים עד הסורג שהיה רוחב איזה אמות, ולא מצאתי השיעור, ולפי' הרא"ש במדות שם שהסורג היה רק לצד המזרח מצפון לדרום אפשר גם החיל היה רק שם, וא"כ אפשר שבצדדים האחרים אחר העשר אמות של החיל אחורי העזרת נשים וכן מצד מערב היה מותר לטמאי מתים. ומשאר טומאות הא אפשר לטבול, ואם יחוש לזיבה יספור שבעה נקיים ויטבול במים חיים ויעריב שמשו, ואף שהוא מחו"כ =מחוסר כפרה= הא מותר מחו"כ אף בעזרת נשים וכ"ש בשאר הר הבית כדאיתא ברמב"ם פ"ג מביה"מ ה"ה. ונמצא שנוגע הדין שאסור לרקוק באותו המקום מהר הבית שמותרין טמאי מתים ליכנס ומקשה שפיר. ואולי אינו ברור כ"כ איזה כותל היא אם היה קבלה ברורה שהוא כותל מערבי של הר הבית או כותל העזרה שאחורי בית הכפורת שלכן אסור לשם טמאי מתים כתירוצך וגם אפשר שהוא כותל התא שאף להרא"ש אסור. וכמדומני שבס' שאילת דוד להגאון ר"ד מקרלין מסתפק בהכותל איזה הוא. ואולי זהו טעם הגאון רי"ז מבריסק זצ"ל שאמרו עליו שלא הלך אל כותל המערבי מחשש טומאה. אבל אני תמה כי מקום שמתפללין שם הוא ודאי קבלה מדורות רבותינו הראשונים שמותר לילך לשם ואיך שייך לחלוק עליהם.

Is Reform really pulling ahead of Labour? Polling expert on what to really make of Farage’s supposed lead

 https://theconversation.com/is-reform-really-pulling-ahead-of-labour-polling-expert-on-what-to-really-make-of-farages-supposed-lead-245794

Much has been made of the news that Reform has overtaken Labour in voting intentions in a recent poll. The poll, produced by market research agency Find Out Now, put the Conservatives on 26%, Reform on 24% and Labour on 23%.

Most recent polls show that Labour is still ahead of Reform, but only by a small margin. So while it is too early to say that Reform is beating Labour, it is nonetheless snapping at the heels of both Labour and the Conservatives. If this pattern of support continues up to the local elections in May next year, Reform is very likely to win a lot more councillors.

A look at false and misleading claims made by Trump during his first week back in office

 https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-fact-focus-first-week-president-claims-4b60d31b3209e98e63ec383d3f4052dc

President Donald Trump stepped back into the presidency this week moving quickly to set a new agenda, but from his inaugural address continuing through a flurry of executive actions, press conferences and interviews Trump relied on an array of false and misleading information to support his case.

Jan. 6 attacks on police downplayed

CLAIM: Asked by Hannity why he pardoned Jan. 6 rioters who attacked police at the Capitol, Trump said, “They were treated like the worst criminals in history. And you know what they were there for? They were protesting the vote because they knew the election was rigged and they were protesting the vote.” He noted that some of the rioters engaged with police, “but they were very minor incidents.”

THE FACTS: Rioters at the Capitol engaged in hand-to-hand combat with police and many of the rioters were carrying weapons, including firearms, knives, brass knuckle gloves, a pitchfork, a hatchet, a sledgehammer and a bow. They also used makeshift weapons, such as flagpoles, a table leg, a hockey stick and a crutch, to attack officers. One officer was crushed in a doorframe and another suffered a heart attack after a rioter pressed a stun gun against his neck and repeatedly shocked him. One rioter was charged with climbing scaffolding and firing a gun in the air during the melee.

Labour races into seven-point lead as ratings for Nigel Farage show sharp fall

 https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2014/dec/20/labour-takes-seven-point-lead-farage-opinium-poll

The Opinium survey will also be worrying for Farage, as it shows his personal ratings diving to a level below those of David Cameron, following a series of controversies, including his public comments about the need for women to be discreet when breastfeeding. Farage’s rating has dropped to -17% (the percentage of voters who approve of his performance minus those who disapprove), a fall of eight points since a fortnight ago and the lowest score recorded for him by Opinium.

Shabbos Clock

Igros Moshe (OC IV #60) It is possible by means of a clock timer set up before Shabbos to cause cooking on Shabbos about an hour before the meal. My grandson Aaron Tendler says it is obviously prohibited to permit this since in this manner it is possible to perform the work that is prohibited on Shabbos as well as run all the factories on Shabbos and there is no greater degradation of Shabbos than that. It is obvious that if this device existed in the time of the Gemora Sages they would have prohibited it just as they prohibited asking a Goy to do work on Shabbos. In fact perhaps this is included in that prohibition of asking a Goy in that they prohibited not only asking a Goy but any action that cause a prohibited Shabbos action to be done. Even if you say that we can not prohibit except that which the Sages decreed and that you can’t generalized from what they said to prohibit additional things based on logical reasoning this case is different because they couldn’t prohibit a device that did not exist in their time. Thus while there is no actual prohibition it can not be permitted since it is something which deserves to be prohibited. Nevertheless there is in fact another major reason to prohibit it since it is a degradation of Shabbos. Even for degradation of Yom Tov we find many things are prohibited and this should be included. So even though Shabbos clocks were not explicitly prohibited once we see it degrades Shabbos it is included in the prohibition. I also think that it is obvious that that which brings degradation also constitutes a transgression of the obligation to honor Shabbos which is a Torah obligation as we see from the prophets as the Rambam states. Therefore even if you want to claim that our Sages did not prohibit it. But he is unnecessarily violating the obligation to honor Shabbos. It is apparent to everyone that it is a degradation of Shabbos and thus it seems that it would be prohibited to set up a timer before Shabbos to do work on Shabbos. However in contrast to cooking, using a timer for electric lights should not be prohibited since it is a widespread practice that Goyim are asked to extinguish the lights and light them in the synagogue and beis hamedrash for Shabbos and Yom Kippur. Even though many Rabbis object, It is also a widespread practice to ask them to turn on lights for the meals . These practices indicate that at time of great need it is permitted. In sum, even though it is proper to be strict like they were in Europe, nevertheless since there are rabbis who permit and that is the widespread practice to turn lights on and off, it can not be prohibited because of degradation of Shabbos. Especially since there are places that view this as honoring Shabbos, However do not extend this to cook on Shabbos or do other work with the timer.

שו"ת אגרות משה אורח חיים חלק ד סימן ס

מלאכה הנעשית בשבת ע"י שעון שבת בעה"י כ' טבת תשל"ז. מע"כ נכדי אהובי וחביבי מוהר"ר מרדכי טענדלער שליט"א. 

הנה בדבר שע"י חשמל (ענין העלעקטרי) אפשר ע"י מורה שעות הנעשה לכך שיעמידנו בע"ש =בערב שבת= באופן שיתחיל לבשל למחר ביום השבת כשעה לפני זמן האכילה, אשר אחיך נכדי היקר אהרן ברוך שליט"א שואל, הנה לענ"ד פשוט שאסור להתיר זה דהרי ע"י מורה שעות כזה יכולים לעשות כל המלאכות בשבת ובכל בתי החרושת (פעקטעריס) ואין לך זלזול גדול לשבת מזה, וברור שאם היה זה בזמן התנאים והאמוראים היו אוסרין זה, כמו שאסרו אמירה לעכו"ם מטעם זה, וגם אולי הוא ממילא בכלל איסור זה דאסרו אמירה לעכו"ם, דאסרו כל מלאכה הנעשית בשביל ישראל מצד אמירת הישראל וכ"ש מצד מעשה הישראל. ול"ד למה שמותר להעמיד קדרה ע"ג האש אפילו רגע אחת קודם השבת שיתבשל בשבת ולא אסרו רבנן כשליכא חשש חתוי בשבת דף י"ח ע"ב, דהוא משום דכל מלאכה דעושה האדם במלאכת בשול הוא העמדת הקדרה ע"ג האש דבעצם הבשול אינו עושה האדם, ולכן בהעמדתו הקדרה ע"ג האש בע"ש הוא כגמר האדם כל מעשיו במלאכה זו דבשול ולא שייך לאסור על מה שעושה שוב האש, אבל היכא שעדיין לא שייך להחשיב כנעשה המלאכה כהא דהעמיד בע"ש את המורה שעות שיותחל המלאכה דוקא בשעה פלונית בשבת זה הרי לא נעשה בהמלאכה עדיין כלום מבע"ש, שאין להתיר מצד זה. 

ועיין בנ"י ב"ק דף כ"ב ע"א שתירץ על מה שהוקשה לו למ"ד אשו משום חציו היכי שרינן עם חשיכה להדליק את הנרות והדלקתה הולכת ונגמרת בשבת וכן מאחיזין את האור במדורה והולכת ונגמרת הדלקתה בשבת דהרי הוא לדידיה כאילו הבעירה הוא בעצמו בשבת, דהוא משום שחציו אינו שנחשב שאחר כך עושה אלא שבשעה שיצא החץ מתחת ידו באותה שעה נעשה הכל והוי כמאן דאגמריה בידים בההוא עידנא שהדליק שהיה זה בע"ש, ושייך טעמו גם בהא דתניא בשבת דף י"ח ע"א פותקין מים לגינה ע"ש =ערב שבת= עם חשיכה ומתמלאת והולכת כל היום כולו ומניחין מוגמר וגפרית, שתיכף הותחלה המלאכה להעשות, ואף כשהמים הם עדיין רחוקים מן הגינה אבל הא התחילו המים לילך שבהלוך זה יבואו להגינה להשקותה, וכן היה מותר מדינא ליתן חטין לתוך הרחים של מים אי לאו גזירה דמשמעת קול דאמר רבה, אף דטחינת החטים שיוטחנו בשבת לא הותחלו מאחר דכח הגלגול להרחים שיעשו הטחינה על כל החטים שהונחו שם הותחל מע"ש, אבל לא שייך זה בהעמידו מורה שעות באופן שהעלעקטרי שעושה המלאכה יתחיל לעשות מלאכתו בשעה פלונית, שעל הליכת מורה השעות שזה נעשה מתחלה קודם שנתחבר העלעקטרי לא שייך להחשיב שעושה, ועל תחיבת העלעקטרי באופן שיתחבר בשעה פלונית בשבת הרי הוא כסוף חמה לבא דאין להחשיבו למעשיו עתה בע"ש כדאיתא בסנהדרין דף ע"ז דכה"ג לא נחשב מעשיו לחייבו דודאי לא שייך לדמות לכפתו והביאו במקום שסוף חמה לבא דהוא כמקרב הדבר אצל האש דנחשב חציו, דהא דומה זה לאישקיל עליה בדקא דמיא דרק בכח ראשון נחשב מעשיו, שא"כ אין להחשיבו ככבר נעשה בע"ש. 

ומאחר שלא נחשב כנעשה מע"ש, הרי אף שלא שייך לחייבו ואף לא לאסור מדאורייתא אף לא להנ"י, דהא אין זה חציו, שלתירוץ הנ"י ענין חציו הוא דנחשב כנעשה תיכף וליכא כלל ענין חשיבות שהוא כעושה אז בשעת הדליקה, ואף אם נימא שלא כהנ"י משום דעצם סברת הנ"י לא מובן כל כך דאף אם נימא כהקושיא דנחשב מעשיו אח"כ בעת שנשרף גדישו של חבירו לא שייך זה לחיובי שבת, דלענין נזיקין הוא חייב מדין כחו כגופו דהא מפורש בגמ' דכשהכלב עשה האש הוא בדין צרורות דחייב רק ח"נ =חצי נזק=, שלכן באדם שליכא חדושא דצרורות להקל מגופו חייב נ"ש =נזק שלם= וכשהרג אדם חייב מיתה כדאיתא בדף כ"ב לר' יוחנן משום דגם על כח חייב, אבל לענין חיוב שבת לא מצינו שיהיה חייב על הכח כשבא ממעשה גופו שעשה קודם השבת, אף אם דין חציו הוא על זמן שנעשה בשבת וצ"ע דברי הנ"י, שודאי לא שייך לחייבו מדאורייתא, מ"מ מסתבר ששייך לאסור מאותו האיסור שאסרו מדרבנן אמירה לעכו"ם עוד מכ"ש דהא מה שבא מצד כחו עדיף ממה שבא מצד דבורו. ואף אם נימא דאיסור אמירה לעכו"ם הוא שאסרו מצד שליחות נמי כיון שליכא דין שליחות ממש אלא מתקנה מחמת שעושה מצד ציווי הישראל ודאי יש להחמיר על מה שנעשה בכחו דהישראל. אבל אף אם נימא שאין לאסור אלא מה שתיקנו חכמים ואין למילף מזה לאסור גם מה שבסברא הוא חמור כיון שעכ"פ לא אסרו אף שהיה זה מחמת שלא היה ענין זה בימי חז"ל אין לזה איסור ממש מ"מ אין להתיר זה כיון שהוא דבר הראוי ליאסר. 

אבל יש טעם גדול לאסור מטעם אחר דהא זילותא דשבת ואף זילותא דיו"ט הא אסרו בכמה דברים וכיון שברור שאיכא זילותא דשבת הוא בכלל איסור זה ממילא אף שלא אסרו זה ביחוד דכל ענין זילותא הוא האיסור. וגם פשוט לע"ד דעושה דבר שהוא זילותא לשבת הוא עובר בידים על חיוב הכבוד שמשמע שהוא ג"כ חיוב התורה שנתפרשו ע"י הנביאים שכתב הרמב"ם ריש פרק שלשים מהלכות שבת ד' דברים נאמרו בשבת שנים מה"ת =מן התורה= ושנים מדברי סופרים והן מפורשין ע"י הנביאים שלא כתב שתיקנו הנביאים משמע שהוא מדאורייתא ולשון מדברי סופרים הוא כדרך הרמב"ם שקרי לכל דבר שלא מפורש בתורה דברי סופרים אף שהוא מדאורייתא בין שהוא דבר הנלמד מג"ש ובין מה שנאמר הלכה למשה מסיני כדאיתא במ"מ ובכ"מ ריש פ"א מאישות שקידושי כסף הוא מדברי סופרים עיין שם, והוא כדא"ר אשי על פרועי ראש דבמיתה ועל ערל לב וערל בשר שאר"ח דמתורת משה רבינו לא למדנו עד שבא יחזקאל ולימדנו דגמרא גמירי לה ואתא יחזקאל ואגמרה אקרא בסנהדרין דף כ"ב ע"ב ובעוד כמה מקומות, וכן הוא חיוב הכבוד לשבת שהוא מהלכה ונתפרשו ע"י הנביאים בקרא, והרמב"ם שם ה"ב פירש המעשים המחוייבים לעשות לכבוד השבת, וממילא מובן דהדברים שעשייתן הוא זילותא לשבת הוא ג"כ עובר על מצוה זו דכבוד שבת ועוד גרוע דהרי עובר זה במעשה, שלכן אף שנימא שאינו בכלל הגזירות דחכמים, אבל גם בלא צורך הוא עובר במעשה על חיוב כבוד השבת, וזה שהוא זילותא הוא דבר שמובן לכל, שלכן מסתבר לע"ד שאסור להעמיד בע"ש ע"י מורה שעות שיעשה העלעקטרי למחר מלאכה. 

אבל עכ"פ מה שכבר נהגו להעמיד ע"י מורה שעות לכבות הנרות דעלעקטרי שהודלקו וגם שיחזרו להדלק אח"כ בסוף היום, אין לאסור מאחר דלכבוי הנרות של המנורות הגדולות שנקראו בלע"ז לאמפן שהיו דאש ממש נהגו בכל המקומות לכבותם ע"י עכו"ם והיו גם מקומות שהיו נוהגין לחזור ולהדליקם בביהמ"ד לתפלת נעילה ביו"כ ונמשך מזה באיזה מקומות שגם בשבת לעת ערב הדליקו ע"י נכרי לאמירת המזמורים אף שכבר צוחו הרבה עיין בנוב"ק חאו"ח סימן ל"ג אבל נתן טעם להמתירין, והרמ"א /או"ח/ בסימן רע"ו סעי' ב' שנהגו רבים להקל לצוות לעכו"ם להדליק לצורך סעודה בפרט בסעודת חתונה או מילה ומשמע שבמקום צורך גדול מתיר שלכן אף שמן הראוי להחמיר ובגבולנו ביוראפ החמירו, מ"מ כיון שיש רבוותא שהתירו ונהגו כן בהרבה מקומות, אין לאסור מה שכבר נהגו להקל בהעמדת העלעקטרי בע"ש ע"י מורה שעות שיכבה וגם שידליק בשבת להזמן שהעמידו, וגם ממילא ליכא זילותא לשבת בזה וליכא טעם האחרון לאסור כיון שהיו מקומות שנהגו בזה אדרבה למצות כבוד סעודת שבת, ונשאר רק טעם הראשון שיש ג"כ לסמוך להתיר, אבל הבו דלא לוסיף עלה להתיר גם לבשול ומלאכות אחרות ויש לאסור. זקנך אוהבך, בלו"נ, משה פיינשטיין. 

Trump suggestion on Gaza strip: ‘Clean out the whole thing’

 https://thehill.com/policy/international/5107238-trump-gaza-strip-cnn/?tbref=hp

President Trump indicated Sunday that the way to help the situation in Gaza is to “clean out the whole thing.”

Trump said he would like the two bordering countries, Jordan and Egypt, to house Gazans. He also said he would speak to Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi about that idea.

Tom Cotton, Lindsey Graham urge Donald Trump to rethink stripping security from ex-officials

 https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2025/01/26/tom-cotton-lindsey-graham-donald-trump-republicans/77957150007/

Two senior Republican senators on Sunday urged President Donald Trump to rethink his decision to strip personal security from some former Trump administration officials, one of whom was the target of an alleged Iranian plot.

Lindsey Graham, a strong Trump backer, told CNN Trump's move could make it harder to recruit the right people in the future.

"Whether you like John Bolton or not, that's not the question for me ... We need to make sure that if you serve in our government and you take on a foreign power at the request of the administration that we do not leave you hanging," he said.

Most British Jews believe they don’t have a long-term future in the UK, survey finds

 https://www.timesofisrael.com/most-british-jews-believe-they-dont-have-a-long-term-future-in-the-uk-survey-finds/

Only one-third of British Jews believe that Jews have a long-term future in the United Kingdom, and half have considered leaving Britain in the past two years due to antisemitism, according to a new survey published by the Campaign Against Antisemitism.

"‘Who voted for this?’: Trump admin obstructs cancer research funding"

The Rachel Maddow Show 1/25/2025

Is Trump beginning his ‘retribution campaign’?

Crypto fans hoped Trump would make them legit. Then came the meme coins

 https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2025/01/25/trump-coin-crypto-melania/

There’s also disappointment from some who, like Carter, think his launch of the $TRUMP meme coin — followed days later by $MELANIA, named for his wife — amplifies one of the sillier and sometimes scammier aspects of the scandal-associated industry.

Marjorie Taylor Greene Does Victory Lap as Ukraine Aid Frozen

 https://www.newsweek.com/marjorie-taylor-greene-does-victory-lap-ukraine-aid-frozen-2020892

Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Georgia Republican, voiced her support on Friday for the recent halt in foreign aid seemingly impacting Ukraine.

Greene, an ally of President Donald Trump, has been a staunch critic of former President Joe Biden's Ukrainian aid amid the Russia-Ukraine war that began nearly three years ago.

Trump has also criticized the billions of dollars the Biden administration has spent in supporting Kyiv and has said that if he was at the negotiating table with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, the war between the two nations would end "within 24 hours," leading to concerns that he would press Zelensky to surrender the territory Moscow currently occupies.

While the foreign aid freeze is temporary and Trump has signaled he may continue to take a tough stance on Russia, it's still unclear how much military aid he will give to Kyiv.

Deadline for Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon expires, but troops will stay

 https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/czeprnw4repo

On Friday, the office of the Israeli prime minister said the withdrawal outlined in the ceasefire was "conditioned on the Lebanese army deploying in southern Lebanon and fully and effectively enforcing the agreement, while Hezbollah withdraws beyond the Litani", a river about 30km (20 miles) from the Blue Line - the unofficial border between Lebanon and Israel.

"Since the ceasefire agreement has yet to be fully enforced by the Lebanese state, the gradual withdrawal process will continue, in full coordination with the US," the statement said, without specifying how much longer Israeli forces might stay in Lebanon.

It was also not clear how many Israeli soldiers remained in the country.

Trump says Keir Starmer doing 'very good job'

 https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cqjvyyn7k99o

US President Donald Trump has said Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has done a "very good job thus far" and that the pair have a "very good relationship".

Tech billionaire and Trump ally Elon Musk, however, has been strongly critical of Sir Keir and has repeatedly called for his removal from office.

Earlier this month Tesla boss Musk, who is an adviser to the president, criticised Starmer in a series of messages on his X social media platform over the grooming gangs scandal, saying the prime minister was "deeply complicit in the mass rapes in exchange for votes".

In response, Sir Keir, who was director of public prosecutions between 2008 and 2013, has accused critics of "spreading lies and misinformation" and says he tackled prosecutions "head on".

Trump is dead wrong to leave his own ex-officials exposed to Iran’s wrath

 https://nypost.com/2025/01/24/opinion/trump-is-dead-wrong-to-leave-american-officials-exposed-to-irans-wrath/

Whoever steered President Trump into removing of the security teams protecting former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and others facing Iranian death threats was way off-base — and the prez should reverse that dangerous call at once.

Pompeo tops Tehran’s hit list for his part in taking out Iranian Gen. Qassem Suleimani in January 2020, a massive strategic win for Trump in his first term.

Musk Follows That Salute by Telling Germans: Don’t Feel ‘Guilt’ Over Country’s Past

 https://www.thedailybeast.com/elon-musk-germans-shouldnt-feel-guilt-over-countrys-past/

Elon Musk urged an audience at a German far-right political rally not to feel “guilty” about their country’s history.

“I think there’s frankly too much of a focus on past guilt (in Germany), and we need to move beyond that,” Musk continued. “Children should not feel guilty for the sins of their parents—let alone their great grandparents.”

Although Musk didn’t mention Nazism explicitly, his speech was heard by many as addressing the collective guilt felt by many German people following Nazi atrocities perpetrated during World War II, including the Holocaust

In response to a post on X that accused Jews of “hatred against whites,” Musk in 2023 wrote, “You have said the actual truth.”

After criticism that the remark platformed anti-semitic conspiracy theories, Musk apologized and called the post “foolish.”