Israel's most right-wing government agreed under Benjamin Netanyahu

 https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-63942616

A new government seen as the most right-wing in Israel's history has been agreed, sealing Benjamin Netanyahu's return to power.

Mr Netanyahu, who won elections in November, is set to serve an historic sixth term as prime minster.

His coalition contains far-right parties, including one whose leader was once convicted of anti-Arab racism.

Palestinians fear the new government will also strengthen Israel's hold on the occupied West Bank.

"I have managed [to form a government]," Mr Netanyahu tweeted, just minutes before a midnight local time (22:00 GMT) deadline set by the Israeli President, Isaac Herzog.

Five things we’ve learned through the release of Trump’s tax records

 https://thehill.com/policy/finance/3783613-five-things-weve-learned-through-the-release-of-trumps-tax-records/

The IRS has a mandatory audit program for sitting presidents, but didn’t audit Trump until more than two years after he assumed the presidency. Trump filed two tax returns in 2017 and one in 2018, but only received his first audit while he was in office in 2019.

Scam PAC operator uncovered by CNN’s KFile pleads guilty in federal court

 Scam PAC operator uncovered by CNN’s KFile pleads guilty in federal court

The guilty plea ends the saga of Tunstall’s scam political action committees, which he first began operating in 2016 under the names of Liberty Action Group, ostensibly a group supporting then-candidate Donald Trump, and Progressive Priorities PAC – a group supporting both Sen. Bernie Sanders and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and later opposing Trump’s presidency.

Trump Rages Over Hunter Biden's Laptop After Criminal Referral

 https://www.newsweek.com/trump-rages-hunter-biden-laptop-criminal-referral-1768537

Trump, who has long been critical of the 2020 presidential election, added that Biden would have lost "millions of votes" over his son's laptop. Trump is currently seeking a rematch against Biden and announced his 2024 presidential bid in November.

He continued to post about the "Deep State" and the "Unselect Committee," which he wrote is "trying to make the case that I didn't really believe I won the Election." He claimed the Twitter files proved his unfounded election fraud claims as "100% RIGHT!"

"I never thought, for even a moment, that the Presidential Election of 2020 was not Rigged & Stolen, and my conviction became even stronger as time went by. Now, with all of the massive evidence that has come to light, including recently with the FBI suppression of Election changing information, I was 100% RIGHT!" he wrote.

Lauren Boebert zings Marjorie Taylor Greene over ‘Jewish space lasers’

 https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/antisemitism/article-725429

The two have also been at odds over Greene’s embrace of white nationalist groups, with Boebert getting into a shouting match with her colleague earlier this year over Greene’s appearance at an event organized by prominent antisemite Nick Fuentes. Another Republican member of Congress, Paul Gosar, also appeared at the Fuentes event.

Inside the Republican Civil War: Factions, Battles Explained

 https://www.newsweek.com/inside-republican-civil-war-factions-battles-explained-1768539

Although intra-party feuds are not new, Republican strategist Jay Townsend said the current civil war is "a symptom of a policy-phobic party held together by visceral hatred of Democrats."

Townsend told Newsweek that while the current Republican Party knows what it is they disagree with, they are unable to articulate what they are for. "It is the reason McCarthy can't unite his caucus. It is the reason for unrest at the RNC. It is the reason MAGA stalwarts are shooting at the Senate leader," he said.

Small but proud: Meet Taiwan’s growing Jewish community

 https://www.ynetnews.com/magazine/article/ryx15z7ui

“I want the world to know that there’s a Jewish community that cares not just about Taiwan, but about the Jews in the U.S. and Israel…anything to do with Judaism and education. My goal is to put the Jewish Community Center of Taiwan on the map.”

The Miracle of the Oil and the History of Chanuka

https://www.etzion.org.il/en/holidays/chanuka/miracle-oil-and-history-chanuka

Scholars have been greatly puzzled by the question of why the miracle of the oil is not mentioned in any sources earlier than the Gemara Shabbat, which was compiled some four hundred years after the miracle occurred. Many offer the answer mentioned earlier - that the miracle of the oil pales next to the miracle of the victory and the rededication of the Temple; after all, "Ten miracles occurred in the Temple daily." Even the Second Book of Hasmoneans mentions supernatural miracles related to the Chanuka victory. It was only in exile, when the light of the miraculous victory had dimmed, and only after the destruction of the Temple, when the light of the rededication of the Temple was similarly extinguished - that the miracle of the oil assumed new significance, as I explained above.

The Books of the Maccabees

 https://aish.com/the-books-of-the-maccabees/

One very important point is that the Books of the Maccabees were never preserved by the Jews. We only have them today through the Christians – because they were included as part of the Septuagint and later in the New Testament. (Maccabees I & II are both deuterocanonical books – works included as part of the Catholic Bible by but not the Protestant.) The original Hebrew of I Maccabees does not even exist today.

Family of woman injured in Haredi protest defends culprits: ‘They didn’t mean harm’

 https://www.timesofisrael.com/family-of-woman-injured-in-haredi-protest-defend-culprits-they-didnt-mean-harm/

The family of a woman who was hit and seriously injured by a blazing dumpster sent rolling down a street by Haredi extremists during demonstrations in Jerusalem last week has defended those responsible, saying they meant to block a road and “did not mean to kill anyone.”

While Mirel Dzalovsky, a 40-year-old mother of 10, remains unconscious and on a ventilator at Shaare Zedek Medical Center, her relatives said the rioters “did something awful” but stressed that they were not looking for someone to blame.

“They were not trying to harm anyone. They were trying to block a street as part of a protest,” the family told Channel 12.

Mistaken premise used to attack Chareidi leaders

 There are two frequent commentators who focus on attacking the chareidim . The latest is based on their observation that there has been widespread condemnation of the violent protests which caused serious harm to a chareidi mother of 10. Since this doesn't happen after every act of fanaticism - that is proof that all other acts of violence are acceptable to Chareidi leadership

That is simply wrong. I once asked Rav Sternbuch why he hadn't condemned an attack on a young woman in which acid was thrown at her. He replied that this was being done to get attention so it was counter productive to respond every time they do something outrageous

I once dealt with a young man who was frequently threatening suicide.  I asked his father how he dealt with it. He said, "Last night he told me he was going to kill himself. I told him that I just had a hard day at the office and could he pleased do it some other day He agreed to postpone it." 

In other words giving attention to an immature person often increases the inappropriate behavior. The absence of comment can not be taken as approval

Telling the future - not just prophets

 Sefer HaIkkarim (1:18): The Rambam writes in Sefer Madah 8th chapter of Yesodei HaTorah that Moshe Rabbeinu was not believed by the Jews because of the signs and wonders...The Rambam is saying that that the miraculous signs that were done by the prophets  -  like the dead person who was resurrected by Elisha or Na’aman’s cure from leprosy or Chananya, Mishael and Azariyah who were not harmed when thrown into a furnace or Daniel who was saved from the lions or Yonah who was saved from the belly of the fish and similarly all the miraculous signs that were done by the prophets or the foretelling of the future  -  are in fact not in themselves proof to the validity of prophecy. In fact, people other than prophets are capable of foretelling the future such as astrologers or diviners. Even the doing of miraculous signs, it is possible that some of them can be done by tzadikim or Chassidim  -  even though they are not prophets. For example, R’ Chanina ben Dosa and R’ Pinchas ben Ya’ir and his colleagues or by means of natural technology as Chazal tell us concerning King Chezkiyahu… who was saved from fire by the use of salamander oil. Alternately the supernatural events could be done through magic as we saw in Egypt or by utilization of Divine Names…because the Divine Names have the ability to bring about miraculous events. …

Arizona judge rules two of Kari Lake's election challenge claims can go to trial

 https://www.foxnews.com/politics/arizona-judge-rules-two-kari-lakes-election-challenge-claims-can-trial

An Arizona judge ruled that two out of 10 claims, brought by former Republican gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake, challenging Democrat Governor-elect Katie Hobbs' election victory can go to trial.  

Maricopa County Superior Judge Peter Thompson dismissed eight out of 10 counts in Lake's election lawsuit - ruling they did not fall under the proper criteria to bring election challenges under Arizona law.

The two counts that Judge Thompson ruled can go to trial involve printers malfunctioning on Election Day and ballot chain of custody. Lake claimed printers that malfunctioned were not certified and had "vulnerabilities" that made them "susceptible to hacking." She also claimed the printers malfunctioned because of "intentional action." 

Marjorie Taylor Greene Turns on Lauren Boebert After 'Space Lasers' Taunt

 https://www.newsweek.com/marjorie-taylor-greene-turns-lauren-boebert-after-space-lasers-taunt-1768285

"I've aligned with Marjorie and been accused of believing a lot of the things that she believes in," the GOP's Boebert told Kirk while standing next to Republican Representative Matt Gaetz. "I don't believe in [McCarthy as speaker], just as I don't believe in Russian space lasers, Jewish space lasers and all of this. No."