Trump ‘lost big’ on tariff ruling in the Supreme Court, says Tribe

Bypassing court ruling, Trump imposes 15% US global tariff under alternative mechanism

 https://www.timesofisrael.com/bypassing-court-ruling-trump-imposes-15-us-global-tariff-under-alternative-mechanism/

US President Donald Trump said on Saturday that he would impose a 15% global tariff on US imports from all countries, the maximum level allowed under the law, after the country’s Supreme Court struck down his previous tariff program.

The move came less than 24 hours after Trump announced a 10% across-the-board tariff on Friday after the court’s decision. The president on Saturday upped the rate to 15%.

The ruling found that Trump had exceeded his authority when he imposed an array of higher rates under an economic emergency law.

The new levies are grounded in a separate but untested law, known as Section 122, that allows tariffs up to 15% but requires congressional approval to extend them after 150 days. No US president has previously invoked Section 122, and its use could lead to further legal challenges.

In a social media post on Saturday, Trump said he would use the 150-day period to work on issuing other “legally permissible” tariffs. The administration intends to rely on two other statutes that permit import taxes on specific products or countries based on investigations into national security or unfair trade practices.

Tremors in Washington: The targeted campaign to turn Christians against Israel

 Tremors in Washington: The targeted campaign to turn Christians against Israel

In countries across the region, Christian communities are persecuted and even massacred. By contrast, Christians in Israel are protected by law with full civil rights, representation, and security.

In several meetings at Republican offices, I was unexpectedly asked about an online campaign targeting Christians, claiming Israel discriminates against them, and that Israel did nothing to protect Christians from being killed in Syria I was stunned. While only a handful raised the issue, the fact that multiple members independently flagged it suggested a coordinated pattern. One congressman even asked me directly to investigate further, warning of tremendous political damage should this narrative spread.

The concern is real. One member put it plainly: Should a bloc of Republican representatives be swayed by this misinformation enough to vote with Democrats against legislation that includes funding for Israel, it would not only harm the Jewish state, it would hurt America. Many security and defense bills serve core US interests as well; voting them down to not "support" Israel also weakens America strategically.

The End of Rule of Law in America

 https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2025/05/law-america-trump-constitution/682793/

The 47th president seems to wish he were king—and he is willing to destroy what is precious about this country to get what he wants.

The president of the United States appears to have long ago forgotten that Americans fought the Revolutionary War not merely to secure their independence from the British monarchy but to establish a government of laws, not of men, so that they and future generations of Americans would never again be subject to the whims of a tyrannical king. As Thomas Paine wrote in Common Sense in 1776, “For as in absolute governments the king is law, so in free countries the law ought to be king; and there ought to be no other.”

The Golden Calf and the Mishkan

 https://etzion.org.il/en/tanakh/torah/sefer-shemot/parashat-ki-tisa/ki-tisa-golden-calf-and-mishkan

When was the command to build the Mishkan issued?   The commentators struggled with the question of whether the command to build the Mishkan (chapters 25-31) was given during the period of Moshe's first ascent to Mount Sinai – before the sin of the golden calf (chapter 32) – or perhaps only during the period of his third ascent in order to receive the second set of tablets – in the wake of the sin of the golden calf. In practice, the building of the Mishkan began only after Moshe's third descent from the mountain, but when was the command to build the Mishkan issued? This question is related to another question: Is the Mishkan a reaction to the sin of the golden calf, or did the idea of the Mishkan precede the golden calf, such that there is no connection between the two? 

Mishkan was a drastic change in the nature of Judaism to make it more tangible after the Golden Calf

 https://etzion.org.il/en/tanakh/torah/sefer-shemot/parashat-teruma/teruma-where-house-you-would-build-me-isaia-661

Sforno (Shemos 25:08)And so should you make [it]. Hashem’s presence would dwell among them only by means of the Tabernacle. This was a step down from what He had promised them before the sin of the Calf, “In every place that I permit My Name to be mentioned I will come to you and bless you” (20:21). 

One may accept the Sforno's claim that the Mishkan is not the ideal and was not the original intention of God, but explain this in a different manner. The Mishkan may be viewed not as a tool for combating idolatry but rather as a concession to the weaknesses evinced by the people in the sin of the golden calf. The golden calf stemmed from the need of the people for a more tangible relationship with God. They could not worship God in a completely amorphous abstract manner. The Mishkan was meant to provide a more tangible form of worship. Were the Israelites on a higher spiritual level, they would not need such a contrivance.

Meshech Chochma (Shemos 12:21): It is said about the Jews that they are believers the descendants of believers (Shabbos 97a). However Taanis (5b) notes that non Jews have stronger religious beliefs than Jews - even when their religion is utter nonsense. “The Kittites worship fire and the Kedarites worship water, and even though they know that water can put out fire they have not yet changed their gods but My people hath changed their G d for that which doth not profit.” And even if you want to answer that the faith that is being praised, is believing in things that will happen in the future such as the resurrection of the dead - non Jews also have strong faith in events that will happen in the future. To explain the distinction between Jewish and non Jewish faith, one must note that the appreciation of things such as love, beauty and power are all inherent in a person. The ancient peoples sanctified all these natural powers and placed high value on them and described them as resulting from specific gods. Thus they had a god of beauty, a god of power and a god of love as is well known. A person who personified one of these natural attributes was described as a godly person. Even today, the peoples of the world make images and sanctify these tangible - directly experienced characteristics. Even the Moslems have sanctified the grave of their savior in Mecca and done other things. Consequently, we see that the emotions and senses directly support their faith which is built upon experience and imagery. Thus, non Jewish religious faith is essentially just an extension of natural emotion. That is not how G d conceives religious faith…. In fact, all tangible existence is totally separate from the one Creator. All this is such pure abstract intellectual awareness that Chovas HaLevavos (1:2 Shaar HaYichud) asserts that true service of G d is for either the philosopher or prophet. Nevertheless, all Jews - even without reaching the levels of prophets or even philosophers - truly believe in these pure abstract thoughts of His existence and His unity and they scoff at all that which is entirely based upon natural emotional experience. They understand that faith based entirely on innate human feelings and thoughts is worthless and transient representing only conjecture - G d in the image of man. This is why Chazal state, “How did the Jews merit to recite the Shema which extols the unitary of G d? Because they were descendants of Abraham, Yitzchok and Yaakov.” Because of this knowledge gained from their forefathers - Jews understand this profound abstract philosophical issue and scorn emotion based faith...

Kindergarten teacher wants kindergartener deported

He made a fake ICE deportation tip line. Then a kindergarten teacher called.

 https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2026/02/20/fake-ice-tip-line-viral/?utm_source=email&utm_medium=acq&utm_campaign=RH-ACQ&utm_content=dtpmonthly_20260220_RH&campaign_id=16986207

A Nashville comedian’s deportation hotline, set up as a joke, has gone viral among viewers who say it shows the “banality of evil personified.”

What began as a comedy routine has become one of the most viral pieces of social satire during President Donald Trump’s mass-deportation campaign. The kindergarten video has been watched more than 20 million times on TikTok and exploded across Facebook, Reddit and YouTube, where one commenter called it “one of the most creative, nonviolent and effective acts of resistance” they’d ever seen.

Republicans breathe sigh of relief as Supreme Court axes Trump tariffs

 https://thehill.com/homenews/house/5748394-republicans-supreme-court-trump-tariffs/

The Supreme Court’s ruling that struck down the sweeping global tariffs at the heart of President Trump’s economic policies has produced enormous cracks in the GOP’s outward show of party unity.

After spending the past year rallying behind Trump on virtually every facet of his second-term agenda, Republican lawmakers spanning the ideological spectrum are publicly praising the decision as a victory for free trade, the separation of powers, or both. 

Many Republicans, however, have been reluctant to voice their concerns with Trump’s tariffs out loud, for fear of becoming a target of the president and the army of MAGA loyalists he still commands. Indeed, many GOP lawmakers abandoned their previous free-trade positions to support the tariffs over the last year. A vote last week in the House condemning Trump’s tariffs on Canadian goods, for instance, won the support of only six Republicans.

Doctor's advice to parents: Don't listen to the CDC

Enten: 'RFK Jr. and the CDC have absolutely destroyed their reputation' on vaccines

RFK Jr. claimed that keto diets cured schizophrenia. Here’s what science says.

 https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2026/02/17/keto-diet-schizophrenia-rfk-jr/

Ketogenic diets do show promise for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, but the research is preliminary and not backed by randomized controlled trials.

Kevin Klatt, an assistant professor in the department of nutritional sciences at the University of Toronto, said Kennedy’s comments about the keto diet illustrate the contradiction between the extremely high bar the health secretary sets for evidence of vaccine efficacy and the low bar for nutritional advice.

“Gold-standard science for them is the science they like,” said Klatt, who is also a registered dietician. “You can take a single study or anecdote, and that gets to be called gold-standard science.”

He joined President Donald Trump in connecting Tylenol use in pregnancy to autism based on research that shows an association but not causation. He has criticized the fluoridation of drinking water as lowering the IQs of children, citing studies in areas with levels far above the acceptable threshold in the United States. He also touted Vitamin A as a measles treatment, which has not been proven in the U.S., based on the experiences of malnourished children abroad.

LOSING! Trump faces worst defeat of term at Supreme Court: Ari talks to winning lawyer Katyal

'Moral absurdity': US, Israel outraged as Iran elected as Vice-Chair of UN Charter Committee

 https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/iran-news/article-887264

Upon the announcement, Israel’s representative Noam Cappon immediately objected, calling the Iranian regime “the world’s leading state sponsor and the largest proliferator of terrorism.”

Iran was elected as vice-chair of the UN Charter Committee on Wednesday, drawing fury from Israeli and American representatives to the UN.

The American representative, Dorothy Patton, also condemned the move to elect Iran and Venezuela’s election as Chair.

“The bureau selection further solidifies our longstanding concern that this committee continues to be a forum for politicized accusations, which we firmly reject, rather than serious, practical discussion,” Patton said, further calling on the committee’s leadership to act in “good faith.”