Wednesday, September 3, 2025
Donald Trump Suffers Big Legal Blow Over Migrant Deportations
https://www.newsweek.com/trump-legal-blow-deportation-migrants-alien-enemies-act-2123573
President Donald Trump was blocked by a federal appeals court from using an 18th-century wartime law, the Alien Enemies Act, to deport Venezuelan migrants his administration says belong to the criminal gang Tren de Aragua.
The 2-1 decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit found that there was not an "invasion or predatory incursion" by a foreign power as required by the 1798 statute to justify its invocation in the case of this group of migrants.
‘Giddy’ Republicans cheer Mamdani’s impact on Democrats
Zohran Mamdani’s front-running campaign to lead the nation’s largest city is stoking fear among moderate Democrats that his far-left politics will cost them at the ballot box.
They worry a Mamdani mayoralty will deepen an existential crisis for a party desperate to win back power in Congress — simultaneously handing Republicans a cudgel to paint their moderate opponents as socialists and encouraging hard-left copy cat candidates to primary Democratic incumbents, potentially pushing the party further to the left.
“I’ve never seen Republicans more giddy about the idea of a socialist mayor of New York City,” said former Nassau County executive Laura Curran, a Democrat. “They’re more excited about this than Mamdani’s followers or supporters.”
More than 1,000 HHS staff call on RFK Jr. to resign
https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/5483021-hhs-employees-call-for-rfk-resignation
More than 1,000 current and former employees of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) are demanding that Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. resign, following his ousting of the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other actions they say are “compromising the health of the nation.”
“Should he decline to resign, we call upon the President and U.S. Congress to appoint a new Secretary of Health and Human Services, one whose qualifications and experience ensure that health policy is informed by independent and unbiased peer-reviewed science. We expect those in leadership to act when the health of Americans is at stake,” a letter by the group of former and current employees, sent to Kennedy and members of Congress on Wednesday, states.
Minyan:Child is counted for 10th
Igros Moshe(O C II #18) Question: Can a child be counted as one of the 10 for a minyan in an emergency? Answer If it is the case that without the child there is concern that minyan will disband than that is definitely considered an emergency even if there are other places to pray. It is possible that some will not make the effort of going elsewhere and will end up not praying with a minyan. In addition there is concern that the classes being taught will also stop even if there are classes elsewhere. In conclusion if there is concern that the failure to have a regular minyan will cause it to be abandoned then that is clearly a case of emergency and therefore one can rely on the Rema and Magen Avraham and include a child. However in general this is a dispute in the Rishonim and we are not able to resolve it and the accepted custom seems to be to not allow a child to be counted. It seems that the requirement for ten is only a rabbinic association and thus in an emergency one can be lenient. If possible the child should be at least 12 years old in addition he does not need to hold a chumash but it is best if he is holding a sefer Torah even one that is invalid. It is important that he not hold it during Shma or Amidah but it should rest on a small table and he holds the Aitz Chaim. In addition the shliach tzibbor should not say the silent Amida but only say the Repetition out loud
High School Rejection Sparks Outrage Over Discrimination Against Sephardic Girls in Yerushalayim
A growing controversy has erupted in Yerushalayim amid claims of severe discrimination in admissions to girls’ high schools, with some institutions allegedly refusing entry to Sephardic students based on their family background
After Years of Boasting About His Health, Trump Faces Questions He Can’t Shake
https://time.com/7314050/trump-health-speech-takeaways
After years of being told Trump is the model of health, an exemplar of youth, and a man always in his prime, there is well-earned skepticism about his wellbeing—so much so that the public is conditioned to doubt even their own eyes when it comes to Trump’s existence. Trump’s unhinged cognitive swerves—a constant but perhaps intensifying trait—don’t much help, either.
After all, earlier this year the White House physician praised the President’s health by boasting that he logs "frequent victories in golf events." During his first term, Trump’s doctors kept him just one pound away from being classified as obese but said he was nevertheless a machine. "Some people just have great genes. I told the President if he had a healthier diet over the last 20 years he might live to be 200,” Dr. Ronny Jackson said in 2018, years before joining Congress. During the 2016 campaign, Trump’s personal physician released a letter lauding his excellent health—one that Trump himself prescribed, it was later reported. "He dictated that whole letter. I didn't write that letter," Dr. Harold Bornstein said three years later. "I just made it up as I went along."
Mount Sinai Study Supports Evidence That Prenatal Acetaminophen Use May Be Linked to Increased Risk of Autism and ADHD
Researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have found that prenatal exposure to acetaminophen may increase the risk of neurodevelopmental disorders, including autism spectrum disorder and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), in children. The study, published today in BMC Environmental Health, is the first to apply the rigorous Navigation Guide methodology to systematically evaluate the rigor and quality of the scientific literature.
Acetaminophen (often sold under the brand name Tylenol®, and known as paracetamol outside the United States and Canada) is the most commonly used over-the-counter pain and fever medication during pregnancy and is used by more than half of pregnant women worldwide. Until now, acetaminophen has been considered the safest option for managing headache, fever, and other pain. Analysis by the Mount Sinai-led team of 46 studies incorporating data from more than 100,000 participants across multiple countries challenges this perception and underscores the need for both caution and further study.
Tuesday, September 2, 2025
A possibility many Republicans won’t consider: Trump did something wrong
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/05/31/trump-republicans-conviction-weaponization
What if the indictments and the investigations were not, as Trump insists, political attacks but, instead, a valid response to Trump’s actions?
It’s an argument that holds enormous sway with Trump’s base of support and the broader right-wing media bubble that surrounds it. It is also an obvious extension of Trump’s long-standing rejection of any criticism, any investigation into him or his family. With Trump’s conviction on 34 felony counts in Manhattan Criminal Court on Thursday, though, it would behoove Trump supporters and Republicans more broadly to consider an alternative view of that outcome and the other indictments Trump faces: They are a function not of some indirect effort to damage him politically but, instead, of the criminal justice system responding to violations of the law.
It would be beneficial to America if more Trump supporters entertained the idea that maybe he actually did something wrong.
Judge rules Trump can't act as national police chief
https://www.politico.com/news/2025/09/02/trump-los-angeles-national-guard-ruling-00539393
A federal judge has declared President Donald Trump’s use of military troops in Los Angeles illegal, barring the Pentagon from using National Guard members and Marines from performing police functions, like arrests and crowd control.
In a 52-page ruling, U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer warned that Trump appears intent on “creating a national police force with the President as its chief.”
Breyer’s ruling bars the Pentagon from “ordering, instructing, training, or using the National Guard currently deployed in California, and any military troops heretofore deployed in California” from “engaging in arrests, apprehensions, searches, seizures, security patrols, traffic control, crowd control, riot control, evidence collection, interrogation, or acting as informants,” without demonstrating they have permission from Congress.
Judge rules Trump's use of National Guard in LA violated law
https://www.newsweek.com/trump-department-defense-war-announcement-hegseth-live-updates-2123249
Judge Charles Breyer ruled Tuesday that President Donald Trump's use of the National Guard to quell immigration protests in Los Angeles over the summer is illegal and "violated" a nearly 150-year-old federal law.
Breyer cited the Posse Comitatus Act in 1878, which prohibits the use of the U.S. military to execute domestic law.
"Nearly 140 years later, Defendants—President Trump, Secretary of Defense [Pete] Hegseth, and the Department of Defense—deployed the National Guard and Marines to Los Angeles, ostensibly to quell a rebellion and ensure that federal immigration law was enforced," Breyer wrote in his ruling, as he granted an injunction.
"There were indeed protests in Los Angeles, and some individuals engaged in violence. Yet there was no rebellion, nor was civilian law enforcement unable to respond to the protests and enforce the law."
Breyer also wrote in the 52-page ruling that nearly three months after National Guard troops were first deployed to Los Angeles, 300 National Guard members remain stationed there.
Breyer froze the injunction until noon on September 12, which could provide the Trump administration with time to challenge the ruling in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit.
Economy 'On the Brink' of Recession by End of Year, Moody's Economist Warns - Reality Check for Trump Supporters!
https://www.newsweek.com/economy-brink-recession-mark-zandi-2122414
President Donald Trump has rarely passed up the opportunity to tell Americans that the U.S. economy, with his hand at the wheel, is roaring.
His administration has held up GDP growth rates, high levels of foreign investment and relatively benign inflation readings as evidence that tariffs have been a resounding success, and that it is only skeptical policymakers within the federal government holding back an otherwise unrivaled boom.
But to Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics, the warning signs—or "red indicators"—are showing up in every corner, from housing to employment to consumer prices. In an interview with Newsweek, Zandi said that his monthslong fears of a major economic downturn may soon come to a head, and that the U.S. economy could slip into a recession by the end of 2025.
"I don't think the economy is in a recession, at least not at this point," he said, "but it feels like it's on the brink, it's on the precipice of this recession."
Monday, September 1, 2025
Kabbalist took benefits fraudulently and evaded taxes
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/flashes/665534
The Supreme Court permitted publication of the name Raziel Dahan, a kabbalist, who is suspected of fraudulently receiving benefits from the National Insurance Institute and of evading taxes of millions of shekels over several years.
Mazel Tov!
With great appreciation of the chesed I have received from G-d, I have reached an important milestone in life - this week. It is the 50th year of marriage. I have gotten this far through the devotion and love of my wonderful wife. It is clear that the essence of a good marriage is having two people who feel that doing things for their spouse is the first priority. It is also critical to have a loving and supportive family.
Apparently only Chabad actually celebrates this
---------------------------------------------------------------------
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
December 13, 1978
To Rabbi and Mrs. Menachem Schneerson
I am pleased to join your family and friends in sending you my warmest congratulations on your 50th wedding anniversary. May love and devotion continue to bless your marriage.
Sincerely,
Jimmy Carter
Rabbi and Mrs. Menachem M. Schneerson
770 Eastern Parkway
Brooklyn, New York 11213
Republican Senators Clash Over Vaccines
https://www.newsweek.com/republican-senators-clash-vaccines-2122565
Republican Senators Bill Cassidy and Rand Paul have clashed on social media over giving newborns the hepatitis B vaccine.
Paul, an ophthalmologist, wrote on X that there was "no medical reason" to give newborns the vaccine if the mother was not infected.
Cassidy, a physician, responded that Paul's claim was "not true" and that children who are infected at birth have a "much higher chance of developing liver cancer and spreading hepatitis B to others."
Both Cassidy and Paul are on the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, with Cassidy serving as the committee's chair.
Stiff necked
Shemos (32:9) And G-d said to Moses, I have seen this people, and, behold, it is a stiff-necked people;
Shemos Rabbah (42:9): What is meant by saying that the Jews are a stiff necked people? R. Judah b. Poloyah said: They deserve to be beheaded. R. Jakim said: There are three who are inherently arrogant and overly self confident. The dog amongst animals, the rooster amongst birds, and the Jews amongst the nations. R. Yitzchok b. Redifa said in the name of R. Ammi: You think that this is said disparagingly, but it is really a praise. It means that a Jew will more readily be hanged then give up Judaism. R. Abin said: To this very day Israelites in the Diaspora are called the stiff necked people. R. Nahmani said: To prove to you that they are stiff necked, you should note that when G d was about to give them the Torah it says, On the morning of the third day, there were thunder and lightning and a thick cloud upon the mountain, and the sound of a very loud shofar . G d said: ‘I will show them all My miracles, and I only hope that it will be of some purpose.’
Beitza (25b) Why was the Torah given to Israel? Because they are arrogant The School of R. Ishmael taught: At His right hand was a fiery law unto them’;G-d said: These are worthy to be given the fiery law. Some say: The laws of these are like fire, for had not the Law been given to Israel no nation or tongue could withstand them. And this is what R. Simeon b. Lakish said: There are three distinguished in strength: Israel among the nations, the dog among animals, and the cock among birds. Some say: Also the goat among small cattle. And some say: Also the caper-bush among shrubs.
Maharsha (Nedarim 20a): The fear of Him should be on your faces – this is shyness – … This is one of the inherent qualities of Jews and it is a desirable personality trait for a person to be shy but in regards to the nature of learning our Sages say that a shy person can’t learn. However we note in Beitza (25b) that the Torah was given to Jews because they are inherently arrogant. We can explain both these gemora. The Torah was in fact given because of two reasons. Since Jews are inherently arrogant they are natural students because they are not ashamed to ask question. Secondly it was given to them because the Torah diminishes arrogance as it says that fear of G d should be on their faces which is shyness.
Maharal (Netzach Yisroel 14) I have already explained with clear proofs that the soul is the dominant factor in the nature of the Jew. For example, being stiff necked is one of the bad qualities that Jews have. Practically speaking that means that Jews refuse to accept chastisement and will not listen to corrective advise. This is in fact because they are not intrinsically materialistic. Only something which is materialistic is readily altered. Consequently Jews are very resistant to change and will not accept the advice of others. Furthermore, Beitza (25b) states that they are the most aggressive and pushy people. That is because they have the power associated with being the defining figure that is separate and distinct from the readily altered material. In contrast, the non Jews readily change their ways and readily accept correction. The Yerushalmi (Sanhedrin 11:5) therefore explains that Yonah did not want to go on a mission to Nineveh because he knew that this people would readily repent after hearing his chastisement. This would reflect badly on the Jews who stubbornly resisted repenting.
Trump Is Leaning in on Crime. Democrats Need a Better Response — and Fast
Trump Is Leaning in on Crime. Democrats Need a Better Response — and Fast
The problem is that while some voters might not like overtly political power grabs, history shows they dislike feeling unsafe even more. Expanding homeless encampments and drug overdoses in plain view have left many of them fearful.
Polling suggests he’s on to something. A recent survey by the left-leaning group Data for Progress found that majorities of voters agreed that Trump’s power play was “authoritarian” and an attempt to distract from bad headlines. But the same group found that more than half of those polled agreed with this statement: “Trump is doing what’s necessary to crack down on crime.”