Wednesday, June 22, 2022

Are Transgenderist Republicans Reducing Our Daughters To Cannon Fodder for a Future Army Draft?

 22 Sivan 5782/ June 21, '22 /Parshas Shelach


by Binyomin Feinberg (formerly, a contributor to The Jewish Press)
~~~
Will Rep. Chip Roy lead the salvage of America?

“It’s absurd that you have so-called conservative members of the United States Senate who are willing to say to the American people, ‘We’re going to draft your daughters,’” the Texas congressman told the Washington Examiner in an interview. “They can go to hell! And if the entire Republican establishment wants to get behind drafting our daughters, I will make it my mission to burn the entire Republican establishment to the ground. ... Anybody who wants to come conscript my daughter can **** ***,” Roy, who has a daughter, added."

("They can go to hell!': Right rejects push to force women to register for the draft" by Matthew Wilson, Washington Examiner, June 16, 2022)
~~~

In marked contrast with the aforementioned heroic Texas congressman Roy -- two currently prominent N.Y. republicans - Lee Zeldin, now running for the GOP nomination for N.Y. Governor, and GOP Chairwoman Rep. Elise Stefanik (NY21) - backed a virulently anti-Torah and downright misogynist Obama LGBT amendment in 2016, known as the Maloney Amendment. That amendment was pushed by the flagrantly homosexualist congressman purportedly representing parts of the Hudson Valley, Sean Patrick Maloney (https://www.politico.com/states/new-york/city-hall/story/2016/05/new-york-republicans-break-ranks-to-back-lgbt-amendment-100864). "The amendment would have prevented federal funds from going to federal contractors that fail to comply with President Barack Obama’s executive order protecting LGBT employees from {BF: what the homosexualists falsely describe as} workplace discrimination." Thus, these republicans collaborated with the far-Left in promoting Obama-favored forms of vice as worthy of government promotion. Said forms of vice included the Transgender cult, an anti-rational movement dedicated to eradication of the recognition of objective and immutable distinctions between men and women. Transgender propagandists and their enablers have bequeathed to America, among many other gifts, a crime wave of transgender violence, primarily against women and children. (These transgender crimes are generally perpetrated by deviant males pretending to be female, thereby gaining access to female bathroom, showers, and locker rooms.)

It's interesting how, now, these gender-compromised republicans come out swinging as conservative saviours. Mr. Zeldin, for one, wants us to make believe that he will help salvage N.Y. State -- devastated by his fellow anti-Torah leftists.

Ms. Stefanik, on the other (left) hand, as the Chairwoman of the congressional GOP Conference, wishes to convince us the the GOP has an inspirational "vision for America" (as she indicated in an Op Ed last week, entitled "The Greatest Distraction on Earth is About to Begin..."). That's interesting, because her visual acumen doesn't seem to rise to the level of distinguishing between men and women, vis-a-vis a military draft.  As recently as 2021, Ms. Stefanik, perched on the House Armed Services Committee, voted to oblige women to register for the Selective Service, in preparation for a potential military draft. If, G-d forbid, there would ever be a military draft at ANY point in the future (be it due to predictably unpredictable escalations in the Western proxy war in Ukraine (which could potentially become regional, or even global), Southeast Asia, the Mideast, combinations thereof, or otherwise) - women would be forced to serve - along with debauched men pretending to be women - pursuant to said Transgender dogma now firmly ensconced in the U.S. military (thanks in part to Trump). America's daughters would be exposed to unspeakable abuses by perpetrators and predators, foreign and domestic. And that's okay with our republican visionary from N.Y. Apparently, that's the price "we" need to pay for Equality.

However, it certainly piques my interest in hearing about what her vision has in store for us to "lift up families across the nation and offer real solutions on issues that matter." Does that refer to providing federally sponsored psychological therapy to families whose conscripted daughters would be captured by the Taliban - with no real hope of their return in sight? Or treatment for female conscripts abused by "allied" neo-Nazi punks in Azov battalions in Ukraine?

° The Record:

Stefanik twice voted for the full NDAA (Defense budget bill), despite its inclusion of said extension to women - both in the Armed Services Committee, and in the full House floor vote. Her excuse of voting against the individual measure of inclusion of women in Selective Service holds no water. When push comes to shove, Stefanik demonstrated what truly matters to her, and it's clearly NOT defending American daughters from the unspeakable abuses which a female draft would invariably enable.  If she was genuinely opposed to expansion of Selective Service, she'd properly demonstrate that sentiment by voting against ANY military budget into which Selective Service expansion was inserted. And she'd do so until the appropriate parties understand that if they want her support, they need to drop that toxic and utterly superfluous provision. But she didn't. Her actions speak louder than her excuses. While she provides the hard Left with results, she expects the rest of us to be satisfied with reassurances of her superlative intentions.  It's our fault if we opt to serve as the useful idiots for the Republicans who subscribe to the "Private Parts Don't Matter" movement.

Now, whether or not Ms. Stefanik still espouses the precise variant of radical transgender dogma espoused by Sean Patrick Maloney (see https://www.womenarehuman.com/21-house-republicans-seek-compromise-in-support-of-transgender-legislation/?fbclid=IwAR2yyulfQfY9Ms9c9QRJUyS1DdyUpC8-UlL6MhuHpgpvOEYWIhuzhEqW2IA), as of several months ago, she continues to make-believe that young women who enlist in the military can compete with the cruel realities of military life - and death - by virtue of "identifying" as equal with male combatants. How precisely does one understand how a woman could force other women into the military, with all the hazards of abuse by fellow soldiers and enemy combatants that entails? With Equality, all is possible... Perhaps this is what she meant when she wrote "We (the GOP) are ready to lead with the unity that the Democrats promised but failed to produce." Alas, only Nixon could go to China. Only the N.Y. State GOP could pass Marriage Dequality. Only the Republicans can successfully draft our daughters... "the unity that the Democrats promised..."

Whatever her idea of a Republican "vision" for America is, I'm confident that informed citizens of sound mind and body, of all persuasions, want nothing to do with it - as long as registering women for a potential draft is part of that hallucinogenic vision.

° In late 2021, said Selective Service expansion measure nearly passed into law, as part of the Defense budget. Thank G-d, it was averted, in what appears to have been a Chanukah miracle, in late 2021.  However, the Republican wing of the transgender movement has no intention of gracing voters with much of a respite. Chillingly, this progressive proposal to facilitate eventually forcing 18-year-old females into the Wokened military is now resurgent - thanks, in part, to the seven republican recidivists on the Senate Armed Services committee who reportedly voted for it for the second time in less than a year. Apparently, only one of the eight Republicans on the committee who voted to expand Selective Service to women in 2021, learned their lesson. Sen. Kevin Cramer (ND) reportedly voted no this time (https://twitter.com/burgessev/status/1537173528033873922). Nonetheless, those seven republicans constitute a majority of the 13 total republicans on the committee. Blame for this republican malady, similarly evident in the House, is in no small measure to be placed on GOP leaders, including Ms. Stefanik, chairman of the House Conference.

Ms. Stefanik asked "Why don't real Republicans get to ask Democrats tough questions about Jan. 6? Because that would undermine their desperate far Left narrative."  One could add: "Why don't real patriots get proper advance notice and debate opportunity prior to these votes on consignment of our daughters to LGBT cannon fodder? Because that would undermine the desperate far-Left agenda of the gender-ending faction of the GOP.

Imminent House Vote:

The full House Armed Services Committee hearing on the annual Defense budget, known as the NDAA "markup," is scheduled for tommorow, Wednesday morning (June 22, '22); see armedservices.house.gov/hearings. This is when they will vote on including women in the obligation to register for Selective Service. We need to ensure they hear from us ASAP.

Apparently, in absence of facing primary challengers highlighting the importance of not forcing women into the military, many republicans seem to struggle with learning disabilities. They need to hear from all of us, immediately, as follows:

1) Do NOT touch our daughters, or anyone else's.  Ukraine or no Ukraine. North Korea or no North Korea. Iran or no Iran. Taiwan or no Taiwan. Economy or no Economy. Jail-time or no jail-time. Hands-off our daughters, now, and forever.

2) Do NOT expand Selective Service - at all. In the vernacular, "Ditto," as above.

3) IF it ever comes down to a choice between (a) killing American daughters or (b) ending the lingering Selective-Service legacy of Jimmy "Jihad" Carter - then there's no question whatsoever: kill Selective Service - not our daughters (as one prominent advocacy organization articulated it last time).

Perhaps some of the occupants of Congress, especially those who struggle to discern between the sexes, or between delusional identity and biological reality, may benefit from alternative means of education. Here's one:

Consider telling your learning-impaired congressman:

"We will not send our daughters to fight your co-ed, gender-perverted WokeWars.

"Our daughters and granddaughters will not go.

They will not go for the Dems; they will not go for the radical Fems.

They will not go for the GOP; they won't go for the Economy; they will not go for Volodomir or Mrs. Zelensky.

They will NOT go.

They will not go for "Freedom," 
They will not go for "Liberty,"
They will not go for "Dignity,"
They will not go for "Dequality;"
They WILL NOT go to globalize LGBT.

They will NOT go.

The will not go for national defense, they will not go for republican pretense.

They will not go for Diversity;
they will not go for Nancy Pelosi;
they will not go to Promote Perversity.
They will not go for your Armed Services Committee;
they will not go for Global Unity.
They will not go for Western Depravity; 
They will not go for World War Three.

They will not go for McCain, they will not go for Ukraine. They will not go for gender-warped NATO. They will never, ever GO.

They will not go for for the leftist Swamp, they will not go for Trump.

They will not go to secure the border, they will NOT go for the New Woke Order.

They will not go for the United Nations, they will not go for the Council on Foreign Relations.

They will not go for Europe or the Mideast. They will not go for Southeast Asia, Saudi Arabia, or social media.

They will not go for Congress or for Google.  They will not go for Biden, they will not go for CNN.

They won't go to punish Vladamir Putin; they will not go to battle the Taliban.

They will NOT go."
~~~~
The more insidious threat here is coming from the Republicans. They need to understand that if they sell out the future mothers of this country, then NOTHING they stand for justifies supporting them.
That includes the GOP pretending to fight the expansion of Selective Service under the guise of enabling it to pass, as they tried last time (https://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/316856).

The rule of thumb with politicians is: "Watch what they do, not what they say."  However, contemporary transgenderist republicans have taught us, we need to modify that: Watch what they say, and discern how what they actually do is often precisely the opposite of what they announce they're doing.

See also:

~~~~~~~~
Congressional Switchboard: 

202.224.3121 

(ask for the number of the specific Senator or Congressman needed)

Rep. Elise Stefanik, Chairwoman of the House Republican Conference:

202.225.4611 (for those outside the 21st district, press 1 to leave a voicemail).

Or, to email her, go to: Stefanik.house.gov
~~~
Pursuant to the Open ["-For- Business"] Government paradigm dominant in Washington, we're sorry that we didn't have proper forewarning about such a nation-subverting Committee vote.
~~~
Inasmuch as some female draft propagandists in America tend to cite the Israeli Military Draft of women, to dupe those unfamiliar with its actual fallout, we present a few relevant links for  consideration:

The following is a link to a  Guidebook ("pocketbook") provided by the pro-Israel organization "Chotam." It's an English guide for religious girls to avoid enlistment in the IDF: 


This very publication is a stinging indictment of the Israeli Army Draft Office, and the antireligious Establishment behind its escalating crusade to rob religious (/ traditional) girls of their legal entitlement to a religious exemption from military service. The very need to publish such a guide speaks volumes of the danger posed to the next generation of Jewish mothers by "fellow Jews." The professional, psychological warfare techniques that these 16- and 17-year-old girls need to be trained to defend against, all alone - without even legal counsel or a family member - are almost as outrageous as they are anti-Torah. These techniques indicate how intent the Israeli military is on drafting increasing numbers of religious girls, and to what depths they're willing to stoop to do so. Thus, unrelenting vigilance is required in identifying developing trends in the encroachment of the female draft on religious communities. Moreover, we need to undo the entire female draft ASAP, for ALL girls, not only those the Draft Office deigns to sanction as religious enough to be exempt from the "Mizron Tzahali" treatment. It's apparent that no other path will solve the problem at this late stage of the debasement of Israeli society by the anti-G-d Left (including an assortment of "hawks").
~~~~~~~~~
sample posts:
~~~~~~~~~
The Antireligious Persecution of Orah Chaya and Moriah Leah R., Bnos Beruria (Summer 5779) :  

~~~

10th of Teves Alert: Making LGBT Exploitation Legal [Again]) http://daattorah.blogspot.com/2020/12/10th-of-teves-alert-making-lgbt.html \ Dec 25, 2020




"IDF Persecuting Epileptic Religious Ethiopian Girl "http://daattorah.blogspot.com/2021/01/idf-persecuting-epileptic-religious.html



Britt beats Brooks in Senate primary that divided MAGA world

 https://www.politico.com/news/2022/06/21/alabama-results-00041269

Republican voters in Alabama resolved a high-profile feud in MAGA world on Tuesday, casting votes in the GOP Senate primary runoff between one of former President Donald Trump’s most loyal acolytes, and the candidate who ultimately earned his final endorsement.

Katie Britt won the runoff after Trump turned on Rep. Mo Brooks, a top election-denying ally, to instead support the establishment-backed candidate.

Route of Jerusalem's light rail train temporarily shortened


Beginning on Wednesday, June 22, the route of Jerusalem's light rail train will change for a period of two months, Kikar Hashabbat reported. The change is to enable construction on the new "green line," part of which will run down Kanfei Nesharim Street. The construction will connect the existing "red line" to the new "green line." As a result of the construction, the light rail train will run from the Kheil Ha'avir stop to the Central Bus Station. It will not run between the Central Bus Station and Mount Herzl for a period of two months. At the same time, the Jerusalem municipality will operate shuttles to increase the frequency of the bus lines which are in operation. The routes of bus lines 20, 21, 23, 24, 27, and 29 will be extended to the Central Bus Station during this period.

Trump-Backed Britt Wins Alabama GOP Senate Runoff

 https://www.newsweek.com/primary-election-live-updates-1717735

Katie Britt is on track to win Alabama's Republican primary race for Senate, chalking up a win for Donald Trump who earlier endorsed her.

Trump dealt new setbacks in Georgia, as candidates he backed trounced in GOP primary runoff elections

 https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-dealt-setbacks-georgia-candidates-backed-trounced-gop-primary-runoff-elections

Former President Donald Trump is still the most popular and influential politician in the Republican Party and his endorsement in the 2022 cycle remains the most coveted, but the former president suffered new stinging defeats in Georgia on Tuesday.

Four weeks after a trio of statewide candidates Trump had backed in Georgia’s Republican primaries were demolished, two more candidates endorsed and supported by the former president were trounced in GOP congressional primary runoff elections.

A Cri de Coeur for the Russian Army to Return to Its Moral Roots by Rabbi Shalom C. Spira

  

  Some 77 years ago, on Pesach 5745, the Russian army (or, technically speaking, what was called at that time the Soviet Union army) liberated my paternal grandparents who had been hiding in the Czech mountains from the Holocaust. This was an exemplary moral achievement by the Russian army. More recently, 4 years ago, the Chief Rabbi of Russia (in a visit to Montreal documented at https://hamodia.com/2018/09/05/chief-rabbi-russia-rabbi-berel-lazar-visits-montreal/announced that the Russian army’s commander-in-chief, Vladimir Putin, gives respect to the Torah. This once again reflects to the moral credit of Russia’s army, given the Gemara, Chullin 92b that one of the commandments of the Noahide Code is to honour the Torah.


It is thus disturbing to see how, for the past four months, Russia’s army has potentially compromised its moral integrity with its attack on Ukraine. To that effect, many international governments – including that of Canada (where this writer presently resides) – have protested the Russian army’s action. See, for example,<https://www.canada.ca/en/global-affairs/news/2022/06/statement-by-minister-joly-on-the-100th-day-of-the-russian-invasion-of-ukraine.html>In the present article, I will argue that the invasion of Ukraine is inadvisable under the Noahide Code on account of three doubts to the side of stringency.

1) Rabbi Naftali Zvi Yehudah Berlin, Ha’amek Davar commentary to Genesis 9:5, allows Noahide governments to engage in offensive warfare, pursuant to the opinion of Shmuel in the Gemara, Shevu‘ot 35b which elucidates Song of Songs 8:12 to mean that a Jewish monarch may kill up to a sixth of humanity in a milchemet reshut (so-called “discretionary war”). Understood as such, Song of Songs 8:12 teaches us that just as a prudent farmer will eliminate a few diseased trees to protect the vineyard as a whole, so too a milchemet reshut may ethically target up to a sixth of humanity in order to better protect global security. Rabbi Berlin essentially argues that what is authorized for a Jewish monarch must perforce also be authorized for a Noahide government. This is also the view of Maharal of Prague, Gur Aryeh to Genesis 34:13.

However, Rabbi Berlin’s extrapolation is not necessarily as compelling as it may appear at first glance, be-mechilat Kevod Torato. A careful examination of Shevu‘ot 35b reveals that Shmuel’s opinion is based on the supposition that the Name in Song of Songs 8:12 is sacred. However, according to the countervailing view in the Gemara that the Name in Song of Songs 8:12 is secular, there is no license for Noahide governments to kill up to a sixth of humanity (or even one human being) in an offensive war. [And that which a Jewish monarch may engage in a milchemet reshut flows from a special Torah commandment (Deut. 20:10-15) that is directed only to the Jewish People, and even then, only when so authorized by a prophetic revelation via the urim ve-tumim, the latter notion being inoperative in our era until the messianic redemption.]

Rambam, Hilkhot Yesodei ha-Torah 6:9 rules that the Name in Song of Songs 8:12 is in fact secular, although is contested on this matter by Ran al ha-Rif. Shulchan Arukh does not adjudicate between these conflicting views. Accordingly, Rambam’s outstanding view presumably creates a legitimate safek that the halakhah may perhaps not follow Ha‘amek Davar, such that offensive war would actually be forbidden to Noahide governments.

Given this doubt, it is not surprising that – as documented by Rabbi J. David Bleich, Contemporary Halakhic Problems Vol. 3, p. 287 – both R. Avraham Dov Kahana-Shapiro, Teshuvot Dvar Avraham I, no. 11 and R. Menachem Zemba, Teshuvot Zera Avraham no. 24 forbid Noahides from engaging in offensive warfare. To that effect, the latter two scholars both invoke the Gemara, Sanhedrin 59a which declares that “Noahides are not included under the rubric of conquest” to explain why the license of milchemet reshut is denied to Noahide governments.

Rabbi Bleich also cites R. Moshe Sofer, Teshuvot Chatam Sofer, Yoreh De‘ah no. 19 as prohibiting Noahides from engaging in offensive warfare. Actually, this appears to be an oversimplification, be-mechilat Kevod Torato. A closer reading of Chatam Sofer reveals that he considers the question to be one that is “tzarikh iyun gadol” (requires great investigation). Nevertheless, even that should presumably be sufficient to prevent the Russian army from relying on Ha‘amek Davar and Gur Aryeh to engage in offensive warfare. After all, the principle “why do you see that your blood is redder, perhaps the blood of your fellow is redder” (Sanhedrin 74a) indicates that even doubtful murder must be eschewed.

2) Rabbi Bleich, ibid., pp. 9-10, observes that even according to the aforementioned Ha‘amek Davar, license for Noahide governments to engage in offensive warfare is limited to killing up to a sixth of humanity. Now, since it is tactically certain that a nuclear war would annihilate more than a sixth of humanity, Rabbi Bleich concludes that nuclear warfare is forbidden for Noahides. Yet, in our present situation, the Russian army has threatened to employ nuclear weapons against any nation that tries to defend Ukraine. Arguably, this threat may itself cloud the moral legitimacy of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, even according to Ha‘amek Davar. [Admittedly, Rabbi Bleich continues that Noahide governments are allowed to passively maintain a nuclear arsenal as a deterrent against attack by foreign nations. However, it seems to this student that one might question whether the deterrent justification only holds true for purposes of passive self-defense, as distinct from purposes of actively invading a neighbouring country (the latter representing Russia’s current strategy). In the latter instance, humanity would risk destroying itself through nuclear bullying, thereby running afoul of Rambam, Hilkhot Melakhim 10:11 (viz. the concept “that the world should not be destroyed”). See Rabbi Bleich, Be-Netivot ha-Hahalakhah Vol. 1, pp. 98-101 for an elaboration of the latter Rambam].

3) As explained by Shalom C. Spira and Mark A. Wainberg “HIV Vaccine Triage: Halakhic Considerations,” Jewish Law Annual Vol. 20 (2013), Noahide societies are commanded to implement programs that prevent the spread of infectious disease, pursuant to the Mishnah, Bava Batra 7b, which authorizes citizens of a town to compel one another to erect fortifications for protection against possible attack by marauders. As of the present date, the COVID pandemic continues (as evident, for example, by the fact that the present writer is still required to don a mask at his place of work and on public transit when travelling to-and-from his work). By waging a war at this time, the Russian army is jeopardizing its ability to protect its soldiers from preventing the spread of COVID. Arguably, this itself may erode the moral legitimacy of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Given the aforementioned three doubts, I appeal to the conscience of Russian soldiers to consider the following Gemara, Shabbat 30b. To justify why a candle should be extinguished on the Sabbath in order to allow a dangerously ill patient much-needed sleep in order to recover, the Talmud posits: “A regular candle is called a candle, and a human soul is also called a candle [i.e. the candle of G-d, in Proverbs 20:27]. It is better to extinguish a regular candle created by flesh-and-blood for the sake of saving the candle of the Holy One, Blessed Be He.” We can infer from this Talmudic lesson that human inventions and firepower should play second-fiddle to the saving of human life. Now is the time for the Russian army to return to its moral roots by aborting its invasion, and indeed a recent proclamation of Agudath Israel (at
<https://agudah.org/agudath-israel-statement-on-ongoing-invasion-of-ukraine/>) concludes likewise. Perhaps Agudath Israel was excessive to term the Russian invasion (definite) “murder,” but – as before – even doubtful murder must be avoided, and so Agudath Israel’s practical conclusion remains advisable.



Rabbi Spira works as Editor of Manuscripts and Grants at the Lady Davis Institute of Medical Research [a Pavillion of the Jewish General Hospital] in Montreal, Canada.

Tuesday, June 21, 2022

Nobel sold for Ukrainian kids shatters record at $103.5M

 https://www.politico.com/news/2022/06/20/nobel-sold-for-ukrainian-kids-shatters-record-at-103-5m-00040871

Muratov, who was awarded the gold medal in October 2021, helped found the independent Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta and was the publication’s editor-in-chief when it shut down in March amid the Kremlin’s clampdown on journalists and public dissent in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Mo Brooks faces a monstrous climb in Alabama runoff against Trump-backed Katie Britt

 https://edition.cnn.com/2022/06/20/politics/mo-brooks-katie-britt-trump-alabama-senate/index.html

While Trump's endorsement of Britt came as a shock to some Brooks allies who spent months working to convince the former President that she would be a MAGA adversary in the Senate, others saw it as a long time coming.

Transgender Swimming Ban Praised by Former Olympic Athletes

 https://www.newsweek.com/transgender-swimming-ban-praised-former-olympic-athletes-1717300

Former Olympic decathlete Caitlyn Jenner, a transgender woman, also praised the new policy.

"It worked! I took a lot of heat - but what's fair is fair! If you go through male puberty you should not be able to take medals away from females. Period," Jenner tweeted.

A year out of power, Haredim hail government’s downfall, credit divine intervention

 https://www.timesofisrael.com/a-year-out-of-power-haredim-hail-governments-downfall-credit-divine-intervention/

Ultra-Orthodox leaders and newspapers rejoiced at the impending dissolution of the Knesset and government — the latter being one of the few in recent memory that didn’t include Haredi parties — and many attributed its downfall to divine intervention.

“His name is praised in the world!” said Rabbi Shalom Cohen, the spiritual leader of the Shas party, which represents Sephardi and Mizrahi Jews. “A government that harmed and tried to destroy Judaism and the sanctity of Israel and harmed the weak has been driven from the world. The holy one, blessed be he, has had mercy on the people of Israel.”

Cohen, 91, made his pronouncement from his hospital room on Monday night shortly after Prime Minister Naftali Bennett announced his plans to call for the dissolution of the Knesset, which will send the country back to elections for the fifth time in less than four years.

Monday, June 20, 2022

No, Texas can’t legally secede from the U.S., despite popular myth

 https://www.texastribune.org/2021/01/29/texas-secession/

Texas Seceding From U.S. 'Would Mean War,' Law Expert Says

At its convention over the weekend, the Republican Party of Texas voted on several measures for possible inclusion into the party's official platform, including one seeking a 2023 referendum on whether the Lone Star State should break away from the United States. The results of that vote are not yet known.

Jared Kushner, Ivanka Trump to visit Israel this week

 https://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/article-709850

Former senior advisers to former US President Donald Trump, Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump – the former president's son-in-law and daughter – will land in Israel on Monday morning, Israeli media reported Sunday evening.

The reason for their visit is not publicly known.

Kushner and Trump were seen boarding an El Al flight from Miami. According to reports, Tourism Minister Yoel Razbozov was on the same flight to Tel Aviv.

Israel leader to dissolve Knesset as coalition fails and new elections planned

 https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/06/20/israel-knesset-coalition-dissolve-bennett/

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid announced on Monday that they plan to dissolve the Knesset next week, triggering the path for a fifth round of general Israeli elections in less than four years.