49 F
New York
Sunday, May 5, 2024
type here...
Home Blog Page 2277

Sarah Sanders: Busing Illegal Migrants to Sanctuary Cities is Being Considered

By
Administrator
-
0

The White House is considering transporting unlawful migrants to sanctuary cities, White House press secretary Sarah Sanders announced on Sunday.

By: Harry Cherry

“Look, this is an option on the table,” she told George Stephanopoulos Sunday on ABC’s “This Week.” “The President heard the idea, he likes it, so well, we’re looking to see if there are options that make it possible and doing a full and thorough and extensive review.”

She said that the idea wouldn’t be President Trump’s “first choice,” but added that it is an option actively being considered. Sanders that the idea was originally proposed “at a staff level,” and that it was not put into action because “logistically, there were a lot of challenges and it probably didn’t make sense to move forward.”

President Trump confirmed in a tweet on Friday that he was strongly considering the idea.

“Due to the fact that Democrats are unwilling to change our very dangerous immigration laws, we are indeed, as reported, giving strong considerations to placing Illegal Immigrants in Sanctuary Cities only,” the president said on Twitter. “The Radical Left always seems to have an Open Borders, Open Arms policy – so this should make them very happy!”

“If the Radical Left Democrats all of a sudden don’t want the Illegal Migrants in their Sanctuary Cities (no more open arms), why should others be expected to take them into their communities,” he said in another tweet later on Friday. “Go home and come into our Country legally and through a system of Merit!”

“So interesting to see the Mayor of Oakland and other Sanctuary Cities NOT WANT our currently “detained immigrants” after release due to the ridiculous court-ordered 20-day rule,” President Trump tweeted on Saturday. “If they don’t want to serve our Nation by taking care of them, why should other cities & towns?”

“Just out: The USA has the absolute legal right to have apprehended illegal immigrants transferred to Sanctuary Cities,” he added in a tweet Saturday evening. “We hereby demand that they be taken care of at the highest level, especially by the State of California, which is well known or its poor management & high taxes!”

Sanctuary cities refuse to cooperate with federal immigration officials, citing the need for an open and welcome atmosphere.

 

Mr. Nadler, on Sunday, said that Mr. Trump “has no right to spend money appropriated by Congress for other purposes to ship immigrants all over the country.”

“Nor is it right for the President to use immigrants or people who are claiming political asylum as pawns in a fight against political opponents,” he added. “He shouldn’t use them as what he imagines as retribution to political opponents in various areas.”

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee (D) said Sunday on NBC that the proposal is an “act of bombastic chaos.”

“Number one, look, you can’t threaten somebody with something they’re not afraid of,” he told Chuck Todd on Meet the Press. “And we are not afraid of diversity in the state of Washington. We relish it.”

 

Vogue’s Editor in Chief: Conservatives Will Never Be on The Cover Again

By
Administrator
-
0

Vogue editor in chief Anna Wintour recently predicted that Melania Trump and other pro-Trump conservative women will never be on the magazine’s cover again.

By: Harry Cherry

“You have to stand up for what you believe in, you have to take a point of view,” Wintour told CNN. “I don’t think you can try to please everyone all the time.”

Wintour’s comments have caused backlash and outrage among mainstream conservative circles.

Democratic women such as former First Lady’s Michelle Obama and Hillary Clinton as well as 2020 Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., have been featured on the front page of the magazine.

Former Republican First Lady’s such as Laura Bush and Barbara Bush have also been profiled in the magazine, however, they weren’t featured on the front cover.

Adult Film star Stormy Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, also has been featured on the magazine’s front cover.

Ms. Daniels retained famed attorney Michael Avenatti and sued President Donald Trump over a non-disclosure agreement, which she claimed was invalid because it was never signed by Mr. Trump himself.

Mr. Avenatti has faced three criminal indictments in recent weeks; one in New York and two in Los Angeles. In New York, Mr. Avenatti was charged with attempting to extort Nike for over $20 million dollars. In California, Mr. Avenatti was charged with Bank Fraud, Tax Evasion, and Wire Fraud. If convicted on all counts, Mr. Avenatti faces the prospect of hundreds of years in prison.

“A lawyer has a basic duty not to steal from his client,” the U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California said last month. “Mr. Avenatti is facing serious criminal charges alleging he misappropriated client trust funds for his personal use and he defrauded a bank by submitting phony tax returns in order to obtain millions of dollars in loans.”

“As alleged, Avenatti used illegal and extortionate threats for the purpose of obtaining millions of dollars in payments from a public company. Calling this anticipated payout a retainer or a settlement doesn’t change what it was – a shakedown,” Geoffrey Berman, the U.S. Attorney in Manhattan, said following Mr. Avenatti’s arrest. “When lawyers use their law licenses as weapons, as a guise to extort payments for themselves, they are no longer acting as attorneys. They are acting as criminals, and they will held responsible for their conduct.”

“We profile women in the magazine that we believe in the stand that they are taking on issue,” Wintour told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour.

“If you’re talking about the first lady [Michelle Obama] or Senator [Kamala] Harris, obviously these are women that we feel are icons and inspiring to women from a global perspective,” Wintour added, according to Fox News. “I also feel even more strongly now that this is not a time to try — and I think one has to be fair, one has to look at all sides — but I don’t think it’s a moment not to take a stand.”

“To be on the cover of Vogue doesn’t define Mrs. Trump, she’s been there, done that long before she was first lady,” Melanie Trump’s spokeswoman, Stephanie Grisham, said in a statement. “Her role as first lady of the United States and all that she does is much more important than some superficial photo shoot and cover.”

“This just further demonstrates how biased the fashion magazine industry is, and shows how insecure and small-minded Anna Wintour really is,” Grisham added. “Unfortunately, Mrs. Trump is used to this kind of divisive behavior.”

Facebook’s Full Frontal Assault on Conservative Media

By
Administrator
-
0

As the far-ranging impacts of social media platforms have dominated the headlines in recent days, it has come to the attention of the Jewish Voice for quite a while that Facebook has its own nefarious agenda; one agenda that demands a thorough explanation.

Through the manipulation of a complex set of algorithms, the politically liberal-leftist folks behind the scenes at Facebook have crafted a shadowy set of rules that the company scrupulously adheres to. This plan to suppress politically conservative voices such as Texas Senator Ted Cruz and others who have raised their collective voices in opposition to what Facebook is doing is gaining speed and momentum. It would not surprise anyone to learn that the Democratic party might very well be supporting Facebook’s ill-advised scheme to vanquish points of view that they deem unfit or repugnant.

Edited by: JV Staff

Attempts to quash free speech and to posit one’s self as a willing accomplice in the crusade to silence voices of that may differ from the left-wing doctrine is something that overtly smacks of Orwellian thinking. The truth is that the incisive minds at Facebook clearly comprehend this fact and are doing nothing to prevent it. Without an ombudsman-style system tirelessly working behind the scenes at social media giants to vigorously monitor the free and open expression of all views, there is no doubt that the US and other western democracies are headed for the kind of leftist totalitarianism fervor that has represented a horrendous blot in the history of the free world.

Below, please find links to articles that were previously published in the Jewish Voice.

http://thejewishvoice.com/2018/12/16/shame-on-facebook-for-silencing-the-jewish-voice/

http://thejewishvoice.com/2018/12/19/what-the-facebook-wars-are-really-about/

http://thejewishvoice.com/2019/01/01/a-glimpse-into-facebooks-ever-changing-secret-rulebook-for-political-speech/

http://thejewishvoice.com/2018/12/26/facebook-shares-nosedive-amidst-reports-that-private-data-was-shared/

http://thejewishvoice.com/2019/01/23/ftc-deciding-potential-fines-for-facebook-privacy-problems/

http://thejewishvoice.com/2019/01/26/facebook-how-much-of-what-you-see-is-actually-real/

http://thejewishvoice.com/2019/02/04/facebook-privacy-breaches-explode-is-the-social-media-giant-a-fraud/

http://thejewishvoice.com/2019/02/27/nys-to-open-probe-into-facebooks-massive-privacy-breaches/

Pompeo: Israeli Sovereignty in Judea, Samaria Won’t Hurt Trump Peace Plan

By
Administrator
-
0
shutterstock

When asked whether Netanyahu’s pledge to “annex” Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria would harm the prospects for Trump’s “deal of the century,” Pompeo replied, “I don’t.”

By: WIN Staff

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told CNN interviewer Jake Tapper on Friday that the U.S.’ new Middle East peace plan would not be negatively impacted by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s campaign pledge to declare Israeli sovereignty over Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria.

“Do you have any concerns about the comments Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who was just reelected, made right before he was reelected vowing to annex [Judea and Samaria]?” asked Tapper, adding, “Do you think that might hurt the pursuit of peace, the two-state solution proposal that Jared Kushner and others, including you, have been working so hard on?”

“I don’t,” responded Pompeo.

“I think that the vision that we’ll lay out is going to represent a significant change from the model that’s been used”,” he added.

Elaborating on the U.S. historical approach to the Israel-Palestinian conflict, Pompeo explained “[W]e’ve had a lot of ideas for 40 years; they did not deliver peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians. Our mission set is to put forward a vision. Ultimately, the Israelis and the Palestinian people will have to make this – resolve this for themselves.”

Pompeo expressed hope that the Trump administration’s “new,” “unique” ideas “to reframe and reshape what’s been an intractable problem that multiple administrations have grappled with” would result in “a better life for the Israelis without this conflict” and “a better life for the Palestinian people.” (WIN)

 

NY Legislature Approves $840M in Refundable Credits for Television & Movie Producers to Bolster Economy

By
Administrator
-
0
shutterstock

Governor Andrew Cuomo and his Democratic cohorts have approved $840 million in refundable credits for television and movie producers over the next two fiscal years. This comes on top of $7.3 billion worth of incentives handed to the industry since 2004, according to the Citizens Budget Commission.

By Clark Savage, Jr.

“That’s almost two new Tappan Zee Bridges that we’ve spent just on subsidizing the film industry,” said David Friedfel, director of state studies for the CBC, a business-backed watchdog, to Crain’s New York Business. The sum is “twice as much as Amazon would have gotten and they would have created 25,000 jobs.”

According to Crain’s, the two-year extension “underscores the persistence of government aid to industries that are generous political patrons or haven’t antagonized labor unions, as Amazon did. New York Democrats and Republicans have collected millions of dollars in campaign contributions from Hollywood moguls like Steven Spielberg and Jeffrey Katzenberg, as well as from media companies and New York City film studios.”

Each year, New York spends $420 million dollars on film and television productions, according to the New York Post. “The state refunds 30 cents on the dollar for productions in New York City and 40 cents for every dollar spent on film and television production outside the Big Apple. Empire State Development estimates the program is a major money and job creator, but critics call it a corporate subsidy program.”

It was only weeks ago that Cuomo said he’d dump New York State’s $420 million dollar Film Tax Credit Program if it meant the state Senate would ease up on its big spending. “The Senate’s position was very clear on Amazon, ‘We are against tax incentives to bring business to New York.’ That’s why Amazon is gone,” he told reporters. “I can see them being wholly consistent…saying and ‘that’s why we’re against the film tax credit’ because it’s the exact same point.”

“No one stuck his neck out further to lure Amazon to build its new HQ in Queens than New York Governor Cuomo. When Amazon walked from the deal due to protests over the fact it amounted to a $3 billion giveaway to the most valuable public company in the world, Cuomo let his displeasure be known,” reported Indiewire.com

The Governor, “who believed the Amazon deal would be an enormous job creator, is now prepared to let the state’s $420 million dollar Film Tax Credit Program, which offers a 30 percent rebate on in-state below-the-line production costs, to be cut from the upcoming budget to prove his point,” Indiewire.com added.

Yankees Ranked Most Valuable Franchise in MLB on Forbes List

By
Administrator
-
0
shutterstock

On Wednesday, April 10th, Forbes’ released its Baseball Franchise Value list.  In it, the New York Yankees got a boost for their egos.  The Yankees was named Major League Baseball’s most valuable franchise.  The team’s value is now estimated to be $4.6 billion, an increase of 15 percent over last year’s figure.  The Yankees made $668 million in revenue, and $29 million in income.

By: Hadassa Kalatizadeh

The Yankees Franchise bought back the YES Sports television Network, which broadcasts Forbes’ “SportsMoney” show, for $3.5 billion from Disney in March. The Yankees team is owned by Yankee Global Enterprises, an LLC controlled by the family of the late George Steinbrenner, a Cleveland-based shipbuilder, who bought the team in 1973 for $8.7 million.  The Yankees have been members in the American League since 1901, and in the East Division since 1969.  The Yankees team has won 40 AL pennants, and 27 World Series championships.

As per Wikipedia, the team won more titles than any other franchise in the four major North American sports leagues. Forty-four Yankees players and eleven Yankees managers were inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame, including legends Babe Ruth, Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle, and Yogi Berra. That’s probably thanks to the hefty payroll that the team has used historically to attract talent.  The team was originated in Baltimore and moved to New York in 1903. The Bronx-based team was first named the Highlanders, and officially renamed the Yankees in 1913.

In the Forbes most valued “Business of Baseball List”, the Los Angeles Dodgers are ranked second, worth about $3.3 billion. The Dodgers made $549 million in revenue and an impressive $95 million in income. Third place on the list belongs to the World Series champions, the Boston Red Sox, at $3.2 billion, up 14 percent for the year.  Next are the Chicago Cubs valued at $3.1 billion, followed by the San Francisco Giants at $3 billion. The New York Mets are ranked in 6th place, with an approximate value of $2.3 billion, up 10 percent in wealth since last year.

Forbes’ franchise value list estimates that the Miami Marlins is the least valuable team, or #30, at $1 billion, one step behind Tampa Bay Rays, which is valued at $1.01 billion.

Last year, on Forbes’ list of Most Valuable Sports Teams, the Yankees were the second highest valued sports franchise in the U.S. and the fifth in the world, with an estimated value of approximately $4 billion.  In that 2018 list, the Dallas Cowboys football team, was the top valued sports team, worth an estimated $4.8 billion, up 14% for the year.  The Cowboys had actually retained the title of most valuable sports franchise in the world for three consecutive years.

Madonna to Perform at Eurovision Contest in Tel Aviv Despite Pressure from BDS Movement

By
Administrator
-
0
shutterstock

Madonna will headline next month’s Eurovision singing contest in Tel Aviv and will sing two different songs, according to The Jerusalem Post.

By: Harry Cherry

Jewish Voice for Peace launched a lengthy campaign aimed at getting Madonna to cancel her performance, saying “there’s no neutrality in situations of injustice.”

Various public figures in the United Kingdom such as Julie Christie and Ken Loach signed a formal letter urging BBC to lobby for the event to be relocated, citing Israel’s “violation of Palestinian human rights.”

Despite the BDS campaign and various antisemitic politicians both in the United States and abroad, such as Rep. Ilhan Omar, Democrat from Minnesota, and Jeremy Corbin, who leads Britain’s labourparty, the State of Israel is still the only thriving democracy in the Middle East.

Omar Barghouti, who is one of the founders of the BDS movement, previously said that he opposes “a Jewish state in any part of Palestine.”

Mr. Barghouti was banned from entering the United States on Thursday. Airline employees told him that he was unable to fly to the United States, the Arab American Institute said, according to NPR.

“Barghouti was not provided an explanation for his denial of entry beyond ‘immigration matter,” they told NPR in a statement.

“Visa records are confidential under U.S. law; therefore, we cannot discuss the details of individual visa cases,” a spokesperson with the State Department told NPR.

“Omar Barghouti is a leading Palestinian voice on human rights. Omar’s denial of entry into the U.S. is the latest example of the Trump Administration’s disregard for those rights,” James Zogby, the President of the Arab-American Institute, said in a statement.

“Having spent considerable time here as a student and while on speaking tours, Omar visiting America was never an issue before,” he continued. “It is clear this arbitrary political decision is motivated by this administration’s effort to silence Palestinian voices.”

“At a time when some members of Congress are advocating for regressive anti-BDS bills and resolutions, when states have passed legislation targeting the non-violent boycott movement in violation of our protected First Amendment rights, it is disturbing that policy makers and the American people will not have the opportunity to hear from Omar directly about his views,” he added. “The voices of advocates for Palestinian human rights, whether through political targeting or regressive, discriminatory laws, are silenced when discussions or debates are denied.”

Amnesty International said in February that Israel should “end the arbitrary travel ban on human rights defender Omar Barghouti,” according to the Arab-American Institute.

An Open Letter to American Liberal Progressive Judaism Leaders

By
Sholom Schreirber
-
0

The Rabbinical Alliance of America, a national rabbinic organization established over 75 years ago, congratulates the Israeli electorate on decisively choosing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and right of center parties, including the United Torah Judaism and Sephardic Shas parties. This free and democratic election bodes well for Israel as it continues to face immense security challenges every day of the year.

 

Israel is the only country in the Middle East that holds fair and democratic elections. A beacon of liberty in a sea of dictatorships, Israel also allows both media and individuals the right to free expression and exchange of opinions and criticism without fear of incarceration or discrimination.

 

The Rabbinical Alliance of America expresses shock and pain by today’s letter from the leaders of Reform and Conservative Judaism to President Trump and the Administration in which these liberal Jewish leaders denounce the desire of Prime Minister Netanyahu and the Israeli people to claim the land rightfully theirs. In this letter, they ask the democratically elected leader of the United States to thwart and resist the results of the democratic election just held in Israel.

 

We recognize the right of all to speak their mind, yet we are very hurt to see how this irresponsible and misguided letter issued, only days after Israel’s election, advances personal whims and agendas by agitating and endangering the current excellent relationship between the Israeli and American governments. Adding to the chutzpah is the unprecedented antagonistic behavior over the past two years of liberal Jewish leaders toward President Trump and the Administration, from whom they now request undemocratic actions against the Israeli electorate. American Jewry, which treasures the American tradition of democracy and freedom, deserves better representation than this disgraceful conduct.

 

The Rabbinical Alliance of America emphatically opposes this letter. We state categorically that this letter neither reflects our opinion nor does it represent the majority opinion of American Jewry who believe that the path to peace is for Israel’s citizens to decide.

 

The Jewish people in Israel have both the right and the duty to seek their own destiny for obtaining security and peace with their neighbors without political interference from American Jews attempting to thwart the free will and democratic choices of Israel’s citizens.

 

With consternation and deep anguish, we call on our brethren to act more cautiously and responsibly, as Israel’s security is of paramount importance that must transcend all political or personal considerations.

Actress Lori Loughlin Panics about Potential Prison Time for College Admissions Scandal

By
Administrator
-
0
Actress Lori Loughlin and her husband are among the 16 parents who face charges for conspiracy in the infamous college admissions scandal. On Tuesday, the couple was indicted on charges of mail fraud and money laundering. If convicted, the pair will face up to 40 years in prison. Photo Credit: Shutterstock

Actress Lori Loughlin and her husband are among the 16 parents who face charges for conspiracy in the infamous college admissions scandal.  On Tuesday, the couple was indicted on charges of mail fraud and money laundering. If convicted, the pair will face up to 40 years in prison.

By Hadassah Kalatizadeh

As reported by Fox News, the indication of potential prison time is finally sinking in for Loughlin, and panic is setting in.  The Queens-born 54-year-old star from “Full House”, “Fuller House” and “When Calls the Heart” was downplaying the consequences of the whole ordeal, but now is terrified of the possibility of spending time behind bars.  “She has been in complete denial and thought maybe she could skate by,” a source told E! News. “She refused to accept any jail time and thought the DA was bluffing. She was adamant she wouldn’t do any jail time.”  Critics, including the sketch artist at the court, have said that Loughlin appeared “arrogant” during the court hearing. “Lori is finally realizing just how serious this is,” the source continued. “She is seeing the light that she will do jail time and is freaking out.”

Loughlin and her husband, fashion designer Mossimo Giannulli, were arrested last month for allegedly bribing their daughters’ ways into the University of Southern California (USC) for $500,000 each. The posh couple allegedly mad payments to the ‘charity’ of scam mastermind, William “Rick” Singer, to get their daughters Isabella and Olivia Jade recruited to the USC crew team, even though neither of the girls is a rower. Isabella and Olivia’s statuses at USC are on hold while the school’s investigations into the individual cases is ongoing. Olivia has become a YouTube and Instagram celebrity, but has lost several of her main endorsements in the aftermath of the scandal.

Some of the other parents indicted in the scandal, including Felicity Huffman, the actress from “Desperate Housewives”, have accepted a plea deal earlier this week, and plead guilty to charges.  Loughlin and Giannulli rejected the plea deal.  “They are not ready to make a plea like Felicity (Huffman) and go down that road. They are hoping to just let this play out in the judicial system. They are innocent until proven guilty,” a source close to Loughlin told CNN.   “They wish the media would just leave them alone. They feel like there is no story and don’t understand why the press keep hounding them and following Lori to yoga.”

“Their lives will never be the same,” an insider said of Loughlin’s family. “They are scared and they don’t know what’s coming next. It all feels like a terrible nightmare.”

$1.7 Million Raised in Record-Breaking Lincoln Center Corporate Fund Gala

By
Administrator
-
0
Left to Right: Hamid Biglari, Michael Sullivan, Steve Cohen and Larry Foley. (Credit for all photos: Lieba Nesis)

Can a woman succeed on Wall Street or is the hegemony of men so overwhelming that the chance of getting ahead is slim at best. I posed this question to honoree Ilana Weinstein who was being feted at the Lincoln Center Corporate Fund Gala where 570 people gathered at the Rainbow Room on a cool Wednesday evening with ticket prices starting at $1,750-with the overwhelming majority of attendees being men. Ilana responded, “I feel totally comfortable in this industry which has been very good to me. Yes I wish more women were involved but at the end of the day it is all about meritocracy and bottom line results-and that’s the ethos of the industry.”

By: Lieba Nesis

Ilana and I have a lengthy history as she attended Harvard Business School when I was in the Law School and I can remember our more frivolous days of mischief-making before the realities of life set in. Tonight mega-moguls Steve Cohen (Point71 Asset Management) and Steve Tananbaum (GoldenTree Asset Management) came to pay homage to Weinstein and to the Lincoln Center Corporate Fund that rewards critical funds to 10 artistic organizations through the vehicle of corporations and firms that provide unrestricted gifts for music, opera, dance, theater, film and educational programming.

Weinstein recalled the importance of exposing children to the arts as she was a ballet student and her son, Jordan, is an adept piano player. After attending Wharton and Stuyvesant, Weinstein worked at Goldman Sachs and Boston Consulting Group eventually starting her own executive search firm called IDW (her initials) which focuses on placing senior hedge fund and business professionals across the investment landscape. She frequently appears on CNBC and Bloomberg and is obviously the real deal but I couldn’t help but laugh when the managing director of a major firm asked if I could introduce him to Ilana.

Steve Cohen remarked that Ilana ran the premier recruiting firm in the industry and joked that while switching jobs was a zero-sum game with nobody benefitting Ilana was the one person who reaped the rewards each and every time. Cohen praised Ilana’s tenacity while Steve Tananbaum referred to her as “The Queen Bee” remarking that everything she does she is “all in.” Ilana whose busy schedule affords her little time for frivolities such as fashion wore a floral Luca Luca dress she purchased five years ago with kitten heels. She recalled growing up in a small two bedroom near Lincoln Center where she and her brother Boaz, another hedge fund star, shared a tiny room with her working multiple jobs since the age of 14.

Anyone who knows Boaz and Ilana also know their mom Giselle who frequently, if not always, accompanies them in their endeavors-that is a great testament to their character. Ilana recalled her mother’s intense work ethic and how she would be awoken with the opera “Carmen” by her parents on the weekend. She then called to the stage soprano Anna Cley who sang a powerful aria from “Carmen” in a sexy black gown. Later President of Lincoln Center, Russell Granet, said they had raised a record-breaking $1.7 million and he was thrilled to finally be able to honor a woman in the world of finance.

There is no better venue in New York to be feted than on top of the Rockefeller Plaza at the Rainbow Room where anything seems achievable. After a buffet dinner was served and some delicious petit fours handed out female DJ Twilo rocked the crowd with some fun pop dance tunes. I found it nearly impossible to tear myself away from the magnanimous space perched 65 floors above ground and only did so three hours later when a guard informed me they would be shutting the doors.

The Implications of Netanyahu’s Re-Election

By
Administrator
-
0
shutterstock

Benjamin Netanyahu has been declared the winner of an unprecedented fifth term as Israel’s prime minister, refusing to be beaten by the combined political force of three former IDF army chiefs; pending bribery and fraud allegations hanging over him; and the combined forces of a hostile broadcast, printed, and digital news media who spent the latter part of the past three years hounding and tarnishing Netanyahu day and night. All have failed to end his political career. Netanyahu, a seasoned conservative politician and a brilliant political tactician, proved once again his ability to lead and overturn what seemed to be a foregone conclusion that he would be ousted.

By: Ron Jager

Throughout the night, initial exit polls had shown that the Likud Party, led by Netanyahu, had lost to the Blue and White Party, led by Benny Gantz. Updated results accounting for the final hours of voting showed Likud leading 35 to 34. The actual number of Knesset mandates will likely change once all votes are tallied and the votes of parties that did not cross the threshold are redistributed. Irrespective of the tight race between the two major parties, the right-wing bloc has won a clear and undisputed majority in the 120-seat Knesset, being swept back into power and forming Israel’s new government in the coming days and weeks. Benjamin Netanyahu’s path to becoming once again Israel’s prime minister will withstand any last-minute surprises as the tallying of votes is completed.

Surprising casualties of the election results were two of the more popular and outspoken right-wing politicians: education minister Naftali Bennett and justice minister Ayelet Shaked, the joint heads of the New Right Party, who appear to have lost their bid to be in the 21st Knesset. At a gathering of his supporters in Bnei Brak, Bennett said he believed that once the soldiers’ votes were counted, the party would have enough support to enter the Knesset. “We have always taken care of the soldiers and now they will take care of us,” Bennett said. “The New Right will pass, and it will pass very nicely, we just need to be patient. We believe in our path and we will succeed.”On the opposing side of the political map, a result of this election is that the Israeli public has chosen to end the historical role and political significance of the Israeli political left, for many of Israel’s voting public, “peace has become a dirty word”. The Likud led platform of Jewish solidarity and support of modern Jewish nationalism based on Israel as the national homeland of the Jewish people coupled with unprecedented economic prosperity, has convinced the Israeli public that the Left’s vision of peace, liberal social values, and socialist economic policies belong to the past and have been deemed either as unrealistic at best, or a denial of reality at worst. The never ending conflict with the Palestinians, based on the “land for peace” model is no longer a viable political process due to the unwillingness of the Palestinian leadership to accept Israel’s existence and the continuing terror raising its ugly head all too frequently.

“The Peace Process”, once the dividing line between left and right in Israeli politics has ceased to be an issue. As the realization that a solution with the Palestinians is unattainable in the near future, so too have the fortunes of left-wing parties leading to their apparent electoral demise. The Leftist version of Israeli society has been effectively ended with the re-election of Benjamin Netanyahu to a Fifth term.

An astute observation of the Israeli election results can also have wider implications for the American elections in 2020 and the re-election prospects of President Trump. The results of last nights election show that the Likud’s political strength actually rose despite Netanyahu’s widely media bias espousing politicized accusations and alleged transgressions. The veteran political commentator Yossi Klein has asked in the past “How is it possible that after all the investigations, the suspects, the cases and earthquakes, after everything is out in the open, the Likud gets more than two additional Knesset seats in the polls?”

His answer, “It’s been there since the ’50s. It’s no good, it says on the wall. You screwed us then and now we’re getting back at you. Who are ‘we’ and who are ‘you’? ‘We’ are what you once called ‘the second Israel’ and today the ‘periphery.’ ‘We’ are the children of those you threw into all kinds of holes. And who are ‘you’? You are Mapai, you are the police, you are the media, you are the state but we’re punishing you.” Both President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu share a loyal base, which feels cheated, deprived, ignored, swindled and oppressed. As a result, both political leaders have in the past and can in the future give so many disenfranchised voters hope and that their struggles are important and can no longer be ignored.

Only this past week, the month of Nisan has arrived and we celebrated Rosh Chodesh Nisan. Our sages teach us that “In Nisan we were redeemed and in Nisan we will be redeemed in the future.” Many in Israel have no doubt that the elections results have a much greater significance for Israel’s future than just another election.

The writer, a 25-year veteran of the I.D.F., served as a field mental health officer and Commander of the Central Psychiatric Military Clinic for Reserve Soldiers at Tel-Hashomer. Since retiring from active duty, he provides consultancy services to NGO’s implementing Psycho trauma and Psychoeducation programs to communities in the North and South of Israel. Ron is a former strategic advisor at the Office of the Chief Foreign Envoy of Judea and Samaria.

 

Israel’s Beresheet Spacecraft Crashes Into Moon During Landing Attempt

By
Administrator
-
0
shutterstock

Israel’s first moon lander came up just short in its historic touchdown bid this afternoon (April 11).

By: Mike Wall & Meghan Bartels

The robotic Beresheet spacecraft, built by SpaceIL and Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), aimed to become the first Israeli craft, and the first privately funded mission, ever to land softly on the moon. But the little robot couldn’t quite make it, crashing into the gray dirt around 3:25 p.m. EDT (1925 GMT). Mission control lost communications with the spacecraft when it was about 489 feet (149 meters) above the moon’s surface.

“We had a failure in the spacecraft; we unfortunately have not managed to land successfully,” Opher Doron, the general manager of IAI, said during a live broadcast from mission control. “It’s a tremendous achievement up ’til now.”

“If at first you don’t succeed, you try again,” said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who watched Beresheet’s landing attempt from SpaceIL’s control center in Yehud, Israel.

So the list of moon-landing nations remains at three, all of them superpowers — the Soviet Union, the United States and China.

But Beresheet accomplished plenty during its short life, as we shall see.

Beresheet’s story begins in 2011, when the nonprofit organization SpaceIL formed to compete in the Google Lunar X Prize. The GLXP offered $20 million to the first privately funded team to put a robot down softly on the moon, move it at least 1,650 feet (500 meters) on the lunar surface and have it send high-resolution imagery home to Earth.

The runner-up would pocket $5 million. An additional $5 million was available for various special accomplishments, bringing the contest’s total purse to $30 million.

The competition ended last year without a winner, but SpaceIL and IAI, the country’s biggest aerospace and defense company, continued working on the 5-foot-tall (1.5 meters) Beresheet. (Some other former GLXP teams, such as Florida-based Moon Express, have kept going as well.)

Last month, the X Prize Foundation announced that SpaceIL could win a special $1 million Moonshot Award if Beresheet successfully landed on the lunar surface.  Just minutes after the moon crash, X Prize founder and Executive Chairman Peter Diamandis and CEO Anousheh Ansari said SpaceIL and IAI will receive the award despite failing to land.

“I think they managed to touch the surface of the moon, and that’s what we were looking for for our Moonshot Award,” Ansari said.

“And also, besides touching the surface of the moon, they touched the lives and the hearts of an entire nation, an entire world, schoolkids around the world,” Diamandis said.

The lander launched on the night of Feb. 21, soaring into Earth orbit atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. Beresheet continued looping around our planet for the next six weeks, performing engine burns now and again to push its elliptical orbit closer and closer to the moon.

Beresheet ended up covering about 4 million miles (6.5 million kilometers) during this phase of the mission, team members said. No other spacecraft has taken such a long road to the moon.

Beresheet’s slow-and-steady strategy paid off on April 4, when the moon’s gravity captured the lander. Beresheet then lowered its lunar orbit via a series of burns, the last of which occurred yesterday (April 10). That 32-second maneuver shifted the spacecraft into a highly elliptical orbit with a closest lunar approach of just 9 to 10 miles (15 to 17 kilometers) and a most-distant point 125 miles (200 km) from the gray dirt, mission team members said.

Today’s landing was scheduled to occur autonomously, on a patch of the lunar near side known as Mare Serenitatis (“Sea of Serenity”). (All lunar surface craft to date have explored the near side, with one exception: China’s Chang’e 4 mission touched down on the far side this past December.)

Beresheet was designed to make some measurements of the local gravity field around its landing site during its two or three Earth days of work on the moon. The craft also toted a small laser retroreflector array built by NASA, a technology demonstration that could increase the precision of future touchdowns on the moon and other celestial bodies. But Beresheet was not a science mission at heart.

The main goals, SpaceIL and IAI representatives have said, involved advancing Israel’s space program, increasing the nation’s technological knowhow and getting young people more interested in science, technology, engineering and math.

And the lander has certainly done all of that. It managed to make it to lunar orbit, after all, send back a photograph from near the moon’s surface, and almost nail the landing. And Beresheet did all of this for a total mission cost of just $100 million, including launch.

In addition, project team members have met with more than 1 million Israeli schoolkids over the past eight years, taking the space-exploration message to the young masses. Some of those children will eventually become scientists — and perhaps help design, build or operate spacecraft themselves someday.

“Well, we didn’t make it but we definitely tried,” Morris Kahn, an entrepreneur who helped found the Beresheet mission, said shortly after the spacecraft’s failed landing attempt. “I think we can be proud.” (Space.com)

 

Ecuador Revokes Assange’s Asylum; Charged With Hacking Conspiracy Related to Iraq War Disclosures

By
Administrator
-
0
Wikipedia

Wikileaks publisher Julian Assange was arrested by local police at the Ecuadorian embassy in London early Thursday morning shortly after Ecuador revoked his asylum status, and was subsequently charged in an unsealed indictment by the United States Attorney in Alexandria, Virginia with where he will likely head if extradited.

By: Harry Cherry

The indictment released by the U.S. Attorney’s office only charges Mr. Assange with one criminal count, specifically, conspiring with Chelsea Manning to hack into a government computer system, in an attempt to obtain and release classified documents. Mr. Assange faces up to five years in federal prison as a result of the charge against him.

CNN reported on Thursday that a Justice Department official said that Mr. Assange will likely face more criminal charges at a later date. Federal prosecutors allegedly changed their view that Mr. Assange’s is a journalist entitled to first amendment protections following his organization’s 2017 publication of CIA hacking tools.

“I’ve just been with Mr. Assange in the police cell, he wants to thank all of his supporters for the ongoing support,” Jennifer Robinson, one of Mr. Assange’s attorneys, told reporters following his initial court appearance on Thursday.

Rafael Correa, the former president of Ecuador, called President Moreno’s decision to revoke Mr. Assange’s asylum “incredible.”

“It’s incredible. We cannot imagine something like this. It’s against international law; it’s against the institution of asylum; it’s against the Ecuadorian constitution, especially because since last year, Julian Assange has had Ecuadorian citizenship,” Mr. Correa told CNN reporter Richard Quest in an interview on Thursday.

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., who chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee said Thursday that Mr. Assange deserves whatever comes to him.

“He’s not an American citizen so he can’t be a traitor but I have absolutely no use for Julian Assange,” Mr. Graham said on Thursday. “Whatever comes his way he deserves.”

Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.V., also weighed in on Mr. Assange’s arrest on Thursday.

“We’re going to extradite him,” Mr. Manchin said. “It will be really good to get him back on United States soil. So now he’s our property and we can get the facts and truth from him.”

“I think it’s very good for us to finally get him on US soil so we can investigate,” Mr. Manchin added. “We can basically cross-examine; we can find out the facts that only he knows and his connections and how he basically distributed his information.”

Despite repeated touting Wikileaks disclosure of emails belonging to the Democratic National Committee and Hillary Clinton during the 2016 presidential campaign, President Trump insisted on Thursday that he knows “nothing about Wikileaks.”

“I know nothing about WikiLeaks,” Mr. Trump told reporters Thursday in the Oval Office. “It’s not my thing, and I know there is something having to do with Julian Assange. I’ve been seeing what’s happened with Assange.”

“I know nothing really about him,” Mr. Trump added, saying “that’s not my deal in life.”

During the 2016 presidential campaign, Mr. Trump frequently praised Wikileaks and once said, “I love Wikileaks.”

Fox TV Host Questions Whether Omar Is ‘American First’

By
Administrator
-
0
shutterstock

Fox News Channel host Brian Kilmeade asked what seems like an obvious question, that may have crossed many of our minds.  On Wednesday during a segment of “Fox & Friends”, the host took on Rep Ilhan Omar (D-MN), saying “You have to Wonder if she’s an American first”.   Kilmeade was co-host together with Steve Doocy and Ainsley Earhardt, and was referring to the freshman Democrat’s speech on March 23th, to the Los Angeles chapter of the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR).  

By: Ilana Siyance

Omar was bolstering the necessity for the organization and said, “CAIR was founded after 9/11 because they recognized that some people did something and that all of us were starting to lose access to our civil liberties.”  The statement led Kilmeade to wonder out loud on the morning show, “Really? “Some people did something?” he gasped at her description of what is known as the single deadliest terrorist attack.

On Wednesday, Omar took to Twitter in her own defense.  “My love and commitment to our country and that of my colleagues should never be questioned,” she tweeted. “We are ALL Americans.”  She also said Kilmeade is guilty of a “dangerous incitement” for questioning her loyalty to the United States, based on the fact that she’s been the subject of death threats in the past.

Kilmeade is the second Fox host in a month to have made a splash with comments about Omar. Fox condemned and suspended Saturday host Jeanine Pirro for two weeks, following her statement about whether Omar’s use of a Muslim head covering indicates she was a follower of Islamic religious law. Despite the network’s chastisement, Pirro did not apologize or retract from what she said, and neither has Kilmeade.  

Kilmeade replied saying, “I didn’t intend to question whether Rep. Omar is an American,” he Twitted. “I am questioning how any American, let alone a United States congresswoman, could downplay the 9/11 attacks.”  Fox News had no immediate comment or condemnation for Kilmeade.

Omar called on politicians of both parties to unite in condemning Kilmeade.  A spokesman for Omar did not immediately respond to questions about the criticism she has received about her reference to the attacks. Omar appeared on CBS’s “Late Show” with Stephen Colbert on Wednesday night.  There, the first-term congresswoman spoke of the “double standard”, where only she faces criticism for her “insinuations”. “They actually said that I might not be an American, that my loyalties might not be to this country,” Omar said, “but I get called out. They don’t. They get to keep their show.”

 

Atty Michael Avenatti Indicted on 36 Counts Including Bank Fraud, Tax Fraud & Embezzlement

By
Administrator
-
0

A grand jury sitting in California indicted famed attorney Michael Avenatti on 36 additional criminal counts on Thursday, including bank fraud, tax evasion, wire fraud, embezzlement, and more.

By: Harry Cherry

Just two weeks ago, Mr. Avenatti in two separate cases, one in New York and another in California, on charges including extortion, bank fraud, and wire fraud. Federal prosecutors alleged that Mr. Avenatti attempted to extort Nike for $20,000,000.

“These four areas of criminal conduct alleged in the indictment are all linked to one another because money generated from one set of crimes appears in other sets – typically in the form of payments to lull victims and to prevent Mr. Avenatti’s financial house of cards from collapsing,” Nick Hanna, the United States Attorney for the Central District of California said Thursday in a statement.

“The financial investigation conducted by the IRS details a man who allegedly failed to meet his obligations to the government, stole from his clients, and used his ill-gotten gains to support his racing team, the ownership of Tully’s coffee shops, and a private jet,” IRS Acting Special Agent in Charge Ryan Korner said Thursday at a press conference. “Individuals who intentionally thwart the IRS and fail to meet their tax obligations will be caught and they will be held accountable.”

“In each of the four cases of embezzlement alleged in the indictment, Avenatti received money on behalf of clients into client trust accounts, misappropriated the money, and lied to the clients about receiving the money or, in one case, claimed that the money had already been sent to the client,” prosecutors said Thursday in a statement.

Mr. Hanna added on Thursday that federal agents seized a jet belonging to Mr. Avenatti, which was purchased with funds that he alleged were stolen from a client. The indictment alleges that Mr. Avenatti hid a $4,000,000 settlement from a paraplegic client — and used the funds from that settlement to run a coffee shop and fund his luxurious lifestyle.

Mr. Avenatti’s former coffee business, Global Baristas US LLC, did not file employment tax returns and was responsible for $3.2 million in federal payroll taxes, the indictment alleges. Mr. Avenatti made false statements or lied to an IRS officer, opened a bank account to transfer and hide funds from credit card purchases made by consumers at his coffee shop, and told employees to despite cash from the coffee shop into a bank account which belonged to a car racing business also ran by Mr. Avenatti.

Prosecutors say that Mr. Avenatti could face a maximum of 333 years in federal prison if convicted on all charges against him.

Mr. Avenatti is scheduled to be arraigned on Apr. 29 at the U.S. District Court in Santa Ana, California.

UNESCO defers problematic texts on Israel to non-binding annex in resolutions

By
Sholom Schreirber
-
0

The World Jewish Congress has welcomed the decision of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to amend two resolutions regarding Israel at its Executive Board meeting in Paris, deferring controversial elements of the original text into non-binding annexes. The resolutions, which include only neutral language about Israel, were adopted on Thursday, following the intervention of the UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay.

WJC CEO and Executive Vice President Robert Singer said: “The World Jewish Congress is grateful to see that the UNESCO Executive Board is moving forward with its principled intentions to fight the politicization of this body by shifting biased texts into non-binding annexes of the final resolution. We sincerely hope that this is a harbinger of a UNESCO agenda altogether free of biased and one-sided resolutions against Israel. At the same time, we condemn the exploitation of UNESCO by certain governments who seek to politicize the proceedings, hijack its noble causes, and manipulate the forum for their own short-sighted agendas.”

Singer added: “The World Jewish Congress, on behalf of our more than 100 affiliated communities, commends UNESCO Director General Audrey Azoulay for her ongoing efforts to ensure that the politicization which has plagued UNESCO in recent years, led by the political agendas of some member states, stays off the UNESCO floor.”

WJC has worked closely over the last few years with the UNESCO leadership and many member-states, including during the current session, to assure that UNESCO stays true to its founding principles. The WJC is committed to UNESCO’s mandate of promoting peace, and education and non-discrimination. In that respect, the WJC has partnered with UNESCO in educational and programmatic initiatives to fight antisemitism around the world, including the creation of aboutholocaust.org, a digital initiative aimed at raising awareness about the horrors of the Holocaust, and a series of workshop to train educational officials on educational policies against antisemitism.

1...2,2762,2772,278...2,282Page 2,277 of 2,282
DONATE NOW
Subscribe Now

© The Jewish Voice. All rights reserved.

Website managed by Napollo

About Us

Popular Category

Editor Picks