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July 15, 2019 at 9:39 am
The 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday ruled in favor of the Trump administration, saying the Department of Justice could give preference in awarding grants to cities that would use the money to focus on illegal immigration, as the federal government prepares to seek out undocumented immigrants in raids this weekend.
The City of Los Angeles sued the Department of Justice because it did not receive any funding from the Community Oriented Policing Services grant program, which is aimed at initiatives to build trust between communities and law enforcement agencies. Los Angeles chose "building trust and respect" as its focus area and did not mention illegal immigration in its application because of its policy as a sanctuary city.
The panel of judges ruled that ...
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July 15, 2019 at 9:05 am
The recent explosive story about a terrible IVF mix-up has sparked conversation about the need to have halachic supervision at fertility treatments. Some used this story to urge frum couples who are undergoing fertility treatments to make sure they have halachic supervision when going for fertility treatment. It is important to know that the opinions of Gedolei Haposkim is that while having supervision is a good thing, it is not a requirement. The reason? Switches are extraordinarily uncommon, which is why this recent story has made the news. In fact, it is more common for hospital staff to switch babies at birth than for there to be an IVF mix up.
For proper context, here is the story which was widely reported this past week:
“Anni and Ashot Manukyan had spent several mo...
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July 15, 2019 at 9:00 am
Joe Biden plans to unveil a proposal Monday to expand the Affordable Care Act with an optional public health insurance program, escalating a fierce debate with his Democratic rivals who favor a more sweeping Medicare-for-all system.
Biden’s plan, which campaign officials estimate would cost $750 billion over 10 years, would also expand tax credits to pay for health premiums, and it would create a new coverage option to help people living in states that have resisted the ACA’s expansion of Medicaid.
The plan, which will formalize ideas Biden has campaigned on for months, sharpens one of the biggest dividing lines in the Democratic presidential primary. One on side are traditional Democrats such as the former vice president, who warn that scrapping President Barack Obama’...
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July 15, 2019 at 8:58 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — Starkly injecting race into his criticism of liberal Democrats, President Donald Trump said four congresswomen of color should go back to the “broken and crime infested” countries they came from, ignoring the fact that all of the women are American citizens and three were born in the U.S. His attack drew a searing condemnation from Democrats who labeled the remarks racist and breathtakingly divisive.
Following a familiar script, Republicans remained largely silent after Trump’s Sunday morning broadsides against the four women. But the president’s nativist tweets caused Democrats to set aside their internal rifts to rise up in a united chorus against the president.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Trump wants to “make America white agai...
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July 15, 2019 at 8:51 am
European diplomats gathering Monday to try to save the Iran nuclear deal warned that the agreement was close to unraveling, but several held out hope that they would be able to lure Tehran back into compliance.
Britain, France and Germany have been reluctant to reimpose sanctions on Iran despite its decision to breach nuclear enrichment limits in recent weeks, saying that they still believe they may be able to save the deal through negotiations with Tehran.
“We think there is a closing but small window to keep the deal alive,” British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt said Monday on his way into a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels. “What we’re looking for is to give Iran a way out of this.”
European countries are racing to put together a complicated t...
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July 15, 2019 at 8:45 am
Baltimore, MD – July 10, 2019 - It is with sadness that BaltimoreJewishLife.com informs the community of the petirah of Nathan Watzman, Z’L, father of Mrs. Sarah Leah Bernstein.
Shiva is being observed at 3815 Menlo Dr., Baltimore, MD, 21215.Visiting hours:Monday 10a-5p, 7p-9p
Tuesday 10a-5p, 7p-9p
Wednesday 9a-10a
Bila HaMaves LaNetzach...
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July 15, 2019 at 8:42 am
The Baltimore Police Department is reporting a shooting with an officer and at least three others injured.
Shortly before 7 a.m., police responded to the 2100 block of Maryland Avenue near a drug and mental heath clinic for reports of a shooting with an officer and several others injured, including the suspect.
The injured officer was taken to Shock Trauma. No information has been released on the others injured and their conditions.
The road between Maryland Avenue and 23rd Streets have been closed. Drivers and residents are asked to avoid the area as an investigation continues.
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July 14, 2019 at 11:29 pm
Tehran - Iran is ready to hold talks with the United States if Washington lifts sanctions and returns to the 2015 nuclear deal it quit last year, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said in a televised speech on Sunday.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration says it is open to negotiations with Iran on a more far-reaching agreement on nuclear and security issues.
But Iran has made any talks conditional on first being able to export as much oil as it did before the United States withdrew from the nuclear pact with world powers in May 2018.
“We have always believed in talks ... if they lift sanctions, end the imposed economic pressure and return to the deal, we are ready to hold talks with America today, right now and anywhere,” Rouhani said in his Sunday speech.
Con...
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July 14, 2019 at 11:20 pm
Baltimore, MD - July 14, 2019 - I just read that R’ Reuven Bauman, ע״ה, had authored a Children’s book entitled “Yanky’s Amazing Discovery“ and was curious to find it and flip through it. It’s a book of stories about HaRav Yaakov Kaminetzky, זצ״ל, adapted for children. Here are some of the pages in his book which are especially poignant in light of recent events. תהא נפשו צרורה בצרור החיים
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July 14, 2019 at 10:40 pm
A senior Hamas official has called on Palestinians living abroad to kill Jews, the Times of Israel reported on Sunday.
Fathi Hamad, a member of Hamas’s politburo, said in a speech to Palestinian protesters on the Gaza border on Friday:
“All of you 7 million Palestinians abroad, enough of the warming up. You have Jews everywhere and we must attack every Jew on the globe by way of slaughter and killing, if G-d permits. Enough of the warming up,” he said.
Hamad also threatened Israelis with suicide bombers if they do not lift the restrictions on Gaza.
However, a Hamas official in Gaza disavowed the incitement, saying they do not represent its official position.
“These are personal statements that do not represent Hamas. They are no more than emotional comments tha...
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July 14, 2019 at 10:32 pm
A new internal Democrat poll in swing districts released on Sunday showed that socialist Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Ilhan Omar (D-MN) are extremely unpopular and that they may cost the Democratic Party the presidency and the House in 2020.
"Ocasio-Cortez was recognized by 74% of voters in the poll; 22% had a favorable view," Axios reported. "Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota — another member of The Squad — was recognized by 53% of the voters; 9% (not a typo) had a favorable view."
"Socialism was viewed favorably by 18% of the voters and unfavorably by 69%," Axios added, whereas "capitalism was 56% favorable; 32% unfavorable."
The firm that conducted the poll gave the results to Axios on the condition that it not be named because it works "with all parts ...
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July 14, 2019 at 10:27 pm
Los Angeles - A healthy lifestyle can cut your risk of developing Alzheimer’s or other forms of dementia even if you have genes that raise your risk for these mind-destroying diseases, a large study has found.
People with high genetic risk and poor health habits were about three times more likely to develop dementia versus those with low genetic risk and good habits, researchers reported Sunday. Regardless of how much genetic risk someone had, a good diet, adequate exercise, limiting alcohol and not smoking made dementia less likely.
“I consider that good news,” said John Haaga of the U.S. National Institute on Aging, one of the study’s many sponsors. “No one can guarantee you’ll escape this awful disease” but you can tip the odds in your favor w...
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July 14, 2019 at 10:25 pm
Berlin - An umbrella organization of Germany’s Jewish groups is alleging that an article in one of the country’s leading magazines “fuels anti-Semitism.”
Central Council of Jews in Germany President Josef Schuster was commenting on an article Spiegel magazine published Saturday about a German parliament resolution denouncing the Boycott, Divest and Sanctions movement targeting Israeli occupied territories.
The Spiegel story suggests two Jewish groups, WerteInitiative and Naffo, used “aggressive lobbying methods” to get lawmakers to vote for the resolution in May.
The non-binding resolution compared the BDS campaign’s economic boycott of Israel and Israeli products to campaigns in Germany against Jewish-owned businesses before the Holocaust.
Sch...
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July 14, 2019 at 10:24 pm
New York - Immigrant families and their defenders were on standby Sunday for mass deportation arrests across the United States threatened by President Donald Trump, but by early afternoon there were no signs of a nationwide operation.
Trump said on Friday that a wave of arrests of immigrants facing deportation would start over the weekend. The multi-day operation was expected to target around 2,000 people in about 10 cities who have been ordered deported by an immigration judge but have yet to leave the country.
But as immigrants stayed inside their homes and lawyers stood by to provide free legal aid, there were no reports of large enforcement operations.
“We are doing targeted enforcement actions against specific individuals who have had their day in immigration court and have b...
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July 14, 2019 at 10:22 pm
London - Boris Johnson, the frontrunner to become Britain’s next prime minister would want to meet U.S. President Donald Trump within the first two months of becoming prime minister to negotiate a post-Brexit trade deal, the Times newspaper reported on Sunday citing an ally of the former London mayor.
“The key to the whole thing is the US. If we get a trade deal with America we will be very quickly in the market for other deals. It encourages others to realize that we mean business,” the newspaper quoted Johnson’s ally as saying.
The former foreign secretary is ready to travel to the United States as soon as possible if he becomes the prime minister to secure a limited agreement before the Brexit deadline of Oct. 31, the paper said. Read more at Reuters
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July 14, 2019 at 10:20 pm
Dover, NH - Joe Biden is taking an aggressive approach to defending Obamacare, challenging not just President Donald Trump but also some of his rivals for the Democratic presidential nomination who want to replace the current insurance system with a fully government-run model.
The former vice president will spend much of the coming week talking about his approach to health care, including remarks he’ll deliver on Monday in Iowa at a presidential forum sponsored by AARP. His almost singular focus on the 2010 health care law has been on display recently during campaign stops in the early voting states.
In Iowa, he declared himself “against any Republican (and) any Democrat who wants to scrap” Obamacare. Later in New Hampshire, he said “we should not be scrapping Oba...
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July 14, 2019 at 10:19 pm
British Foreign Minister Jeremy Hunt told his Iranian counterpart on Saturday that Britain would facilitate the release of the detained Grace 1 oil tanker if Tehran gave guarantees it would not go to Syria.
The tanker was seized last week by British Royal Marines off the coast of the British Mediterranean territory of Gibraltar on suspicion of violating sanctions against Syria.
Iran on Saturday reiterated its call for the ship’s release. It denies the tanker was taking oil to Syria in violation of European Union sanctions.
The affair has stoked tension in the Gulf, with Britain saying on Thursday that it had fended off Iranian ships that tried to block a British tanker in the area.
Hunt said the call with Iran’s foreign minister had been constructive and Mohammad Javad Zari...
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July 14, 2019 at 10:18 pm
Freshman Rep. Rashida Tlaib said President Trump “is the crisis,” following the president’s attack on unidentified progressive congresswomen he suggested “go back” to the places they came from.
Tlaib didn’t quote Trump’s tweet, but her criticism follows growing criticism from Democrats over the president’s perceived xenophobic and racist rhetoric.
“Want a response to a lawless & complete failure of a President?” Tlaib tweeted. “He is the crisis. His dangerous ideology is the crisis. He needs to be impeached.”
Read more at The Hill.
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July 14, 2019 at 10:16 pm
The Hamas terrorist organization has been using the Whatsapp messenger service in an effort to collect secret Israeli military information from IDF soldiers, an IDF spokesperson revealed Sunday.
Posing as Israeli soldiers, hackers from the Gaza-based Hamas terror group have contacted IDF personnel on Whatsapp, using the connections to extract information.
The hackers at times even used genuine information, potentially information received from other soldiers in previous Whatsapp discussions, to ‘prove’ their identities as IDF personnel.
Read more at Arutz Sheva.
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July 14, 2019 at 10:15 pm
The US State Department’s top counterterrorism official warned on Friday that the United States would increase its maximum pressure against Iran and its proxies.
“The good news is that Hezbollah is feeling the pinch,” said Nathan Sales at an event hosted by the Wilson Center and the Foundation for Defense of Democracies to mark the 25th anniversary of the bombing of the Mutual Israelite Association of Argentina, or AMIA, in which Iran and Hezbollah are believed to be behind the attack that killed 85 people and wounded hundreds.
“As our sanctions on the Iranian regime have taken hold, Hezbollah has had to tighten its belt. The group’s Secretary General is now publicly asking for donations. The resistance needs your support,” he continued. “We will...
