House Speaker Kevin McCarthy along with Rep. Mike Lawler visited various communities in the area of Rockland County on Sunday, fulfilling a promise made to the Orthodox Jewish community to return to their communities as Speaker. The trip was McCarthy’s first of the new Congress to benefit a GOP congressman; in this case, to benefit Rep. Mike Lawler, who is up for reelection in 2024. McCarthy and Lawler first attended an event in Forshay, with Rabbi Rottenberg of Forshay, Rabbi Chaim Dovid Zwiebel of Agudath Israel, and many other community leaders and askanim in attendance. At the event, McCarthy and Lawler were shown a short video from Agudath Israel which spelled out the statistics of Jewish education across the country.

The organizers of protests against the government’s judicial reform plan are offering Israelis payment to join a protest that will bring traffic at Ben-Gurion Airport to a halt. After the “National Disruption Day” last week, a new protest was called for this Thursday at Ben-Gurion Airport. Following the announcement, a Whatsapp message was sent to various groups offering people payment to join the protest. “You want to make a few shekels this Thursday? Come shut down Ben-Gurion Airport for NIS 250 plus gas! “This Thursday (3/9) at 9 a.m., people from all over Israel will arrive at Ben-Gurion and take action with a simple tactic: we’ll drive slowly between the entrances of the airport and Terminal 3 and back, again and again.

Since launching on Erev Rosh Hashanah, Chesed of Flatbush (COF) has experienced growth at a level practically unimaginable to its founders and volunteers. The organization launched as a collaborative effort between askanim, communal leaders and individuals dedicated to alleviating others’ struggles, all bent on resolving a difficulty that had been plaguing the Flatbush community for years. Until Chesed of Flatbush commenced operations, anyone who required specialized medical equipment on a short-term basis had to find a gemach or organization from other areas that could provide it. With the support of local rabbanim, Chesed of Flatbush changed that.

Two Jewish children who were critically hurt in a blaze that claimed the life of their father and two siblings last week, were tragically niftar over Shabbos. 9-year-old Shevach Boyer and 11-year-old Tamar Boyer were hospitalized in “extremely critical condition” on Wednesday night after a fire tore through the family’s condo near 35th and Northern avenues in Phoenix, killing their father, Shlomo z”l, and two brothers – 7-year-old Dov Ber and 8-year-old Nachman z”l. “He (Shimon) put everything he could into those kids, everything he could do, every waking moment was focused on his kids,” an uncle said. “There are no words, there are no words.” “Each person is a flame and each person has something to offer the world,” he added, noting that the children had special needs.

HaGaon HaRav Yosef Yitzchak excoriated former Supreme Court president Aharon Barak for an interview he in which he stated that he doesn’t believe in Hashem. Speaking at his weekly shiur on Motzei Shabbos, HaRav Yosef said: “Aharon Barak was asked on the radio: ‘Does Hashem exist? Do you believe in Hashem?’ He responded. ‘No, there’s no G-d.

Finance Minister Betzalel Smotrich responded to US Ambassador Tom Nides’ reported statement that “Smotrich’s a fool. He has a flight to Washington, if I could, I would throw him off the plane.” Nides’ statement was a reaction to Smotrich’s remark that “Huwara should be wiped out” following the murder of the Yaniv brothers in the town. “I’m not angry at Nides and I’m sure he didn’t intend to incite my murder when he said that I should be thrown from the plane just as I didn’t intend to harm innocent people when I said that Huwara should be wiped out,” Smotrich stated. “People sometimes use harsh expressions that they don’t mean literally in order to convey a harsh message.

At the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Saturday, Former President Donald Trump won the straw poll for the 2024 GOP nomination by a significant margin, receiving 62% of the vote. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis came in second with 20%, while long-shot GOP candidate Perry Johnson received 5% support. Over 2,000 attendees completed the poll. Kari Lake, the Republican Arizona gubernatorial nominee in 2022, received the most support for vice presidential candidate with 20%, and DeSantis received 14% support. Trump also won the 2024 GOP presidential nomination straw polls at major CPAC gatherings in Orlando, Florida and Dallas, Texas last year.

The Biden administration now considers Finance Minister Betzalel Smotrich a “persona non grata,” Channel 12 News reported on Friday. The administration is furious about Smotrich’s statement that “Huwara should be wiped out,” and according to the report, a US source told Channel 12: “If Smotrich was ‘persona non grata’ before this statement, now…he is ‘persona non grata’ on steroids.’ No official American official will meet with Smotrich.” According to the report, US Ambassador to Israel Tom Nides also expressed his fury at Smotrich. “I’m really angry with him, he’s a fool,” he said. “He has a flight to Washington, and if I could, I would throw him off the plane.” However, the US Embassy in Israel denied the remarks attributed to Nides.

A frum father and two of his sons were tragically taken from us in a late-night residential home fire near 35th and Northern avenues in Phoenix on Wednesday night. The victims were identified as Shimon Boyer z”l, 7-year-old Dov Ber z”l, and 8-year-old Nachman z”l. Firefighters arrived at the scene to find the townhome filled with smoke and flames emanating from the windows. After extinguishing the fire, they discovered Shimon and four children during their search of the condo. Shimon z”l was declared deceased at the scene, and the three boys and one girl found by firefighters were rushed to a nearby children’s hospital in critical condition. Sadly, Dov Ber and Nachman passed away at the hospital, while the other two remain in critical condition, aged between 5 and 12.

We’ve all laughed, but what was once a harmless joke is just not funny any more. Today, with the explosion of social media, there’s really no such thing as a “private” joke. Nothing is private and a joke is no longer just innocent. Sadly, it’s not us but the times we live in. A cute or semi-insulting picture or WhatsApp post often finds its way onto social media and is immediately misconstrued as frum Jews as being racist, xenophobic, or worse. The unthinking actions of one individual cause many of us to shake our heads and hide in shame. We can & must do better. It’s no longer just a “Frum” thing. By now we really should understand that every action, big or small, has a potential reaction.