Commentary Magazine

Certainly, the main complaint about the Biden administration’s handling of the wars in Ukraine and Israel is its ambivalence toward victory. But another problem, and it is shared by the West broadly, is the lack of recognition that sovereignty, not mere survival, is an important goal in itself.

Critics of Israel’s counteroffensive in Gaza, especially those in the media, really need to settle on a complaint. Too often they are effectively arguing with each other, though unintentionally. To

Today we take up Donald Trump’s newest picks, Linda McMahon for education secretary and Dr. Oz to oversee Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and we talk about the potential for outsiders to shake up dysfunctional institutions. We also get into where the Democrats go next on social issues and how Republicans can best counter trans extremism. Give a listen.

The news that the International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for Benjamin Netanyahu and Yoav Gallant came the same day that 19 Democrats voted to embargo “offensive weaponry” to Israel—and a former Israeli cabinet minister was denied entry to a conference in Australia because her very presence might be “disruptive.” The war against Jews is relentless and ever-morphing, and there is going to be pushback. Give a listen.

Today we talk about AG pick Pam Bondi and why we should take the Trump transition seriously. Then we look back on the Kamala Harris campaign and wonder, What the heck was that? Give a listen.

Today's podcast begins with the horrible murder of a Hasidic emissary in the UAE and the growing institutional anti-Semitism in Canada before moving on to the very interesting political dynamic

According to Israel, it is agreeing to a ceasefire with Hezbollah in large measure to stave off an American assault in the UN on Israel’s efforts in Lebanon. We discuss what this reminds us of, why it’s outrageous if indeed this is the case, and whether Israel can find a way to benefit from the pause. Also, hijinks with tariffs and fights on the patio at Mar-A-Lago! Give a listen.

The 60-day ceasefire to which Israel has agreed, thus pausing its efforts to degrade Hezbollah in Lebanon to such a degree that 60,000 Israelis can begin to return to their homes near the Lebanese border, exists because of blackmail. Blackmail from the United States. Netanyahu told the Israeli cabinet that if they did not agree to the Biden terms, the administration would move against the Jewish state in the U.N. Security Council. This threat was a first of its kind for any president; even Barack Obama only allowed a hostile Security Council action to go through without a veto in his final act of aggression against Jerusalem in 2017. This time Biden was threatening to lead the U.N. against its only true ally in the Middle East.

We try to make sense out of Israel’s participation in the ceasefire that began today—and which Hezbollah may already have violated. Did Israel actually want this because it needed time to recover its strength? Or did it have to agree because it needed weapons from the United States that were being withheld? Oh, and what on earth was with that weird Kamala Harris video in which she appeared to be, shall we say, not entirely sober? Give a listen.

Buried in a New York Times explainer on the ICC’s issuance of an arrest warrant for Benjamin Netanyahu is this helpful nugget: “Gaza has been controlled by Hamas since 2007 and the militant group does not recognize its subjugation to a Palestine state.”