Knesset election result looks like a deadlock again

A number of years after Avigdor Liberman caused a deadlock with his defection to the left, now it looks like there's another one resulting from this year's Israeli election:

Polling stations across Israel closed at 10 p.m. Tuesday, and television networks released their exit polls for the 26th Knesset election following a day marked by particularly high voter turnout and intensive efforts by political parties to mobilize their supporters.

At the heart of the political battle are three crucial questions: Can the Right secure a majority, will the anti-Netanyahu bloc be able to form a government, and how will voting in the Arab sector affect the balance of power?

The exit polls offer an initial picture of the distribution of seats in the 120-member Knesset. But even after the official results are released, expected on Nov. 4, the road to forming a government remains long.

President Isaac Herzog will have until Nov. 11 to task a candidate with forming a government, and that candidate will not necessarily be the leader of the largest party.

If so, that's got to be the bad part of this. The Arab sector certainly influenced this result, and not for the better, though it makes clear much of the Arabic population here doesn't support the leftist parties anymore.

Update: here's more on the results.

Israel's election takes place, and news from the USA's midterm election

For October 27, Israel now goes to the polls, and no telling for now what the results will be. All I know is that, if the party of Gadi Eisenkot comes out ahead, that'll be very bad.

Now, over in the USA, the midterm election's about to take place, and wouldn't you know it, the far-left film and theater actor Mandy Patinkin's backing Michigan's Muslim candidate Abdul el-Sayed in the Senate race:

Left-wing actor Mandy Patinkin is making his last-minute appeal to voters in Michigan with the odd claim that Muslim Democrat Abdul El Sayed is the only candidate who can assure the “safety of Jews.”

Patinkin took to his X account and posted a long message and a video flogging El Sayed’s candidacy for the U.S. Senate from Michigan on Friday and made the quixotic proclamation alerting voters that “Jewish safety depends on a real multiracial democracy—and Abdul is the one fighting to protect it.”

“We know how much it matters to live in a country where our rights are protected,” the Princess Bride star continued, “where the law applies equally to everyone, and where the majority can’t just decide that some people don’t deserve the same freedoms. The safety and freedom we’ve found in America didn’t happen by accident. They exist because of democracy. And protecting democracy means protecting Jewish safety, too.”

Of course, Patinkin seems blissfully unaware that America is not now and has never been a “democracy,” but instead is a republic.

He droned on about how the “courts are weakened” even though he supports the very party responsible for the unrelenting lawfare being waged to tear down the American system, and he wrung his hands over how “people lose equal protection under the law,” despite that he is pushing the same party which uses police, the courts, and the levers of government to oppress and jail those with whom they disagree.

He added, “That’s why I find it so alarming to see what’s happening right now. When masked government agents are taking people off the streets and citizens are being shot in public, we should all be worried about where things are headed. As Jews, we know that when a government starts targeting certain groups of people, no one should assume they’re safe from what comes next.”

Patinkin is, of course, not telling much truth there. No “certain groups of people” are being targeted by the Trump administration. An illegal alien is not a certain group like Jews are a certain group. Illegal migrants are not a particular religion, or race, or creed. They are anyone breaking immigration laws by entering the country illegally. Targeting illegal migrants is nothing like oppressing “certain groups of people.”

Indeed, Jews should be incensed that the actor is comparing them to illegal migrants. It is an insulting and false characterization that belittles the racism and violence Jews often face.

Patinkin even attacked GOP candidate Mike Rogers, and resorted to classic cliches by implying the Republicans are doing nothing more than enforcing fascism. Patinkin's dhimmitude is repellent, of course, but the fortunate news for now is that it looks like more Jewish-American voters are now turning to the Republicans:

Republicans lead Democrats by 31 points among Jewish voters on the congressional ballot, according to a McLaughlin & Associates poll that points to a potential shift among a group that has long favored Democrats.

The poll found that 64 percent of Jewish voters backed Republicans for Congress, while 33 percent supported Democrats, pollsters John and Jim McLaughlin wrote in an article published by the firm Monday.

The result would mark a major shift from the large margins by which Jewish voters have traditionally favored Democrats, though pollsters John and Jim McLaughlin warned that the sample of Jewish voters was small. [...]

There have also been signs of a narrower Democrat advantage among Jewish voters in New York. CNN chief data analyst Harry Enten said this month that the party’s lead among Jewish voters on the House ballot in the state had dropped from 49 points in 2022 to 13 points this year.

Well I hope the crowd that's now turning more to Republicans can make a differences on their part. I assume Zohran Mamdani's the reason for some of this, and also state governor Kathy Hochul's own dhimmitude. We can only hope the Jewish electorate in NY will also send a message to Patinkin they don't approve of his offensive mendacities.

Update: one of el-Sayed's staffers even acted as an apologist for the Muslim Brotherhood:

A staffer for Michigan Democrat Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed was caught on undercover video dismissing concerns about the Muslim Brotherhood, calling Americans “idiots” and saying he might even support some of the organization’s activities if he was more informed.

T.J. Wolfgram, El-Sayed’s independent and conservative outreach captain, made the remarks during a conversation with an undercover operative on October 15, according to video obtained by the Midwesterner.

Discussing scrutiny of El-Sayed’s family connections to the Muslim Brotherhood, Wolfgram described the controversy as “so ridiculous” before offering his assessment of American voters.

“It’s because Americans are idiots,” Wolfgram said.

This is disgusting, and he even downplayed the problems with Hasan Piker. I've got an awful feeling Patinkin's aware of all this, which makes his apologia for el-Sayed that much more offensive.

Election vote in Brazil was rigged again

It appears that the damage that began a few years ago in Brazil, leading to far-left politician Lula da Silva becoming the "president", has now occurred again, as rigging appears to have taken place in his favor, and all to prevent Flavio Bolsonaro from ascending the position:

Socialist President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, 80, was elected president of Brazil for a fourth term in Sunday’s runoff election, narrowly defeating conservative Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro in a tightly contested race in which both sides alleged irregularities and the Supreme Court intervened to extend voting. [...]

The election on Sunday was affected — marred, critics alleged — by a decision by the country’s top court, the Supreme Federal Tribunal (STF), to allow for the extension of voting times after Lula’s campaign reportedly complained of a bus shortage for transport. The cities in which the Lula campaign reportedly complained that transport issues had prevented voters from reaching the polls — Salvador, Lauro de Freitas, and Feira de Santana — are all in Bahía, part of the northeast, which has long been a PT stronghold.

STF Justice Cristiano Zanin issued an unprecedented, single-justice ruling late in the voting time to extend voting by two hours, closing polls at 7 p.m. local time, rather than 5 p.m. as previously anticipated. The ruling was notably a success for Lula after he attempted a similar move in 2022, when he ran against Sen. Bolsonaro’s father, then-President Jair Bolsonaro, but another STF justice, Alexandre de Moraes, rejected the move.

Zanin’s decision was controversial not just because of its unprecedented nature and the fact that no other STF justice participated in the ruling, but because he ruled that only polling stations that had not closed at the previously agreed-upon time could remain open. Once polling stations are closed, to preserve integrity, poll workers cannot easily reopen that process, so those that refused to close at the appropriate time — presumably, those advocated for by the Lula campaign — obtained an extra two hours to collect votes.

Bolsonaro's said he'll challenge this in court. But this still makes clear Brazil's fallen victim to some of the worst communism in Latin America, or anywhere. And it doesn't bode well for the state of the world.

TV producer doesn't want Adam Brody's repugnant viewpoints

The creator of Nobody Wants This on leftist Netflix has said she disagrees with star Adam Brody's obscene anti-Israel statements:

“Nobody Wants This” creator Erin Foster has responded to recent comments made by the show’s lead actor, Adam Brody, who accused Israel of “genocide” and called for a “Free Palestine,” by saying that she does not agree with his views.

Foster is a guest on an upcoming episode of the “Not Skinny but Not Fat” podcast, hosted by Amanda Hirsch. It will premiere on Oct. 27, but a teaser clip released on Thursday for the episode shows Hirsch asking Foster to share her thoughts on Brody’s recent interview with GQ magazine, during which he accused Israel of committing a “genocide” against Palestinians and expressed support for a “free Palestine.”

Brody plays a rabbi in “Nobody Wants This” who falls in love with a non-Jewish woman, played by Kristen Bell. The actor is Jewish but previously described himself as “not religious at all, a nonbeliever.”

“You know, it’s complicated,” Foster said when asked about Brody’s comments. “I think our work environment, our set is very similar to dinner tables around the world where people are having debate and discussion and disagreeing. And, you know, while I love Adam, I also disagree with him, and that’s okay.”

Foster then said she wants Jewish fans of the Netflix show “to know that I see you, and I hear you, and I understand how you feel.”

Well in that case, maybe she should dismiss him from the role, and hire another actor instead? In any case, the way it's written is unappealing, and I just don't see the use of wasting time watching it on a network that's already notorious for PC conduct.

Update: actress Tovah Feldshuh, who plays the star's mom in the series, also disagrees with Brody:

In an interview with the "New York Post" published Sunday, Feldshuh said, "to accuse the Jewish people of genocide is wild. It’s right out of Hitler’s playbook. You take the victim, and you make the victim the perpetrator." She said such accusations carry particular weight within the Jewish community when they come from Jewish people themselves. She added that influential public figures who spread claims she believes are false could cause significant harm.

Feldshuh, 77, also expressed strong support for Israel. "I believe that the perseverance of the existence of the state of Israel is crucial to the well-being of the democratic world and of the free world," she said. "Of course, Israel needs the United States, [but] the United States needs Israel, believe me." She added that, in her view, the current political climate has brought opposing ideological extremes closer together, with socialism and antisemitism increasingly converging.

That's one of the worst things occurring today.

Ilhan Omar's fraud comes to the surface, and is her name really Ilhan Nur Said Elmi?

Recent investigations reveal the Minnesota Muslim Congresswoman was involved in fraud, appears to have faked her name, and even made use of crude music for victimology tactics:

Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) posted a video Friday of herself walking beside a Minnesota lake with her husband, set to a Somali song the lyrics of which describe humiliating enemies and making them “suffer and cry,” according to a translation obtained by the Washington Free Beacon.

The 27-second clip shows Omar with her husband, Tim Mynett, accompanied by “Nimaan Ciilayba Icaaya,” a song by Somali rapper Ilkacase Qays featuring singer Hodan Abdirahman. [...]

The Free Beacon interpreted the music choice as a swipe at Trump amid federal investigations involving Omar’s immigration records and financial disclosures. The outlet said it commissioned a certified English translation of the Somali lyrics. [...]

Omar’s post came less than two weeks after Homeland Security Investigations agents searched her Washington, DC, home on October 12. The Justice Department confirmed that investigators carried out a court-authorized search as part of an ongoing federal criminal investigation.

Investigators are examining whether Omar or her late father provided inaccurate information on immigration documents. The inquiry reportedly includes questions about her birth date and whether she qualified to obtain citizenship through her father’s naturalization in 2000. Omar has denied wrongdoing.

A court filing identified her as “Ilhan Nur Said Elmi, a/k/a Ilhan Abdullahi Omar.” That wording does not, by itself, establish the longstanding allegation that she married her brother, which Omar has repeatedly denied.

Well this is very serious in terms of fraud offenses, though of course, her willingness to support anti-American and anti-Israel causes is what's particularly chilling. Hopefully, this investigation will result in Elmi having her citizenship revoked, and deported.

Leftist Yair Golan threatens Israeli right-wing news sources

The left-wing politician leading what used to be called the Labor party but has now been renamed to something similar to the USA counterpart is threatening the freedom of right-wing news outlets:

Democrats party leader Yair Golan has outlined a series of demands ahead of the 2026 elections, including requiring Channel 14 to sign the Press Council's ethics code or face closure, ending funding for the Bnei David pre-military academy in Eli, and demanding control over four key government ministries. Golan announced the proposals Saturday evening during an appearance on Meet the Press. He said his party would seek control of the Justice, Education, National Security, and Communications ministries.

Golan also declared that funding for the Bnei David pre-military academy in Eli would be discontinued.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich responded sharply, warning that a government led by Gadi Eisenkot and Golan would pursue policies aimed at shutting down right-wing media outlets and closing the academy.

"Throughout the past several months, I have warned about what an Eisenkot-Golan government would bring upon us," Smotrich said. "Yair Golan promises to close the academy in Eli, shut down right-wing media channels, and expel the new communities and farms we have established in Judea and Samaria."

Smotrich called on voters in the national camp to support only a party that is certain to pass the electoral threshold. Justice Minister Yariv Levin also condemned Golan's statements, accusing the political left of seeking sweeping control over government institutions.

"The left, led by Gadi Eisenkot and Yair Golan, is not hiding its Bolshevik intentions," Levin said.

He argued that control of the Justice Ministry would be used to undermine democracy and strengthen the power of legal officials, while the Education Ministry would be used to weaken Jewish identity and promote what he described as radical progressive ideology.

Levin further accused the left of seeking to use the National Security Ministry to enforce selective policing and the Communications Ministry to censor social media and close Channel 14.

"All of this will happen if we do not go out and vote, and if we give up on relatives and friends who are too lazy to reach the polling station," Levin said.

Golan, IIRC, was originally affiliated with the far-left Meretz party, so this isn't exactly a shock he's continuing the communist tactics they were known for. But if Eisenkot's elected to head a government this coming week, it'll be awful if he takes Golan as part of it.

Islamic jihadism is still a danger

5 people were injured in a terrorist attack in Hebron, though the 2 culprits were eliminated:

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the city of Hebron to be cordoned off and for the entire West Bank to be blocked from entry and exit starting on Friday morning, after five people were wounded in a terror attack in the area carried out by Hamas terrorists.

"I have instructed the IDF and security forces to immediately impose a closure on the city of Hebron and prepare for a full lockdown of all of Judea and Samaria, beginning today," Netanyahu said, adding that the IDF would be carrying out extensive waves of arrests.

"We will pursue Hamas terrorists and those who send them, wherever they are and at any time," Netanyahu said. "You have nowhere to hide."

The military had announced earlier that morning that two terrorists involved in the attack had been killed. The IDF and the Shin Bet are investigating whether the two terrorists were part of a small self-contained cell or whether their vast ammunition shows that they were connected to a larger terror cell.

There were no other terrorists involved.

Netanyahu also said that the military would be applying the methods used in refugee camps, with the IDF going house-to-house and dismantling the terror infrastructure.

The prime minister explained that the model would be used in Hebron, while it could be expanded to other cities in the future if it shows that it's an effective way to fight terrorism in the area.

"We also wish to make another promise: the Defense Minister and I have overseen the planning of a very extensive IDF operation in Judea and Samaria -- on a scale not seen since the Six-Day War. The IDF is prepared to carry it out; we will determine the timing, but it is coming," he added.

Even in an area like Hebron, jihadism is still a danger lurking, sadly.

Update: 2 soldiers appear to have been murdered in the incident:

The IDF Spokesperson's Unit cleared for publication that Staff Sergeant Ron Yonatan Roytman, aged 23, from Ashkelon, a squad commander in the Ari Battalion (775), Search and Rescue Brigade, and Sergeant Yuval Shai Svilem, aged 20, from Hod Hasharon, a combat soldier in the battalion, fell in combat during the shooting attack on Friday morning at the Judea Junction.

Three additional soldiers from the battalion were lightly injured. The soldiers were evacuated to receive medical treatment at a hospital, and their families have been notified.

Condolences to the families of the victims.

If the clans in Haredi society, and the main 2 parties, are trying to sabotage Moti Leitner's new one, that's wrong

A rabbi from Afula named Yehuda Oppenheimer, who's supporting the Haredi Public party, tells how there's a fearmongering factor that undoubtably has what to do with the would-be supporters of the 2 main Haredi parties in the Knesset, but is also a problem in the most socialist segments of Haredi society in general, as they got a party meeting cancelled:

My friend was frightened, and I understood why. He tried to find another home. People barely connected to the shul also worried about becoming involved. Several people told him that many families would stay away because their children attend a particular school, and their parents feared consequences for the children if they were seen at the gathering.

Eventually, another friend, whose family is involved in our party, agreed to host. I announced the meeting on a general mailing list, not a synagogue forum. The calls began almost immediately: Why was I publicizing politics in the community? Why was I putting the entire community at risk? Another influential rabbi called with the same message, and my host received repeated calls urging him to cancel.

The gathering has effectively been shut down. The host has been intimidated, and potential attendees have been frightened away. A handful of people wanted to meet in a home for a civil discussion. That was enough to put municipal support, community standing, and children’s schooling into the conversation as threats.

Sadly, this is not an isolated incident, nor is it unique to Afula. It reflects a broader phenomenon throughout the charedi world in Israel. A woman employed in a non-political office role by our party recently received a letter from her children's school stating that, because she worked for us, her children could be expelled unless she resigned.

Nor does this affect only HaTzibbur HaChareidi. In many communities, those who depart even slightly from the mainstream fear ostracism, whether through consequences for their children's schooling, family shidduchim, or their standing in schools, shuls, and the wider community.

The pressure takes many forms: a venue suddenly becomes unavailable; a school threatens a family; a shadchan refuses to arrange matches; a rabbi is warned to stay silent. At times, even prominent rabbanim are physically attacked, and their homes or institutions vandalized. The message is clear: even attending a private discussion can come at a cost.

See, this is why they have to start considering there are those who've left the fold, and for all we know, found a better life that way. So while it's certainly appalling this is happening, that's why those who could've been targeted should ponder whether it could be better to stop practicing the ultra-Orthodox lifestyle if they're vulnerable to the effects of a clannish environment. The time's come.

I don't know if the Haredi Public party will make it into the Knesset, but they did hold a conference, interestingly enough, at a Tel Aviv center with a mostly secular crowd:

The English-language event, hosted by the Tel Aviv International Salon, drew a modest crowd, but it bore little resemblance to a traditional Haredi political gathering. Apart from Leitner himself, there were no men in black suits and hats, although some attendees wore kippot and tzitzit.

The setting was itself unusual: Tel Aviv, with its predominantly secular population, is hardly a traditional campaign stop for an ultra-Orthodox party.

Many attendees came to learn about the fledgling party’s platform, with some even considering voting for Charedi Public despite not belonging to its target demographic. [...]

Charedi Public has assembled a candidate list that breaks with several longstanding conventions of ultra-Orthodox politics. It includes several native English speakers and two women: Glanz and Dr. Nechumi Yaffe, who is placed third on the party’s slate. They are the first women to appear on an ultra-Orthodox party’s electoral list.

“In Israeli society they expect a certain cookie-cutter person from the Haredi community,” Glanz said.

Charedi Public’s candidates challenge that image. Glanz described how her son serves in a Haredi unit in the IDF, while Leitner recounted reporting for military duty following Hamas’s October 7, 2023, terror onslaught.

That was very patriotic of him, of course. I don't know if appealing to secular/non-Haredi society will work out in the end, but his effort is admirable, and he did the right thing to add women to his list.

Ofir Winter is a left-wing plant

Mark Levin's got something to say about fishy election candidate Ofir Winter, who, despite his supposedly being a right-wing candidate, is only giving signs he may actually be a left-wing plant:

American conservative commentator Mark Levin attacked Amcha Yisrael Chairman Ofir Winter after the latter refused to withdraw the race for the Knesset, despite pressure from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and members of the current coalition.

Sharing a post on X that claimed that Winter boycotted the other members of the right-wing camp, Levin, a close friend of Prime Minister Netanyahu, wrote: "This saboteur Winter looks like a plant by the left wing. Or he’s the biggest dumb*** of all time." [...]

The criticism comes amid mounting pressure on Winter to withdraw from next week's Knesset elections over concerns that his party will fail to cross the electoral threshold, potentially costing the right-wing bloc enough votes to prevent it from forming the next government.

The pressure intensified following Blue and White chairman Benny Gantz's decision to withdraw from the race. Religious Zionist Party chairman Bezalel Smotrich, Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi, and Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar subsequently urged Winter and other right-wing candidates polling below the electoral threshold to follow Gantz's example.

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Smotrich met with Rabbi Eli Sadan, founder of the Bnei David pre-military academy and Winter's former rabbi, in an apparent effort to enlist his influence in persuading Winter to withdraw.

On Wednesday, Netanyahu publicly appealed to Winter to withdraw after dozens of bereaved families from the recent war published an open letter warning that votes for his party could jeopardize a right-wing victory.

"Ofer Winter, listen to the bereaved families, show responsibility and withdraw, for the sake of right-wing victory!" Netanyahu stated.

So far, he refuses to listen to reason, and if his party does end up costing votes for the right, he'll have to bear serious accountability for that. Levin's got some valid points.

Larry David may have gotten something right

The entertainer who co-created Seinfeld had some interesting stuff to say about the Democratic Socialists of America and the harm they're leading to:

In The View From Here (paywalled), David takes some fairly light shots at the DSA. It’s been a long time since Larry David was edgy and he isn’t edgy here. (To be fair, it might sound better as a standup bit than as a written text.) Like a lot of Democrat comedy that punches left, it acts as if the left is just foolishly naive, or maybe its punch lines are just dressed up in that ‘clown nose on’ defense.

Take the satire that bites at the end of that last sentence. “When the D.S.A. takes over, it will be our policy to close the jails and release all prisoners… People will be encouraged to give them a pat on the back, offer some words of encouragement, and maybe even get them to open up about their crimes. Imagine how upsetting it must be to know you’ve taken a life!”

Or take this ticker that Larry David bought to his own cancelation. “The D.S.A. has great respect for religious traditions. Because of our burgeoning Muslim population, we want to take all measures to give these people a strong sense of belonging in America. Along those lines, we’ll require that all Caucasian women wear a hijab on weekends in solidarity with their Muslim sisters.”

That may be satire, but it does get at what the problem is with the DSA now. And it's not just caucasian women whom they want to make wear hijabs. It's also Black/Asian/Latina women. So the question now is, will any women wake up and recognize what's wrong with the DSA?