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Step Inside Kollel Cheshek Shlomo
More than 2,000 years ago, the Chashmonaim merited miracles because they didn’t stop at “good enough.” Their dedication to serving Hashem unlocked success above and beyond the laws of nature, as symbolized by the number eight.
Today, in Lakewood, the fire of that dedication continues to burn. Kollel Cheshek Shlomo, founded 8 years ago by Harav Avrohom Yeshaya Appel, has distinguished itself through single-minded focus on its mission: allowing a top-tier group of driven yungeleit to focus exclusively on their learning, without the many distractions that plague busy young families.
Generous stipends, a customized schedule, an onsite subsidized daycare center, and bechinos that provide accountability and motivation are just a few of the KCS trademarks. A campus providing affordable student housing is underway.
Roshei Kollel Rav Yisroel Rothstein, Rav Yehuda Friedman, Rav Refoel Bisritz, and Rav Yeshaya Perl are constantly available to support the yungeleit in their limudim or anything else they need.
The “average” KCS yungerman learns 10-12 hours a day, without going home for lunch. On taaneisim, the kol Torah continues unabated without a break for bein hasedorim, with the majority of yungeleit voluntarily learning two straight sedorim–7 hours b’retzifus–while fasting.
In KCS, “good enough” and “what everyone does” are just the starting point.
The dedicated yungeleit complete entire masechtos b’iyun, with their bechinos, including the prestigious V’shinantem program, testament to their mastery of both depth and breadth of Shas.
The mutual dedication of the hanhalah to the yungeleit, and the yungeleit to their learning, creates an atmosphere that is electric, fueling extraordinary growth.
The 90+ yungeleit in the kollel, as well as over 200 in affiliated chaburos, are supported by a budget totaling over $450,000 monthly. Celebrate their dedication, above and beyond, by partnering with Kollel Cheshek Shlomo and Mosdos Kinyan Torah today.
A dramatic gathering is expected to take place this week, as the Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah of Agudas Yisroel plans an emergency session in response to the proposed draft framework advanced by MK Bismuth.
According to sources, the meeting is scheduled to take place at the residence of the Vizhnitzer Rebbe in Moshav Ora. Rabbi Yaakov Veltzer, the Moetzes secretary, has been visiting the homes of gedolim to coordinate attendance and finalize arrangements for the session.
In a rare and highly significant step, several of the most prominent Sephardi roshei yeshiva and senior rabbonim are expected to join the meeting. Among those slated to participate are Rav Moshe Tzadkah, Rav Ben Zion Mutzapi, and Rav Tzvi Baron, along with other leading Sephardi authorities.
The joint participation of Chassidic leaders and major Sephardi Torah figures highlights the gravity of the moment and the broad agreement that the new draft outline poses a serious threat to the Torah community.
This emergency session comes approximately six months after the last gathering in Ora, when the Moetzes issued a sweeping directive calling on Agudas Yisroel representatives to withdraw from the government. In that previous declaration, the gedolim stated that it was no longer appropriate to remain in a government that, in their view, facilitated pressure on the Torah world and violated prior agreements. They instructed Agudah’s elected officials to leave the coalition and resign their positions.
With the draft controversy once again reaching a boiling point, political observers say the upcoming meeting may lead to similarly far-reaching decisions. The issue of conscription and what gedolim describe as a dangerous escalation against the yeshiva world could trigger major political upheaval and force United Torah Judaism and Agudas Yisroel to reconsider their place in the coalition.
{Matzav.com}
House Speaker Mike Johnson paid a formal visit Sunday to the Skverer Rebbe in New Square, where he revealed that preparations are underway for a forthcoming meeting between the Rebbe and President Donald Trump at the White House in Washington.
The Speaker’s stop in New Square came after he and Congressman Mike Lawler attended a fundraising event in Stony Point, Rockland County earlier in the afternoon. From there, the two lawmakers traveled to the Rebbe’s residence for what participants described as a warm and meaningful encounter.
Both Johnson and Lawler informed the Rebbe that they are actively arranging a private meeting in Washington between the Rebbe and President Trump, with the sit-down expected to take place in the near future.
Community askanim expressed deep appreciation for the Speaker’s involvement and for Congressman Lawler’s ongoing advocacy on behalf of local Jewish mosdos and schools.
This latest development follows a personal gesture from President Trump just two weeks ago, when he sent the Skverer Rebbe a heartfelt congratulatory letter in honor of the wedding of the Rebbe’s granddaughter. The message, printed on official White House stationery, conveyed warm wishes from the President and First Lady Melania Trump, offering blessings for joy, peace, and a home “built on tradition and guided by purpose.”
{Matzav.com}
Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu signaled that meaningful movement toward the second stage of the U.S.-crafted Gaza end-game is within reach, yet he warned that several unresolved questions—chief among them the scope and makeup of any international security presence—still stand in the way.
Standing beside German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in Jerusalem, Netanyahu told reporters that he expects to engage in significant talks with President Donald Trump later this month, conversations he views as essential to securing the next phase of the proposal.
Although Trump extended an invitation to Netanyahu “in the near future” back in November, the date for that White House meeting has still not been officially released.
Netanyahu said he intends to use his discussions with Trump to address the broader objective of eliminating Hamas control in Gaza. The current ceasefire, now moving into its second month, remains fragile, with both Israel and Hamas repeatedly accusing one another of undermining the agreement.
He emphasized that the terror group must not only maintain the fragile truce but must also honor “their commitment” to relinquish its weapons and allow Gaza to be fully demilitarized.
Under the first chapter of Trump’s plan, Israel maintained authority over 53% of Gaza as hostage exchanges and reciprocal detainee releases were executed. The final unresolved handover involves the remains of an Israeli police officer who fell in battle on October 7, 2023, while confronting invading terrorists. “We’ll get him out,” Netanyahu said.
Despite the pause in fighting, Hamas has managed to reconstitute itself in areas of Gaza not controlled by Israel.
The next stage of the American blueprint envisions Israel withdrawing further as a transitional administration takes hold in Gaza, a multinational force arrives on the ground, Hamas is stripped of its arsenal, and reconstruction efforts begin.
A multinational coordination hub has already been set up inside Israel, though insiders acknowledge the plan has no binding schedule and that momentum has slowed.
“What will be the timeline? What are the forces that are coming in? Will we have international forces? If not, what are the alternatives? These are all topics that are being discussed,” Netanyahu noted, calling them critical matters still in play.
Chancellor Merz said that Germany is prepared to assist with rebuilding Gaza but will wait until Netanyahu’s upcoming conversation with Trump clarifies Washington’s intentions. He added that phase two “must come now.”
Even during the ceasefire, Israel has launched numerous strikes, arguing they were aimed at preempting imminent threats or dismantling terrorist infrastructure. Gaza’s health authorities claim 373 Palestinians have died since the truce began, while three Israeli soldiers have been killed by terrorists.
Netanyahu said he also plans to speak with Trump about “opportunities for peace,” a nod to ongoing American efforts to expand Israel’s normalization with Arab and Muslim countries. “We believe there’s a path to advance a broader peace with the Arab states, and a path also to establish a workable peace with our Palestinian neighbors,” Netanyahu said, reiterating that Israel will continue to demand security control over the West Bank.
Trump has conveyed to Muslim leaders that Israel will not annex the West Bank, even as members of Netanyahu’s coalition continue to promote settlement expansion. The “question of political annexation” remains unresolved, Netanyahu acknowledged.
{Matzav.com}
Amid charges against dozens of Somali immigrants in a series of multimillion-dollar alleged fraud schemes in Minnesota, Rep. Ilhan Omar, whose district includes much of Minneapolis, told “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,” that if allegations of a connection between tax dollars and al Qaeda affiliate al Shabaab are true, “that is a failure of the FBI and our court system.” She added that “if that is the case, if money from U.S. tax dollars is being sent to help with terrorism in Somalia, we want to know and we want those people prosecuted and we want to make sure that it doesn’t ever happen again.”
WATCH:
Tucker Carlson stepped into an unusual role at the Doha Forum, taking the stage across from Qatar’s foreign minister, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman, while joking about accusations that he’s in the pocket of Doha’s rulers. Critics like Laura Loomer have long pushed that narrative, but Carlson brushed it off with a grin, insisting again that he has never accepted a cent from Qatar. “I’m American and a free man and I’ll be wherever I want to be,” he declared to applause, adding with mock seriousness, “I have given my money to Qatar, and want to ask if that means that I bought you, and that you will spread my propaganda?” The line broke the ice before the conversation shifted into heavier terrain.
The audience quickly saw the tone shift as Carlson pushed the foreign minister on the fallout from Israel’s Sept. 9 strike in Doha. Israel had justified the bombing by claiming Hamas operatives were present—and Carlson pressed on the obvious contradiction: wasn’t it Israel and the United States who had asked Qatar to host those officials precisely to facilitate negotiations? The foreign minister confirmed that both governments had indeed requested the Hamas presence and emphasized the principle at play. “The concept of mediation is that it is a safe place for the two parties … to have a mediator be bombed by one of the parties in the conflict is unprecedented and I have said that many times. I think it is not acceptable, no one can swallow it.”
From there, Carlson introduced the elephant in the room: Washington’s stance. He restated that Trump had no advance notice of Prime Minister Netanyahu’s order to target Hamas operatives inside a residential Doha neighborhood, and that the operation derailed a delicate ceasefire push. The Qatari minister did not disagree. “President Trump was very clear from the beginning, since the attack …he expressed his frustration, his disappointment for such a thing,” he said. He stressed that Qatar had been instrumental in the negotiations. “He knows how helpful we were to this process. This kind of move was shocking for him…it was happening while we were trying to convince Hamas to sign the offer by President Trump at that time.”
The foreign minister went even further, saying the strike crossed a line the U.S. leader had explicitly set. “He made it clear to everyone that this was a red line,” he said, characterizing the bombing as part of “many efforts to sabotage the relations between Qatar and the United States.” Carlson noted that the U.S. later pushed Netanyahu to apologize, followed soon after by a significant new security agreement between Washington and Doha.
Another part of the conversation tackled the long-running effort to paint Qatar as a financier of Islamist extremism. The foreign minister blasted those portrayals as deliberate smears. He reminded the room that Doha’s funding in Gaza was humanitarian support provided with Israel’s approval and with full visibility from the U.S. “When they claim this financing of Hamas it has no basis,” he said. He added that Qatar’s lobbying in Washington has a simple aim: “To make sure we are not being attacked.” As he put it, “Qatar has never gone to the U.S. to encourage them to bomb this country or support that country. We have always been about how we can get to peace in the region.”
When the discussion turned to the Trump peace plan and the question of rebuilding Gaza, the foreign minister insisted that Qatar would not shoulder the reconstruction costs alone. He argued that meaningful progress cannot begin until Israeli military activity stops, and dismissed the idea that Doha would be writing the major checks for postwar rebuilding. “We are not the ones who are going to write the check,” he said, although he reiterated that Qatar will continue supporting Palestinians directly.
{Matzav.com}
Just days after wiping away the federal bribery case against him, President Donald Trump publicly rebuked Texas Congressman Henry Cuellar for sticking with the Democratic Party and immediately filing for another term under its banner.
Cuellar and his wife were pardoned on Wednesday, clearing them of allegations that they took payments from Azerbaijan and a Mexican financial institution in exchange for political favors. That same day, the congressman signaled he would stay put as a Democrat and announced his re-election bid.
Trump, reacting on Sunday, claimed Cuellar had been “punished” by Democrats because he occasionally challenged the party’s stance on immigration—only to then complain that Cuellar had repaid his intervention with disloyalty.
His remarks underscored once again the expectation Trump places on individuals who benefit from his help. “I never spoke to the Congressman, his wife, or his daughters, but felt very good about fighting for a family that was tormented by very sick and deranged people – They were treated sooo BADLY!” he wrote on Truth Social. “Such a lack of LOYALTY, something that Texas Voters, and Henry’s daughters, will not like. Oh’ well, next time, no more Mr. Nice guy!”
Cuellar, long known as one of the House’s more moderate Democrats, represents a South Texas district that Republicans redrew in August to strengthen their chances there. Even with the new map, Cuellar remains a formidable incumbent with a viable path to victory in the 2026 midterms.
The GOP gained another advantage on Thursday when the U.S. Supreme Court allowed Texas’s revised congressional map to stand, a significant win for Republicans aiming to preserve their majority in the House.
{Matzav.com}
President Donald Trump’s newly launched “Trump accounts” initiative is reshaping the conversation about how early Americans should begin building financial security. The program sets aside $1,000 for every child born from 2025 through 2028, placing the funds directly into investment accounts designed to grow with the stock market over nearly two decades.
The Treasury Department’s financial agent would open each account and invest the seed money in broad U.S. equity index funds, including options tied to the S&P 500. Families would later gain the ability to transfer the account to a brokerage of their choosing, though several operational details and specific investment options have yet to be finalized.
Supporters argue the initiative offers children access to the kinds of investment vehicles that typically benefit families who already participate in the markets. By focusing on market exposure and growth rather than traditional savings accounts, the plan aims to give all families—even those who do not regularly invest—an early stake in long-term wealth-building.
University at Buffalo finance professor Scott Laing emphasized that the strategy hinges on the power of compounding, telling KCRA that the real advantage over bank savings is the steady accumulation of earnings on top of prior gains. According to Laing, the S&P 500 has averaged more than 10% annual returns since 1957, meaning an initial $1,000 investment could balloon to roughly $5,600 by the time a child turns 18.
However, Laing noted that the final amount may be reduced once taxes and penalties enter the picture. KCRA reported that when the account automatically converts into an IRA at age 18, withdrawals taken before age 59½ may incur the standard 10% early-withdrawal penalty along with applicable taxes. As a result, the spendable value could land closer to $3,600 depending on individual circumstances.
The initiative is folded into Trump’s broader “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” with July 4, 2026, targeted as the official launch date. Funds inside the account would grow tax-deferred, and contributions from families could reach up to $5,000 per year, with anticipated employer participation capped at about $2,500 annually.
While critics contend the greatest benefits may accrue to families capable of adding more money, advocates say the broader goal is to democratize access to American economic growth. Even a small foothold in the markets, they argue, can become a foothold in the country’s future.
Adding significant momentum to the effort, billionaires Michael and Susan Dell announced a $6.25 billion commitment to support 25 million young children living in ZIP codes with median family incomes at or below $150,000. Their pledge injects major private-sector backing into a program aiming to bring millions of Americans into the investment economy from birth.
{Matzav.com}
At a high-profile gathering at the Doha Forum, Donald Trump Jr. raised the possibility that President Donald Trump could decide to step away from the U.S.-led push to resolve the Russia-Ukraine war. In remarks that challenged both the current diplomatic track and the political motivations of those involved, he cautioned that the United States should not feel compelled to bankroll an indefinite effort without clear prospects for an end to the fighting.
Sky News reported that when Trump Jr. was asked directly whether the president might back out of the peace initiative, he responded plainly, “I think he may.” He argued that his father’s decision-making style keeps foreign leaders on edge, saying his father is “unpredictable,” which, in his view, forces other negotiators “to negotiate more honestly.”
According to The Guardian, Trump Jr. offered a harsh assessment of Kyiv’s leadership, accusing Ukraine of prolonging the war and alleging that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy personally benefits from the conflict’s continuation. He claimed Zelenskyy has been elevated by liberal politicians into a “borderline deity,” raising doubts about whether the massive sums sent abroad are being monitored with sufficient transparency.
His comments came shortly after U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, the president’s son-in-law, met with two senior Ukrainian officials in Miami. That meeting followed recent U.S.-Russia negotiations in Moscow and was cast as part of the administration’s ongoing attempt to explore possible off-ramps for the war.
Trump Jr. did not limit his criticism to Kyiv. He reserved sharp words for European governments as well, faulting their sanctions regime and mocking the idea that waiting for Russia to financially collapse constitutes a plan. The Guardian reported that he argued Europe’s measures have failed to choke off Russian war funding and instead contributed to rising global oil prices, giving Moscow continued revenue.
Returning repeatedly to an “America First” theme, Trump Jr. warned against the United States becoming, as he put it, “the idiot with the checkbook.” He insisted that most Americans do not rank Ukraine among the nation’s core priorities, especially when issues such as drug trafficking and cartel activity pose what he called a “far greater clear and present danger” to U.S. communities.
He drew a contrast between the administration’s aggressive efforts against criminal networks and what he described as public fatigue over “endless wars,” arguing that the narcotics crisis endangers American families more immediately than a distant battlefield stalemate.
At one point, Trump Jr. referenced seeing numerous high-end cars with Ukrainian plates in Monaco, using the anecdote to claim that wealthy Ukrainians have largely avoided the hardships of war while ordinary citizens endure its sacrifices. He went even further by asserting that Ukraine is “far more corrupt than Russia,” remarks that are likely to ignite debate among supporters of sustained U.S. aid to Kyiv.
{Matzav.com}
