Vice President JD Vance is brushing aside any suggestion of tension between himself and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, calling him “my best friend in the administration” and crediting their partnership for much of the Trump team’s success.
During an appearance on the New York Post’s “Pod Force One” podcast, Vance spoke warmly about Rubio and their working relationship. “Marco is my best friend in the administration,” Vance said. “He and I work a lot together, and I think a lot of the good work we do comes from that cooperation.”
The vice president emphasized that he’s not distracted by 2028 speculation or thoughts of political maneuvering. “Worrying too much about the politics makes you worse at the job you have,” he said. “I never wake up thinking, ‘How do I make myself president of the United States?’” Instead, he said, his focus each day is simple: “How do I do a good job as vice president?” He added that he believes Rubio takes the same approach.
Talk of a potential Vance-Rubio ticket, he said, is “premature.” The two men share a history in the Senate — Rubio joined in 2010, while Vance was elected in 2022 — before both entered the Trump administration, where they’ve often appeared as a united front.
Their alliance came under renewed attention after President Donald Trump recently spoke with reporters aboard Air Force One, suggesting that both Vance and Rubio could lead the Republican Party when his second term concludes. “We have JD, the vice president, who’s great. Marco’s great,” Trump said. “If they ever formed a group, it would be unstoppable.”
Trump’s remarks once again sparked conversations about 2028 — and questions about whether he intended to rule out a third term. When asked directly, he replied, “Am I not ruling it out? You’ll have to tell me.”
The chatter intensified after Steve Bannon, Trump’s former White House adviser, told The Economist there was a “plan” to secure a third term, though he offered no details. Both Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson later stressed that such a move would be unconstitutional.
Johnson said the two had discussed the issue and made clear where Trump stands. “The president knows the constrictions of the Constitution,” he said. “As much as people lament that, those limits are clear.” The 22nd Amendment, adopted in 1951, bars any president from serving more than two elected terms.
Rubio has also praised Vance publicly. In a Fox interview earlier this year, he called the vice president a “great nominee” for 2028 and “a close friend,” noting that Vance has been doing “a great job” in his current role — comments that mirror the camaraderie Vance expressed this week.
{Matzav.com}
Operations at Newark Liberty International Airport came to a sudden halt Wednesday afternoon as the Federal Aviation Administration paused all incoming and outgoing flights, citing “staffing issues” tied to the ongoing government shutdown.
According to NBC4, the FAA implemented the ground stop at 3 p.m. local time, announcing that it would remain in place until 4:15 p.m. The move temporarily froze air traffic at one of the busiest airports on the East Coast, causing ripple effects across multiple flight schedules.
Shortly after, the FAA cleared the stoppage but replaced it with a ground delay that will stretch through 11 p.m., the agency confirmed in an advisory. The delay means airlines will have to pace departures and arrivals to manage limited staffing capacity throughout the evening.
Passengers were warned to brace for significant disruptions, with the FAA noting that “flights can expect an average delay of about 40 minutes.” The announcement comes as air travel nationwide continues to face turbulence from the ongoing political gridlock in Washington.
{Matzav.com}
A dramatic development within the Religious Zionist movement unfolded on Wednesday evening as Rav Tzvi Tau, president of Yeshivas Har Hamor and leader of the chardal (chareidi-nationalist) stream, issued a rare and powerful letter urging participation in Thursday’s mass atzeres tefillah in Yerushalayim.
“In these days, when young men devoted to their limud haTorah are being held behind bars as though their dedication to Torah study were a crime, our hearts cry out,” Rav Tau wrote. “I call upon all to take part in tomorrow’s public tefillah on behalf of those who learn Torah.”
The letter, titled “Es Achai Anochi Mevakeish,” calls for unity across all segments of Klal Yisroel. Rav Tau wrote that the pursuit of peace within the nation is a constant and lofty task: “The spirit of Hashem that rested upon Eliyahu—to turn the hearts of fathers to sons and sons to fathers—must reveal itself within us as well. The foundation of peace is the Name of Hashem Himself, through which Israel will be saved forever.”
He warned against divisive foreign influences: “At this sacred and awesome moment, little foxes from Europe and America come to damage the vineyard, to divide Klal Yisroel and separate the nation. We must consider what will become of such division if, Heaven forbid, the flag of unity and shared purpose is not raised high.”
Quoting his rebbi, Rav Tzvi Yehuda Kook zt”l, Rav Tau stressed that the state and the army belong equally to all Jews, and harmony between yeshiva students and soldiers is essential. “Our master Rav Tzvi Yehuda said repeatedly: ‘The state and the army belong to all of us. We are all avdei Hashem and members of His people. We are not two opposing sides, and coercion has no place here. Army officials cannot meddle in the inner workings of yeshivos, just as roshei yeshiva cannot dictate specific matters pertaining to the army.’”
Rav Tau continued, “Any attempt at coercion would be a disaster for the state. The young men immersed in Torah are not a burden—they are a national cultural treasure of the highest order. Their learning elevates the nation’s spirit and strengthens morale throughout our land and our army.”
He added that the army, too, must preserve its holiness and moral clarity: “We must correct and uproot the severe moral weaknesses that have crept into our camp, whether through mixed service contrary to holiness or through the infiltration of anti-Jewish and anti-Israel progressive ideas among the upper ranks of our military.”
According to Rav Tau, the mutual vitality of the army and the yeshivos is essential: “The revival of the army and the revival of Torah are both vital to the nation. The existence of yeshivos concerns us all—they safeguard the spiritual renaissance of Israel, the growth of great Torah scholars, righteous men, and visionaries. This is not a luxury—it is a necessity for our national life.”
He concluded with a heartfelt call to action: “The organizers should be blessed, and their hands strengthened. I call upon everyone to come and take part in tomorrow’s tefillah b’rabbim for the sake of Torah learners, for our nation, and for our holy cities. Even if anyone dares to speak against the sanctity of our state or our army—his words are null and void. We will stand proudly under the banner of Hashem.”
“Oseh shalom bimromav—may He bring peace upon us and upon all of Israel,” Rav Tau ended. “No weapon formed against you shall prosper… this is the heritage of the servants of Hashem,” he wrote.
Following the letter’s release, MK Avi Maoz, head of the Noam Party, announced that “in light of the words of my teacher and master, Rav Tau shlit”a, I will, with Hashem’s help, attend tomorrow’s atzeres tefillah in solidarity with those who learn Torah.”
{Matzav.com}At Yeshivas Kisei Rachamim, the rosh yeshiva, Rav Tzvi Mazuz, delivered a powerful address marking the start of the winter zeman, urging bnei Torah to remain detached from the distractions of the media and to find refuge within the batei midrash.
As is the yeshiva’s long-standing custom, established by the late rosh yeshiva, Rav Meir Mazuz zt”l, talmidim returned from bein hazemanim Sunday to begin the new zeman. Rav Tzvi Mazuz, who continues his father’s legacy, opened the zeman with words of chizuk and reflection, touching on current challenges facing the Torah world, including the draft decree, the hostages’ release, and recent political developments.
“The Yeshiva Is the Teivas Noach”
Drawing on Parshas Noach, Rav Mazuz likened the yeshiva to Noach’s teivah, a haven from the floodwaters of the outside world. “The yeshiva is the Teivas Noach,” he said. “If not for my father’s firm protection, I don’t know what would have become of us. Whoever wants to remain a diamond must stay inside the teivah. Noach didn’t step out for fresh air—he knew that to survive, he needed to remain inside. Today, the batei midrash are our teivos Noach. The more one stays inside, the more protected he is.”
He cited the tefillah of Rabbi Nechunya ben HaKanah: “She’samta chelkeinu miyoshvei beis hamidrash velo samta chelkeinu miyoshvei keranos”—explaining that even being in the yeshiva provides spiritual protection. “Just sitting in the beis midrash shields a person from the harmful winds outside,” he said. “And if he also learns Torah—how much greater his merit!”
On “News Lines” and Constant Information
The rosh yeshiva voiced strong criticism of the growing trend among bochurim of following news lines and phone updates. “I heard that today you can call a number and every minute hear what’s happening in the world. Dvarim beteilim! I look at a newspaper briefly after Shacharis—just the headlines—and baruch Hashem, I’m alive. I don’t turn on the radio, maybe I hear something by chance in the car, but I don’t devote time to it—and baruch Hashem, I’m alive. A person must train himself not to be tied down thinking, ‘I have to know the news.’ That’s not the way!”
He contrasted this with bochurim who spend their breaks immersed in learning even during bein hazemanim: “I saw bochurim sitting alone here learning quietly. About them it says, ‘Yeishev badad veyidom ki natal alav’. One who learns in solitude—Hashem Himself determines his reward.”
“The Miracles We See Are in the Merit of the Lomdei Torah”
Rav Mazuz turned to recent world events, expressing gratitude for the open miracles seen in the return of hostages after two years in captivity. “Who imagined that they would be released exactly two years to the day? We’ve seen great miracles. Kimei tzeischa me’eretz Mitzrayim ar’enu niflaos—Hashem is showing us wonders before the redemption.”
He referenced the Trump peace plan, which proposed removing Hamas leaders and disarming the group. “I saw the twenty clauses Trump wrote—though my heart tells me Netanyahu wrote them and Trump copied,” he quipped. “But yehi ratzon, let good come from anywhere. I believe with complete faith that all of this is in the merit of the bochurim who sit and learn. We don’t see it now, but after 120 years, it will be clear which miracles happened because of which Torah.”
“Moshiach Is Near”
Concluding his remarks, Rav Mazuz spoke with emotion about the draft crisis threatening bnei Torah. “We all feel that Moshiach is close. Never before have bnei Torah been persecuted like this past year. A bochur who was sitting shivah—they came in the middle of the week and took him away because he hadn’t reported to the draft office. These are the signs the Gemara in Sotah described 1,800 years ago. It’s like a woman in the final stages of labor—the pain is great, but it’s a sign of imminent birth. So too, we are close to the geulah, and ashrei is the one who uses this time to strengthen himself.”
{Matzav.com}
