Lakewood Alerts regrets to inform you of the petirah of Harav Shmuel Breskin zt”l, a tremendous talmid chochom and longtime Lakewood residents who was niftar over Shabbos. Read the full details on Lakewood Alerts
House and Senate Republicans are taking slightly different approaches when it comes to the tax cuts that lawmakers are looking to include in their massive tax and spending cuts bill. Republicans in the two chambers don’t agree on the size of a deduction for state and local taxes. And they are at odds on such things as allowing people to use their health savings accounts to help pay for their gym membership, or whether electric vehicle and hybrid owners should have to pay an annual fee. The House passed its version shortly before Memorial Day. Now the Senate is looking to pass its version. While the two bills are similar on the major tax provisions, how they work out their differences in the coming weeks will determine how quickly they can get a final product over the finish line. President Donald Trump is pushing to have the legislation on his desk by July 4th. Here’s a look at some of the key differences between the two bills: Tax break for families The child tax credit currently stands at $2,000 per child. The House bill temporarily boosts the child tax credit to $2,500 for the 2025 through 2028 tax years, roughly the length of President Donald Trump’s second term. It also indexes the credit amount for inflation beginning in 2027. The Senate bill provides a smaller, initial bump-up to $2,200, but the bump is permanent, with the credit amount indexed for inflation beginning next year. Trump campaign promises Trump promised on the campaign trail that he would seek to end income taxes on tips, overtime and Social Security benefits. Also, he would give car buyers a new tax break by allowing them to deduct the interest paid on auto loans. The House and Senate bills incorporate those promises with temporary deductions lasting from the 2025 through 2028 tax years, but with some differences. The House bill creates a deduction on tips for those working in jobs that have customarily received tips. The House also provides for a deduction for overtime that’s equal to the amount of OT a worker has earned. The Senate bill comes with more restrictions. The deduction for tips is limited to $25,000 per taxpayer and the deduction for overtime is limited to $12,500 per taxpayer. The House and Senate bills both provide a deduction of up to $10,000 for interest paid on loans for vehicles made in the United States. And on Social Security, the bills don’t directly touch the program. Instead, they grant a larger tax deduction for Americans age 65 and older. The House sets the deduction at $4,000. The Senate sets it at $6,000. Both chambers include income limits over which the new deductions begin to phase out. More SALT The caps on state and local tax deductions, known in Washington as the SALT cap, now stand at $10,000. The House bill, in a bid to win over Republicans from New York, California and New Jersey, lifts the cap to $40,000 per household with incomes of less than $500,000. The credit phases down for households earning more than $500,000. The Senate bill keeps the cap at $10,000. That’s a non-starter in the House, but Republicans in the two chambers will look to negotiate a final number over the coming weeks that both sides can […]
California’s challenge of the Trump administration’s military deployment in Los Angeles returned to a federal courtroom in San Francisco on Friday for a brief hearing after an appeals court handed President Donald Trump a key procedural win. U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer put off issuing any additional rulings and instead asked for briefings from both sides by noon Monday on whether the Posse Comitatus Act, which prohibits troops from conducting civilian law enforcement on U.S. soil, is being violated in Los Angeles. The hearing happened the day after the 9th Circuit appellate panel allowed the president to keep control of National Guard troops he deployed in response to protests over immigration raids. California Gov. Gavin Newsom said in his complaint that “violation of the Posse Comitatus Act is imminent, if not already underway” but Breyer last week postponed considering that allegation. Vice President JD Vance, a Marine veteran, traveled to Los Angeles on Friday and met with troops, including U.S. Marines who have been deployed to protect federal buildings. According to Vance, the court determined Trump’s determination to send in federal troops “was legitimate” and he will do it again if necessary. “The president has a very simple proposal to everybody in every city, every community, every town whether big or small, if you enforce your own laws and if you protect federal law enforcement, we’re not going to send in the National Guard because it’s unnecessary,” Vance told journalists after touring a federal complex in Los Angeles. Vance’s tour of a multiagency Federal Joint Operations Center and a mobile command center came as demonstrations have calmed after sometimes-violent clashes between protesters and police and outbreaks of vandalism and break-ins that followed immigration raids across Southern California earlier this month. Tens of thousands have also marched peacefully in Los Angeles since June 8. National Guard troops have been accompanying federal agents on some immigration raids, and Marines briefly detained a man on the first day they deployed to protect a federal building. The marked the first time federal troops detained a civilian since deploying to the nation’s second-largest city. Trump allowed to keep control of National Guard Breyer found Trump acted illegally when, over opposition from California’s governor, the president activated the soldiers. However, the appellate decision halted the judge’s temporary restraining order. Breyer asked the lawyers on Friday to address whether he or the appellate court retains primary jurisdiction to grant an injunction under the Posse Comitatus Act. California has sought a preliminary injunction giving Newsom back control of the troops in Los Angeles, where protests have calmed down in recent days. Trump, a Republican, argued that the troops have been necessary to restore order. Newsom, a Democrat, said their presence on the streets of a U.S. city inflamed tensions, usurped local authority and wasted resources. Los Angeles mayor lifts curfew after protests subside The demonstrations appear to be winding down, although dozens of protesters showed up Thursday at Dodger Stadium, where a group of federal agents gathered at a parking lot with their faces covered, traveling in SUVs and cargo vans. The Los Angeles Dodgers organization asked them to leave, and they did. On Tuesday, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass lifted a downtown curfew that was first imposed in response to vandalism and clashes with police after crowds […]
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has been hiding in a bunker since the launch of Israel’s war on Iran and has secretly named three clerics as possible successors in the event he is killed, the New York Times reported on Shabbos. The report added that Khamenei, 86, has also appointed replacements for top military commanders, fearing that additional senior army figures will be targeted by Israel. According to three Iranian sources quoted in the report, Khamenei has ceased using all digital means of communication due to fear of detection and is carrying out all his communications via an aide. Khamenei’s son, Mojtaba, who has been considered a possible successor, was not one of the three names identified by Khamenei. (YWN’s Jerusalem desk is keeping you updated on Motzei Shabbos in Israel.)
The U.S. evacuated 79 staff and families from the U.S. Embassy in Israel on Friday as the conflict between Israel and Iran intensifies and growing numbers of private American citizens seek information on how to leave Israel and Iran. An internal State Department memo says the military flight, the second known to have occurred this week, left Tel Aviv for Sofia, Bulgaria, where some or all of the passengers were to get a connecting charter flight to Washington. The document, which was obtained by The Associated Press, also said that more than 6,400 U.S. citizens in Israel had filled out an online form on Friday alone asking for information about when and if the U.S. government would organize evacuation flights. An additional 3,265 people, some of whom may also have completed the form, called an emergency number seeking assistance. The document estimated that between 300 and 500 people per day could need evacuation assistance should the U.S. decide to offer flights or ships to get Americans out, as the U.S. ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, has said is being considered. There are some 700,000 Americans in Israel, many of them dual nationals, according to estimates, although the exact number at any given time is unclear because U.S. citizens are not required to notify the embassy if they are there or when they might leave. Earlier Friday, before the memo was distributed, State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce told reporters that more than 25,000 Americans had reached out for information on leaving Israel, the West Bank and Iran. She told reporters that those people had sought “information and support” and were “seeking guidance” on departing. She would not give a breakdown of where the queries had come from and would not comment on embassy evacuations. In Iran, the document said that at least 84 U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents, or Green Card holders, had crossed into neighboring Azerbaijan by land since the conflict began and that an additional 774 had been granted permission to enter as of Friday. Nearly 200 American citizens and Green Card holders are awaiting permission to travel overland from Iran to neighboring Turkmenistan, it said. (AP) (YWN’s Jerusalem desk is keeping you updated on Motzei Shabbos in Israel.)
Iran launched a barrage of about 10 ballistic missiles at Israel on Friday night at about 3 a.m. B’chasdei Hashem, the rockets were intercepted, and no one was injured in the barrage. Iran also launched about 40 drones at Israel on Friday night and Shabbos. Most were intercepted, but one hit a house in the northern city of Beit She’an, the first time a drone fired by Iran at Israel damaged property since the war began. A fire broke out at the site, but Baruch Hashem no one was injured. Two other drones fell in open areas. The video below shows the scene of a drone hit in the Arava: IDF spokesperson Effie Defrin said on Motzei Shabbos that Iran has launched over 1,000 drones at Israel since the beginning of the war, and most of them have been intercepted by the IDF. On Motzei Shabbos, the IDF published a video of Iranian drones being intercepted: (YWN’s Jerusalem desk is keeping you updated on Motzei Shabbos in Israel.)
A missile launched by Iran struck the downtown area of Haifa on Friday, sending shockwaves that damaged the historic Al Jarina Grand Mosque and nearby infrastructure. The blast shattered the mosque’s stained glass windows and caused structural damage to the 18th-century building. The Al Jarina Mosque, originally built in 1775 and expanded in 1901, typically draws around 200 worshippers on Fridays. However, only 15 people attended prayers due to a Home Front Command directive prohibiting large gatherings amid ongoing hostilities, according to Wakf representative Khaled Dagash. Dagash reported that the missile hit after services had concluded and the building was empty. One person, whose identity is unknown, was lightly injured outside the mosque. He also expressed concern that government compensation might not suffice to restore the damage, especially as the mosque was already undergoing renovation at the time of the strike. Shockwaves from the blast also blew out windows at the Masjid Al-Saghir, another historic mosque dating back to 1761. No additional damage was reported at that site. President Yitzchak Herzog strongly condemned the attack, stating that “Iran is trying to kill Israelis of all faiths — Muslims included.” He emphasized Israel’s commitment to protecting all its citizens, saying, “We will defend all Israelis. All faiths included.” (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir warned on Friday that Israel must brace for a “prolonged campaign” against Iran, declaring that the military will not allow an existential threat to mature unchecked. In a rare and forceful video statement, Zamir said that Iran has been methodically working toward Israel’s destruction for years, with recent developments pushing its capabilities to a dangerous new level. “The plan reached the point of no return,” he said. “The capabilities reached operational readiness.” According to Zamir, at the time Israel launched its preemptive campaign, Iran had amassed around 2,500 ground-to-ground missiles, with production on track to exceed 8,000 within two years. Iran’s growing missile arsenal, coupled with its nuclear ambitions and network of regional proxies, “compelled us to strike,” he said. “We have prepared for this operation for years,” Zamir added. “It was launched at the moment when operational and strategic conditions converged. Had we waited, we would have faced a campaign from a position of disadvantage—and history would not have forgiven that failure.” Zamir described the opening wave of Israeli strikes as a “surprise” offensive that delivered “extraordinary results.” These included the elimination of senior Iranian command figures, severe damage to Iran’s nuclear infrastructure, the opening of an aerial corridor toward Tehran, and the destruction of roughly half of Iran’s missile launchers—some just minutes before launch. While the strikes have set Iran back, Zamir emphasized that the campaign is far from over. “We have embarked on the most complex campaign in our nation’s history,” he said. “It demands our full readiness and unity. Challenging days lie ahead.” Addressing Israeli citizens directly, Zamir acknowledged the toll the war has taken on the home front, as Iran and its proxies continue to target civilian areas. “This is a different kind of challenge,” he said. “But our enemies fail to understand that the Israeli home front is not a weakness—it is the source of the IDF’s strength.” Zamir concluded with a message of determination: “The IDF is prepared. Our freedom of action is growing, and the enemy’s is shrinking. The campaign is not over, but I am confident that we will finish it with Israel’s hand on top.” (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
Israeli Air Force fighter jets struck several Hezbollah military sites in southern Lebanon a short while ago, the IDF says. According to the military, the sites included rocket launchers and caches of weapons.
ELIMINATED: The IDF confirms it has eliminated the chief of finance for Hamas’ military wing, and aide to eliminated deputy military commander Marwan Issa, Ibrahim Abu Shumala, in an airstrike in the central Gaza Strip earlier this week.
IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir says Israelis must prepare for a “prolonged campaign” against Iran, in order to “eliminate a threat of this magnitude.” In a video statement, Zamir says that Iran has been “building for years a clear plan to destroy the State of Israel” and that in recent months, “the plan reached the point of no return, where the capabilities reached operational capability.”
LAKEWOOD: Today, Reb Itche Rosenbaum gathered the team at “Madison Title” to deliver a powerful and emotional announcement: the hopeful return of glory to the company. With the humility and strength of a true Ben Torah, Reb Itche delivered the news not as a corporate executive, but as someone whose life is rooted in emunah and dedication to the klal. Through his Adopt-a-Kollel initiative and unwavering support for Toraso B’Umnaso, Reb Itche has championed limud haTorah and chesed for decades. Even as Madison Title faced significant challenges over the past two years, he never wavered in his commitment to what truly matters.
The IDF Home Front Command, after a recent assessment, has maintained its guidelines, allowing gatherings of up to 30 people in most areas if a shelter is accessible, and up to 50 outdoors and 100 indoors near Israel’s borders. Workplaces nationwide can operate under these conditions, but schools remain closed, with the guidelines in effect until Saturday night when a new assessment will be conducted.
YWN UPDATE: ISRAEL AT WAR – THE NUMBERS AS OF FRIDAY AT 3:00PM • Over 520 ballistic missiles launched. • About 400 Drones. • More than 50 impact sites. INJURIES: • 24 people were murdered. • 1,217 people injured: 12 in serious condition, 49 in moderate condition, 1,156 with light injuries. DAMAGES: 30,735 damage claims received by Israel Tax Authority: • 25,040 related to buildings. • 2,623 related to vehicles. • 3,006 related to other property. • 8,190 people were evacuated from their homes.
