December 23, 2016 marked a new nadir for the United Nations Security Council as it adopted a shameful resolution questioning the very legitimacy of Israel's presence at the holy Western Wall in Jerusalem. Lost in the rancor of this resolution, however, was a statement Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had made 10 days earlier declaring Israel's intent to compete for a non-permanent seat on this very same Security Council.Now, more than ever, it is time for Israel to take its place as a leader in the world's premiere international organization. Our country is qualified, well equipped and well prepared for this important role.

The prospect of the overturn of Roe v. Wade - which the U.S. Supreme Court confirmation struggle over Judge Neil Gorsuch is highlighting - is terrifying to many, especially to those who remember the notorious pre-Roe days. It is also a real possibility, should President Donald Trump have the opportunity for another nomination, one that would replace a liberal judge with a "pro-life" one, as he pledged to do during the campaign. But if Roe falls, women may not face the same kinds of physical dangers from seeking abortion as in previous decades. Instead, however, I predict there will be far more criminal prosecutions of those involved in illegal abortion.    

An array of Jewish organizations joined a letter from religious groups to Congress urging the preservation of a law banning tax-exempt status to faith groups that endorse candidates and parties - one that President Donald Trump says he hopes to rescind. "Houses of worship are spaces for members of religious communities to come together, not be divided along political lines," said the letter signed by 99 groups and addressed to the leaders of both parties in the House of Representatives and Senate, as well as to the leaders of tax-writing committees.

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Widespread political ignorance is a serious problem, and affects public opinion on many issues. Immigration figures prominently on the list of those issues. During the 2016 campaign, Donald Trump effectively exploited public ignorance about the number of immigrants and their effect on the crime rate. Similar ignorance likely had an impact on the Brexit referendum in Britain. One of the most pernicious aspects of political ignorance is that many people, both right and left, tend to reject new information that conflicts with their preexisting views. Such "motivated reasoning" is particularly likely on emotionally charged issues, such as immigration.

Passover 5777 is the first Pesach since the president enacted one, then another, executive order - the superseding one now challenged in the courts - designed to restrict immigration from several predominantly Muslim nations. This year, refugees are "very much on people's minds," and the seder is the perfect time to mention them, said Rabbi Jonah Pesner, director of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism. "We all know what it was to be strangers in Mitzrayim [Egypt]."   

The U.S. Senate confirmed Neil M. Gorsuch to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court, capping more than a year of bitter partisan bickering over the ideological balance of the nation's highest court. Senators voted to confirm Gorsuch, 49, a Denver-based judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit, who will become the 113th person to serve on the Supreme Court.

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Facing significant Democratic opposition, Republicans on Thursday enacted the "nuclear option" to clear the way to confirm Neil Gorsuch as President Donald Trump's nominee to the Supreme Court. That confirmation vote is expected on Friday. Here we take a look at the nuclear option - what it is, how it works, its history and where the name comes from.

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For the first 10 weeks of President Trump's administration, no adviser loomed larger in the public imagination than Stephen Bannon, former chairman of Breitbart News who considers himself a "virulently anti-establishment" revolutionary out to destroy the "administrative state." But behind the scenes, White House officials said, the ideologist who enjoyed the president's confidence became increasingly embattled. Lately, Mr. Bannon has been conspicuously absent from some meetings. And now he has lost his seat at the national security table.  

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The Academy Award-winning director - the force behind "Schindler's List," "Saving Private Ryan," "E.T." and scores of other popular films - has shared his family matzah brei recipe with Goop, Gwyneth Paltrow's upscale food and lifestyle website. "Uncle Morty's Gourmet Matzos Brie," as it's called at Goop, calls for the slightly unusual method of soaking matzah pieces in milk instead of water. It also includes chopped onion - placing it definitively in the savory, not sweet, category.

In India, Water Gen is to deploy its technology to supply drinking water to remote villages in India with solar power from Vikar Solar. The Vietnam project is to generate tens of thousands of liters of water a day for the people of Hanoi. Water Gen also said in a statement that it plans to build a factory to produce technology for sale in the region.