Free Republic

As part of ongoing efforts to avoid layoffs because of budget shortfalls caused by the coronavirus pandemic shutdown, National Public Radio is cutting executive pay, the New York Times reported Monday. NYT reported that NPR CEO John Lansing will take a 25% pay reduction, while other NPR executives will see cuts ranging from 10% to 15%. In an email sent to employees on Friday, Lansing wrote that the cuts became necessary because the nonprofit will see donations from major corporate sponsors drop by as much as $12 million to $15 million as a result of the coronavirus shutdown. “We do...

NPR terminated its contract this evening with Juan Williams, who worked with them as a senior political analyst, after Williams appeared on Bill O’Reilly and spoke of a “Muslim dilemma:” Video The move came after Mr. Williams, who is also a Fox News political analyst, appeared on the “The O’Reilly Factor” on Monday. On the show, the host, Bill O’Reilly, asked him to respond to the notion that the United States was facing a “Muslim dilemma.” Mr. O’Reilly said, “The cold truth is that in the world today jihad, aided and abetted by some Muslim nations, is the biggest threat...

Central Elections Committee warns: Unusually low voter turnout rate would mark 'serious blow to Israeli democracy' should current voting rates continue; Kadima and Likud concerned, Labor party optimistic Unless the voter turnout rate picks up in the next few hours, the overall turnout rate could dip below 60 percent, Central Elections Committee officials warned Tuesday evening. "It will be a serious blow to the Israeli democracy," one Committee official warned. By 6 p.m. only 47 percent of eligible voters cast their ballots, compared to 52.8 percent in the 2003 elections. Meanwhile, Kadima party officials are expressing growing concern over the...

(My apologies, it appears I can't post anything here - just the link. Read the article through the link)

Dec. 13, 2004 1:21 | Updated Dec. 13, 2004 13:20 Bye-bye, religious parties By ELLIOT JAGER Michael Melchior and Moshe Feiglin make strange bedfellows. Yet in talking to both men last week, I was struck by how much they had in common. They agreed that the era of religious political parties in Israel was coming to a close, that mixing politics and Judaism had been detrimental to civil society, and that an alternative way had to be found to instill Jewish cultural values into the body politic. The Danish-born Melchior is a velvet-yarmulke-wearing Orthodox rabbi and Labor-Meimad Knesset member. But...

The National Religious Party's executive committee voted nearly unanimously to quit Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's coalition on Monday, leaving Sharon with a minority coalition of only 55 Likud and Shinui MKs. Sharon met with the faction at the Prime Minister's Office and asked them to remain in the coalition for at least a couple more weeks in light of Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat's impending death and the problems passing the 2005 state budget. But the NRP MKs said they had no reason to remain in the coalition as long as there is no chance that Sharon will support a...

Sep. 8, 2004 23:32 | Updated Sep. 9, 2004 8:50 PM not considering national referendum By GIL HOFFMAN Prime Minister Ariel Sharon meets with The Jerusalem Post Tuesday, September 7, 2004. Photo: Ariel Jerozolimski Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has no plans to take his unilateral disengagement plan to a referendum of the general population, Sharon's spokesmen said on Wednesday, reiterating comments Sharon made to The Jerusalem Post the day before. Sharon's office refuted a Channel 2 report from journalist Amnon Abramowitz that the prime minister's associates told Social Affairs Minister Zevulun Orlev that Sharon would agree to a referendum if...

because it's about time - it's the American eqiv of the BBC. There should be a movement to end it.

Conservatives in general, and conservative radio talk show hosts in particular, are responsible for causing death threats against 9-11 Commission member Jamie Gorelick? NPR's Nina Totenberg sure seemed to imply so in a Monday Morning Edition story, which Rush Limbaugh highlighted on his radio show on Tuesday. CUT NPR Legal Affairs correspondent Nina Totenberg reports." Totenberg began: "Jamie Gorelick served for three years as Deputy Attorney General in the first term of the Clinton administration. In Washington, she has a reputation as a smart administrator with a cool head. But she admits she lost some of that cool last Friday."...

Dec. 23, 2003 Close the religious councils By MICHAEL BOYDEN As we approach the beginning of 2004, the chances that religious councils will be abolished by the end of this December seem increasingly remote. Not that anyone should be surprised. All too often, the Promised Land turns out, in fact, to be the land of unfulfilled promises. Although seldom heard of - except when they decide to go on strike and close their doors to those whom they are supposed to serve - the religious councils are meant to be there to meet our needs. The Jewish Religious Services Law,...

Meretz Joins Shas on No-Confidence Motion 22:15 Oct 30, '03 / 4 Cheshvan 5764 (IsraelNN.com) The secular radical left wing Meretz party is partnering a no-confidence motion against the government with the ultra-Orthodox Shas party following today’s release of the National Insurance Institute report on the increase in poverty in Israel. In a somewhat ironic twist, former Minister of Labor & Social Affairs, Shas’ Shlomo Benizri, rejected accusations from current minister (NRP) Zevulun Orlev. Orlev pointed the finger of blame for the current situation on his predecessor, Shlomo Benizri. Benizri insists he left affairs in order and the current bleak...

Last Update: 08/10/2003 23:05 NRP MKs to urge coalition exit over Religious Ministry row By Mazal Mualem, Haaretz Correspondent and Haaretz Staff Members of the National Religious Party faction in the Knesset decided Wednesday evening that they would recommend for the party to quit the government unless its demands are met regarding the breakup of the Religious Affairs Ministry and the regional religious councils. The party's central committee will meet after the Sukkot holiday, which begins Friday evening and lasts until the following Saturday. During the meeting, which came in the wake of a cabinet decision earlier in the day...

Oct. 8, 2003 Rabbinical courts transferred to 'secular' Justice Ministry By HERB KEINON The cabinet voted to dismantle the Religious Affairs Ministry Wednesday and transfer authority over the rabbinical courts to the Justice Ministry headed by Shinui leader Yosef Lapid, a move that infuriated the National Religious Party and triggered a coalition crisis. The NRP, which threatened to leave the government over the issue, wants the Chief Rabbinate and the rabbinical courts to remain united and come under the purview of the Prime Minister's Office, in order to keep them out of Lapid's administrative orbit. The NRP faction decided Wednesday...

Yahalom Takes Heat from Defense Ministry 16:55 Sep 11, '03 / 14 Elul 5763 (IsraelNN.com) Defense Ministry officials are furious over MK (NRP) Shaul Yahalom blocking funding for the continued construction of the security fence between Israeli and PA areas. Officials insist that the monies that should have been allocated by Yahalom’s committee are for the continuation of the fence in the Gilboa region, and not for any controversial areas. Opposition Blasts Yahalom’s Freezing Security Fence FundsOpposition MKs including Ephraim Sneh (Labor) blasted a decision by security subcommittee chairman MK (National Religious Party) Shaul Yahalom for freezing security fence...

Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's announcement Friday that he is ready to accept the US-backed 'roadmap' plan to Mideast peace, and that he will present it to the government for approval next week, raised mixed responses among Israeli politicians. Shnui Chairman MK Yossef (Tommy) Lapid said if Sharon is indeed to bring the plan to government approval, he would support it. Science and Technology Minister Eliezer (Modi) Sandberg of Shinui, however, said he was still reviewing his support of the plan. An American announcement earlier Friday that assured Israel its concerns regarding the plan would be taken into account did not...

May. 20, 2003 Eitam calls on PM to revoke Int. Minister's authority on conversions (UPDATE) By THE JERUSALEM POST INTERNET STAFF</P< Construction and Housing Minister Effi Eitam (NRP) on Tuesday called on the prime minister to revoke Interior Minister Avraham Poraz's authority on conversions to Judaism and the granting of Israeli citizenship, after Poraz announced he would stop the automatic granting of citizenship to converts to Judaism in Israel. "Citizenship will be granted based on humanitarian concerns such as uniting families, identification with Israel, or an ability to concretely contribute to Israeli society, in the case of artists, scientists or...

The Continuing NRP Controversy Rabbi Yehuda Zoldan, a rabbi in the yeshivat hesder in N'vei Dekalim, spoke to Arutz-7 yesterday. "As someone who publicly supported NRP in election campaign," Haggai Segal said, "we're curious to know your opinion on what could be called the 'historic' agreement between the NRP and Shinui redefining the religious-secular status quo in Israel." Rabbi Zoldan responded: "I think that the general direction is positive, even though there are of course some concerns - even some weighty concerns. I'm not sure that the agreement will last for the full 4 yrs and 9 months [until the...

Analysis / Sharon in the center, with Shinui on the left and settlers on the right By Yossi Verter On Saturday, before the Sabbath was over, Ariel Sharon made his decision. He ordered his loyalist, Uri Shani, to close the deal with the National Religious Party and shower it with goodies: two ministers, a deputy minister, chairman of a committee and deputy speaker of the Knesset. The prime minister only forgot to tell Amram Mitzna. Yesterday morning, five hours after the media was reporting the sealed deal with the NRP, Sharon called Mitzna and ended their brief affair. Sharon knows...

UTJ & Shas Oust NRP From Orthodox Lobby (IsraelNN.com) The ultra-Orthodox United Torah Judaism and Shas parties have decided to oust the National Religious Party from the Knesset Orthodox lobby as a result of the NRP entering the national coalition government with Shinui. Rabbi Eliyahu Objects to NRP Agreement (IsraelNN.com) Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu expressed his opposition to the coalition agreement reached by the National Religious Party. The former chief rabbi is seen as an unofficial spiritual leader of the NRP. Persons close to Rabbi Eliyahu explain that he is opposed to the dismantling of the Ministry of Religious Affairs, changing...

Shinui and NRP deals seal 61-seat coalition for PM (UPDATE) ------------ Gil Hoffman Feb. 24, 2003 ------------ The Likud signed coalition deals with Shinui and the National Religious Party on Sunday, giving Prime Minister Ariel Sharon the 61 MKs needed to form a coalition. Talks began late last night with the seven-member National Union faction in an effort to widen the coalition. The faction was expected to be offered the Transportation and Immigrant Absorption portfolios. If Histadrut chief Amir Peretz's Am Ehad Party joins the coalition, it will reach 71 MKs. Sharon ordered the coalition talks accelerated after it became...