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As Elon Musk polled users, Donald Trump tells Jewish Republicans he sees ‘no reason’ to go back to Twitter
LAS VEGAS (JTA) — As Elon Musk polled Twitter users about whether he should reinstate Donald Trump’s account, the former president told Jewish Republicans Saturday that he saw “no reason” to go back to the platform, saying his competing social media outlet had “smart voices,” including pro-Israel voices.
The CEO of the Republican Jewish Coalition had asked Trump, who was addressing the group’s conference via video from his Florida home, about the poll.
“I don’t know if you’ve been following. Twitter is blowing up today: Elon Musk posted a poll that had over 13 million respondents so far, asking whether or not you should be reinstated on on Twitter,” Brooks said. “My question to you is what do you think about Elon Musk buying Twitter? And if you are reinstated, will we see you back on Twitter again?”
Trump responded with something of a demurral.
“I don’t see any reason for it. There are a lot of problems in Twitter, you see what’s going on,” he said. “They may or may not make it but the problems are terrible. The engagements are negative. And you have a lot of bots and you have a lot of fake accounts.”
Trump said he liked Musk, but he preferred Truth Social, the platform he launched after Twitter banned him following the deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, by Trump’s supporters.
Twitter had long made efforts to remove bots and hate speech, though watchdogs said it needed to do more. But after Musk took over the company in recent weeks, he fired thousands of workers and many others have quit, including the executives responsible for ensuring that the platform is free of hate. The social platform is seen as vulnerable to collapse.
“Truth Social is through the roof, it’s doing phenomenally well,” Trump said of his platform, which is also reportedly near collapse.
Trump also played up what he said were pro-Israel voices on the platform he owns.
“It’s taking care of voices that really want to be taken care of and really smart voices, brilliant voices voices that in many cases are both sides, but I can tell you there’s a lot of voice for Israel and power for Israel,” he said.
“Truth Social has taken its place for a lot of people and I don’t see them going back onto Twitter,” Trump said.
Hours later Musk announced that as a result of his poll, he would restore Trump to the platform.
“The people have spoken,” he said of his unscientific poll, in which more than 15 million Twitter accounts voted, 51.8% of them in favor of reinstating Trump. He added: “Vox populi, vox dei,” Latin for “voice of the people, voice of God.”
Trump in his RJC talk invoked a number of tropes that have drawn criticism from Jewish groups in the past. He conflated his American Jewish audience with Israelis, saying that Biden administration officials “don’t even listen to your leaders” and saying that critics of Israel in Congress are “more powerful than the Israeli coalition.”
He also repeated falsehoods that the 2020 presidential election was “rigged” and said that if he remained in power he would have expanded the Abraham Accords, the deal he brokered normalizing relations between Israel and four Arab countries, to “10, 12, 14 [Arab countries], we would have had maybe all of them … we could have truly had peace in the Middle East.”
The Biden administration has pledged to expand the Abraham Accords, one of its rare foreign policy agreements with the Trump administration.
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The post As Elon Musk polled users, Donald Trump tells Jewish Republicans he sees ‘no reason’ to go back to Twitter appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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Report: Regime Change Not Ruled Out as US Mulls Escalation Against Venezuela
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro speaks during a march amid the disputed presidential election, in Caracas, Venezuela, Aug. 3, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Maxwell Briceno
i24 News – The United States is poised to launch a new phase of Venezuela-related operations in the coming days, as the US administration of President Donald Trump ratchets up pressure on President Nicolas Maduro’s government, Reuters reported Saturday citing four officials familiar with the matter. An escalation that would go so far as overthrowing Maduro’s dictatorial regime could not be ruled out, it is understood.
The report could not provide the exact timing or scope of the new operations, nor confirm that Trump had made a final decision to act. Reports of looming action have proliferated in recent weeks as the US military has deployed forces to the Caribbean amid worsening relations with Venezuela.
Two of the US officials said covert operations would likely be the first part of the new action against Maduro. Another “senior administration official” said he did not rule anything out regarding Venezuela.
“President Trump is prepared to use every element of American power to stop drugs from flooding into our country and to bring those responsible to justice,” the official was quoted as saying.
Also on Saturday, three international airlines canceled their flights departing from Venezuela, the day after the US Federal Aviation Administration warned major airlines of a “potentially hazardous situation” when flying over the country.
Brazil’s Gol, Colombia’s Avianca and TAP Air Portugal canceled their flights departing from Caracas on Saturday, according to Flightradar24 and the official website of Simon Bolivar Maiquetia International Airport.
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Indonesia’s Biggest Islamic Group Asks Chief to Resign Over Invitation to Pro-Israeli Speaker
Then Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with Yahya Cholil Staquf, secretary general of the 60-million member Nahdlatul Ulama, Indonesia’s largest Muslim organization, at his office in Jerusalem. Photo: Haim Zach/GPO.
Indonesia’s biggest Islamic organization, Nahdlatul Ulama, has asked its chief to resign for inviting a US scholar known for his support of Israel during the Gaza war to an internal event in August, according to meeting minutes reviewed by Reuters.
The leadership of NU, which is also the world’s biggest Islamic organization with around 100 million members and affiliates, has given Chairman Yahya Cholil Staquf three days to offer his resignation or be removed from his post, according to the minutes from a meeting on Thursday.
NU cited Staquf’s invitation to a person “affiliated with an International Zionism network” for an internal event and alleged financial mismanagement as reasons for his ouster.
Staquf, who has been NU’s chairman since 2021, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
NU official Najib Azca told Reuters the decision was linked to Staquf’s invitation to former US official and scholar Peter Berkowitz for an August training event.
Staquf has apologized for the invitation and called it an oversight as he had not carefully checked Berkowitz’s background, adding that he condemned Israel‘s “brutal genocidal acts in Gaza.”
Berkowitz often writes in support of Israel‘s campaign in Gaza, according to his website, including a piece in September aiming to refute allegations of genocide against Israel.
Berkowitz spoke at NU seminars about the history of Western political thought in August, his website showed.
Berkowitz did not immediately respond to an email requesting comment that reached him outside of office hours.
Indonesia, the world’s Muslim-majority nation, has routinely condemned Israel‘s actions in the Palestinian enclave of Gaza since the war broke out in 2023. It has long advocated for a two-state solution and has no diplomatic relations with Israel.
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Protesters at Tel Aviv Rally Call for State Inquiry into Oct. 7 Failings
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu participates in the state memorial ceremony for the fallen of the Iron Swords War on Mount Herzl. In Jerusalem on 16 October 2025. Photo: Alex Kolomoisky/POOL/Pool via REUTERS
i24 News – Israeli protesters gathered on Saturday in Tel Aviv, to demand the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appoint a committee to initiate a state inquiry on the security failings of October 7.
Saturday night rallies in Tel Aviv have been a fixture of the two-year-long war in Gaza that was triggered by the Hamas-led cross-border attack on October 7, 2023, that saw the worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust.
Protesters charged that Netanyahu refuses to be held accountable for his share of responsibility in Israel’s blackest day. They likewise took exception to Netanyahu’s wish to select the members of the committee, arguing this represented subversion of the democratic process.
Protesters also demanded the return of remains of the three deceased hostages still remaining in Gaza: Ran Gvili, Dror or and Sudthisak Rinthalak.