THE SHOW NOTES: Israel Targets Hamas Militants, Blinken Lectures Israel As More Bodies Discovered, & Can Steve Scalise Become Speaker?

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HEADLINE: White House: ‘Squad’ Democrats comments on Israel ‘wrong,’ ‘repugnant’ and ‘disgraceful’ - NY Post

FOX NEWS POLL: Support for Haley doubles in GOP primary, she tops Biden by four points.

WATCH: BBC Reporter Noah Abrahams says he resigned from his job at the broadcaster after they failed to call Hamas "terrorists". - Twitter

DATA: Consumer prices rose more than expected in September. - CNBC

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Updates on Israel

Israeli military forces continue to grow around the border of Gaza in anticipation of a formal ground assault. Thousands of Israeli airstrikes continue to pummel Gaza around the clock targeting the locations of Hamas operatives. Last night, Israel targeted and destroyed an elite unit of Hamas fighters known as the Nukhba Force that perpetrated much of the tragedy over the weekend.

While the majority of Israeli military focus has been on Hamas in the south, today marks the fourth consecutive day Hezbollah has engaged Israeli military forces in the north along the border with Lebanon.

The death toll in Israel has surpassed 1,300 with Hamas holding around 100 hostages inside of Gaza. 25 Americans have been killed and at least 20 more are still missing.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Israel and appeared with Bibi Netanyahu in a televised statement. However, as bodies are still being recovered, Blinken decided to lecture Israel on how it responds to the attacks. “How Israel does this matters. We democracies distinguish ourselves from terrorists by striving for a different standard.”

Donald Trump praised Hezbollah as “very smart” for attacking Israel from the north in a rambling speech last night. There’s one problem: this never happened. Israel sounded the alarm regarding an “airspace intrusion” sending civilians to bomb shelters but quickly clarified that it was a false alarm.

Ron DeSantis was quick to respond to Trump saying, “Terrorists have murdered at least 1,200 Israelis and 22 Americans and are holding more hostage, so it is absurd that anyone, much less someone running for President, would choose now to attack our friend and ally, Israel, much less praise Hezbollah terrorists as ‘very smart,'”

Do We Have A Speaker?

Steve Scalise was nominated by a small majority of Republicans in a secret ballot to serve as the GOP nominee for Speaker of the House. But can Scalise earn the 217 votes required to win?

Maybe: While there are at least 12 House Republicans who claim they won’t vote for Scalise, none of them appear to be as ideologically driven as Matt Gaetz's jihad against Kevin McCarthy. Notably, the Scalise team was able to win over every McCarthy detractor with the exception of Nancy Mace and Bob Good.

Context: Deep factions within the GOP’s minimal House majority mean the odds remain stacked against whoever tries to obtain the gavel but Scalise has tailwinds working in his favor.

• 1) Israel: House Republicans want the credit for funding sent to Israel, which gets complicated without a Speaker.

• 2) History: Scalise survived the shooting that targeted Republican congressmen on a baseball field and is rightfully considered a hero to many conservatives.

• 3) Government funding: The ill-timed McCarthy removal was seen as an embarrassment to congressional Republicans and could be amplified in the face of a government funding fight next month.

• 4) Jim Jordan: While Scalise narrowly defeated Jim Jordan to become the GOP nominee, Jordan has offered to do the nominating speech for Scalise on the House floor drastically diminishing the chances of an “only-Jordan” opposition.

Marc Rowan: University Donors, Close Your Checkbooks

While Hamas terrorists were slaughtering Israeli Jews, university administrators were figuring out how to spin it. Do not just take my word for it; read their statements. Across academia, administrators issued statements on behalf of their institutions expressing a repulsive moral equivalence between victims of terror and the perpetrators of that terror. The antisemitic rot in academia is unmistakable.

At the University of Pennsylvania, where I sit on the Wharton School’s Board of Overseers, leaders have for too long allowed this kind of anti-Jewish hate, which sanitizes Hamas’s atrocities, to infect their campuses. There must be consequences.

I call on all UPenn alumni and supporters who believe we are heading in the wrong direction to close their checkbooks until President Liz Magill and Chairman Scott Bok resign.

Go read the full story at The Free Press.

🔥 Trending News:

• NYU Bar Association's president says Hamas' slaughter was 'necessary' - MSN

• ‘Doxxing truck’ drives around Harvard showing names, photos of students who blamed Israel for Hamas attacks - NY Post

• ‘Sh-t thing to say’: Tempers flare among House Dems over the Israel war - Politico

• Rep. Cory Mills Evacuates Americans out of Israel - The Floridian

• Rep In Key State Flips Endorsement From Trump To DeSantis - The Dailycaller

• Negotiations suspended between Hollywood studios and actors’ union - CNN

• Sen. Mitt Romney urged Democratic senators to challenge Biden — and he named names - Deseret News

• UF President, Ben Sasse, Shows All Other Universities How to Write Public Statements - National Review

• US Consumer Prices Rise at Brisk Pace for Second Straight Month - Bloomberg (paywall)

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