No Kings, No Gratitude, No Sense 

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I’m waiting. And I’m hoping to finally finally hear something, a little breadcrumb of acknowledgement that maybe Trump did something right in approving the military operation against Iran that left the world gasping in shock and admiration. That prevented our enemy, Iran, from completing its nuclear agenda. I’m waiting for an admission that maybe, just maybe, my anti-Trump friends and relatives may have miscalculated. That, even though Trump (in their opinion) is a narcissist, a convicted felon, a racist, a womanizer, a crude and vulgar man, disgusting, blah, blah blah and I was a fascist for supporting him, this one time he did something truly great, historical even.

I was sure my Jewish friends and relatives would come around and say that they were amazed by how Trump acted in this moment of extreme peril: Choosing to put in place an exceedingly complicated and well executed program to obliterate Iran’s nuclear capability. I was hoping to hear them say that they were breathing a sigh of relief. That he made the right decision.

Maybe we could finally come together and cheer for what was truly a momentous event in history. Surely, now the naysayers would see what I saw all along in our bellicose, but iron strong, brave, ambitious, thoughtful and laser focussed leader. I thought maybe now they could see what I saw in him. That despite his gruff, somewhat offensive, sometimes bullying exterior, lay a solid core of resolve.

But no. I haven’t heard anything yet. I’m still waiting… Not one call from my liberal friends or relatives. Even ridding Iran of nuclear bomb enrichment facilities could convince them of Trump’s loyalty to Israel, our Jewish homeland. I was hoping that finally we could come together in believing that the importance of Israel’s safety and right to self defense supersedes their political beliefs. But no.

I then thought back to the incredible anxiety and stress of the past week when Israel launched Operation Rising Lion against Iran. How I had trouble sleeping, trying to weed myself from my newsfeed addiction due to what was happening in Israel in its fight against the Octopus head of Iran who had waged war through its proxies and directly against the Jews and non Jews who live in Israel.

I thought about June 14, just one day after Israel launched its major and breathtakingly audacious attack against a nation 10 times its size in population and 30 times its size in geographic area. On June 14, the Israeli air force was continuing nonstop its campaign against the force of evil and Israeli citizens and visitors were hiding in bomb shelters from the deadly barrage of ballistic missiles, praying that the highly advanced Ballistic Missile Defense weapons, better known as Iron Dome, Arrow missile system and David’s sling, would protect them.

But in the United States four separate events consumed our media coverage on June 14, the day after Israel’s aerial masterpiece in Iran. It was Flag Day, Trump’s Birthday, and the 250th anniversary of the establishment of the US armed forces. What a coincidence. (I happen to believe that coincidences are of cosmic importance). Therefore, it was also the day dozens of progressive, liberal organizations decided to launch widespread anti-Trump protests dubbed “No Kings Day.”

While millions were gathering at “No Kings Day” events in neighborhoods throughout America, wailing about how Trump was acting like a demigod and threatening our democracy, Trump was gathering with Secretary of Defense Peter Hegseth, and other key advisors and plotting out how best to save us from a true threat to our democracy. .. an autocratic regime dedicated to the proposition that The United States and Israel are demons who need to be wiped off the face of the earth. That’s what the Supreme Leader of Iran, the Ayatollah Ali Khamenai, has said time and again and that’s what he means.

While the No Kings bunch expressed doomsday projections about the “rights” and “due process” of those who came here illegally, Trump and his advisors were pondering how to protect the rights of Israelis (including American Israelis and Arab Israelis) to live without fear of nuclear annihilation.

The No Kings strategy was to diminish the size and impact of the Military Parade honoring the 250th anniversary of American’s armed forces by holding counter demonstrations in about 1,500 to 2,000 locations throughout the US. The goal was to dwarf the number attending the parade held in just one location: Washington, DC. Naturally, it’s easier to draw people to a demonstration within a short drive from your home than to DC. After all, convenience matters! And yes, they did draw more people if you count those in attendance. But what wasn’t counted were those watching on video feeds and television. The No Kings organizers described the parade as “costly, wasteful, and un-American.” They criticized Trump for his wasteful spending on a parade, while unaware of how much money was expended on The No Kings project. In actuality we don’t know how much was spent on either project.

They actually described carrying American flags in the streets of New York and honoring our servicemen and women “un-American.” Senator Adam Schiff (D) of California called it “shameful.” One protester held up a sign reading: “From Palestine to Mexico, border walls have got to go.” (Three Takeaways from the military parade and No Kings protests on Trump’s Birthday, NPR, June 15, 2025).

Too many American Jewish citizens decided that day, the day after Israel invaded Iran in an audacious multi-pronged campaign, would be a good day to go out to show their dismay with Trump while their Jewish brothers and sisters had to hide in bomb shelters. Some carried upside-down flags. Israel was facing an existential threat and these liberal and progressive demonstrators, many of whom are Jewish were focused on Medicaid.

And who sponsored this event? About 200 or so mainly “progressive” organizations, such as the ACLU, Bernie Sanders, Third Act, Bend the Arc, Indivisible, Move On,and many labor unions including the AFT to name just a few.

And listen up, those of you who consider yourself to be liberal Jews and yet who never fail to be surprised by the unsurprising truth. The very same people you assembled with, will turn on you or have already done so. How many times does it have to happen for you, who call yourselves “woke”, to truly wake up?

Bend the Arc supports Zohran Mamdani for Mayor of NYC. Yup the same Zohran Mamdani who calls himself an anti-Zionist.

Listen up those of you who put Black Lives Matter signs on your lawns. Black Lives Matter was a co-sponsor of No Kings Day. And guess what? They didn’t support you when Islamic terrorists invaded Israel slaughtering 1,200 Israelis and non Israelis and kidnapping 250 children, women, elderly and men. Here’s what they said about that: they expressed solidarity with the Palestinian people, criticized Israeli actions, and immediately called for a ceasefire and an end to US support for Israel. They insisted that Israel is a colonial oppressor state.

Many unions co-sponsored No Kings Day. Unions, especially teacher’s unions, have been notoriously against Israel and sided with the Palestinians in spreading misinformation packaged as education.

Yes, the No Kings day rallies were peaceful and not blatantly anti-American (except for those upside down flags). They were also misguided and misdirected. It’s no coincidence that those marching for “No Kings” are also not so motivated about defending our democratic ally in the Middle East, Israel, if not openly hostile. The majority of the co-sponsors are, if not anti-Israel, anti-military and silent about Israel.

Here’s what they get wrong. I don’t know how much our government spent on this parade and I don’t know how much the many co-sponsors spent on their anti-Trump tantrum. The point is that the greatest nation on Earth has every right to celebrate 250 years of strength due to an amazing military as demonstrated in its astoundingly successful mission against Iran. We should be proud and loud.

Now here it is a week after our military parade and we can clearly see why we should be proud of our military. What they did to stop Iran from becoming a military powderkeg and inspiring others to follow suit is nothing short of brilliant. I won’t go into the many many factors that made this operation a success, but please, the very least you can do is acknowledge that this is a major step forward for the United States, Israel and the world. This is why our military deserved an amazing parade last week and hopefully an even bigger one sometime soon.