I was privileged to be invited to the annual White House conference call with rabbis, which is held annually before the start of the Jewish High Holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.  It was terrific to hear firsthand from President Trump about his commitment to the values shared by traditional Judaism and America, including justice and security, and to listen to President Trump's words of great friendship.  The White House graciously included other political and communal leaders of the Jewish faith on the conference call, such as Senator Norm Coleman, chairman of the Republican Jewish Coalition, and Professor Alan Dershowitz, who has staunchly defended and advocated for numerous policies and actions of President Trump in the face of left-wing opposition.

During the conference call, President Trump and Senator Coleman reviewed the very many accomplishments of the current administration.  It was refreshing to hear as well as surreal, for we are bombarded 24-7 with anti-Trump media stories.  If one takes a step back, he immediately realizes that these stories are divorced from the reality that America is getting better by the day in so many ways (security, economic growth, employment, global influence, war on terrorists and gangs, and much more).  It is precisely the policies of the current administration that, with God's help, have steered America back toward its upward course.  And it is totally ironic that the primary beneficiaries of these dramatic improvements in America are precisely the people who most oppose President Trump, such as those in the inner cities, those who were previously jobless, and those who live in areas most at risk for compromised security.

One of the messages of the High Holidays is that of returning to proper values and facing the truth.  Life is full of deception and distortion, coming at us from all sides, dragging us down and tarnishing our wholesomeness.  We return to God and recalibrate ourselves with His values and vision, shedding the falseness with which we have associated during the course of the previous year.  It is a spiritual and mental cleansing, and hopefully, it will impact on our actions as well.           

I felt that it was providential that the White House conference call with rabbis occurred during the Senate's confirmation hearings for Judge Kavanaugh, and in particular on the day that Senator Cory Booker illegally released confidential emails from Judge Kavanaugh in an attempt to have his nomination for the Supreme Court rejected.  Booker, with excessive flair and overdramatized martyrdom, alleging that his collection of classified emails demonstrated Kavanaugh's problematic positions on race and abortion, daringly leaked the emails and proved: nothing, absolutely nothing.  Read the emails for yourself, on the CNN link, which is servile to left-wing interests, and you will find nothing suggesting or supporting Booker's false claims.  On the contrary, the emails depict Kavanaugh as being very deliberate and sticking to the rules. Those who bother to read the emails will realize they actually support Kavanaugh's nomination. 

Booker's hyped up scheme was an embarrassing flop; it is no wonder that CNN moved the story off its home page within a few hours of its release and failed to post anything that explained exactly how the emails were damaging – for CNN realized that the whole thing was a non-story.  Or, to be more honest, it was a false alarm and a hoax.

We read the anonymous New York Times article by an alleged White House senior staffer about presidential chaos.  While anonymous articles should not be assumed to be true, let's for a moment assume that the Times article is accurate.  Although it may make some people feel good and vindicated for attempting to take Trump down at every turn, it is an exercise in delusion, for every single accomplishment of this administration, each of which massively benefits even the harshest detractors of President Trump, reflects the direct policies of President Trump, and – more importantly – his bravado personality and unconventional approach were the critical ingredients for that which was accomplished.  Other Republicans, with their gentlemanly and mild approach, rarely got much done.  Only Ronald Reagan, who was willing to frontally challenge the system and give it a kick in the pants, made a serious imprint.  Taking a step back from the fray and assessing the reality, so much has been accomplished, by God's graces, through the unconventional, cheeky and often "in your face" approach of President Trump.  I fear to think what would have been with America's security, economy, employment numbers, and more had someone else been elected, or had a more mild-mannered Republican been the GOP nominee two years ago.

Divorcing ourselves from the distortion and hype are key themes for me and my community this holiday season.  Taking a quick look at the smoke-and mirrors falsehoods being promulgated by the detractors of the current administration ironically affirms and adds to this inspirational message.

Rabbi Gordimer is chairman of the Rabbinic Circle at Coalition for Jewish Values and is a frequent contributor to various publications, including Cross-Currents and Israel National News.  He is a member of the New York Bar, and he works for a Jewish communal organization in New York.