2a1 OBAMA BASRA Mishnah Mishnah The president: CHAPTER ONE HADONALD discusses statements made by various politicians running for — הדונלד שרצה לעשות מחיצהThe Donald1 who wishes to build a wall2 כופין את — המקסיקאין לבנותוcan force the Mexicans to build it.3 — בערני סענדרס אמרBernie Sanders said, — זה הכללthis is the general rule: — כל צרכי המדינהfor all needs of the country, — כופין את בני המדינה לשלםwe force the citizens of the country to pay.4 אמרה — הילארי קלינטאןHillary Clinton said, — הרי אני כבת שבעים שנהbehold, I am like a seventy-year-old,5 — ולא זכיתי שתשלח אגרת סתר מנגזי אגרות שליyet I was unable to merit sending confidential emails6 from my private server7 — עד שדרשה אובמאuntil Obama expounded the verse, — שנאמרwhich said,8 — אגרת הזאת השניתthis second letter — — לרבות אגרת סתרto include confidential emails.9 Gemara The Gemara addresses how Trump is able to make the Mexicans pay for the wall: — והא זה נהנה וזה משלםBut this one is benefitting and this one is paying! Since America is benefitting, they should pay, not Mexico.10 —?— — אמר ראב״אR’ Ab”a11 answered, — לכשירגשםfor when he drives [the illegally immigrated Mexicans] 12 out. Since Mexico doesn’t want them either, they’ll build the wall to keep them out.13 The Gemara still asks: — מתקיף לה רבב״בR’ Bb”b14 challenged him, — והתנן כופיןbut the Mishnah said that he CAN FORCE them to build the wall. If the Mexicans are building the wall willingly, it can’t be described as being forced.15 —?— The Gemara concedes this point and thus refutes the question on different grounds: — אלא לא קשיאRather, it’s not a question for a different reason: סברא קא רמית עליה — You’re challenging [The Donald] from logic when you ask that the Americans should pay? You can’t challenge him from logic.16 — דהדאנלד הדאנאלדThe Donald is The Donald! — טפלן הואHe’s a talfan17 — ופליג אסבראand he can argue on logic. The Gemara quotes the next part of the Mishnah: — בערני סענדרס אומרBERNIE SANDERS SAID this is the general rule: for all needs of the country, we force the citizens of the country to pay. —NOTES— 10 Rashi. This refers to Donald Trump. He is referred to as “The” 11 This could be any number of Amoraim — R’ Idi bar Avin, R’ Donald because of his ego, which he makes well-known through his hair which is so long that it looks like it has Ada bar Ahavah, etc. — and thus we have left the extensions (Rashi). abbreviation as is and not translated it into a name. See note 2 Translation follows Rashi. 14. 3 The Gemara will explain why. 12 Elucidation follows Rashi. 4 The Gemara will explain what this is referring to. 13 Elucidation follows Rashi. 5 But not actually seventy - she’s actually sixty-eight (Rashi). 14 Since the first Amora was abbreviated as ראב״א, the Tosfos add that, unlike R’ Elazar ben Azariah, who made a Gemara then quoted an Amora whose names begin with the similar comment when his beard miraculously turned white next letter after aleph - that is, beis. Thus, רבב״ב. 15 Elucidation follows Rashi. (see Berachos 12a), Hillary’s beard did not turn white, for she 16 Elucidation follows Rashi. did not have a beard. 6 Translation follows Rashi. 17 Rashi proposes that the word derives from “topple” and 7 Translation follows Rashi. He explains that unlike most means that he said things so powerfully without logic that it government employees, who sent their confidential emails on can overpower well thought-out refutations, or from “teflon” the government’s server, Hillary deceitfully placed them on and means that any arguments that are thrown at him won’t her own. stick, as if it were thrown at teflon. He adds that the second 8 Esther 9:29 sounds like the more reasonable source. Tosfos propose a 9 Since the first letters didn’t arouse any uproar, since they third source, — מטפלa therapist; just as a therapist tells you were sent through the proper government servers, they sent what to do and doesn’t have to explain, so, too, The Donald. a second set of letters through private servers. Thus we see that one is “allowed” to do so (Rashi). 1 2a2 OBAMA BASRA CHAPTER ONE HADONALD The Gemara asks: — וכי סענדרס בעי לעשות מחיצהBut does Sanders want to make a wall?18 No! The Gemara explains: — הכי קאמרThis is what he means to say: — לדידי אין עושין מחיצהAccording to me, we don’t need to build a wall, and therefore we don’t need to make the public pay for it. — לדידךBut according to you that we should build a wall, — אודי לי מיהת at least agree to me דכופין את בני המדינה — that we should force the citizens of the country of America to pay for it, not those of Mexico. The Donald would respond, of course, that he’s going to build a wall and make Mexico pay for it. land and islands of the sea. אילו הייתי מלך — If I were king Achashveirosh at that time, — הייתי נותן בתים מלאים כל טובI would have given houses full of all good things — לכל אחד ואחד מבני המדינהto each one of the citizens of the country.21,22 אמר — הדאנאלדThe Donald said, אילו הייתי — שםI f I w e r e t h e r e a n d w e r e Achashveirosh at that time, לא הייתי נותן — מס אלא על הסיניםI would have only placed the tax on the Chinese.23 אמרה — הילאריHillary said, — אילו הייתי שםIf I were there and were Achashveirosh at that time, — הייתי נוטלת כל המס מרחוב הכותל I would have placed the entire tax on Wall Street.24 The Gemara proposes a query based on Sanders’ opinion: — איבעיא להוThey asked the following: — גלידה מאיIf someone wants to eat ice cream, what is the halacha? Do we make the other citizens pay for it, or is that not considered a benefit of the public that we would make everyone else pay?19 The Gemara solves the question based on a Braisa: — תא שמעCome and hear a proof, דתניא — for we taught in a Braisa: דרש בערני — סענדרסBernie Sanders expounded,20 וישם אחשורוש מס וגו׳ — and Achashveirosh placed a tax, etc. on the The Gemara quotes the next part of the Mishnah: — ולא זכיתי שתשלחHillary said that she was like a seventy-year-old, yet I was unable to send classified emails from my private server, until Obama expounded a verse like her. The Gemara asks: — ולאBut was she not able to send them? — והכתיבBut the passuk says,25 ויודע — הדבר למרדכיand the matter became known to Mordechai. — מנא ידעFrom where did he know? לאו משום שנשלח על — ידי גנזי אגרות דידהIs it not because hackers found the files sent from her —NOTES— Usually when the Mishnah says “this is the general rule,” it marry a woman with money? They answer that, indeed, it means to elaborate on the previous clause. Since the would be impossible to get married with money in a country. 23 Since the Chinese are bankrolling the Americans, they use Mishnah just discussed The Donald’s plan to build a wall, the Gemara thus assumes that Sanders is saying that when their position to take advantage of America and steal money. building such a wall — or any other need of the country — we Trump thus promises that if he rises to power, he will tax the should make the country pay. Since he doesn’t want to build Chinese and weaken them in return (Rashi). Tosfos point out a wall, why does he preface it with “this is the general rule”? that even if Trump were in Achashveirosh’s shoes, he 19 Elucidation follows Rashi. wouldn’t be able to tax the Chinese — he was king only from 20 Esther 10:1 Ethiopia to India, which doesn’t include China! This just goes 21 Thus the Gemara has shown that Bernie would give ice to show you what Trump is willing to do to “make America cream to citizens at everyone’s expense, as that would be great again.” 24 Translation follows Rashi. Tosfos ask: Hillary makes included in “all good things” (Rashi). Although the Gemara could conclude here, it quotes the rest of the Braisa anyway. thousands of dollars from Wall Street; why would she tax 22 Tosfos ask: According to Sanders, he would give such vast them? It must be, then, that she would continue accepting amounts of everything — even silver — that it would be these funds for personal use but call them a tax, just that it devalued to the point that it would not even be worth a sounds better to call them a tax instead of a bribe. 25 Esther 2:22. The “matter” discussed here is the plot by perutah, the smallest unit of currency. This poses the following problem: one of the ways to marry women is with Bigsan and Seresh to kill Achashveirosh. money or something equal to money (Kiddushin 2a). If there is so much money that it’s not worth anything, how can you 18 2a3 OBAMA BASRA CHAPTER ONE personal server by Bigsan and Seresh, and this hacker told Mordechai what he had found?26 (The Gemara refutes the proof: — לאNo; — דילמא אחבולי אחבליהmaybe it’s just a conspiracy.27) The Gemara poses a query regarding Hillary’s eligibility to be President: — איבעיא להוThey asked the following: — שלח אגרת סתרOne who sends HADONALD classified documents publicly, מי פסלינן למלכות2 8 [ — ) ליה ( ] להi s s h e 2 8 disqualified for the Presidency?29 ואם 30[ — תמצא לומר פסלינן )ליה( ]להAnd if you want to say we do disqualify her,30 — שלח אגרת סתםif one sent unclassified emails — ואחר כך נעשית אגרת סתרthat afterwards were classified,31 מי פסלינן למלכות3 0 [ — ) ליה ( ] להi s s h e 3 0 disqualified from the presidency?32 תיקו — Let it stand unanswered. If you enjoyed this page, why not try a real daf of Gemara with the same intensity, persistence and independence? You will find it even more enjoyable and fulfilling. —NOTES— Elucidation follows Rashi. Tosfos argue, noting that Hillary to her. Presumably, this was changed due to censorship, as was merely seventy when she spoke of her private server, above (see note 26). 29 Elucidation follows Rashi. whereas the incident of Bigsan and Seresh took place over 30 Presumably, Haghos HaBadchan’s change would apply two thousand years before she was born. Rather, the Gemara is speaking deceitfully, due to censors. (See note here as well, since we are still talking about Hillary. 31 Rashi explains that the document lacked the word 28.) Not wanting to speak out her lies, since that would imply that there is some truth to what she said, the Gemara uses “classified” when it was sent, and the word was added. an exaggeration: just as it’s preposterous to think that Bigsan Tosfos argue, saying that it goes after the contents, not the and Seresh were able to send emails from her server, it’s document itself. Even though it’s uncommon for such a also preposterous to think that Hillary didn’t send them. situation to occur anyway for a document to be sent 27 Perhaps Bigsan and Seresh didn’t actually plot to kill the unclassified and later classified, but since Hillary is claiming king, but were merely set up and hanged for it. Thus, there’s that’s what happened with all the thousands of “classified” no proof that such a server exists, so for all we know it could emails on her server, the Gemara felt a need to mention the be a right-wing conspiracy (Rashi). Since we know that case. 32 Tosfos note that Rashi’s wording seems to indicate that Bigsan and Seresh actually plotted to kill the king, it follows based on this Gemara’s analogy that Hillary actually does you can vote for Hillary. But the Gemara seems to indicate have such a server. Therefore, it must be that this line was that one is disqualified from the Presidency by sending added by Hillary’s advisors, and so it must be deleted classified emails, since there’s a rule that if the Gemara asks (Tosfos). For this reason, we have placed this line in “and if you want to say…” it means we hold of that side! How parentheses in our elucidation. can someone who’s disqualified from the Presidency become 28 The original reading is ליה, to him. Since we are dealing President? with Hillary, Haghos HaBadchan changes the reading to לה, 26
© Copyright 2024