Épisodes

  • The case for a new democratic chamber—and why it could fix Israeli politics

    The case for a new democratic chamber—and why it could fix Israeli politics
    Feb 9 2026
    Israelis don’t just disagree about judicial reform, they’re losing faith in the entire governing machine: how laws get made, who actually represents voters and why unelected legal power keeps swallowing elected authority. Guest Amiad Cohen lays out a provocative “reset button” idea: a second legislative chamber, an Israeli-style Senate, built to slow legislation, force compromise, restore trust and break the hostage-taking dynamics of coalition politics, while also reshaping appointments, oversight and even how prosecutions of elected officials should work. You’ll come away understanding why the current system incentivizes chaos and why this proposed fix could either cool Israel’s internal civil war… or ignite an even bigger one.
    Afficher plus Afficher moins
    50 min
  • Trump's Gaza Plan and His Big Hamas Problem

    Trump's Gaza Plan and His Big Hamas Problem
    Feb 2 2026
    Just when Israel finally closes the chapter on October 7th and brings every hostage home, a far bigger geopolitical gamble quietly takes center stage. In this episode of Basic Law, Middle East expert Dr. Mike Doran unpacks President Trump’s controversial new “Board of Peace” a sweeping international framework that could redefine how Gaza is governed, how Hamas is disarmed and even how global conflict is managed beyond the Middle East. Viewers will learn why this plan bypasses the UN, why Arab states are hesitant to enforce it and the uncomfortable truth about who (if anyone) is actually willing to take Hamas’s weapons away....revealing a high-stakes experiment that may shape Israel’s security and the future world order itself.
    Afficher plus Afficher moins
    50 min
  • UN Shields Tyrants As U.S. Battleships Steam Towards Iran

    UN Shields Tyrants As U.S. Battleships Steam Towards Iran
    Jan 22 2026
    Iran’s streets are running red and the regime is trying to make it invisible, cutting the internet so mass killing becomes “plausible deniability.” This episode of "Basic Law" uses that horror to expose something bigger: how the post-1945 UN system, built to prevent catastrophe, too often rewards process over results, allowing tyrants to hide behind sovereignty, vetoes, “draft language” and endless investigations. You’ll learn why the UN repeatedly stalls when action is costly (from Rwanda and Srebrenica to Syria and Iran), how dictatorships can capture human-rights bodies and why the same institutions that move fast to condemn Israel can stay silent while Iranians are hunted in hospitals.
    Afficher plus Afficher moins
    11 min
  • The Crime Without a Definition: Fixing Israel’s Vague ‘Breach of Trust’ Law

    The Crime Without a Definition: Fixing Israel’s Vague ‘Breach of Trust’ Law
    Jan 16 2026
    As Iran’s streets fill with protesters paying in blood for the basic right to vote, speak and dissent, Basic Law turns the camera inward and asks a sharper question: are Israelis, in the middle of their own democratic trench warfare, about to rewrite criminal law for principled reasons or for perfectly timed political gain? Host Aylana Meisel uses a “magic trick” to strip the personalities out of the debate and walk you through the real issue: Israel’s fraud and breach of trust offense is so vague it can turn “unethical” into “criminal” after the fact, empowering prosecutors and judges to enforce intuition instead of clear rules. You’ll learn why top legal scholars across Israel’s ideological spectrum have warned about this for decades, how a landmark Supreme Court case exposed the law’s arbitrariness and why global democracies are moving away from catch-all corruption charges. The result is a gripping framework for spotting the difference between rule of law and rule by headline...right when it matters most.
    Afficher plus Afficher moins
    23 min
  • How Can the Law Limit Mamdani’s Policy Agenda?

    How Can the Law Limit Mamdani’s Policy Agenda?
    Jan 8 2026
    New York City changed overnight and for many Jews, the warning signs are flashing red. The swearing-in of Mayor Zohran Mamdani set off a chain reaction: key antisemitism protections erased, BDS barriers dismantled and a political signal that leaves Jewish safety feeling negotiable. But panic isn’t the answer. Constitutional lawyer Mark Goldfeder lays out the real story behind the symbolism, the legal traps ahead and the surprisingly powerful tools still available. He lists everything New Yorkers can use to fight back when politics turn hostile: from federal civil rights law to the FACE Act. This isn’t a discussion about fear. It’s about leverage, law and what actually protects a community when the guardrails come down.
    Afficher plus Afficher moins
    34 min
  • Israel's Legal Elite Have a Power Problem But A Solution Already Exists

    Israel's Legal Elite Have a Power Problem But A Solution Already Exists
    Jan 4 2026
    Most coverage of Israeli law gets one thing disastrously wrong and that misunderstanding is now shaping Israel’s political future. In this episode of "Basic Law", we pull back the curtain on the immense, largely unexamined power of Israel’s Attorney General, why reform efforts didn’t begin with today’s government and how decades of legal drift quietly reshaped Israeli democracy. From absurd media narratives to historic showdowns that changed elections, this conversation reveals why the real battle isn’t left versus right, but accountability versus unchecked authority. If you think this debate is new, partisan, or simple, this episode will force you to rethink everything.
    Afficher plus Afficher moins
    21 min
  • They 'Globalized the Intifada'...Should America Ban the Chant Now?

    They 'Globalized the Intifada'...Should America Ban the Chant Now?
    Dec 25 2025
    Aylana Meisel-Diament sits down with former Palau Supreme Court Justice and U.S. constitutional scholar Greg Dolin to tackle one of the most uncomfortable and urgent questions facing Jewish communities today. As cities like London and possibly Sydney begin criminalizing antisemitic slogans, America’s First Amendment protections collide with real-world threats to Jews in public, at universities and even in religious institutions. Can free speech coexist with safety? Or is censorship feeding the very extremism it seeks to contain? And what course of action should American Jews pursue?
    Afficher plus Afficher moins
    44 min
  • A Quiet Israeli Ruling With Global Consequences

    A Quiet Israeli Ruling With Global Consequences
    Dec 18 2025
    A controversial court ruling in Israel collided with a global wave of antisemitic violence and the consequences may be far bigger than most people realize. As Jews mourn a brutal Hanukkah massacre in Australia and attacks surge across the West, Israel finds itself paralyzed by an unelected official wielding extraordinary power at the worst possible moment. In this episode, we explore why Israel’s internal political fracture isn’t just a domestic legal fight. Drawing on history, Hanukkah’s hard lessons and today’s alarming reality, this conversation asks a dangerous question: when Israel cannot fully govern itself, who ultimately pays the price?
    Afficher plus Afficher moins
    14 min