Trump decries anti-Semitic acts as ‘horrible’
Administration faced criticism over silence
• President Donald Trump called antiSemitic violence “horrible” and vowed Tuesday to take steps to counter extremism in comments that followed criticism that the White House had not clearly denounced vandalism and threats targeting Jewish institutions.
Hours before Trump’s remarks, Hillary Clinton called on her former presidential rival to speak out against anti-Semitic acts after more than 170 Jewish graves were found toppled at a cemetery in Missouri.
“The anti-Semitic threats targeting our Jewish community at community centres are horrible and are painful and a very sad reminder of the work that still must be done to root out hate and prejudice and evil,” Trump said following a visit to the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African-American History and Culture.
Trump called the tour a “meaningful reminder of why we have to fight bigotry, intolerance and hatred in all of its very ugly forms.”
The remarks by Trump also appear aimed at easing pressure on his administration, which faces claims from opponents that it has failed to distance itself from extremist ideology and has emboldened right-wing groups through its populist, America-first themes.
Clinton’s message to Trump came as the president of the World Jewish Congress, Ronald Lauder, also urged U.S. officials to recognize that “anti-Semitism is alive and kicking.”
“American Jews are worried,” Lauder said in a statement. “It is shocking to see that Jewish sites are once again being targeted by criminals.”
On Monday, the Anti-Defamation League reported a wave of bomb threats directed against Jewish community centres in multiple states, the fourth series of such threats since the beginning of the year, it said.
The exchanges were particularly noteworthy in part because of Trump’s unusual response at a news conference Wednesday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to a question about the rise in anti-Semitic incidents around the country. Rather than condemning them, Trump responded by talking about his electoral college victory.
Trump has been criticized for refusing to describe the threats toward Jews as “anti-Semitism.” An op-ed at the Forward, the New Yorkbased newspaper written for a Jewish audience, described Trump’s “silence about antiSemitism” as “deeply disturbing.”
When asked again about the rise in anti-Semitic threats, during another news conference on Thursday, the president responded as if he were being personally accused. Trump said that the question was “very insulting” and that he was “the least anti-Semitic person that you’ve ever seen in your entire life.”
The ADL issued a statement on Feb. 16, characterizing Trump’s news conference reaction as “mind-boggling.”
And after the new rash of phoned-in threats Monday, the organization’s chief executive drew a connection between the incidents and the presidential silence. “A lack of attention to this from the president creates an environment in which the bigots feel empowered,” Greenblatt, of the ADL, told Haaretz.