White House criticizes Trump for senseless anti-Semitic rhetoric
Former US President Donald Trump has stated that Jews who vote for Democrats hate Israel and hate their religion. The White House has called this vile and unhinged antisemitic rhetoric, according to The Guardian.
During an interview, Trump was asked about increased criticism from Democrats of Israeli military actions in Gaza, which resulted in the deaths of over 30,000 Palestinians.
"I think they hate Israel. And the Democrat party hates Israel," Trump said.
He added: “Any Jewish person that votes for Democrats hates their religion. They hate everything about Israel and they should be ashamed of themselves because Israel will be destroyed.”
In his statement, White House spokesperson Andrew Bates said, “President Biden has put his foot down when it comes to vile and unhinged antisemitic rhetoric. As antisemitic crimes and acts of hate have increased across the world – among them the deadliest attack committed against the Jewish people since the Holocaust – leaders have an obligation to call hate what it is and bring Americans together against it.”
Bates referenced the 2017 white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, after which Trump claimed had very fine people on both sides.
"Like President Biden said, he was moved to run for President when he saw neo-Nazis chanting ‘the same antisemitic bile that was heard in Germany in the 1930s’ in Charlottesville," Bates said.
Presidential election in the US
In November of this year, the presidential election will be held in the US. The most likely contenders for the presidency are the incumbent president, Joe Biden, and former president Donald Trump. The latter became the sole candidate from the Republican Party as a result of the primaries.