Former President Trump blames VP Harris for 'militant antisemitism' in the US

The Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. President Donald Trump warned Jewish Americans that they are facing a virulent “militant antisemitism” reminiscent of the period leading up to the Holocaust. In his statement on Thursday, Trump blamed the deteriorating situation on U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, who is his Democratic political opponent in the upcoming U.S. presidential election in November.

“What’s going on now is exactly what was going on before the Holocaust,” Trump told prominent Jewish supporters at his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey.

“Instead of aggressively confronting these venomous antisemites in her party, Kamala Harris has maneuvered for their support,” he added, likely referring to the progressive wing of the Democratic Party.

“The toxic poison of antisemitism now courses through the veins of [the] radical Democrat Party,” he stated. He vowed to combat antisemitism across the United States if elected president.

“We’re here tonight because we believe that this vicious outbreak of militant antisemitism is very militant, must be given no quarter, no safe harbor, no place in a civilized society. We must reject it in our schools, reject it in our foreign policy, reject it in our immigration system and reject it at the ballot box this November,” Trump pledged. 

In a recent interview with Elon Musk, CEO of the social media platform 𝕏, Trump said when it comes to Israel, Harris is "worse than Biden."

“If you're a Jewish person or if you're a person that is very pro-Israel, if you vote for her [Kamala], she's worse than Biden, and Biden was bad, but if you vote for her, you ought to have your head examined,” Trump said, repeating his statement in a recent speech.

While there are a growing number of Republican Jewish Americans, the majority of Jews in the U.S. traditionally align with the Democrat Party.

Trump recalled the pro-Israel policies of his first presidency, including recognizing Israel’s capital as Jerusalem, Israeli sovereignty in the Golan Heights and withdrawing from the Obama administration’s Iranian nuclear agreement.

However, Israel is not a major election issue for the majority of Jewish Americans. In 2020, only 4% of Jewish Americans listed Israel as one of their top two voting issues, according to a Ruderman Family Foundation poll.

On Thursday, the Trump campaign also launched a new initiative, “Jewish Voices for Trump,” a Jewish outreach platform that highlights his previous pro-Israel credentials.

Trump repeated his previous argument that the Hamas Oct. 7 massacre of 1,200 Israelis would not have happened if he had been the president. He emphasized that he would back the Jewish state to win the war and expand the circle of peace in the Middle East.

“I will give Israel the support that it needs to win, but I do want them to win fast, wouldn’t it be nice if they could win fast?” Trump argued. “And we have to let them win fast. We will restore civility and peace to the Middle East.” He expressed his concern about the number of hostages still alive in Hamas captivity in Gaza.

In late July, Trump hosted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, which was reportedly the first meeting between the two men in four years.

Trump praised the “very good relationship” with Netanyahu and blasted Harris for her decision to skip Netanyahu’s joint session speech to the U.S. Congress in July.

“They weren’t very nice, pertaining to Israel. I actually don’t know how a person who’s Jewish can vote for her, but that’s up to them. But she was certainly disrespectful to Israel, in my opinion,” Trump said.