The president hosted an event at the White House with prominent Jewish Americans and Israel supporters, speaking about his support for Israel and deploring recent anti-Semitic attacks.
Bondi Beach attack linked to Islamic State, officials say
Australian authorities say there is evidence that Islamic State was the inspiration for the Bondi Beach shooting that targeted two gunmen at a Hanukkah event.
At a Hanukkah event at the White House on Dec. 16, President Donald Trump praised the “enduring resilience” of Jews in the face of rising anti-Semitic attacks, including the recent attack in Australia that left 15 people dead.
“The miracle of Hanukkah is a reminder of God’s love for the Jewish people and their enduring resilience and faith in the face of centuries of persecution,” President Trump said in front of prominent Jewish Americans and supporters of Israel. “And it continues. Who believes this will continue?”
Tuesday night’s White House event comes just days after the December 14 attack on a Hanukkah celebration at Bondi Beach in the Sydney suburbs. President Trump offered condolences to the victims before listing acts of support for Israel, from the relocation of the US embassy to Jerusalem during his first term, to the bombing of Iran’s nuclear facilities in June.
“As President of the United States, I will always support Jewish Americans. And I will always be a friend and defender of the Jewish people,” Trump said.
The president also cited a crackdown on top American universities that the White House has accused of anti-Semitism and Israeli peace-brokering efforts. According to reports from the BBC and Al Jazeera, Israel continues its attacks in the Gaza Strip.
Trump brought several supporters to the stage, including conservative talk show host Mark Levin and Trump donor Miriam Adelson.
The Israeli-born wife of deceased Jewish American businessman Sheldon Adelson has offered to donate $250 million to President Trump if he runs for a third term. The 22nd Amendment bars Trump from serving a third term.
Levin called Trump “the first Jewish president of the United States.”
“He’s the first Jewish president to serve two non-consecutive terms,” the talk show host said as he wrapped his arms around President Trump. “You are the greatest president.”
The event also comes as the Republican Party faces a rift over its stance on anti-Semitism after prominent conservative media figure Tucker Carlson interviewed Nick Fuentes, an influential white supremacist on the fringes of the “Make America Great Again” movement.
Mr. Carlson’s interview with Mr. Fuentes came on the heels of at least four recent incidents in which Republican officials have associated Nazi symbols and ideology, including reports of members of the Young Republican Party joking about gas chambers. These include the Trump administration dropping a candidate for having “Nazi tendencies,” the discovery of a swastika inside an American flag in the office of a Republican lawmaker, and the revelation that an online neo-Nazi influencer is married to a Republican lawmaker from her home state of Michigan.
