(Official White House Photo by Andrea Hanks)
A petition by some Jewish leaders garnered more than 35,000 signatures to demand that Trump stay away from visiting the Tree of Life Jewish synagogue in Pittsburg in the wake of Saturday’s deadly shootings. As seen in today’s Daily Mail.com, “The letter was originally written by 11 members of the Pittsburgh affiliate of Bend the Arc, a national organization for progressive Jews focused on social justice.
‘For the past three years your words and your policies have emboldened a growing white nationalist movement,’ the letter to the president read. ‘You yourself called the murderer evil, but yesterday’s violence is the direct culmination of your influence.’”
The current Tree of Life Rabbi has a different view. He opened the way for Trump’s visit. I do not believe this idea that Trump is anti-semitic and here are some reasons why.
Sarah Sanders, the White House press secretary, repeated the fact that Trump’s grandchildren are Jewish, and his daughter is a practicing Orthodox Jew. Trump is the only president that kept the promise made years ago that the US embassy would be moved from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Trump also has a good working relationship with the current Jewish president.
USA Today said of Trump that before Trump’s presidential campaign, no one accused him of being anti-semitic. USA Today reports that Trump’s history includes generous donations to Jewish charities.
Trying to connect the violence to Trump is also disproven in another way. The media seems to ignore that the synagogue shooter suspect Robert Byers hates Trump. Byers complained to another extremist that Trump betrayed right-wing radical protestors by comparing them with a violent mob.
