In first speech since dinner with West and Fuentes, Trump calls himself 'the best ally' for Jewish

[brooklynite]

Source: The Forward

Former President Donald Trump didn’t mention his dinner with two prominent antisemitic figures last month in an address to a Jewish group Friday morning, his first public speech since the controversy ensued.

But speaking at a weekend conference by Torah U’Mesorah, an Orthodox educational group from New York, at his National Doral club in Miami, Trump claimed to be “the best ally” the Jewish people “have ever had.”

Since he dined with rapper Kanye West, who changed his name to Ye and went on a tirade of antisemitism and Holocaust denial in recent weeks, and Nick Fuentes, a prominent white supremacist, Trump has refused to condemn either of them. Instead, he criticized Jewish leaders and echoed common antisemitic tropes, saying his Jewish critics “lack loyalty” and “should be ashamed of themselves,” for not appreciating his pro-Israel policies while he was in office.

Trump spent most of his 30-minute speech — posted on YouTube — citing a recent article by Rabbi Dov Fischer, detailing “the things I have done for my Jewish friends and the Jewish people, and for Israel.” He earned the biggest round of applause when he mentioned his commutation of the jail sentence of Sholom Rubashkin, a kosher meat executive who was found guilty in 2009 of 86 counts of bank fraud and sentenced to 27 years in prison in December 2017. Rubashkin, whom Trump referred to as “the rabbi from Iowa” even though he was not a rabbi, had become a cause célèbre in some parts of the Orthodox community.

Read more: https://forward.com/fast-forward/528801/donald-trump-jewish-israel-kanye-west-nick-fuentes/

[Initech]

1. He literally had a guy at Mar-A-Shithole who said that he loves Hitler.

I mean it's like he's attempting to Jedi mind trick us... I can't even.

[Biophilic]

2. This where I throw my hands up and say I don't get it.

Trumps audience was Jewish. They invited him. They applauded him. They liked him. I know there were Jews in Germany who supported Hitler before the Final Solution was unveiled, but everyone is well aware of where this can go now. No, I don’t get it. This is insane.

[Abolishinist]

3. The audience at this event was Orthodox, 85%-90% of whom voted for him

in both 2016 and 2020.

Rabbi Dov Fischer of the Coalition for Jewish Values goes so far as to say the former "and his father were and are lifelong Philosemites, friends and admirers of Jews. Not to mention Ivanka and his grandkids."

[SouthernDem4ever]

5. stupid is as stupid does

[republianmushroom]

4. trumps calls himself many things

[Samrob]

6. Don't blame Trump. Blame the group that happily paid and attended. nt

[twodogsbarking]

7. Think anyone believes him?

Maybe Eric.

[newdayneeded]

8. 10s of millions,

That's the super scary part!

[twodogsbarking]

9. You are scaring the children. Me too.