According to Mediate, Donald Trump, the former President of the United States, chose to commemorate the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah, in a rather controversial manner. He took to his social media platform, Truth Social, and posted a meme that targeted “liberal Jews” while asserting his belief that he deserves more political support from the Jewish community. The meme’s text read, “Just a quick reminder for liberal Jews who voted to destroy America & Israel because you believed false narratives! Let’s hope you learned from your mistake & make better choices moving forward! Happy New Year!”
However, Trump’s message didn’t stop there. He went on to list what he perceived as actions that demonstrated his support for Jewish people and Israel, in a somewhat defensive tone. These points included:
- Moving the American Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
- Recognizing Israel’s sovereignty over the Golan Heights.
- Recognizing Israel’s sovereignty over settlements in Judea & Samaria.
- Signing an executive order designating Judaism as a nationality in addition to a religion, allowing it to be protected under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination in programs receiving federal financial assistance.
- Signing the ‘Never Again’ Education bill in May 2020, allocating funds to expand Holocaust awareness and create educational resources for teachers nationwide.
Trump’s post concluded with the assertion that he was one of the greatest anti-Semites of our time, accompanied by the hashtags #TRUMP2020 and #JEXIT.
This post is reflective of Trump’s pattern of giving passive-aggressive holiday greetings to his political opponents. He has, in the past, expressed frustration and disappointment with Jewish American voters, accusing them of being ungrateful, ignorant, and disloyal for their criticism of his policies, particularly when it comes to the Israeli government. These accusations have sometimes been criticized for perpetuating the harmful dual-loyalty trope, which implies that Jewish individuals have divided loyalties between the United States and Israel. Trump’s approach to engaging with the Jewish community continues to be a subject of controversy and debate.
