The MAGA Road to Anti-Semitism

The MAGA Road to Anti-Semitism

On this episode of The Time Of Monsters, David Klion comments on the controversial posts from Donald Trump, Marjorie Taylor Green, and Kanye West.

Facebook
Twitter
Email
Flipboard
Pocket

In the past week, a number of prominent MAGA leaders have made comments about Jews that range from insulting to outright anti-Semitic.

Donald Trump posted on Truth Social, “No President has done more for Israel than I have. Somewhat surprisingly, however, our wonderful Evangelicals are far more appreciative of this than the people of the Jewish faith, especially those living in the U.S. Those living in Israel, though are a different story—Highest approval rating in the World, could easily be P.M.! U.S. Jews have to get their act together and appreciate what they have in Israel—Before it is too late!”

Marjorie Taylor Greene tweeted: “The same banks that hold George Soros accounts and hedge funds also held Jeffrey Epstein accounts and hedge funds.”

In a tweet that was deleted by Twitter, the musician Kanye West wrote, “I’m going death con 3 On JEWISH PEOPLE The funny thing is I actually can’t be Anti Semitic because black people are Jew also You guys have toyed with me and tried to black ball anyone whoever opposes your agenda.”

What are we to make of these comments? To take up the issue, I talked to David Klion, an editor at Jewish Currents who has written before on Trump’s comments on Jews. (David speaks on this podcast for himself and not for Jewish Currents). It’s a wide-ranging discussion about how casual bigotry serves as a gateway to something much worse.

Subscribe to The Nation to support all of our podcasts: thenation.com/podcastsubscribe.

We cannot back down

We now confront a second Trump presidency.

There’s not a moment to lose. We must harness our fears, our grief, and yes, our anger, to resist the dangerous policies Donald Trump will unleash on our country. We rededicate ourselves to our role as journalists and writers of principle and conscience.

Today, we also steel ourselves for the fight ahead. It will demand a fearless spirit, an informed mind, wise analysis, and humane resistance. We face the enactment of Project 2025, a far-right supreme court, political authoritarianism, increasing inequality and record homelessness, a looming climate crisis, and conflicts abroad. The Nation will expose and propose, nurture investigative reporting, and stand together as a community to keep hope and possibility alive. The Nation’s work will continue—as it has in good and not-so-good times—to develop alternative ideas and visions, to deepen our mission of truth-telling and deep reporting, and to further solidarity in a nation divided.

Armed with a remarkable 160 years of bold, independent journalism, our mandate today remains the same as when abolitionists first founded The Nation—to uphold the principles of democracy and freedom, serve as a beacon through the darkest days of resistance, and to envision and struggle for a brighter future.

The day is dark, the forces arrayed are tenacious, but as the late Nation editorial board member Toni Morrison wrote “No! This is precisely the time when artists go to work. There is no time for despair, no place for self-pity, no need for silence, no room for fear. We speak, we write, we do language. That is how civilizations heal.”

I urge you to stand with The Nation and donate today.

Onwards,

Katrina vanden Heuvel
Editorial Director and Publisher, The Nation

x