White House Condemns Antisemitic Mob At Columbia

The White House issued a statement over the weekend condemning the antisemitic protests at Columbia University in recent weeks. The college has been the site of a number of pro-Palestinian demonstrations, including some in which crowds told Jewish students to leave.

The White House’s statement said that “calls for violence and physical intimidation targeting Jewish students and the Jewish community are blatantly antisemitic, unconscionable and dangerous – they have absolutely no place on any college campus or anywhere in the United States of America.”

White House deputy press secretary Andrew Bates said that “echoing the rhetoric of terrorist organizations, especially in the wake of the worst massacre committed against the Jewish people since the Holocaust, is despicable. We condemn these statements in the strongest terms.”

The videos posted last night on Columbia University’s Chabad are shocking.

This isn’t anti-Zionism. It’s blatant antisemitism. pic.twitter.com/7Ggk9dndGv

— Kassy Akiva (@KassyDillon) April 21, 2024

Jewish students at the university were advised to attend class remotely amid the growing protests.

Among those arrested during the protests was Rep. Ilhan Omar’s (D-MN) daughter, who has a hammer and sickle in her X social media profile.

The Biden administration is in a difficult situation as the Muslim American population may hold the key to the Electoral College in November. The group overwhelmingly voted for Biden against former President Donald Trump in 2020.

However, since the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack in Israel, there has been significant protest against the White House’s approach to the conflict. Some Muslim American leaders argue that Biden has been too supportive of Israel and led an effort to have their followers vote for ‘uncommitted’ in the Democratic Party presidential primary.

States with small but significant Muslim American populations such as Minnesota and Detroit could see a shift toward Trump. While it is unlikely that the Muslim American population will vote for Trump, many may vote third party or simply stay home.

Biden narrowly carried Michigan in 2020 and any loss of support could cost him the state in the general election. Muslim American leaders rebuffed efforts by the Biden campaign for a meeting and the president’s approval rating among this group fell considerably.