President Biden broke his silence to condemn the violent protests rocking college campuses across the country amid the worst outbreak of anti-Semitism in decades, adding that Islamophobia has no place in the United States.
“There should be no place on any campus for anti-Semitism or threats of violence against Jewish students,” Biden said. “There is no place for hate speech or violence of any kind, whether it’s anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, or discrimination against Arab-Americans or Palestinian-Americans. It’s simply wrong. There is no place for speciesism. It’s all wrong and un-American.” ”
When Biden called out Islamophobia during his speech, Alan, a professor emeritus at Harvard Law School, said law enforcement officials suggested to Fox News Digital that there was no spike in Islamophobia across the country. Some observers, including Dershowitz, were puzzled.
“Why can’t President Biden simply condemn anti-Semitism without pandering to Muslims and Arabs?”
“Why can’t President Biden simply condemn anti-Semitism without pandering to Muslims and Arabs,” Dershowitz wrote on He said it was about violence against people and not about other groups. “Why doesn’t he simply condemn Jewish hatred?”
President Biden condemns violent anti-Israel protests, does not call in National Guard
A new poll shows Biden’s approval rating is just 41%. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
A mob of anti-Israel agitators invaded the university campus and set up an encampment, demanding that the school completely withdraw from supporting the war in Gaza. Jewish students have reported feeling threatened at Columbia University, and Jewish students have been prevented from entering UCLA’s campus.
On Tuesday morning, anti-Israel agitators at Columbia University in New York City chanted “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” and continued to call for an “intifada revolution” as a mob invaded and occupied academic halls. . . The chant calls for the eradication of Israel.
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A large sign at the anti-Israel encampment at the University of Chicago carries slogans such as “Throw open the gates and globalize the intifada” and “We honor all our martyrs.” (Joseph A. Wolfthorne/Fox News Digital)
It wasn’t until the next night that university officials allowed New York City police to enter campus and remove the agitators.
Agitators at the University of Chicago are also calling for the intifada to become global.
Hugh Hewitt, host of “The Hugh Hewitt Show,” criticized Biden in a social media post for taking two minutes and 40 seconds to express hatred for Jews before interjecting Islamophobia.
“Of course, it’s a teleprompter, but his writers are exhausted,” he said. “They don’t have the ability to compose a powerful speech, and he doesn’t have the ability to make a powerful speech.”
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Hewitt told Fox News Digital that Islamophobia, like all types of hate speech, is “real and a cause for concern.”
He also addressed anti-Semitism on college campuses.
“Jewish hatred is an ancient evil that is now spreading to dozens of campuses.”
“Jewish hatred is an ancient evil, and it is now spreading across dozens of campuses,” Hewitt said. “Today, tomorrow, and as long as anti-Semitism remains rampant across the country, that should be the president’s exclusive focus, and it would be if the president had no interest in being re-elected.”
Immediately after Biden’s remarks, Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) called the president “powerless” on social media.
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“President Biden remains unwilling to forcefully denounce the Hamas mob on campus. He is afraid of them,” the senator said. “A complete lack of leadership from an ineffective president.”
Former Congressman Lee Zeldin (RN.Y.) released a statement to FOX News Digital regarding Biden’s comments.
“The politics of Joe Biden needing to be vague about Israel, vague about defending American Jews, vague about protecting Jewish students at universities to have any chance of winning Michigan in November.” “We did some calculations,” Zeldin said. “Hamas supporters have occupied college campuses across this country seeking to kill Jews. Weak leadership is a play call in the White House, and there is an incredible lack of moral clarity and courage. Now is a special time to condemn anti-Semitism. ”
The FBI declined to comment on the rise in Islamophobia in the United States, directing all questions on the matter to the White House.
The White House defended the president’s comments by citing examples of attacks on Muslims in the news.
White House Press Secretary Andrew Bates said: “In Chicago, a 6-year-old child was brutally murdered and his mother stabbed. In Vermont, three Palestinian college students, two of them American citizens, were shot and killed. I was paralyzed,” he said. “The FBI has been alarmed by an increase in crimes and threats against Muslims, Arab Americans, and Palestinian Americans in recent months. Terrifying language, threats, and violence are targeting Muslim communities.
“President Biden cares about the rights, dignity, and safety of all Americans,” Bates added.
But others, including Rich Goldberg, a senior adviser at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD), a nonprofit, nonpartisan research organization focused on national security and foreign policy, did not push back.
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President Biden has said he expects Iran to attack Israel amid rising tensions between the two countries. (Jacqueline Martin/AP/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“What people need to understand is that the Biden administration itself is like a college campus. There are protests within the government with leaks and anonymous letters and things like that. [protesters] Wearing masks outside the White House, resignations, threats of resignation, yelling, staff in town hall meetings, etc.,” Goldberg said, adding, “And Biden is like a weak college president afraid of Hamasniks on campus. It’s something,” he said. So when he denounces anti-Semitism, he is careful to balance it so as not to upset his Hamas faction. ”
“Order must prevail,” Biden said Thursday as he condemned the violence on school campuses.
“We are not an authoritarian nation that silences people or suppresses dissent. The voices of the American people will be heard. In fact, peaceful protests shape how Americans respond to important issues. “But we are not a lawless nation. We are a lawless nation. Civil society and order must prevail,” Biden said.
Biden was under increasing media and political pressure to speak out against the violence.
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Biden’s critics blasted his recent speech in which he urged voters to choose “freedom over democracy.” (AP Photo/Damien Dovarganes)
“Throughout our history, we have often faced moments like this, because we are a large, diverse, free-thinking, freedom-loving nation. There are always people in a hurry to score political points in a moment of need. But this is not the case. “Now is the time for politics to be clear,” Biden also said.
“Let me be clear…violent protest is not protected. Peaceful protest is not protected. When violence occurs, it is against the law. Destruction of property is not peaceful protest. That’s against the law. Vandalism, trespassing, breaking windows, forcing the cancellation of classes and graduation ceremonies are all not peaceful protests,” Biden continued. “Threatening people. Intimidating people. Instilling fear in people is not peaceful protest. It’s against the law.”
“Threatening people. Intimidating people. Instilling fear in people is not peaceful protest. It’s against the law.”
Protests continue despite the president’s condemnation of the actions of anti-Israel agitators against Jews.
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Anti-Israel demonstrators continue to rally in front of Columbia University on Tuesday, April 30, 2024, in New York City. (Rashid Umar Abbasi, Fox News Digital)
Nicole Parker, a former FBI special agent and Fox News contributor, said that in June 2021, FBI leadership made hate crimes “a top priority in the FBI’s civil rights program” primarily because of the devastation they cause to communities and individuals. “It is a matter of concern,” he said.The FBI has also made it a top priority because there is no tolerance for hate in the United States.
“The FBI is committed to doing everything we can to reduce the threat of hate crimes and protect all Americans,” Parker said. “Given what I have observed on college campuses across the country in recent weeks, this oath to protect is more relevant than ever at a time when individuals are putting their lives at risk and are unable to live in freedom and peace. It is unacceptable to criticize their religion or country of origin. ”
She also talked about how freedom of speech is embraced in the United States, but terrorist threats, destruction, and violence are not. Rather, they are serious crimes.
“In recent weeks, Director Merrick Garland and FBI Director Christopher Wray have maintained a deafening silence in the face of what appears to be an epidemic of federal civil rights violations and hate crimes on college campuses across the country. “I hope that this is not an indication of a lack of justice as resources and efforts are being expended to address the threat,” Parker said.
“Americans have been watching the federal criminal justice system for several years now. … They usually make it very clear to the public when they’re interested in addressing this issue.”
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He also urged anyone who believes they may be the victim of a hate crime to contact the FBI.
“If you believe you are a victim or witness of a hate crime or a violation of your civil rights under the Civil Rights Act of 1964, we encourage you to report it.”
Fox News Digital’s Greg Norman contributed to this report.
