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Why Won’t President Trump Denounce the Recent Anti-Semitic Attacks?

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The People Behind Attacks Wants Jews to Be Afraid and Trump Doesn’t Care

Another round of bomb threats were called in to at least ten different Jewish community centers (JCCs) on Monday, Presidents’ Day, marking the fourth time multiple JCCs were the target of a coordinated terrorist threat during the first month of Donald Trump’s presidency. The Jewish Community Center Association reports 69 incidents at 54 JCCs in 27 states this year alone.

We’ve covered this before here. It’s becoming harder and harder to find new details to share, but, as the Anti-Defamation League has said, “[While we do not] have any information at this time to indicate the presence of any actual bombs at any of the institutions threatened, the threats themselves are alarming, disruptive, and must always been taken seriously.”

There’s something really important here that too many folks aren’t noting: These threats are an attempt to tell Jews that we are not welcome here. They are designed to scare Jews out of congregating together at community centers, synagogues, and, apparently, even burying their dead. These bomb threats are, without question, anti-Semitic attacks. And they are, by definition, terrorism.

Jewish community centers across the country often house preschools, after school programs, senior day programs, and in some cases, share campuses with Jewish day schools and synagogues. So, we’re talking about terrorism designed to target children and seniors, who both need to look to others for their most basic needs – including a feeling of safety and security.

JCCs aren’t exclusively Jewish, either. A significant portion of the membership at JCCs across the country are non-Jews who simply look to the JCC to be their community center. I grew up at JCCs. My first job during high school was at a JCC and even into my professional career I worked at a JCC. 

The person, people, or groups behind these calls want Jews to feel unsafe in the places they feel most welcome. They want Jews to remember that we’re different, that we have a history of being terrorized, and that we’re not wanted here. They chose Jewish community centers for a reason: they’re symbols of Jewish integration into the larger American community, and that type of acceptance and welcome frightens white supremacists.

And President Trump doesn’t care at all. 

Last week he told a Jewish reporter to “sit down” and be “quiet” while explaining (angrily) that he was, at least in his own mind, “the least anti-Semitic person you’ve ever seen in your entire life,” as though that was some sort of suitable answer in response to the sharp rise in anti-Semitism since he won the election. 

He never did mention the uptick in anti-Semitism. He did, however, replay his electoral college win. Again.

I’m not naive enough to think that President Trump can put an end to anti-Semitism, and I’m certainly not foolish enough to think that he’s single-handedly caused all of these anti-Semitic attacks.

For the life of me, though, I can’t figure out why he simply can’t say the words, “The sharp rise in anti-Semitic attacks across the country is offensive and unacceptable and it must end now.” I don’t understand why President Trump refuses to say that attempts to terrorize Jewish communities are antithetical to American values and must be stopped.

Is it possible that this is nothing more than the handiwork of noted anti-Semite and presidential counselor Steve Bannon?

I don’t think Donald Trump is anti-Semitic himself. I think he’s so self absorbed he can’t possibly fathom what’s going on. I think he’s such a puppet of Steve Bannon he has no real idea what’s actually happening in the world. I think his staff have made him so insulated and ineffectual he’s nothing more than a symbolic figurehead at this point. 

Donald Trump’s silence on anti-Semitism isn’t a symptom of his own hatred; it’s a symptom of his complete impotence and ineptitude at being president.

And this is only his first month on the job.

  

Robbie Medwed is an Atlanta-based LGBTQ activist, educator, and writer. He’s dedicated more time than is usually considered reasonable to the study of anti-Semitism and really, really likes being super Jewy when white supremacists are around. Follow him on Twitter: @rjmedwed

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Ethics Committee Reveals Latest Republican to Come Under Review: Report

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January 16, 2026

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The House Ethics Committee has reportedly announced that U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) is facing a review by the Office of Congressional Conduct.

The origin of the review was not been disclosed. Under committee rules, officials are prohibited from stating whether the matter constitutes a formal investigation or identifying its underlying cause. The Committee only stated that there is a “matter regarding Representative Nancy Mace.”

“The Committee notes that the mere fact of a referral or an extension, and the mandatory disclosure of such an extension and the name of the subject of the matter, does not itself indicate that any violation has occurred, or reflect any judgment on behalf of the Committee,” the Ethics Committee statement reads. It was posted to social media by congressional journalist Jamie Dupree.

The statement also says the committee will “announce its course of action in this matter on or before March 2, 2026.”

Congresswoman Mace is currently running for governor of South Carolina.

Earlier this month Mace warned that Republicans may lose control of the House, saying they have not “done enough” and could “do a lot more” to implement President Donald Trump’s agenda, The Hill reported.

 

Image via Shutterstock 

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Republican Vows to Block Trump’s Greenland Push

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January 16, 2026

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A prominent Republican lawmaker is vowing to thwart any attempt by President Donald Trump to acquire Greenland through force or financial means.

Speaking from Copenhagen as part of a bipartisan delegation of U.S. congressional lawmakers, U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), told reporters it is “an important message for the people of the Kingdom of Denmark to understand” that the United States has “three separate but equal branches” of government.

Reminding them that under the U.S. Constitution it is Congress that controls spending, Senator Murkowski, who has broken ranks and stood up to President Trump at times, said, “In Congress, we have tools at our disposal under our constitutional authority that speaks specifically to the power of the purse through appropriations.”

She noted also that “Congress has a role. Certainly, when it comes to spending authorities, the Congress has a role in basically helping to facilitate the message that comes from our constituents, to be reflected in whether it’s legislation or appropriations, or actions or measures, that can indicate, again, the will of the Congress.”

READ MORE: Trump Dangles Another Insurrection Act Threat for Minnesota

The “vast majority” of Americans do not support the acquisition of Greenland, Senator Murkowski added, noting that “some 75 percent will say we do not think that that is a good idea.”

“Greenland needs to be viewed as our ally, not as an asset,” Murkowski also told reporters.

Politico reported that U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-DE) “also took part in the visit by House and Senate lawmakers,” and “said he would push ahead with legislation to curb Trump’s power to act unilaterally.”

He also denied President Trump’s claims that Greenland is necessary to be owned by the U.S. for national security reasons.

“Are there real, pressing threats to the security of Greenland from China and Russia?” Coons said. “No, not today.”

READ MORE: With Shutdown Looming and Crises Growing Trump Heads Off for Long Mar-a-Lago Weekend

 

Image via Reuters 

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Trump Dangles Another Insurrection Act Threat for Minnesota

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January 16, 2026

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Just one day after threatening to invoke the Insurrection Act in Minnesota, which would allow him to unleash domestic military forces onto American streets, President Donald Trump once again on Friday hinted he would do so while suggesting he may be “forced” to take action.

Trump targeted Governor Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, both Democrats, claiming they “don’t know what to do” after he deployed roughly 3,000 federal troops to the city.

“In Minnesota,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, “the Troublemakers, Agitators, and Insurrectionists are, in many cases, highly paid professionals.”

“The Governor and Mayor don’t know what to do, they have totally lost control, and our currently being rendered, USELESS! If, and when, I am forced to act, it will be solved, QUICKLY and EFFECTIVELY!”

The Guardian labeled Trump’s claims that protesters are paid as baseless.

Attorney Aaron Reichlin-Melnick wrote: “Note that the Trump admin hasn’t yet been able to produce evidence of a SINGLE ‘paid protestor.’ They’ve had total control of the FBI and the DOJ and ICE HSI and yet despite all of that, they can’t even find ONE person who they can accuse of being paid to protest.”

Separately, The Steady State, a group of over 365 former national security officials, while not referring to Trump’s remarks from Friday morning, noted that the Insurrection Act is “an extraordinary power meant for true emergencies, not a shield for unconstitutional policing. Using it to silence dissent or justify unlawful paramilitary activity at the hand of ICE undermines the rule of law.”

READ MORE: With Shutdown Looming and Crises Growing Trump Heads Off for Long Mar-a-Lago Weekend

 

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