Trump again denounces political foe as a ‘Palestinian,’ this time going after Schumer
CAIR and Amnesty International say former US president’s use of term is racist, after he called Biden ‘a very bad Palestinian’ at debate
Former US president Donald Trump’s references to Palestinians during Thursday’s debate with President Joe Biden were strongly denounced by advocacy groups, as he again deployed the term against a political foe.
Biden and Trump had a brief exchange on the war in Gaza but did not have a substantive discussion on the conflict sparked by Hamas’s October 7 terror onslaught.
“The only one who wants the war to continue is Hamas,” Biden said. Trump responded by saying Biden has “become like a Palestinian,” which rights advocates said came across as a slur.
“Actually, Israel is the one (that wants to keep going), and you should let them go and let them finish the job. He (Biden) doesn’t want to do it. He’s become like a Palestinian but they don’t like him because he’s a very bad Palestinian. He’s a weak one,” Trump said.
On Friday, Trump again used the term “Palestinian” in a similar way, this time saying in a rally that Democratic Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who is Jewish, was a Palestinian. “He’s become a Palestinian because they have a couple more votes or something,” he added, apparently suggesting the veteran New York lawmaker has become too critical of Israel
The Council on American Islamic Relations, whose executive director hailed the Hamas-led atrocities, said Biden was wrong to claim that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wants the war to end, while adding it viewed Trump’s Palestinian comment in the debate as a racist insult.
Trump: Schumer has become a Palestinian. He’s Jewish but he’s become a Palestinian pic.twitter.com/w95R9AbA8X
— Acyn (@Acyn) June 28, 2024
“Former President Trump’s use of ‘Palestinian’ as an insult was racist. President Biden’s touting of his military support for the Israeli government’s genocide in Gaza was callous,” Corey Saylor, research and advocacy director at CAIR, said in a statement.
“To insinuate that being Palestinian is somehow a bad thing, as former President Trump did when he called President Biden Palestinian, reeks of racism and anti-Arab hatred,” Paul O’Brien, executive director of Amnesty International USA, told Reuters.
CAIR has reported a rise in Islamophobia and anti-Palestinian bias since the latest eruption of conflict in the Middle East on October 7, which has fueled a surge in antisemitism in the US and around the globe. The war in Gaza and Washington’s support for Israel has also led to months of protests against the Jewish state across the United States.
Trump also faced criticism for using the term “Black jobs” and “Hispanic jobs” while claiming immigrants who were coming into the United States from its border with Mexico were taking away those employment opportunities.
The Trump campaign did not have an immediate comment to the criticism.
Immigration is a key election issue and Trump has claimed Biden has failed to secure the southern US border, ushering in scores of criminals. Studies show immigrants do not commit crimes at a higher rate than native-born Americans.
