Trump tweets claim Israelis ‘love him like he is the second coming of God’
US president quotes radio host Wayne Allyn Root, who says Jewish state adores him as ‘the King of Israel’ but that US Jews ‘don’t even know what they’re doing’ anymore
US President Donald Trump on Wednesday promoted a claim that he has achieved godlike status in Israel and that the Jewish population of the country adore him as their “king.”
Trump tweeted the remarks by radio host and conspiracy theorist Wayne Allyn Root, which were broadcast Tuesday on his show.
“President Trump is the greatest President for Jews and for Israel in the history of the world, not just America, he is the best President for Israel in the history of the world…and the Jewish people in Israel love him like he’s the King of Israel,” Trump quoted Root as saying. “They love him like he is the second coming of God.”
“But American Jews don’t know him or like him,” the tweet continued. “They don’t even know what they’re doing or saying anymore. It makes no sense! But that’s OK, if he keeps doing what he’s doing, he’s good for all Jews, Blacks, Gays, everyone. And importantly, he’s good for everyone in America who wants a job.”
“Wow!” added Trump, while thanking Root for “the very nice words.”
Root made the comments during a discussion about Democrat voters with a caller on his show. In the past, Root has peddled conspiracy theories claiming former US president Barack Obama was not born in the United States and that the white supremacist who ran over and killed a counter-protester during a Neo-Nazi march in Charlottesville in 2017 may have been paid to do so by Jewish philanthropist George Soros to discredit conservatives.
The tweets came a day after Trump lashed out at Democrats over what he claimed was their lack of support for Israel, suggesting that American Jews who intend to vote for his rival party in the 2020 elections would be displaying “great disloyalty.”
“I think any Jewish people who would vote for a Democrat, I think it shows either a total lack of knowledge or great disloyalty,” Trump said during an Oval Office meeting with President Klaus Iohannis of Romania.
Trump was commenting on the uproar in Washington over Israel’s barring of Democratic congresswomen Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar from entering the country due to their pro-Palestinian and Israel-boycott activism.
American Jewish leaders condemned Trump’s loyalty remark saying he was employing a dangerous anti-Semitic trope.
“It’s unclear who @POTUS is claiming Jews would be “disloyal” to, but charges of disloyalty have long been used to attack Jews,” tweeted Jonathan Greenblatt of the Anti-Defamation League, calling on the president to stop “using Jews as a political football.”
American Jewish Committee CEO David Harris called Trump’s comments “outrageous.”
Tlaib and Omar, who have sparred with Trump over Israel and a number of other issues, on Monday accused the US president of encouraging Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to ban them, and called to cut the $3 billion in annual US assistance to Israel until it halts settlement building and ensures equal rights for Palestinians.
