FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, September 29
Contact: Logan Smith
[email protected]
202-709-8825

Trump again refuses to condemn white supremacist groups in debate: “Stand by”
Asked to condemn white supremacists, militias, or the Proud Boys, Trump instead gives them a direct order

CLEVELAND, OH – Bend the Arc: Jewish Action released the following statement in response to President Trump’s comments during Tuesday’s debate refusing to condemn white supremacist militias:

“Over and over again during his presidency, Trump has been given the chance to condemn the white supremacists who support him,” said Stosh Cotler, CEO of Bend the Arc: Jewish Action. “Tonight, he once again showed why a majority of Jewish voters say that Jews will be less safe if Trump is re-elected.”

“Instead of condemning white supremacists or militias trying to start a second Civil War, Trump told them to ‘stand by.’ Minutes later, Trump promoted election interference by suggesting that ‘his people’ illegally crowd polling places and challenge ballots, before implying that he won’t accept the results of the election. These are the words of a scared wannabe fascist , not a president – and Jewish Americans see right through him.”

“Trump has repeatedly made it clear that he considers violent white supremacists to be a valued part of his base, even after people are murdered. In February 2017, he answered a question about increasing antisemitism on his watch by talking about his electoral college victory. Later in 2017, after Neo-Nazis and KKK members rioted in Charlottesville he called them ‘very fine people.’”

“In 2018, after the most deadly antisemitic massacre in our country's history, more than 160,000 Jews and our allies signed Bend the Arc’s petition demanding Trump denounce white nationalism. He wouldn't condemn them then, and he won’t do it now. He doesn’t just enable white supremacy; it’s his platform. Trump’s open appeals to white supremacists and his dangerous rhetoric show that this president will do or say anything in his increasingly desperate bid to hold onto power. In November, Jewish Americans will soundly reject his machinery of fear for the second time.” 

Bend the Arc: Jewish Action is uniting a movement of tens of thousands of progressive Jews across the country who are fighting for justice and equality for all. We are the only national Jewish organization focused exclusively on social change in the United States.

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