TEL AVIV — President Donald Trump reportedly told a room full of Republican donors on Friday night that “the Democrats hate Jewish people.”
Trump’s reported comments at a Republican National Convention (RNC) donors convention at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, come after freshman Congresswoman Ilhan Omar accused pro-Israel activists of pushing her to show “allegiance” and “pledge support” to Israel.
Trump told donors that “he didn’t understand how any Jew could vote for a Democrat these days,” according to the Axios news site, which cited three people at the off-record event.
Trump also discussed his popularity in Israel, noting his historic decision to move the U.S. Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, the news site said.
If he could run for prime minister of Israel, Trump said, he would be polling at 98 percent.
Jewish Democrats criticized Trump for his claims of antisemitism within their party.
“President Trump is entitled to his own opinion but not his own facts. In this case, both are just WRONG,” the Jewish Democratic Council of America posted on Facebook. “In the midterm elections 82% of the two-party Jewish vote went to Democrats. 32/34 Jewish members of Congress are Democrats. As of early October, 70% Jewish voters disapproved of Trump’s handling of the rise of anti-Semitism in our country. Those are FACTS.”
As the Times of Israel noted, the data cited came from a survey conducted by the Mellman Group, a polling firm hired by Democrats.
Trump also took to Twitter last week to double down on the antisemitism charges against the Democratic Party.
“The Democrats have become an anti-Israel party, they’ve become an anti-Jewish party,” he tweeted.
"The Democrats have become an anti-Israel party. They've become an anti-Jewish party. And I thought that vote was a disgrace." pic.twitter.com/JgpkLgmKjo
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) March 8, 2019
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