Lauren C. Moye, FISM News
Former President Donald Trump continues to take criticism for hosting two controversial dinner guests accused of antisemitism, even though Trump has said that he was unaware of the identity of the most prominent of these guests at the time.
Jewish leaders are the latest to denounce Trump’s Nov. 22 dinner with the rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, and Nick Fuentes. Both have made controversial, antisemitic, comments in the past. Their presence at Mar-a-Lago has made a stir among the White House, GOP leaders, and now even Trump’s former Israeli ambassador.
“To my friend Donald Trump, you are better than this,” David Friedman, who served as Trump’s U.S. Ambassador to Israel from 2017-2021, posted on Twitter Friday. The former U.S. ambassador to Israel further called Ye and Fuentes “scum,” “bums,” and as belonging to the “dustbin of history.”
To my friend Donald Trump, you are better than this. Even a social visit from an antisemite like Kanye West and human scum like Nick Fuentes is unacceptable. I urge you to throw those bums out, disavow them and relegate them to the dustbin of history where they belong. 1/
— David M Friedman (@DavidM_Friedman) November 25, 2022
Friedman served in his ambassador role from 2017-2021.
Friedman added that he had also condemned Trump’s predecessor, Barack Obama, for associating with antisemites like Louis Farrakhan and Jeremiah.
“Antisemites deserve no quarter among American leaders, right or left,” Friedman continued.
Ye’s public persona has been reeling after antisemitic comments he made on various social media platforms which culminated in being dropped from a multi-million sponsorship deal with Adidas. These comments included blaming “Jewish media” and “Jewish Zionists” for taking advantage of black people by wielding an inordinate amount of control in the entertainment industry. He also accused the Jewish community of buying the black voice.
The final October tweet that got him temporarily banned from Twitter said he was about to go “death-con 3” on Jewish people.
As the more controversial of the two, Fuentes has used his podcast platform to question how many Jewish people died in the Holocaust. He also compared Jews who suffered through incineration to being like cookies in the oven, which he later defended as a “funny joke.”
Despite these comments, Fuentes says he does not actually deny the Holocaust.
While even CNN stated that Fuentes attended the Mar-a-Lago dinner as one of Ye’s three guests and was not directly invited by Trump, that has not stopped Trump from receiving intense backlash over his presence.
Another Jewish leader, Matt Brooks, who serves as the executive director for the Republican Jewish Coalition, condemned Trump over his guests. Brooks told CBS News, “We strongly condemn the virulent antisemitism of Kanye West and Nick Fuentes and call on all political leaders to reject their messages of hate and refuse to meet with him.”
Friedman and Brooks join the White House administration in pushing back against Trump. White House Deputy Press Secretary Andrew Bates previously stated that “bigotry, hate, and antisemitism” have no place anywhere in America “including at Mar-a-Lago.”
GOP leaders like Arkansas Republican Governor Asa Hutchinson and Rep. James Comer from Kentucky have also condemned the former president.
Trump has denied knowing who Fuentes was before the dinner, including his controversial background. He has further said that no antisemitic comments were made by Ye and that the rapper wanted the dinner to receive some “business advice.”
Anonymous sources claim that Trump was “very taken” by Fuentes due to his ability to recall speech quotes and statistics. This has led to some calls for Trump to disavow the man out of fears that an association between Fuentes and Trump will hamper the former president’s re-election chances in 2024.
Ye also said in a video posted to Twitter that Trump was “impressed” because Fuentes was a “loyalist.”
However, it is notable that Ye originally asked for the dinner, then referenced a “list of things” that caught Trump off-guard in a jovial manner which most certainly included Fuentes’ presence and also when he asked Trump to be his vice presidential running mate for 2024.
Ye has a history of erratic behavior and it is unclear whether the rapper is intentionally trolling Trump or seriously contending to become Trump’s rival.
Trump announced his presidential bid on Nov. 15. Ye has not yet officially filed the paperwork despite rumors that Fuentes is helping him with his 2024 campaign according to a Daily Mail source.