WashingtonPresident Donald Trump claims that when he used the term “shylock” to characterize dishonest moneylenders in a speech, he was unaware that it was antisemitic.
After returning from an event in Iowa, Trump told reporters early on Friday that he had never heard the term used in that manner and that it was regarded as an unpleasant stereotype about Jews.
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In Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice, the evil Jewish moneylender Shylock wants a pound of flesh from a debtor.
According to a statement from the Anti-Defamation League, an organization that fights antisemitism, the term conjures up a dangerous and highly insulting antisemitic stereotype about Jews and greed that dates back hundreds of years. The term’s use by President Trump is extremely concerning and careless.
A day after using the term in speech to a legal aid group, Democratic vice president Joe Biden said he had made a bad word choice.
The Trump administration has prioritized combating antisemitism. The White House’s claims that the institution has condoned antisemitism have been the focus of his administration’s remarks while awarding immigration benefits.
However, the Republican president has additionally
In 2015, he said at the Republican Jewish Coalition, “You want to control your politicians,” and implied that the audience used money to do so.
Prior to launching his 2024 presidential campaign, Trump received a lot of backlash for
Trump repeatedly accused Democratic Jewish Americans of being disloyal last year due to the Democratic leaders’ criticism of the Israeli Prime Minister. According to critics, it reinforced the antisemitic stereotype that Jews have conflicting allegiances and that there is only one correct way to be Jewish.
Trump used the phrase at his speech in Iowa on Thursday night when discussing his flagship legislation that Congress had passed earlier in the day.
He remarked, “No estate tax, no death tax, no going to the banks and borrowing money from, sometimes shylocks and bad people, and sometimes a fine banker.”
Trump responded, “No, I’ve never heard it that way,” when a reporter subsequently questioned him about the word’s antisemitic connotations and his intentions. A shylock, in my opinion, is someone who charges exorbitant interest rates for loans. That’s not how I’ve ever heard it. I see it differently than you do. I haven’t heard that before.
Trump’s usage of the term, according to the Anti-Defamation League, highlights how deeply ingrained anti-Semitic conspiracy theories and lies are in our nation. We expect more from the President of the United States, and our leaders’ words count.
