Former U.S. president and presumptive 2024 Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump said on Wednesday that U.S. President Joe Biden “has totally lost control of the Israel situation.”
“Any Jewish person who votes for a Democrat or votes for Biden should have their head examined,” he said, ahead of an Atlanta fundraiser.
“He has no idea where he is and who he’s supporting,” Trump added of the U.S. president. “He doesn’t know if he’s supporting the Palestinians. But he knows one thing: He is not supporting Israel. He has abandoned Israel.”
Trump made similar remarks on Tuesday in an interview with Real America’s Voice—a right-wing cable and satellite TV channel—saying, “Any Jewish person that votes for Biden does not love Israel and, frankly, should be spoken to.”
“Jewish Americans do not need to be ‘spoken to’ or threatened by Donald Trump,” James Singer, a spokesman for Biden’s campaign, stated. “This is what Trump does, using division and hate as political weapons while seeking power for himself. Voters of all stripes will reject his chaos, violence and unhinged threats once again in November.”
On Wednesday, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) accused Biden of turning against Israel.
“Democrats are weak on Israel,” the Louisiana Republican said. “It’s rather stunning to us that there’s this dramatic shift. Hamas is holding more than 130 hostages, as you know, including Americans.”
In March, Trump stated that “any Jewish person that votes for Democrats hates their religion, they hate everything about Israel, and they should be ashamed of themselves.”
He drew criticism from the Anti-Defamation League, the American Jewish Committee and the Jewish Democratic Council of America, among other organizations.
Trump also said in March that the “Democratic Party hates Israel.”
Jews have remained largely unmovable in their political loyalties, voting overwhelmingly in favor of Democratic candidates. In 2016 and 2020, roughly 70% of Jews voted for Trump’s opponent.
“Frankly, it’s incredible that, historically, Jewish people vote for Democrats,” Trump told Real America’s Voice.
In Israel, the situation is reversed. More Israelis (44%) want Trump to win in November, compared to 30% who prefer Biden, according to a poll by Channel 12.
By criticizing Jewish voters, Trump may appeal to evangelicals, “a critical element of his political base,” according to the Associated Press.
The former president has “framed this year’s election as a referendum on the strength of Christianity in the U.S.,” the AP reported.
Trump has said that Election Day would also be “Christian Visibility Day,” a jab at the Biden administration’s celebration of Transgender Day of Visibility on March 31, coinciding this year with Easter.
