Trump to Jewish Republicans: Democrats push an "extreme and anti-Semitic agenda"

LAS VEGAS – Says in front of a crowd of influential GOP and Jewish Republican backers, President Donald Trump on Saturday accused Democrats of mistreating Israel and leaving the government in the dark. rooting of the "scourge of anti-Semitism" in their party.

"Democrats are by far the most extreme antisemitic program in history," Trump said. "If it is implemented … the radical agenda of the Democrats could very well leave Israel alone by yourself."

History continues below

In an address at an annual conference organized by the Republican Jewish Coalition, which approved Trump in 2016 and who spoke highly of his administration during his first two years in power, the president moved the crowd dismantling one by one his political opponents. .

S addressing directly to Republican recruit Ilhan Omar, a Muslim congressman of Somali descent who was reprimanded by Republicans and members of his own party for comments perceived as anti-Semitic, Trump said. thanked jokingly at the beginning of his remarks.

His attack on the Minnesota lawmaker comes a day after the federal authorities announced the arrest of a 55-year-old man in New York, accusing him of threatening to assault and kill Omar.

"Special thanks to Omar representative from Minnesota. Oh I almost forgot. She does not like Israel … I'm so sorry! Trump mocked as an audience at the Venetian Golden Hotel hoisted the name of the congressman.

The speech of one hour and more touched all the themes of the campaign that Trump touted as he enters the fray of 2020.

He reassured the crowd that Republicans would soon become "the health care party," an assertion that puzzled some of the top GOP lawmakers who hoped not to fall back into the debate that had erupted after failing to address the issue. repeal and replace Obamacare in 2017. He also referred to the flow of immigrants to the US-Mexico border, including asylum seekers from Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, claiming that his administration had been unfairly criticized for his decision to cut aid to Central American countries.

"I took a lot of heat from stupid people," Trump said. "What about building our own country for a change?"

And in what has become a line of applause for Trump since Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (DN.Y.) introduced her climate change initiative known as the Green New Deal, Trump's is complaining of the menu of "socialist" policies that he claims Democrats. push Americans to kiss.

People should take "trains to Europe, Hawaii and Australia," said Trump, criticizing the Ocasio-Cortez resolution, proposed by "a wonderful young bartender aged 29," he added. with derision.

Earlier in the day, the president on Twitter denounced the investigations of Special Adviser Robert Mueller on Russian collusion and investigations by the Democratic regime on its administration. However, he notably avoided the subject by addressing Jewish Republicans.

Trump 's remarks to the Jewish crowd come less than a week after hosting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the White House to discuss an ongoing peace agreement in the Middle East. 39; Iran. Netanyahu is currently facing allegations of corruption and accusations that he has used his position as the highest elected official of Israel for personal gain. On Saturday, Trump asked the crowd how she thought the Israeli leader would benefit from her next bid for re-election.

"I think it's going to be close. Two good people, "said Trump, as the crowd shouted" Bibi "to express support for outgoing President Netanyahu.

The president also paid tribute to the conservative mega-donor Sheldon Adelson and his wife Miriam, to whom Trump recently presented a presidential medal of freedom. Adelson, 85, who was on cancer treatment, was not expected on Saturday. But the Casino mogul's relatives, who along with his wife gave more than $ 120 million to GOP causes in mid-term in 2018, said he had decided to go to the meeting.

Adelson, who arrived with a red "Make America Great Again" baseball cap, was applauded by the crowd, many of whom wore kippahs or other clothing with the name of Trump or the campaign's iconic slogan.

Trump's trip to the west coast, where he continues to suffer disproportionate disapproval, began Friday when he traveled to Calexico, California to visit a newly upgraded border segment for security reasons. . He participated in a fundraiser late Friday before dining at a golf club that he owns at Rancho Palos Verdes.

A group of pro-Palestinian militants tried to disrupt the president's speech on Saturday morning, but were escorted as the general public drowned them under the songs of "four more years" and "USA!"

Trump continued his momentum, complying with a series of Israel-related campaign promises that he has held since taking office, and reminding the crowd that one of those promises – his withdrawal from the United States, is the only one he has ever seen. 2015 nuclear agreement with Iran – is threatened by Democratic presidential candidates. .

"Unlike other presidents, I keep my promises," he said, citing his decision to transfer the US Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, thus illustrating "the historic action that has been waiting for decades ".

Trump took advantage of his remarks to generate enthusiasm for his own candidacy for re-election, but also for the Republicans of Congress who have to face tough races in 2020 and suffered a blow last November, when the Democrats reconquered the House of Representatives.

"We need more Republicans," he said, thanking audience members for their "outstanding commitment to our country" and allowing them to "drive our party to another historic victory "next fall.