Trump warns US Jews Democratic victory could leave Israel isolated

The group, backed by GOP megadonor Sheldon Adelson, supported Trump’s 2016 campaign and is preparing to spend millions on his 2020 effort.

“I know that the Republican Jewish Coalition will help lead our party to another historic victory,” Trump said. “We need more Republicans. Let’s go, so we can win everything.”

Trump earned standing ovations for recounting both the embassy move and the Golan Heights recognition.

Trump noted it had long been a priority for Adelson and his wife, Miriam. “That is the most important thing that’s ever happened in their life,” Trump said. “They love Israel.”

Republican Jewish Coalition Convention attendees (Facebook/RJC)

Trump met privately with Adelson before speaking, according to an official. Adelson has cancer and has been in poor health, but he and his wife attended Trump’s remarks — receiving a standing ovation when they entered the ballroom.

The Adelsons gave Trump’s campaign $30 million in 2016. They followed that by contributing $100 million to the Republican Party for the 2018 midterm elections.

Trump’s speech comes weeks after he suggested Democrats “hate” Jews. His remark followed an internal fight among Democrats over how to respond to comments by Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., that some criticized as anti-Semitic.

Trump mockingly thanked Omar as he began his speech, before adding, “Oh, I forgot. She doesn’t like Israel, I forgot, I’m sorry. No, she doesn’t like Israel, does she? Please, I apologize.”

He also accused Democrats of allowing anti-Semitism to “take root” in their party.

‘Your’ prime minister

President Trump received backlash after the event for referring to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as “your prime minister” to the overwhelmingly American Jewish audience.

Trump made the remarks while speaking about the ceremony that took place in the White House nearly two weeks ago, in which he signed a proclamation recognizing Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights.

“I stood with your prime minister at the White House to recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights,” Trump told the crowd.

The American Jewish Committee tweeted: “Mr. President, the Prime Minister of Israel is the leader of his (or her) country, not ours. Statements to the contrary, from staunch friends or harsh critics, feed bigotry.”

By bigotry, the AJC was referring to the age-old anti-Semitic stereotype of dual loyalty, in which Jews were accused of being less than fully loyal to the countries in which they lived.

Ironically, trafficking in the dual loyalty charge is what Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) has been accused of when she questioned the “allegiance” of Israel supporters in America, suggesting they placed Israel above U.S. interests.

However, the enthusiastic audience at the RJC event was unfazed by Trump’s remarks.

Before Trump’s appearance, people assembled for the event carried signs with “We are Jews for Trump” and “Trump” written in Hebrew. Dozens of men and several women wore red yarmulkes with “Trump” in white that were distributed at the event.

Trump also took credit for eliminating hundreds of millions of dollars in aid to the Palestinians and for pulling the U.S. out of several U.N. organizations, the U.N. Human Rights Council and UNESCO, citing anti-Israel bias in their agendas.

Introducing Trump, former Sen. Norm Coleman, R-Minn., the chairman of the RJC, led the audience in an adapted version of the Passover reading “Dayenu,” as he recounted what Trump had done for Israel.

Stuart Weil, a Jewish man from Fresno, California, said Americans have traditionally been very supportive of Israel but “the progressive, liberal wing of the Democratic Party” is changing that.

Weil, who wore a blue Trump-style hat that read, “Making Israel & America Great Again,” says he’s a Republican because of the party’s strong stance on Israel.

According to AP Votecast, a survey of more than 115,000 midterm voters and 3,500 Jewish voters nationwide, voters who identified as Jewish broke for Democrats over Republicans by a wide margin, 72 percent to 26 percent, in 2018.

Over the past decade, Jewish voters have shown stability in their partisanship, according to data from Pew Research Center. Jewish voters identify with or lean toward the Democratic Party over the Republican Party by a roughly 2-1 ratio.

Jewish voters in the U.S. have traditionally sided heavily with Democrats — and are often ideologically liberal — but Republicans are hoping to narrow the gap next year, in part as Trump cites actions that he says demonstrate support for Israel.

The Jewish Democratic Council of America on Saturday said American Jews leaving the Democratic Party are a Republican fantasy.

“Trump’s presidency has only solidified the fact that the Democratic Party has been – and will remain – the political home of the American Jewish electorate,” JDCA Executive Director Halie Soifer said in a statement.

Donald TrumpRepublican Jewish CoalitionUS-Israel relations