Article

GOP Gazpacho & Hypocrisy

February 11, 2022

This week was marked by more revelations about Donald Trump’s corrupt and dangerous actions in the White House, Marjorie Taylor Greene’s ignorance while promoting Holocaust distortion, Dr. Lipstadt’s confirmation hearing, and more Republican hypocrisy and bigotry.

The viral moment of the week was Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) referring to “Nancy Pelosi’s Gazpacho police” in a failed attempt to compare the Capitol Police to the Nazi Gestapo. Greene’s statement was comically absurd, but we must look past the jokes. Greene and other Republicans continue to engage in vile Holocaust distortion. It’s wrong, it feeds into antisemitic Holocaust denial, and it must stop. The best way to stop it is to defeat Republicans at the ballot box, and that’s exactly what JDCA is doing by supporting Democratic candidates who share our values in this critically important election year. We hope you’ll join us by clicking on the image below, and – if you haven’t already – becoming a member of JDCA in 2022.

This week, we also learned that Donald Trump removed top secret documents from the White House and that his toilet was frequently clogged because he was flushing torn up government documents. Trump’s disregard for democratic norms and the law is nothing new, but his unconscionable behavior continues to underscore the hypocrisy that permeates the GOP. Remember, Hillary Clinton was berated for her innocuous emails. What was the GOP response to this week’s Trump news? Complete silence.

On Tuesday, nearly 200 days since President Biden announced her nomination to serve as Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism, Dr. Deborah Lipstadt had her Senate confirmation hearing. As JDCA wrote in The Forward, Republicans cannot “feign concern about antisemitism while tolerating and aligning with extremists and ignoring Trump’s ongoing role in inciting it. They also cannot continue to delay confirmation of the person nominated to serve as the U.S. government envoy to combat it. Today’s a good start, but it’s not enough — it’s past time for the Senate to vote and confirm Deborah Lipstadt.” Take action with JDCA by reading our new op-ed and telling your Senators to confirm Dr. Lipstadt.

The GOP’s dangerous rhetoric is sinking to new levels. JDCA denounced an ad run by Sen. Mark Kelly’s (D-AZ) Republican opponent glorifying gun violence toward Democrats. The ad’s message is especially vile given the fact that Sen. Kelly’s wife, former Rep. Gabby Giffords, is a survivor of gun violence. Join us in rejecting this offensive ad by helping to re-elect Mark Kelly in Arizona.

Following Donald Trump’s frequent example, another Republican official conflated Jewish Americans and Israeli citizens, which feeds into the dangerous antisemitic trope of ‘dual-loyalty.’ Join us in reminding Rep. Clay Higgins (R-LA) – we are Americans.

Jewish Dems also responded to Donald Trump’s former Ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, admitting that “he came into this being loyal to one person — the President of the United States.” Republicans are increasingly admitting that their loyalty is not to the Constitution, democracy, or America. Their loyalty is to Donald Trump.

BOARD CHAIR HON. RON KLEIN AWARDED FOR JEWISH COMMUNAL ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Jewish Dems are proud to share that JDCA’s founding Board Chair, former Congressman Ron Klein, has been awarded the Gitelson Silver Medallion by the Alpha Epsilon Pi Foundation. The Gitelson Silver Medallion recognizes AEPi alumni for their commitment to Jewish communal service. Ron’s leadership and dedication to our Jewish and Democratic values are foundational to JDCA’s work and success. Mazel tov to Ron for this honor.

WEAR YOUR PRIDE ON YOUR SLEEVE
There is no better way to show your pride as a Jewish Democrat than with Jewish Dems shirts, hats, mugs, stickers, and more. Check out our store and order today! Special store discounts and gifts are available for JDCA members.

We cannot afford to allow Republicans to have control in Congress. This week was an important reminder about what is on the line in this critically important election year. Thank you for your continued support and partnership as we continue to fight for our shared values.

Shabbat Shalom,

Hon. Ron Klein,
Board Chair, Jewish Democratic Council of America

Halie Soifer
CEO, Jewish Democratic Council of America