Pharaoh in the White House
Tomorrow night, we will gather with our friends and family to celebrate Passover. As we tell the story of our liberation more than three thousand years ago, we think of those who remain in bondage today, especially the 59 hostages still held in Gaza after 553 days. We’re also thinking of those who are oppressed around the world, and the tyranny exerted by Donald Trump in the past 81 days since his inauguration.
With his ongoing attempts to erode and undermine democracy, curtail freedom of speech and the press, and divide and dehumanize Americans and immigrants, Trump appears to be a modern-day Pharaoh, and we must liberate ourselves and our country from his tyranny. Liberation comes through resistance in the pursuit of freedom – and ultimately, change at the ballot box – and that’s precisely what JDCA is doing by leading the Jewish opposition to Donald Trump.
We demonstrated our ability to create change last week when so many of you joined us in making more than 30,000 calls into Wisconsin. The result was an eleven-point swing in support of Democrats in the country’s first statewide race since the November election. We were buoyed by this crucial Democratic win, in addition to overperformances in two Florida House races and the week before, in two Pennsylvania state legislature elections.
TYRANNY OF TARIFFS
This week, Trump imposed and subsequently partially lifted tariffs, creating economic volatility, erasing trillions of dollars in value from the stock market, wiping out significant portions of Americans’ retirement accounts, and eroding global trust in the U.S. economy. With his tariffs, Trump demonstrated the true meaning of tyranny – the arbitrary use of power – to start a trade war that Americans have already lost. We will all continue to pay a steep price for Trump’s reckless economic policy.
ENOUGH IS ENOUGH
This Passover, the hostages and their families are in our hearts, and we remain staunchly committed to securing their freedom. We also remain committed to freeing Americans from the oppression emanating from this White House. Antisemitism is on the rise, and President Trump has fueled the fire at home and abroad.
In addition, legal residents and others are being illegally detained and, in some cases, deported without due process. Much of this is happening in our name, ostensibly to “fight antisemitism,” while in reality, it’s an extension of the White House’s attacks on higher education, immigrants, and free speech. Even if we disagree with the content of the speech, freedom should mean the same thing for all people, and due process must be granted. Enough is enough of Donald Trump using the Jewish community as an excuse to deprive people of their rights and deport people “for their beliefs.”
JOIN US
Tomorrow night, we will affirm around the Seder table that “we were once slaves, now we are free.” But in 2025, this is not necessarily the case. We hope you’ll join JDCA in defending freedom and democracy and standing up against oppression, be it religious, racial, economic, or political. We are fighting to defend the values represented on our JDCA Seder Plate, and we encourage you to join us.
We hope you’ll invest in JDCA’s work this Passover to strengthen our ability to take collective action, and as you prepare your Seder, we hope you’ll enjoy JDCA’s annual Passover companion.
DOWNLOAD YOUR JDCA PASSOVER COMPANION
DOWNLOAD THE JDCA VALUES SEDER PLATE 
Shabbat Shalom and Chag Pesach Sameach,
Halie Soifer
CEO, Jewish Democratic Council of America