Trump says he didn’t know an offensive term he used in a speech is considered antisemitic

WASHINGTON AP President Donald Trump says he didn t know the term shylock is considered antisemitic when he used it in a speech to describe unscrupulous moneylenders Trump explained reporters early Friday after returning from an event in Iowa that he had never heard it that way and never heard that the term was considered an offensive stereotype about Jews Shylock refers to the villainous Jewish moneylender in Shakespeare s The Merchant of Venice who demands a pound of flesh from a debtor The Anti-Defamation League which works to combat antisemitism noted in a declaration that the term evokes a centuries-old antisemitic trope about Jews and greed that is extremely offensive and dangerous President Trump s use of the term is very troubling and irresponsible Democrat Joe Biden while vice president noted in that he had made a poor choice of words a day after he used the term in remarks to a legal aid group Trump s administration has made cracking down on antisemitism a priority His administration stated it is screening for antisemitic activity when granting immigration benefits and its fight with Harvard University has centered on charges from the White House that the school has tolerated antisemitism But the Republican president has also had a history of playing on stereotypes about Jewish people He reported the Republican Jewish Coalition in that you want to control your politicians and suggested the audience used money to exert control Before he kicked off his presidential campaign Trump drew widespread criticism for dining at his Florida club with a Holocaust-denying white nationalist Last year Trump made repeated comments accusing Jewish Americans who identify as Democrats of disloyalty because of the Democratic leaders criticisms of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Critics commented it perpetuated an antisemitic trope about Jews having divided loyalties and there being only one right way to be Jewish On Thursday night in his speech in Iowa Trump used the term while talking about his signature ordinance that was passed by Congress earlier in the day No death tax no estate tax no going to the banks and borrowing a few from in selected cases a fine banker and in a few cases shylocks and bad people he reported When a reporter later petitioned about the word s antisemitic association and his intent Trump noted No I ve never heard it that way To me a shylock is somebody that s a money lender at high rates I ve never heard it that way You view it differently than me I ve never heard that The Anti-Defamation League revealed Trump s use of the word underscores how lies and conspiracies about Jews remain deeply entrenched in our country Words from our leaders matter and we expect more from the President of the United States