Nick Fuentes, Donald Trump, and Kanye West meeting
On November 22, 2022, former U.S. president Donald Trump, rapper and businessman Kanye West, and white nationalist and Holocaust denier Nick Fuentes met for a dinner at Trump's Mar-A-Lago residence in Florida. The nature of the event garnered bipartisan criticism of Trump.
The New York Times (NYT) has commented that, for American Jews, "the debate since the dinner has brought into focus what may be the most discomfiting moment in U.S. history in a half-century or more."[1] The NYT also commented that Trump's failure to decline the meeting or explicitly condemn the anti-semitic and white nationalist views held by Fuentes represented an embracing of extremism by Trump.[2]
Background[edit]
![[icon]](/File:Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg){kind=small} | This section is empty. You can help by adding to it. (December 2022) |
ye via Twitter @kanyewest I'm a bit sleepy tonight but when I wake up I'm going death con 3 On JEWISH PEOPLE The funny thing is I actually can't be Anti Semitic because black people are actually Jew also You guys have toyed with me and tried to black ball anyone whoever opposes your agenda
8 Oct 2022[3]
Meeting[edit]
According to West, Trump was "very impressed" by Nick Fuentes.[4]
Reactions[edit]
News of the meeting was first reported by the online news organization Axios on November 25, 2022,[5] citing two sources on the matter.[6] Initial reports incorrectly stated that only West met with the former President. It later emerged that Fuentes was present at the dinner as well and conversed in detail with the former President.[7]
Domestic[edit]
House[edit]
Republican House leader Kevin McCarthy condemned the meeting, while not specifically condemning Trump for his actions.[8]
Senate[edit]
Democratic Senate leader Chuck Schumer condemned the meeting, calling it "disgusting and dangerous" and "pure evil".[1] Republican Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell condemned the meeting, stating: "Let me just say that there is no room in the Republican Party for antisemitism or white supremacy."[9]
Republican Senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana stated: "President Trump hosting racist antisemites for dinner encourages other racist antisemites. These attitudes are immoral and should not be entertained. This is not the Republican Party".[9] Republican Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina stated: "It’s unfortunate that it continually needs to be said, but of course the man who’s dedicated his career to stamping out hate and racism thinks it’s a bad idea for anyone to elevate racists or anti-Semites. Senator Scott’s vision for America is rooted in opportunity, optimism, and freedom—standing in stark contrast with the recent comments from Kanye West and the vile rhetoric of Nick Fuentes." Republican Senator Marco Rubio of Florida stated: “I hope [Trump] will [condemn Nick Fuentes]...[Fuentes] is evil. And that guy is a nasty, disgusting person. [Fuentes] is an ass clown.”[9] Florida Senator Rick Scott, stated: "There is no room in the Republican Party for white supremacy and antisemitism. It’s wrong."[9] Republican Utah Senator Mitt Romney of Utah stated: "I think it’s been clear that there’s no bottom to the degree to which President Trump will degrade himself and the nation."[9] Republican West Virginia Senator Shelley Moore Capito stated: "It’s ridiculous you would do something with someone who espouses those views.”[9] Republican Senator Susan Collins of Maine stated: "I condemn white supremacy and anti-semitism. The president should never have had a meal or even a meeting with Nick Fuentes."[9] Republican Senator Rob Portman of Ohio stated: "“It was wrong and inappropriate to have that meeting, white supremacy has no place in our nation’s culture and it’s antithetical to anything we stand for as Americans."[9] Republican Senator Tommy Tuberville of Alabama criticized Trump, saying he should have "better choices".[9]
Governorships[edit]
Republican governor Larry Hogan of Maryland called the meeting "disgraceful and unconscionable" and that "...it's so disgraceful and more people should be speaking up". Adding that "we need to stop talking about Donald Trump" and that "The party and the country need to move on from him".[10] Adding that "There is no place for antisemitism or white supremacists in the Republican Party and no place for anyone who gives people like Nick Fuentes the time of day. Donald Trump’s recent actions and history of poor judgment make him untenable as a candidate for our party".[11]
Other[edit]
Former Vice President Mike Pence, who served during Trump's term in office, stated: "I think he should apologize for it, and he should denounce those individuals and their hateful rhetoric without qualification".[11] David Friedman, who was appointed by Trump to be the American ambassador to Israel, stated that "To my friend Donald Trump, you are better than this"[12] and that "Even a social visit from an antisemite like Kanye West and human scum like Nick Fuentes is unacceptable. I urge you to throw those bums out, disavow them and relegate them to the dustbin of history where they belong"[13]
International[edit]
Israeli former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu labeled the meeting a "mistake" for Trump to meet with West and Fuentes.[14]
In the response to the meeting — and subsequent interviews from Fuentes and West about it — Israeli ambassador to the United States, Michael Herzog, stated: "At a time when antisemitism is on the rise, it is alarming that such vile rhetoric is given a platform and legitimized" and that West and Fuentes "engaged in hateful incitement, which could lead to violence and the death of Jews in horrifying incidents".[15][16]
Commentary[edit]
Historian Pamela Nadell stated that "I think we are at the moment living in the high tide of American antisemitism".[17] Kathleen Belew, a historian and associate professor of history at Northwestern University, argued that it represented a huge "propaganda victory" for white nationalist movements in the United States.[18]
Jack Jenkins of Religion News Service stated that "While the meeting at Trump’s club drew national outrage because of Fuentes’ antisemitic and white supremacist views, it was a win for an extreme subset of Christian nationalists who knit together virulent anti-immigrant and anti-LGBTQ sentiment, opposition to abortion and, in many cases, overt forms of antisemitism and white nationalism."[19]
According to The New York Times, "Trump’s inner orbit is keenly aware he’s lost the excitement of 2016 and there’s a school of thought that ginning up the most die-hard of his base is key to bringing it back…that means reaching out to fringe, racist elements" and that it represented Trump aligning "himself with forces that used to be outside the mainstream of American politics."[2]
Aftermath[edit]
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Fuentes/Kanye joint interviews[edit]
Tim Pool interview[edit]
Fuentes, Kanye, and Milo Yiannopoulos had a joint interview with journalist Tim Pool on November 29, 2022, about the meeting.[20] In the meeting Kanye compared himself to Martin Luther King Jr., saying: "I thought I was more Malcolm X but I found out I'm more MLK. As I’m getting hosed down every day by the press and financially, I’m just standing there." Pool, seeming to agree, said that "they have been extremely unfair". When asked by West what Pool meant by "they", he said he meant the news media, prompting anti-Semitic outbursts from Fuentes.[21]
While Pool was explaining his perspective, Kanye abruptly left the interview.[22]
Alex Jones interview[edit]
On December 1, 2022, Kanye and Fuentes participated in an interview with InfoWars founder Alex Jones about the meeting with Trump.[21]
In the two hour chat, Kanye stated "Hitler was born Christian" and that "Every human being has something of value that they brought to the table, especially Hitler." He also stated that "the Jewish media has made us feel like the Nazis and Hitler have never offered anything of value to the world."[23][24][25] He went on to deny the Holocaust. Saying that "I like Hitler. ... I’m not trying to be shocking, I like Hitler. The Holocaust is not what happened, let’s look at the facts of that and Hitler has a lot of redeeming qualities" and that "He had a really cool outfit and he was a really good architect ... and he didn't kill 6 million Jews".[26] Afterwards, on his personal Twitter account, Kanye tweeted out "Christ is King" and linked to InfoWars's website, Cozy.tv—Fuentes's streaming platform—and Bible.com.[27]
Multiple commentators noted Jones's apparent significant discomfort with the comments made by Fuentes and West during the interview.[23][27][28]
References[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Weisman, Jonathan (November 29, 2022). "Jewish Allies Call Trump's Dinner With Antisemites a Breaking Point". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Baker, Peter (2022-12-01). "Trump Embraces Extremism as He Seeks to Reclaim Office". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-12-02.
- ↑ ye [@kanyewest] (8 Oct 2022). "I'm a bit sleepy tonight but when I wake up I'm going death con 3 On JEWISH PEOPLE The funny thing is I actually can't be Anti Semitic because black people are actually Jew also You guys have toyed with me and tried to black ball anyone whoever opposes your agenda" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ↑ Scott, Eugene; Dawsey , Josh (November 25, 2022). "Trump criticized for dining with far-right activist Nick Fuentes and rapper Ye". The Washington Post. Retrieved December 2, 2022.
- ↑ Schonfeld, Zach (2022-11-25). "Trump met with white supremacist Nick Fuentes alongside Ye at Mar-a-Lago". The Hill. Retrieved 2022-12-02.
- ↑ Basu, Jonathan Swan,Zachary (2022-11-26). "Trump talks with white nationalist Nick Fuentes at Mar-a-Lago dinner". Axios. Retrieved 2022-12-02.
- ↑ Basu, Jonathan Swan,Zachary (November 26, 2022). "Trump talks with white nationalist Nick Fuentes at Mar-a-Lago dinner". Axios. Retrieved December 2, 2022.
- ↑ Edmondson, Catie (November 29, 2022). "McCarthy Condemns White Supremacist, Stopping Short of Faulting Trump". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.5 9.6 9.7 9.8 Barrón-López, Laura; Desjardins, Lisa (November 28, 2022). "We asked 57 Republican lawmakers if they condemn Trump's dinner with Fuentes and Ye. Here's what they said". PBS News. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
- ↑ Navarro, Aaron (December 1, 2022). "Larry Hogan hints about his political future and weighs in on Trump's dinner with white nationalist". CBS News. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Arnsdorf, Isaac; Dawsey, Josh; Sotomayor , Marianna (November 30, 2022). "Trump's dinner with antisemites provides test of GOP response to extremism". The Washington Post. Retrieved December 2, 2022.
- ↑ Miller, Andrew (2022-11-26). "Trump's former US ambassador to Israel blasts meeting with Ye, Nick Fuentes: 'You are better than this'". Fox News. Retrieved 2022-12-02.
- ↑ Haberman, Maggie; Feuer, Alan (2022-11-25). "Trump's Latest Dinner Guest: Nick Fuentes, White Supremacist". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-12-02.
- ↑ Ravid, Barak (November 30, 2022). "Netanyahu says it was a "mistake" for Trump to dine with Ye and Fuentes". Axios. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
- ↑ Staff (November 1, 2022). "Kanye West praises Hitler, calls himself a Nazi in unhinged interview". Times of Israel. Retrieved November 2, 2022.
- ↑ Samuels, Ben (December 1, 2022). "Kanye West: 'I See Good Things About Hitler'". Haaretz. Retrieved December 2, 2022.
- ↑ Beauchamp, Zack (December 1, 2022). "The deep roots of antisemitism's resurgence in America". Vox. Retrieved December 2, 2022.
- ↑ Sargent, Greg (November 28, 2022). "How Trump is handling white supremacists huge propaganda victories". The Washington Post. Retrieved December 2, 2022.
- ↑ Jenkins, Jack (December 1, 2022). "Ye's Trump dinner is a high point for Catholic nationalists' influence campaign". Religion News Service. Retrieved December 2, 2022.
- ↑ Staff (November 29, 2022). "Kanye rants against Jews in podcast, storms out when asked to defend views". Times of Israel. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 Massie, Graeme (December 1, 2022). "Kanye West admits he 'likes' Hitler during shocking Alex Jones interview". The Independent. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
- ↑ "Kanye West Storms Out Of Tim Pool Interview After Mild Pushback". forbes.com. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
- ↑ 23.0 23.1 McCann Ramirez, Nikki; Bort, Ryan (December 1, 2022). "Kanye to Alex Jones: 'I Like Hitler'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
- ↑ Mastrangelo, Dominick (December 1, 2022). "Masked Ye goes on antisemitic tirade on Infowars: 'I like Hitler'". The Hill. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
- ↑ Aniftos, Rania (December 1, 2022). "Kanye West Praises Hitler in Alex Jones Interview: 'I Also Love Nazis'". Billboard. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
- ↑ Staff (December 1, 2022). "'I like Hitler:' Kanye West denies Holocaust in Alex Jones interview". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved December 2, 2022.
- ↑ 27.0 27.1 Fitzgerald, Trent (December 1, 2022). "Kanye West Approves of Hitler, Nazis During Alex Jones Interview". XXL Mag. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
- ↑ Ricci, Kimberly (December 1, 2022). "Even Alex Jones Seemed Deeply Uncomfortable With Kanye's Hitler Praise". UPROXX. Retrieved December 1, 2022.
External links[edit]
- We asked 57 Republican lawmakers if they condemn Trump’s dinner with Fuentes and Ye. Here’s what they said. from PBS NewsHour
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