WASSERMAN SCHULTZ STATEMENT ON ANTI-SEMITISM ENVOY

WASHINGTON D.C. — U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (FL-23) released the following statement on reports that President Trump was considering the elimination of the Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism:

“How is anyone supposed to believe that President Trump truly cares about the rise in anti-Semitism? Every week brings new and shocking indifference coming directly from the White House. I am appalled by reports that the Trump White House is considering eliminating the office of the Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism and the Ambassador-level position that leads it. There’s a dangerous wave of anti-Semitism rising in this country and around the world, and choosing now – of all times – to stop monitoring such incidents around the globe is deeply troubling.

This office was created with bipartisan support, and it’s been critical in documenting human rights abuses against Jewish communities abroad, as well as developing policies to combat anti-Semitism. In the 2015 Human Rights Report, the office reported on incidents such as the horrific kosher supermarket attack in France, the xenophobic and anti-Semitic Jobbik party in Hungary, and the desecration of Jewish cemeteries and memorials in Argentina, Greece, Egypt, Ukraine and other countries.

As we witness a disturbing rise in anti-Semitism at home, tracking international incidents is crucial in providing Congress with a fuller understanding of the problem’s global scope. Given President Trump’s belated denunciation of anti-Semitism in America, it’s stunning he would even consider such a dissonant and destructive policy blunder at this moment.“

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