The Pittsburgh Synagogue Shooting and the Political Blame Game

It should come as no surprise that anti-Semitism has returned. In Western Europe and America it has again become respectable to hate Jews. In Western Europe Jews are routinely harassed and attacked for being Jewish.

Islamic radicals and their leftist enablers bear the greatest responsibility for anti-Semitism’s return. True enough, some right wing fanatics have joined the party, but the reason why anti-Semitism, sometimes masked as anti-Israeli sentiment, has returned is that the progressive left has taken up the Palestinian cause.

As for America’s leading purveyors of anti-Semitism, we should count Rev. Louis Farrakhan and Congressman Keith Ellison. Let’s not forget Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Barack Obama’s mentor. And Rev. Al Sharpton. And Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Given the racial sensitivities of our day, no one on the left dares speak ill of the anti-Semites in their midst.

What with Farrakhan and Sharpton sitting next to Bill Clinton on the dais of the Aretha Franklin funeral, anti-Semitism has been made respectable again in America. Let’s not forget the Obama administration efforts to prop up and to fund the world’s leading promoter of anti-Semitic and anti-Israeli violence… the government of Iran. The funds that Obama gave to Iran are currently being used to support the Hamas military campaign against Israel. The funds that Obama gave to Iran are being used to develop nuclear weapons... which the mullahs want to use to kill Jews.

Naturally, this must mean that Donald Trump is at fault. Because, hating Trump allows his detractors to excuse their god, Barack Obama.

Now, the horrors that were visited on a synagogue in Pittsburgh are being used to cudgel President Trump. After all, half his grandchildren are Jewish. His daughter and son-in-law are Jewish. As one brain dead reporter noted, he moved the American Embassy to Israel. And thus Trump had precipitated the attack. The man who gunned down worshippers in Pittsburgh hated Donald Trump for being pro-Israel.

You would naturally conclude that Donald Trump is at fault. Wouldn’t you? For those who hate Trump, Trump is to blame for everything bad that has happened since he was elected. If the killer hated Trump, Trump is at fault. If the killer loved Trump, Trump is to blame. If the media joins the Resistance and skews its news reporting against Trump, Trump is responsible. If Trump fights back against the bias, Trump is at fault. Groups that have been promoting violent insurrection against Trump blame Trump for their own actions. They blame Trump for their acts of violence. If it had not been for Trump they would not have become unhinged radicals. If it had not been for Trump they would have retained their veneer of civility and would have engaged in rational debate.

With an election approaching, everyone is looking for partisan political advantage. One understands the motivation. And certainly, Donald Trump has not restrained himself in his verbal attacks on the media and on Democratic politicians.

Then again, it wasn't very long ago that the Obama years saw a series of horrifying terrorist attacks, on the Boston Marathon, on community leaders in San Bernardino, on troops at Fort Hood, at a gay night club in Orlando. Did anyone believe that Barack Obama bore any responsibility for the horrors that were committed on his watch?

If they did, they didn’t say so. It was strictly forbidden to speak ill of the Messiah. And it was even more forbidden to blame radical Islamists for these terrorist attacks. Obama had shut down the war on terrorism and had declared war on bigotry, specifically on Islamphobia. The media meekly went along. Republican politicians were barely capable of uttering a disparaging word. Except perhaps against Obamacare.

America has a tradition of political violence. In modern times it dates to the Vietnam War era, when violence became an acceptable way for leftists to express dissent. Alan Dershowitz reminds us of the old days:

The entire episode brings back painful memories of the Weathermen and other radical left wing organizations that planted bombs in the 1970s. The Weathermen and other radical leftist groups targeted universities, army bases, police officers, banks, and other establishment places and people. The death toll was considerable, and the fear was palpable. At about the same time, the Black Panthers, the Symbionese Liberation Army, and other radical leftist groups terrorized the United States.

Let’s not forget, Dershowitz continues, how liberals at the time embraced these domestic terrorists:

… some liberals glorified the Weathermen, Black Panthers, and other hard left terrorists. Left wing lawyers, who would never defend an accused right wing terrorist, rushed to represent these radical groups, while prominent liberals contributed to defense funds and attended fundraising parties. Films, books, plays, and articles sought to understand the motives of these young murderers.

Among those who embraced Vietnam Era domestic terrorists was… you guessed it… Barack Obama. And it was not just Obama.

Dershowitz continues:

Years later, Barack Obama befriended Bill Ayers and Bernardine Dohrn, who had been active members of the Weathermen and supporters of violent terrorism. Both Ayers and Dohrn were invited to teach at well known American universities, as was Kathy Boudin, who had served a long prison term for participating in a terrorist inspired robbery that resulted in the deaths of two police officers and one armored guard and seriously injured another guard. It is difficult to imagine any American universities appointing a right wing terrorist, even one who had served time and claimed to be rehabilitated. It is fair to say that public attitudes held by some liberals were somewhat sympathetic to left wing terrorists.

Dershowitz reminds us that no one political party has a monopoly on domestic terrorism:

The Ku Klux Klan was a violent radical group with significant support from political figures and ordinary citizens. During the first decades of the 20th century, left wing anarchists planted bombs and engaged in other forms of violence that killed many innocent people. More recently, hard left violence was targeted at Republican lawmakers as they practiced for a charity baseball game, wounding several people, including Congressman Steve Scalise. A threatening letter claiming it contained ricin was sent to Senator Susan Collins because she voted to confirm Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court. These and other hard left threats have been directed against prominent Republican leaders.

Dershowitz continues that conservatives should be out front denouncing criminals like Cesar Sayoc. Liberals and progressives should lead the march against those among them who are promoting violence. They should begin by denouncing the Resistance, and by rejecting the Congressional leaders who have encouraged harassment-- which is an assault-- and also, by purging their party of leaders who have openly promoted anti-Semitism.