Congressman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) released the following statement following President Donald Trump's remarks during a joint White House press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu:

“Today, President Trump welcomed Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu to the White House to once again reaffirm the importance of the U.S.-Israel relationship.  Central to that relationship, and to the future peace and security of Israel, is the commitment to a two-state solution – something Mr. Trump either does not understand or whose significance he fails to recognize.  Republican and Democratic administrations alike have long embraced the notion of a safe Jewish state living alongside a Palestine state as the only means for achieving a just and viable solution to this conflict.  The abandonment of such a framework would be disastrous, with a one-state solution either violating Israel’s democratic principles, or—as embraced by the Boycott Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement—eliminating Israel’s status as a Jewish state.  

“Equally alarming was the President’s failure to condemn, much less acknowledge, the disturbing rise in anti-Semitic incidents in the United States since his election.  Many have attributed this rise to the divisive, dog-whistle rhetoric of Mr. Trump’s campaign, and his continued refusal to address this issue with a direct condemnation or immediate action speaks volumes of the policies and personnel he has embraced.  The fact that Breitbart News—the flagship publication of the alt-right once run by his Chief Strategist, Steve Bannon—was given a front row seat at today’s press conference should be a terrifying signal of the associations being made by this Administration and questions must be asked of the policies and directions coming from this White House.  Mr. Trump’s silence earlier today in the face of these questions shows a sickening disregard for the safety and rights of not just Jews, but all minority groups across America.”

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