The head of the Democratic National Committee, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, believes the Syrian refugees of today are like the European Jews of 1939. Wasserman Schultz made the claim in a conference call to explain how “out-of-touch” Republicans are with the Jewish community.
The DNC chair also called the war the U.S. is currently engaged in “the war on terror.”
Here’s an excerpt of Wasserman Schultz’s remarks, as released by the DNC:
“For some, their version of Middle East foreign policy is pandering to our community about supporting Israel, without fully grasping the deep values and history that drive our relationship. But – if you can believe it – this new crowd is even worse than President Bush.
“After 9/11, President Bush had enough nuance to unequivocally say that the U.S. was not at war with Islam, but with violent extremism. He was right; and we are still at war with a violent ideology and actions that threaten our homeland and our allies. We saw this most recently on a large scale with the attacks of Paris.
“However, the Republican candidates’ first instinct was to politicize this tragedy, rather than focusing on strategies to combat its perpetrators. …
“The sort of rhetoric we saw from candidates, whether it was Donald Trump calling for a database of Muslim-Americans, or Marco Rubio saying we need to shut down ‘not only mosques’ but ‘cafes and diners,’ where Muslims congregate in response to terror, was shameful, embarrassing, and dangerous.
“By demonizing an entire religion, it makes it more difficult for the U.S. to prosecute the war on terror and keep our homeland safe. It also stands in stark contrast to American and Jewish values.
“Our community knows what happens when political leaders begin targeting one particular minority community. Whether it is Jews, African-Americans, Christians or Muslims, there is no room in this nation for targeting or scapegoating a minority community. One of the tenets we hold most dear about this nation is not just the base foundation of freedom of religion, but the responsibility of the majority to protect the interests of the minority.
“This quickly translated into the most shameful part of the GOP’s response to the Paris attacks: the scapegoating and turning away refugees fleeing this same terror in their own countries.
“We have seen this movie before. In May 1939, the SS St. Louis left Hamburg, Germany carrying more than 900 passengers, nearly all of them Jewish and seeking refuge in the United States. Our country turned them away, and many who were sent back to mainland Europe were killed in the Holocaust. Instead of learning from that mistake – Republican candidates and politicians were eager to repeat it. …
“Demonizing and scapegoating refugees not only betrays our values as a nation, it undermines our faith as Jews.”
