In what appears to be a desperate attempt to shield President Joe Biden from the fallout of his decision to block munitions shipments to Israel, ABC Chief White House Correspondent Mary Bruce has crafted a strange new “antisemitic trope” with which to smear former President Donald Trump.
Watch as Bruce uncorks this so-called trope during her coverage of Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza:
MARY BRUCE: Tonight, many Republicans now accusing Biden of abandoning a critical ally, including Donald Trump, who today repeated an anti-semitic trope questioning Jewish voters who stand by the president.
REPORTER: Mr. President, any comment?
DONALD TRUMP: If any Jewish person voted for Joe Biden, they should be ashamed of themselves. He’s totally abandoned Israel.
Irrespective of one’s feelings over Trump’s statements, they do not rise to anything more than an opinion. Black and Hispanic conservatives get excoriated by the left all the time for “voting against their self-interest”, and no one ever accuses those leftists of being anti-Black or anti-Hispanic, nor do such statements ever draw any media scrutiny. Reasonable individuals are left to won(D)er why that is.
Bruce’s fabrication of an anti-semitism where there is none smacks of media firefighting, intended to protect President Biden not just from the fallout of the munitions block, but from his own recent “very fine people” moment, as well as appearing weak on Israel.
Efforts to smear Trump’s callouts as antisemitic are no different than trying to smear as antisemites those who are critical of George Soros’ funding of radical left causes and domestic destabilization. Far from being rooted in any desire to protect Jews from discrimination or worse, they seek to shield leftists from scrutiny in the public square.
Mary Bruce shamefully crossed over into White House crisis comms, far beyond her usual Biden sycophancies.
Click “expand” to view the full transcript of the aforementioned interview as aired on ABC World News Tonight on Wednesday, May 9th, 2024:
DAVID MUIR: Tonight, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu defiant, saying, “we will stand alone”, after President Biden’s threat to withhold U.S. weapons if there’s a full-scale invasion of Rafah. And these tense talks over a cease-fire halted amid fury over Rafah, with so many hostages still being held by Hamas. Mary Bruce at The White House tonight.
MARY BRUCE: Tonight, as President Biden threatens to further withhold U.S. weapons from Israel, Prime Minister Netanyahu defiant. “If we have to stand alone, we will stand alone,” he said today. Firing back after Biden, in his most direct warning yet, said the U.S. would not provide Israel with weapons to attack Rafah.
JOE BIDEN: I’ve made it clear to Bibi and the war cabinet, they’re not going to get our support, if in fact they go in these population centers.
BRUCE: It comes after the president has warned Netanyahu for weeks not to invade Rafah, where more than a million civilians are seeking refuge. But those warnings have been ignored. Netanyahu already launching what he says are limited operations inside Rafah, choking critical humanitarian aid. Biden already halting the shipment of 3,500 U.S. bombs, fearing American weapons could be used to kill more innocent Palestinians. Tonight, many Republicans now accusing Biden of abandoning a critical ally, including Donald Trump, who today repeated an anti-semitic trope questioning Jewish voters who stand by the president.
REPORTER: Mr. President, any comment?
DONALD TRUMP: If any Jewish person voted for Joe Biden, they should be ashamed of themselves. He’s totally abandoned Israel.
BRUCE: The Biden campaign quick to condemn those comments, as the president insists U.S. support for Israel’s defense remains ironclad. Now, the president says the U.S. will continue to provide for Israel’s defense, even as he threatens to halt sending offensive weapons to them. And tonight, those cease-fire talks are now stalled. The sticking point, we’re told, is Rafah. Israel insisting that any temporary ceasefire deal exclude their operations in what they say is a Hamas stronghold. David.
MUIR: All right, Mary. Mary Bruce again tonight, thank you.