Trump S Meeting With Aipac Summary of Article

¶ … 2016, Donald Trump was set to speak before the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), a powerful pro-Israel lobbying group. The potential political alliance seems a strange one. After all, Trump has made seemingly anti-Semitic statements and has welcomed the support of white supremacy groups like the Ku Klux Klan. Trump's stance on immigrants and particularly his stance on Muslims remind many Jews of dark times of persecution, prejudice, and pogroms. The demagogue and presidential hopeful has also wavered on his support of Israel. Moreover, American Jews traditionally vote Democrat.

At the same time, Trump's daughter Ivanka converted to Judaism to marry an Orthodox Jewish man. Trump also supports controversial Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Some members of AIPAC champion Trump's hard-lined stance towards ISIS and believe that Trump would be Israel's strongest ally among all other possible presidential candidates. Trump has worked closely with Jewish partners in New York and Florida throughout his career as a real estate and business magnate. Several Jewish special interest groups have supported Trump over the years. Solidifying his pro-Israel image, Trump has considered developing a Trump Tower project in Israel. In Palm Beach, which has been a long-standing bastion for "exclusive," or anti-Jewish predominantly WASP country clubs, Trump worked hard to open a club that would be open to Jews called Mar-a-Lago. These actions have encouraged some members of the Jewish community to shift their traditionally Democratic alliances and support Trump.

Because Trump's stance and commitment to the Jewish community of America do seem shifty, though, his reception at AIPAC is likely to be met with a degree of suspicion. Some cite the thinly veiled anti-Semitism in statements Trump has made. For example, Trump has claimed he was the "victim of anti-Semitism" because people think he is Jewish for "owning so many buildings in New York," (Mahler, 2016). He spoke before the Republican Jewish Coalition saying "I'm a negotiator, like you folks." The Anti-Defamation League has already called out Trump on his egocentric and insensitive comments. A large contingency of AIPAC members are weary of a candidate who would willingly accept campaign funding from sources as dirty as the KKK. It would appear that Trump will do or say anything to garner funding and attention, regardless of what his true values are and where his commitments might lay.