Recently, Ye, or the artist formally known as Kanye West, has provided a flurry of antisemitic comments and questionable positions, including his admiration for Hitler, Nazis, and a disdain for those who rush to criticize him for doing so. The national outrage prompted President Joe Biden (D) to release a statement condemning the rapper’s utterances, going as far as saying that “Silence is complicity” in a tweet.
However, in an effort to combat Kanye’s statements and antisemitism as a whole, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) and other legislators have come together to make a difference.
I just want to make a few things clear:
The Holocaust happened.
Hitler was a demonic figure.
And instead of giving it a platform, our political leaders should be calling out and rejecting antisemitism wherever it hides.
Silence is complicity.
— President Biden (@POTUS) December 2, 2022
“I just want to make a few things clear: The Holocaust happened. Hitler was a demonic figure. And instead of giving it a platform, our political leaders should be calling out and rejecting antisemitism wherever it hides. Silence is complicity,” tweeted the President.
Since the outrage, leadership of the Senate and House Bipartisan Task Forces for Combating Antisemitism have sent a letter to President Biden, calling for the “development of a unified national strategy to monitor and combat antisemitism and ensure closer interagency coordination, with the goal of adopting a whole-of-government approach.”
Within that whole-of-government approach, the task force is looking to share intelligence and data in order to collaborate properly concerning the antisemitic bigotry.
Sen. Rubio, alongside the task force gave some insight following the announcement of the task force getting to work.
“As members of the House and Senate Bipartisan Task Forces for Combating Antisemitism, we write to urge you to ensure leaders working within your Administration are working together to execute a unified national strategy to monitor and combat antisemitism. With Jewish communities worldwide facing increasing discrimination, as well as threats and acts violence, we believe a whole-of-government approach is needed to effectively address the scourge of antisemitism,” write the members.
Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-NV) and Sen. James Lankford (R-OK) are part of the task force as well.