The problem isn’t Trump, it’s us.
In the immediate aftermath of the Trump press conference on February 16, the Orthodox Jewish community began the process of trying to make sense out of the President’s scolding of Jake Turx of Ami magazine. It’s no secret that Donald Trump received overwhelming support from Orthodox Jews in the ballot box; the fact that a Chassidic Jew was in the White House press core would have been a clear indication that their support was well-justified. No one would have expected that a journalist who had been a friendly face to Trump and his campaign for months would have been the recipient of a Presidential tongue lashing.
Turx, as has been widely reported, began his question by noting that despite what many of his colleagues in the media report, he and the community he represents do not believe the the President is an anti-Semite, and they recognize that he’s the “Zayde” to his Jewish grandchildren. That preamble, however, didn’t stop the President from being offended when Turx went on to express that he and the community he represents were concerned about an uptick in anti-Semitism that hasn’t really been addressed. The President’s response was heated. He said that he understood the rest of the question, that he found the charge repulsive, and that Turx should heed what Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu had said the day earlier about Trump’s support of the Jewish people instead of “having to get up and ask a very insulting question like that.”
The immediate response of many people focused on how Jake Turx personally felt about the President’s response. That night, after the presser, Turx appeared on Tucker Carlson’s show on Fox and defended Trump’s reaction. In fact, when Breitbart reported on Turx’s appearance on the show with a headline saying that Turx was “with Trump,” Turx tweeted his appreciation to the writer for his great reporting. The logic of this approach is; if Turx was fine with what had happened, then we should be fine with it too. Don’t be upset with the President.
Some in the community and on social media expressed that Turx shouldn’t have been asking a question that could be potentially offensive to the President. Others even suggested that Turx got what he deserved, or any reported uptick in anti-Semitism, or bomb threats to Jewish community centers, were concocted by Trump’s enemies to drum up fear and sow doubt against him. Others surmised Trump had correctly observed that Turx’s underlying motivation was to participate in scapegoating Trump for causing the anti-Semitism. The logic of these approach was; Turx did something wrong. Don’t be upset with the President.
As an Orthodox Jew and a Rabbi, I am alarmed. What’s missing from the conversation is that Jake Turx was serving in the capacity of a journalist. A journalist, by definition, isn’t just representing himself. He is representing the public. Turx correctly stated that people in his community are concerned about an uptick in anti-Semitism. While some in the Orthodox Jewish community may not have that concern, his question did represent a concern of many. The President should care that citizens, many of whom supported him, are concerned. Whether Jake Turx understands and is sympathetic to the President’s frustrations is irrelevant. A question was asked of the President, and he refused to answer it on the basis that the question inherently was repulsive and insulting.
Without a doubt, Jake Turx and Ami magazine are in uncharted territory. Their response to this difficult situation, and their future standing and access to the White House, should have no bearing on how we as a public interpret events. Looking through Turx’s twitter feed, one can see that he is quite conflicted by what happened. If he forgives the President for his reaction during the press conference, that’s a right that he has as a citizen.
The issue of anti-Semitism, however, is a relevant issue that any President should address when there’s a perceived uptick. If President Trump feels frustrated by the issue to the point where he’s insulted when a journalist asks about it, then we as citizens have a right to be concerned. If we aren’t concerned, or if we criticize the journalists that bring it up, then that’s on us.