Republican U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump said on Wednesday it "was a beautiful thing to watch" New York police officers raiding a Columbia University building occupied by pro-Palestinian students, and called on officials to crack down on campus protests across the United States.
"New York was under siege last night," Trump told supporters at a campaign rally in Wisconsin, praising the police officers for arresting about 300 protesters at Columbia and City College of New York who he referred to as "raging lunatics and Hamas sympathizers."
Trump comments addressed the spread of student protests against the war in Gaza across the U.S. in recent days, seeking to capitalize on concern over campus unrest.
Republican lawmakers have accused some university administrators of ignoring antisemitic rhetoric and harassment. Many student organizers say they are peaceful and have widely disavowed violence against pro-Israel counter-protesters, although some Jewish students have said they feel unsafe on campus and unnerved by chants they say are antisemitic.
@ISIDEWITH1mo1MO
Considering both sides of the student protests, how do you balance the line between freedom of speech and creating a safe campus environment?
@ISIDEWITH1mo1MO
Do you believe calling protesters 'raging lunatics' is a fair characterization for those advocating for political causes?
@ISIDEWITH1mo1MO
Can public safety measures justify the suppression of peaceful protests, in your opinion?
@ISIDEWITH1mo1MO
How do you feel about using the term 'beautiful' to describe the police raid on student protesters?
