Trump's Actions Necessary, not Unconstitutional

Trump’s Actions Necessary, not Unconstitutional
Commentary by Sanford D. Horn
June 22, 2025

In basketball parlance, President Donald Trump offered Israel an “assist,” over the weekend, in helping to avoid a greater conflagration versus the Islamic Republic of Iran, or spreading beyond the Middle East. The assist appears to be successful in that Iran’s nuclear enrichment sites have been, according to Trump, “completely and totally obliterated,” and the operation a “spectacular military success,” he said.

In retaining the element of surprise, the precision targeted strikes by the United States on Fordow, Isfahan, and Natanz - all just northwest of central Iran, met with no resistance. These are key sites where Iran had been in the advanced stages of uranium enrichment and had the ballistic missiles with which to strike. Even the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) reported Iran’s “engaging in clandestine nuclear activity.” 

“Iran must not have a nuclear weapon,” Trump has repeated for more than 20 years. “Now is the time for peace,” he said following the success of Operation Midnight Hammer, which included the participation of 125 US aircraft in what should be a one and done. These American fighter pilots are to be applauded the world over. On this night, Israel and the United States together saved humanity, and that is not hyperbole. Anyone not seeing the importance and urgency in the actions of Israel and the United States over the last two weeks has absolutely no moral compass. 

However, the issue here is the constitutionality of Operation Midnight Hammer. Article II, Section 2 of the US Constitution says that “The President shall be Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the Militia of the several States….” Due to the foresight of the Founding Fathers, who installed a series of checks and balances amongst the three branches of the federal government, Article I, Section 8, Clause 11 grants to Congress the power “To declare War.…” 

Just to complicate matters, on November 7, 1973, overriding the veto of President Richard M. Nixon, Congress passed the War Powers Resolution, a.k.a. The War Powers Act. The purpose of the WPR is to limit the authority of the president to send US military overseas or into foreign wars without Congressional approval. The War Powers Resolution is actually not Constitutional - the Legislative Branch is curtailing the Executive Branch from exercising its Constitutional duties as Commander in Chief. There is but one Commander in Chief, not 435, and as such, that individual has the responsibility to make decisions about troop movements, et al, at a moment’s notice. He doesn’t have time to consult with 435 people who may or may not even have the appropriate clearance. And let’s not forget the possibility of a House member opposing the Commander in Chief’s decisions and leaks them to the media in an effort to thwart such plans, which could be considered treason.

The quagmire in Vietnam, still having just under two more years of active combat, was not a declared war. Of course tell that to the more than 58,220 Americans who lost their lives fighting in that non-war. During the Korean Conflict, also an undeclared war, 36,574 Americans lost their lives. The fact of the matter is, that the United States has not declared war since June 4, 1942 when it did so against Bulgaria, Hungary, and Romania, who sided with the Axis Powers during World War II.

Every president since 1942, beginning with Harry Truman, when he sent the first “advisors” to Vietnam in 1950, has made unilateral decisions to send troops into harm’s way. Every president from Dwight D. Eisenhower through Gerald Ford continued digging the United States deeper and deeper in Vietnam, where if not for the French and NATO, the US might not have ever set foot.

President Jimmy Carter had the dubious distinction of overseeing the arming and training of Islamist insurgents in Afghanistan fighting against the Soviet Union. This led to the rise of the Taliban and Al-Qaeda, who would ultimately be the villains in the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Islamonaziterrorists brought down the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, crashed a plane into the Pentagon in Arlington, VA, and crashed another plane into a field in Shanksville, PA. Were it not for the brave passengers on that flight, that charged the cockpit, that plane had a target of hitting either the White House or the Capitol building. All told, on that horrific day 2,977 innocent men, women, and children lost their lives on American soil, the gravest assault on American territory since the December 7, 1941 bombing of Pearl Harbor.

Under President Ronald Reagan the invasion of Grenada in 1983 was justified for protecting American citizens overseas. President George Herbert Walker Bush’s reasoning for the 1989 Panama invasion concerned drug trafficking. During President Bill Clinton’s terms he cited international obligations to justify sending American troops to Bosnia and Somalia.

President George W. Bush received special dispensation regarding the sending of troops overseas because of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. The nation came together, as did the Congress, which worked in a bipartisan manner to give Bush a wide berth with Operation Enduring Freedom. Congress passed the Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) giving Bush that latitude. Perhaps too wide, as American involvement in Afghanistan ran from 2001-21 when Joe Biden bungled the evacuation of Americans from that country that saw 13 American servicemen murdered on his watch.

Airstrikes on Libya in 2011 under Barack Obama were necessary to protect civilians - Libyan civilians. During Trump’s first term, heavy counterterrorism operations against ISIS, al-Qaeda, in Syria, Iraq, and Afghanistan took place, again largely under the auspices of AUMF. While Biden occupied the White House, and also mostly under AUMF, military operations occurred in Afghanistan, Iraq, Somalia, Syria, and Yemen.

Hardly any effort has been made to reel in the presidents via the War Powers Resolution. Now, with the US assisting Israel in their efforts to rid Iran of any possibility of achieving nuclear weaponry, all of the sudden Trump violated the Constitution and the War Powers Resolution. Why? Because it’s Trump and because it’s Israel.

Trump has not violated the Constitution as he is working to protect Americans at home and abroad - there’s no telling how many sleeper cells are in the United States thanks to the open borders policy under Biden. And there are tens of thousands of American nationals in the Middle East at any given time - both military and civilians. Trump has not called for regime change in Iran (although they sure could use it - its own citizens seem to want that). Iran is responsible for the deaths of well over 1,000 Americans in recent years - that gives Trump cause to be vigilant and cautious against Iran. 

Most importantly, Trump has not declared war against Iran - not that he could, legally. Iran has made war against the United States, certainly since the 1979 Iranian Revolution that witnessed the capture of 66 Americans on November 4, 1979, 52 of whom remained hostages in Iran for 444 days, released, not uncoincidentally, on January 20, 1981 - the very day President Reagan took the oath of office.

Opposition coming from the right like Tucker Carlson and Steve Bannon who don’t seem to comprehend America First does not mean America Only. Trump’s decision to assist Israel, from the air, not with boots on the ground, is beneficial to Israel, the United States, and all civilized peoples.

“Today it’s Tel Aviv. Tomorrow it’s New York. Look, I understand ‘America First.’ I don’t understand ‘America Dead.’ That’s what these people want,” said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, about Trump’s MAGA critics.

US Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), who never met a decision he supports favoring Israel, simply said, “this isn’t Constitutional.” He’s wrong and he’s an antisemite.

In her traditional ignorance and grandstanding, US Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) said, “the President’s disastrous decision to bomb Iran without authorization is a grave violation of the Constitution and Congressional War Powers.” As a member of Congress she ought to know that under the parameters of the WPR, Trump is required to notify Congress within 48 hours of initial military action, and deployment can only be up to 90 days, sans a Congressional declaration of war. AOC, vapid, Marxist, antisemite that she is, would rather see Iran with nukes that could destroy Israel, than recognize that Trump, along with Netanyahu and their respective militaries and intelligence have saved the world.

“They were notified after the planes were safely out. But we complied with the notification requirements of the War Powers Act,” said Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth.

US Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) naively said “the Israeli Foreign Minister admitted yesterday that Israeli bombing had set the Iranian nuclear program back ‘at least two or three years.’ So what made Trump recklessly decide to rush and bomb today? Horrible judgment.” What proof does Kaine have? Even if true, is it acceptable that Iran can continue their goals of building nuclear bombs? Does Kaine not understand what “death to America” and “death to Israel” actually mean? Very shortsighted.

No Senator, it is not acceptable if Iran has nuclear capabilities in two years, three years, or 200 years. President Trump took bold, decisive, measured actions. None of his predecessors had the intestinal fortitude to do so. How do we know Trump’s actions were measured? Because Trump posted on his Truth Social “We know exactly where the so-called ‘Supreme Leader’ is hiding. He is an easy target, but is safe there. We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now. But we don’t want missiles shot at civilians or American soldiers.”

Operation Midnight Hammer seems to be a tremendous success. Success for the people of Israel, the people of the Middle East, the people of the United States, and the people of the civilized world - including the citizenry of Iran who hope and pray for their genuine freedom from the Tyrant of Tehran.

Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN.

US and Israel Make the World a Safer Place

US and Israel Make the World a Safer Place
Commentary by Sanford D. Horn
Overnight June 21-22, 2025

In history making strikes, President Donald Trump announced at 10 PM EDT Saturday June 21 that the Islamic Republic of Iran’s nuclear enrichment sites have been “completely and totally obliterated.” With strikes Trump called a “spectacular military success,” this hopefully completes the necessary work begun by Israel.

Hopefully, because until the dust settles, it may not be known to what extent the level of success, and Israel is also preparing for Iranian retaliation. Now in its tenth day, what began with Operation Rising Lion, Israel took preemptive measures knowing how close Iran had become to completing its nuclear weapon capability, presumably, the hard part is over, as Iran is severely diminished via its air capabilities as well as its nuclear facilities.

The precision targeted strikes by the United States included Fordow, Isfahan, and Natanz - all in central Iran. In hitting Isfahan and Natanz, US bombers successfully used 30 Tomahawk missiles. Fordow, considered the most difficult to access, roughly 300 feet underground and beneath a mountain. It is there where the United States launched six bunker buster bombs, carried on three B-2 stealth bombers - a mission practiced and prepared for, for a number of years. These operations do not happen overnight - they require an incredible amount of preparedness, precision, and even patience which when conducted in real time, and completed with the level of success achieved, make these pilots beyond the best of the best. They are to be applauded the world over. On this night, Israel and the United States together saved humanity, and that is not hyperbole.

Israel had no choice but to unleash the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) on June 12, against the number one state sponsor of terror, who for decades have called for “death to Israel, death to America,” referring to the United States as the Great Satan, and Israel as the Little Satan. Iran had been in the advanced stages of uranium enrichment and had the ballistic missiles with which to strike. Even the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) reported Iran’s “engaging in clandestine nuclear activity.” When someone tells you they want to kill you, take them at their word.

“Iran must not have a nuclear weapon,” Trump has repeated for more than 20 years. “Now is the time for peace,” he also said tonight.

Iranian leadership is not honorable; at best they are disingenuous. Its citizenry, for the most part, desperately wants to see regime change. Every day Iranians have been virtual prisoners in their own country since the Iranian Revolution of 1979. This revolution saw the capturing of 66 Americans on November 4, 1979, 52 of whom remained hostages in Iran for 444 days, released, not uncoincidentally, on January 20, 1981 - the very day President Ronald Reagan took the oath of office.

The Islamic Republic of Iran refused to sit at the negotiating table. And quite frankly, what is there to negotiate when Iran and its funded proxies - Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis only seek the death of the Israelis and the Jewish people, as well as the evisceration of Israel itself. 

Iran had 60 days to comply and reach the negotiating table, which when they refused, on day 61, Israel took decisive action. President Trump indicated he would decide within two weeks what actions, if any, the US would take. Two days later, those awesome decisions helped save the world. Both Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu deserve to be awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace. Don’t anyone hold their breath, but they do deserve it. The world as a whole owes both leaders and both nations an enormous “thank you.” Even German Chancellor Friedrich Merz noted that Israel and the United States are doing the dirty work that so clearly needed doing. 

These are issues of moral clarity. Israel would not move against Iran if not absolutely necessary. Iran has made it vividly clear, in their death to America, death to Israel mantra, that acquiring nuclear capability is to use their nuclear capability against, first Israel, then the United States. Is Israel moving against Canada? Spain? Japan? Of course not because none of those nations are threatening Israel. As has oft-been said, should Israel lay down their weapons, there will be no Israel, but should Israel’s enemies lay down their weapons, there can, and will be peace.

Of course Iran is not expected to simply roll over and lay down. Israelis, at this very hour, now approaching 8 AM Jerusalem time, remain in or close to their bomb shelters, while schools and most businesses remain closed. Iran has taken a beating. They have been embarrassed and humiliated, and they will not take that lightly. Whether in the Middle East or via sleeper cells in the United States, all must remain vigilant and on high alert. Make no mistake, thanks to the open borders under the failed Biden administration, there’s no telling how many of the illegal aliens are part of organized cells seeking to commit acts of terrorism in the United States. On the other hand, it is rather telling that key supporters of Iran, the Chinese Communist Party, North Korea, and Russia, have been virtually silent.

President Trump sounded effusive when addressing the nation at 10 PM EDT, and quite frankly, humble. “I want to thank and congratulate Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu. Thank Israel’s military for the wonderful job they have done…. Incredible effort by the US military - no military in the world could have done what we did tonight - not even close. I want to just thank everybody, in particular G-d. I want to just say we love you G-d, and we love our great military - protect them. G-d Bless the Middle East, G-d Bless Israel, and G-d Bless America,” said Trump. How often does the president, any president, or any world leader invoke the name of our L-rd, our G-d, the way President Trump did this evening. 

I think the two assassination attempts on Trump’s life last July during the presidential campaign changed Trump in a spiritual way. Make no mistake, he can still be boisterous, but there also seems to be a leveling off, putting him on a more even keel. He’s still tough, says what he means, and means what he says, and this situation with Israel and Iran certainly proves that.

Netanyahu offered his praise. “Congratulations President Trump. Your bold decision to target Iran’s nuclear facilities with [the] awesome and righteous might of the United States will change history. History will record that President Trump acted to deny the world’s most dangerous regime, the world’s most dangerous weapon. His leadership today… can help lead the Middle East and beyond to a future of prosperity and peace.”

In addition to the Iron Dome, the missile defense system that has so protected Israel, Rabbi Chaim Mentz of the Chabad of Bel Air, CA added, “Israel has that extra dome - the G-d Dome.”

Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN. He and his wife last visited Israel in 2019.

...And Tiny Israel Shall Save the World

…And Tiny Israel Shall Save the World
Commentary by Sanford D. Horn
Overnight June 12-13, 2025

It is approaching midnight (EDT) - soon to be Friday, June 13, nearly 7 AM in Jerusalem. Operation Rising Lion underway for several hours, has Israel preemptively striking the nuclear facilities in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Israel’s strikes are designed to prevent a nuclear war, and not start a war.

Israel had no choice but to unleash the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) against the number one state sponsor of terror, who for decades have called for “death to Israel, death to America,” referring to the United States as the Great Satan, and Israel as the Little Satan. When someone tells you they want to kill you, take them at their word.

While Iran’s political leadership sits at the negotiating table, its scientists continue enriching uranium in the laboratories. It’s reminiscent of pre-World War II Germany, building and stockpiling military weaponry underground in remote places while allowing inspectors to visit Germany in a sleight of hand parlor game. Iranian leadership is not an honorable entity; they are terribly disingenuous. Its citizenry, for the most part, desperately wants to see regime change. Every day Iranians have been virtual prisoners in their own country since the Iranian Revolution of 1979. (This revolution saw the capturing of 66 Americans on November 4, 1979, 52 of whom remained hostages in Iran for 444 days, released on January 20, 1981 - the very day President Ronald Reagan took the oath of office.)

The Islamic Republic of Iran is no longer inching toward nuclear weaponry. In recent months and weeks it has made nuclear armament a potential reality by leaps and bounds, thus making Israel’s preemptive strikes necessary - necessary for the actual survival of the nation of Israel. But Iran is not just a threat to the Jewish people, Israel, or even the United States. It is not hyperbole to say Israel is fighting to save the world.

President Donald Trump dearly wanted negotiations to succeed, and still does, letting it be known he played no role in this preemptive strike by Israel, all the time knowing and understanding how vital this operation is. Trump reiterated the importance of Iran never achieving nuclear capability. And the longer Iran’s political leadership sits at a negotiating table, they maintain their jobs and power. But don’t count on continued negotiations - even as there are some scheduled in Oman this weekend.

Quite frankly leaders in the Middle East, in Europe, and the citizenry of Iran also appreciate what Israel must do. They won’t say so, at least not publicly, but behind closed doors, the Iranian citizenry, and even many other leaders are quietly thanking Israel. Iran has long been the bully, a menace, in the Middle East. The success of the Abraham Accords during the first Trump administration gives credence to thinking Israel’s neighbors, save for Qatar, actually appreciate the bold, necessary operations by Israel.

Israel made pinpointed, targeted strikes, and assassinations overnight. The targets included nuclear facilities, ballistic missile sites, and specific leaders in an attempt to end Iran’s quest to become a nuclear nation with the capability of following through on the decade’s long threats to eviscerate Israel, slaughter the Jewish people, and do similarly to the United States. Israel struck Iran’s uranium enrichment facility at Natanz, with goals of doing likewise at the atomic energy research center in Bonad, the heavy water nuclear reactor in Arak, the nuclear fuel, research, and production center in Isfahan, the nuclear fuel unit in Ardakan, and the nuclear facility in Bushehr.

The pinpointed assassinations included three top level Iranian military figures and six nuclear scientists. The military leaders assassinated were Mohammad Hossein Bagheri - Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces, Major General Gholam Ali Rashid - Armed Forces Deputy Commander, and Major General Hossein Salami Commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps. Civilians did not suffer during this operation.

Israel’s actions became necessary because under both former presidents Barack Hussein Obama and Joseph R. Biden, Iran could flex its muscles, and did. The United States under both America Last presidents and their policies of appeasement,  slathered Iran with pallets of cash to the tune of billions of dollars. Billions of dollars used to fund the proxies of the Islamic Republic of Iran - Hezbollah to Israel’s north, the Houthis to the southeast, and Hamas to the south and west. Hezbollah and Hamas have it written in their charters the call to wipe Israel off the face of the globe, and slaughter the Jewish people. This is the same Hamas that, unprovoked, slaughtered more than 1,200 Israeli children, women, and men, and kidnapped hundreds more on October 7, 2023, violating the cease fire that existed on October 6. More than 50 hostages remain in captivity.

As of 8 AM, Jerusalem time, 100 drones had been launched by Iran, heading toward Israel. Israel naturally anticipated retaliatory actions and advised its citizenry to stay as close to the bomb shelters as possible. Schools are closed, businesses are closed, outdoor activities have been cancelled, yet Shabbat approaches. While Israel’s attacks on Iran were carried out with pinpointed precision and accuracy, Iran’s  retaliation will undoubtedly include civilians of all ages - just as their proxies carried out their heinous actions 20 months ago, and continue in the war lasting more than 600 days. As of 9:30 AM, Jerusalem time, Israel had already begun to intercept the Iranian drones, yet the nation remains in a state of emergency and on full alert. Israel enjoyed a very successful overnight and put Iran on its heels. By noon, Jerusalem time, Israel continues to successfully thwart Iran’s drones, none having struck any targets in Israel.

It matters not what international criticism befalls Israel, it is used to global condemnation for all the ills of the planet. There can be no compromise with nations wishing to erase you from the planet. How many tens and tens of thousands of missiles and rockets have to be fired into Israel before Israel is granted permission to retaliate? Is Israel not supposed to defend itself? Sadly, there are far too many people in far too many nations who would be satisfied if Israel did not defend itself and just disappeared. More and more of those people are making themselves known, especially in the United States with skyrocketing rates of antisemitism since October 7, 2023. Is Israel expected to wait until Iran is fully nuclear capable and an atomic bomb is headed toward Tel Aviv before it defends itself?

Eighty years ago the Holocaust of European Jewry, the slaughter of six million innocent children, women, and men officially came to an end. This only happened to be another chapter in the history of the Jewish people - a history including expulsions, inquisitions, pogroms, invasions, deadly attacks and bombings, when all the Jewish people want is to be left alone to live in peace amongst their neighbors, within a world that does not seek its eradication. Israel is no threat to a nuclear free Iran. The world is a safer, more peaceful place with a nuclear free Iran. Ever since the Holocaust the rallying cry has been “never again,” and especially since October 7, 2023. Israel will no longer roll over and be led like lambs to the slaughter. As Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said overnight, “we have risen like lions to defend ourselves.”

Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN.

How Safe are Jews in America?

How Safe are Jews in America?

Commentary by Sanford D. Horn

June 4, 2025

Sunday night June first ushered in the Festival of Shavuot (Means Weeks and Oath) for Jewish communities around the world. Yet hours before the celebration by the Jewish people commemorating receiving the Torah from G-d at Mount Sinai, terror struck the Jewish community of Boulder, Colorado, and in turn, terror in the hearts of all Jewish people in America.

It is painfully ironic that on the eve of celebrating the gift of the Torah (literally means instructions), in essence, the laws under which Jewish people have lived 3,337 years, laws of the United States and the state of Colorado were shattered in an act of antisemitic terror leaving 15 people (and a dog) severely injured and hospitalized, as well as a community shaken.

“Tonight, as many prepare to mark the Shavuot holiday, our Jewish community has been subjected to yet another brutal and horrific act of antisemitism. The scourge of antisemitism has metastasized across our country, and we must do more — now — to stop this hatred and violence,” posted US Rep. Joe Neguse (D-CO) on Facebook.

“We stand with the Jewish community — today and always — and will be united in supporting the victims and their families in the weeks ahead, and to redoubling our efforts to stop antisemitism,” continued Neguse, whose district includes Boulder and Fort Collins.

While shouting “Free Palestine,” a depraved Mohamed Sabry Soliman, 45, ignited an incendiary device, described as a homemade flamethrower, that set ablaze, and sent to the hospital, 15 people having gathered at the Pearl Street Mall. There is a bit of schadenfreude to report, in that Soliman also set himself ablaze. This group of people, called “Run for Their Lives,” held a weekly walk since the October 7, 2023 terror attacks in Israel by the terrorist organization Hamas who slaughtered more than 1,200 children, women, and men, as well as taking several hundred hostage. And that is the purpose of the weekly walk - to call for the immediate release of the Israelis still held hostage in Gaza by Hamas - to bring attention via a peaceful protest gathering.

Soliman, a father of five, entered the United States in August 2022 on a B-2 visa that expired more than two years ago, according to the Department of Homeland Security, making Soliman illegally in the United States. Soliman is a product of the Joe Biden open borders policy, but having overstayed his visa, is automatically deportable. Authorities picked up Soliman’s wife and five children on Tuesday, June 3. The Solimans are not United States citizens. Born in Egypt, Soliman lived for 17 years in Kuwait prior to moving to Colorado three years ago. While he apparently has no prior criminal record in the United States, Soliman faces both federal and state charges, including 16 counts of attempted murder in the first degree. Other charges Soliman faces are the federal charge of a hate crime which could get him life in prison for that alone, in addition to six counts of first degree assault, two counts of use of an incendiary device, 16 counts of attempted use of an incendiary device - the 16 additional, unused Molotov Cocktails, and one count of crimes against at-risk adults - the elderly. All told, Soliman is looking at a maximum of 264 years in prison. He deserves each and every one of those 264 years. Soliman plotted for a year, waiting until his daughter graduated from school. He admitted to authorities he has no regrets, and would do this all over again as his goal is see all Zionists dead.

The “federal hate crimes charges [were] already filed, and [he] will be accountable to the fullest extent of the law,” said White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt during her Tuesday June 3 presser. “And to Jewish Americans at home, across the country, this president has your back,” said Leavitt.

Part of the celebration of Shavuot includes the reading of the 10 Commandments from the Torah, which of course includes thou shalt not murder. The 16 victims of attempted murder by Soliman range in ages from 52 to 88 - the 88 year old, a Holocaust survivor. Leo Terrell, in charge of the antisemitism task force with the Justice Department, referred to the unnamed 88 year old Holocaust survivor as one who “endured the worst evil in human history,” and “came to America seeking safety. Now decades later, she’s victimized again.”

“The attack on this survivor reminds me of the horror of October 7, when Holocaust survivors were murdered and dragged away by Hamas terrorists in Israel. But this time, it happened here. In our country. This is all caused by the same type of hatred - antisemitism. Holocaust survivors should not spend the final chapter of their lives experiencing or witnessing this hatred again. We must fight this terror together,” said Terrell.

These antisemitic attacks, domestic terrorism, have become normalized in the United States in ways never experienced before in this country. A major reason for this normalization is the absolutely shocking degree of antisemitism that has plagued American college campuses, especially since the October 7 terror attacks by Hamas in Israel. The  level of indoctrination on myriad campuses by even more professors, who have lost their objectivity, if they ever had any to begin with, is stunning. Students being taught lies about Israel, lies about Jews, lies about history, which can, and have been refuted. Yet this oppressor-oppressed mindset, a black and white distinction that because Israel has achieved a level of success, they must automatically be the oppressor, and the Hamas-led Gazans must be the oppressed because their fortunes have not been as bright.

Israel, which has been the ancestral, Biblical, historical, and religious homeland of the Jewish people long before its current naming in 1948. False accusations of Israel as a colonizing state, as an apartheid state, as a genocide state are patently false and proveably so. But people haven’t learned history and want to punish Israel for its success. Israel doesn’t start wars - it serves no purpose for them to do so. For Israel to lose a war is to witness the eradication of Israel, the lone Jewish nation on the planet. Israel is in a constant struggle simply to survive as it gets attacked and invaded from every direction, and from any number of enemies. There are 57 Arab and/or Muslim nations, and while they are not all at war with Israel, none of them have been willing to absorb the so-called refugees - a status so-called Palestinians have claimed since the political founding of Israel in 1948.

Israel did not run its Arab/Muslim neighbors into exile in 1948, yet hundreds of thousands chose to flee Israel, start perpetual wars against Israel and claim that very land - the land that is the lone Jewish nation - barely the size of New Jersey to be their own. History proves otherwise. The Jewish people, the Israelites, the ancient Hebrews, have existed 5,785 years, Christians just under 2,000 years, and Muslims about 1,415 years. Since 1948 the Jewish populations from the collective Arab/Muslim lands faded dramatically from around 900,000 to under 30,000 due to pogroms, exiles, and those who moved to Israel (made aliyah). Arabs/Muslims in Israel have grown in numbers precipitously, live freely and equally with more rights and freedoms than they would enjoy in their “own” 57 states. 

Those who have continued to claim so-called refugee status have suffered due to their own unwillingness, their own stubbornness, to accept any number of peace overtures from Israel - the so-called Two State Solution. These so-called refugees live under the tyrannical fists of terrorist organizations Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis - all funded by the Islamic Republic of Iran, the world’s largest state sponsor of terror. The terrorist organizations have written into their charters calling for the evisceration of Israel and the slaughter of the Jewish people. The Islamic Republic of Iran, since their 1978-79 revolution, has made it their dual goal to destroy the United States, who it calls the Great Satan, and Israel, the Little Satan. The Islamic Republic of Iran is the closest it has ever been to possessing the weaponry to attempt just that.

Yet, it is the bastardization of the truth, the actual history, the demonization of Israel and the United States from within the United States on the myriad college campuses where indoctrination, false narratives, misinformation, and outright lies perpetrated by professors and leaders of campus organizations are peddled. And not cheaply, when considering the cost of a college education these days and the value one gets for that cost of tuition. Students leave such institutions ill-prepared for the real world with their gender studies, philosophy, and even journalism degrees because of the erroneous lessons they have learned. It is on these campuses where the students are indoctrinated into learning what to think, not how to think. What to write, not how to write. 

It is this disservice that has promulgated the continuing rise in antisemitism and the criminal behavior accompanying it. In addition to the antisemitic terrorist attacks in Boulder, less than two weeks prior, in the nation’s capital - Washington, DC, on May 21, a radicalized Elias Rodriguez, 30, from Chicago, assassinated Yaron Lischinsky, 30, and Sarah Lynn Milgrim, 26, outside the Capital Jewish Museum. The two, soon to be engaged, staffers at the Israeli Embassy attended a Young Diplomats Reception hosted by the American Jewish Committee. Rodriguez also shouted “Free, free, Palestine,” then pulled out a keffiyeh and admitted to witnesses in the museum, “I did it. I did it for Gaza,” thus became the clarion call for global intifada.

“For these neo-nazis, ‘Free Palestine,’ is just today’s version of ‘Heil Hitler.’ They don’t want a Palestinian state, they want to destroy the Jewish state. They want to annihilate the Jewish people who have been in the land of Israel for 3,500 years,” said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

This recent spate of antisemitism includes a Dearborn, Michigan man who pled guilty to federal gun charges on May 28, after allegedly threatening pre-school children and their parents outside a Bloomfield Hills synagogue. Hassan Chokr, 35, plotted to slaughter pre-school children at Temple Beth El in Bloomfield Hills, drove through the parking lot shouting antisemitic slogans and threats as parents dropped children off at the synagogue back in December 2022, according to the New York Post. Chokr’s Instagram posts included convoluted thoughts such as: “your Jew tactics will only backfire on you, you have no place on this earth, Jew (expletive), Jew mother (expletive). A storm is coming to wipe you all out of our lives,” prosecutors testified. To protest his arrest, Chokr dropped his pants, exposing his bottom to the judge at a court appearance. He faces 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

It’s Chokr’s last sentence that is the most alarming. “A storm is coming to wipe you all out of our lives,” screams global intifada. And certainly the startling massive increase in antisemitism speaks to that. An audit conducted by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) indicated 9,534 antisemitic incidents took place in 2024 - the highest total in 46 years, and five percent greater than the 2023 figure. Over the past five years antisemitic incidents have risen by 344 percent, and by 893 percent over the last 10 years. These numbers are both daunting and disturbing. What’s more disturbing is that these are not just numbers. They represent people who have been assaulted or murdered because they were Jewish. They represent synagogues, day schools, as well as businesses and private homes owned by Jewish people.

What is not represented in those figures, and occurred just five weeks prior to the Washington, DC assassination, on Sunday April 13, is the arson fire at the Pennsylvania governor’s mansion and official residence. Cody Balmer, 38, of Penbrook, Pennsylvania, broke windows and threw homemade Molotov Cocktails into the banquet hall of the mansion a couple hours after the first night of Passover. No one suffered injuries, as Governor Josh Shapiro (D) and his family slept safely ensconced in various bedrooms of the mansion. Yet, just hours prior, Shapiro hosted a Passover Seder attended by about two dozen people. Balmer himself called 9-1-1 and turned himself in. “I’m not hiding, and I will confess to everything that I had done,” said Balmer. Once in police custody Balmer also admitted he would have attacked the governor with a hammer, if he happened upon Shapiro. Balmer faces eight charges, including attempted murder, terrorism, and aggravated arson, according to ABC News. Attacking the residence of the Jewish governor on the first night of Passover is certainly an act of antisemitism, confirmed when Balmer said he committed his acts in support of Palestine. How that helps Palestine remains a mystery.

These crimes of terrorism and antisemitism in the name of Palestine accomplish nothing productive or positive. They do, however, create a culture of fear, and thinking of the oft-heard threats of global intifada should be taken seriously. When someone tells you they want to kill you, take them at their word.

Certainly US Rep. Randy Fine (R-FL) is taking these crimes and threats seriously. “I’m not just a congressman, I’m a Jewish congressman, and I’ve got two Jewish sons. We have to live in this world and people are scared - Jews are scared. Eighty years ago Jews were being burned in Nazi Germany - today they are being burned in the United States, so we have got to be willing to do what is necessary to deal with this, and frankly it starts by recognizing that the call for “Free Palestine,” is a call for violence. And we in this country after 18 months of this have to say enough,” said Fine.

Apparently enough includes the “Run for Their Lives” group announcing it will resume its events and activities next week. They will not let antisemitism win. That is absolutely the right thing to do, and the right message to send. It’s not hyperbolic to suggest Jews around the United States feel as though they are living in 1935 Germany. The difference is, while the Nazis forced Jews to wear an identifying yellow Star of David, Jews in America should proudly don their Stars of David.

Jewish Americans cannot give up on the United States as either a safe haven for religious freedom or as a place to thrive as has been the case for as long as America has been America. We must be more openly Jewish, be more observant as religious Jews, be more supportive of Jewish groups and organizations that support Israel, be more supportive of political candidates who support Israel and Jewish values as American values, and be more vigilant in fighting antisemitism. The antisemites will not chase us from the United States of America. Their antisemitism can’t be hidden, nor will we as proud Jews and proud Americans.

Sanford D. Horn is a writer and educator living in Westfield, IN.