Tapper rips Farrakhan after anti-Semitic speech

CNN’s Jake Tapper blasted the Rev. Louis Farrakhan on Wednesday after the Nation of Islam leader made a series of anti-Semitic remarks in a speech. 

In that speech, delivered on Sunday, Farrakhan declares “powerful Jews” as his “enemy” and claims that “the Jews were responsible for all of this filth and degenerate behavior that Hollywood is putting out turning men into women and women into men.”

{mosads}

Tapper took to Twitter to condemn the religious leader. Unlike anti-Semites of the so-called alt-right, Tapper said, Farrakhan has a larger following and the ability to meet openly with lawmakers.

This is who Farrakhan is. It’s why folks are legitimately so offended when they found out that then-Sen. Obama and members of the CBC met with him in 2005. https://t.co/QdGpWuGdZ6

— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) February 28, 2018

Tapper offered a play-by-play of Farrakhan’s remarks.

On Sunday, Rev. Farrakhan gave his Saviours’ Day 2018 Address, attended by thousands including one of the co-founders of the Women’s March.https://t.co/WE5ys7It8R

— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) February 28, 2018

Shortly after 1:10:50 in the video Farrakhan proclaims that “the powerful Jews are my enemy.” https://t.co/WE5ys7It8R

— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) February 28, 2018

At 2:57:00 he begins approvingly quoting some of the anti-Semitic comments made by Rev. Billy Graham and President Richard Nixon in the Oval Office.https://t.co/WE5ys7It8R

— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) February 28, 2018

At 2:59:00 Farrakhan approvingly cites Nixon and Graham attacking Jews’ “grip on the media” and Hollywood and “how the Jews were responsible for all of this filth and degenerate behavior that Hollywood is putting out turning men into women and women into men.”

— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) February 28, 2018

At 3:15, Farrakhan calls Jews ‘the mother and father of apartheid, the Jews.”https://t.co/WE5ys7It8R

— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) February 28, 2018

Assailing Keith Ellison, at 3:21 Farrakhan says, “let me tell you something, when you want something in this world, the Jew holds the door.”
https://t.co/WE5ys7It8R

— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) February 28, 2018

at 3;49: “White folks are going down. And Satan is going down. And Farrakhan …has pulled the cover off the eyes of that Satanic Jew and I’m here to say your time is up, your world is through.” https://t.co/WE5ys7It8R

— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) February 28, 2018

Farrakhan has long been a controversial figure, and has long been accused of espousing anti-Semitic and anti-white views. His remarks came on Sunday at the Nation of Islam’s annual “Saviours’ Day” convention. 

Tapper got some pushback for his criticism of Farrakhan.

Oliver Willis, a writer for the progressive website ShareBlue Media, noted that President Trump had “said nazis are good people,” and that Tapper’s “regularly scheduled right-wing virtue signaling is noted.”

trump is president and said nazis are good people but your regularly scheduled right-wing virtue signaling is noted

— Oliver Willis (@owillis) February 28, 2018

That tweet elicited a response from Tapper.

One would have to have a pretty warped view of the world to think reporting on/condemning anti-Semitism is “right wing virtue signaling.”

— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) February 28, 2018

Richard Allen Smith, a contributor for Esquire, took to Twitter to note that Stephen Bannon, the former executive chairman of Breitbart News, used to work in Trump’s White House. Bannon has been accused by critics of harboring anti-Semitic views.