Ossoff highlights hostages and antisemitism, but says Trump is exploiting Jewish fears
Antisemitism ‘is being very cynically exploited as the administration seeks to erode civil liberties in the United States,’ Ossoff said
Courtesy
Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-GA) in conversation with JDCA CEO Halie Soifer at a Jewish Democratic Council of America summit in Washington on May 1, 2025.
As he works to repair his standing with some members of Georgia’s Jewish community, Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-GA) on Thursday highlighted the plight of the remaining hostages in Gaza and the rise of antisemitism at home, while also condemning what he described as the Trump administration’s use of antisemitism as a weapon to attack civil liberties. The Georgia Democrat was speaking at a Jewish Democratic Council of America summit in Washington.
The JDCA crowd appeared largely friendly to Ossoff, who has faced significant backlash from prominent Jewish supporters in his home state over his votes last year to block some weapons sales to Israel, including some Georgians who say he still has more work to do to win back their trust before he’s up for reelection in 2026.
“I know for those of us, myself included, who have family in Israel, for those of us who every single day feel the intense pain of recognition that there remain hostages rotting and facing abuse in tunnels under Gaza, for those of who have feared for Israel’s future and its security, for those of us who have witnessed the gut-wrenching violence and devastation in the Middle East, it has been and remains incredibly painful,” Ossoff said.
He also highlighted the struggles of Jewish parents whose children have felt threatened on campus and business owners whose businesses have been vandalized. Such scenes, Ossoff said, trigger “for all of us our instantaneous recognition and understanding that throughout our history, [antisemitism] rises and it rises and it rises again, and only through vigilance do we defend ourselves from it.”
But, he continued, “this issue is being very cynically exploited as the administration seeks to erode civil liberties in the United States. And given our experience, I think that we have obligations to speak out where our suffering and our fear is wielded as a political cudgel for cynical ends.”
He said he’s been “encouraged” to see some leaders in the Jewish community speaking out on the issue.
Ossoff’s remarks, made in conversation with JDCA CEO Halie Soifer, focused primarily on the Trump administration and the path forward for Democrats, and made little mention of Jewish issues until the closing part of the Q&A session.