Trump Goes Overboard re: "Anti-Semitism"

The President allows his emotions to run away with him on occasion. 

NeverTrumpers and Democrats often take Trump's offhand remarks as SERIOUS SERIOUS SERIOUS threats to the Constitution, free speech, all manner of rights......yah, sure.  They don't have a life, so.....

But there are times when Trump is not Twittering to rouse the rabble, and his EO vis-a-vis the Jews is one of them.  And it's a problem.

President Donald Trump recently signed an executive order that interprets Judaism as a nationality or race—i.e., it should not be seen exclusively as a religion—so that the federal government can threaten to withhold funds from schools deemed to be fostering anti-Semitism in school activities, programs, curricula, and classrooms. The order was signed the day after a shooting of Jews at a Kosher grocery in New Jersey....

Well, that's not necessarily terrible.  But it gets there, fast.

...This order would make the IHRA (International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance) definition of anti-Semitism the official guideline for Title VI...

So what?

...What Trump’s order will effectively do is put a halt on speech, as skittish administrators shut down protests, screen speakers, and monitor classrooms for unsanctioned criticisms against Israel.

Americans should know that the IHRA, as adopted by the State Department, is deeply contested. Its critics say it is too vague and all-encompassing and can be a trap for honest critics of Israel’s domestic and foreign policies. The IHRA, for example, describes as anti-Semitic “denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination” under some circumstances, and offers as an example of such behavior “claiming that the existence of a State of Israel is a racist endeavor.”

This gives pro-Israeli associations and lobbyists a green light to compel the states to pass laws that would require any companies and individuals working for the government to sign “contracts” or other affidavits declaring that they would never boycott Israeli companies. Such endeavors have been halted on numerous occasions by Congress and multiple courts as unconstitutional since they would violate the First Amendment. This would incidentally mean that any criticism of the Israeli government, such as its continual suppression of Christians exercising their natural right to worship, would be classified as anti-Semitic....

This has been going on for decades.  The "Anti-Defamation League", which is really a bunch of bigots with a huge megaphone (called the MSM), has denounced anyone and everyone who dares breathe a negative word about Israeli policy.  See Patrick J. Buchanan for one example.

And that's just bullshit.

Trump would be well-off to stop playing to Israel.  As I recall, the saying is "Make America Great Again."  Americans can and sometimes should criticize Israeli policy and activities.  Racializing that criticism is.........well........un-American.