Overview

• At a July 3 America250 rally in Des Moines, Trump described some bankers as “Shylocks and bad people” while celebrating passage of his signature tax-and-spending legislation.
• Traveling on Air Force One the next morning, he insisted he “never heard” the word used in an antisemitic way and said he simply meant a high-rate moneylender.
• The Anti-Defamation League said the term evokes a centuries-old antisemitic trope rooted in Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice and called its use “troubling and irresponsible.”
• Representative Dan Goldman labeled the comment “blatant and vile antisemitism” and accused Trump of knowing exactly what he was doing.
• The controversy comes days before Trump’s scheduled meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, adding strain to diplomatic efforts.