US Vice President Kamala Harris on Friday weighed in on the controversy surrounding rapper Kanye West, after his latest interview in which he said he “loves everyone,” including Jews, as well as Nazis, spoke favorably of Hitler and denied the Holocaust.“Praising Hitler and denying the Holocaust is vile, appalling, and must be condemned. Our Administration will continue to stand up against antisemitism and the epidemic of hate,” wrote Harris on Twitter.
Her tweet came after President Joe Biden condemned antisemitism and also took a shot at former President Donald Trump, who recently hosted West and white nationalist Nick Fuentes at his estate in Florida.
“I just want to make a few things clear: The Holocaust happened. Hitler was a demonic figure. And instead of giving it a platform, our political leaders should be calling out and rejecting antisemitism wherever it hides. Silence is complicity,” Biden tweeted.
While neither the President nor the Vice President specifically mentioned West in their tweets, the controversial rapper caused yet another uproar following Thursday’s interview with Alex Jones’ Infowars outlet.
“I see some good things about Hitler also,” he said. “I love everyone. The Jewish people are not going to tell me 'you can love us and or you can love what we're doing to your contracts, but this guy [Adolf Hitler] that invented highways and invented the very microphone that I use as a musician - you cannot say out loud that he ever did anything good.' I'm done with that.”
“I'm done with the classifications. Every human being has something of value that they brought to the table, especially Hitler."
Later, West told Jones that that he does not consider Nazis to be evil, and said that he loves both Jews and Nazis.
Israel’s Ambassador to the United States, Michael Herzog, condemned West’s interview.
“I am sickened by the conversation that Alex Jones had with avowed antisemites Kanye West and Nick Fuentes. At a time when antisemitism is on the rise, it is alarming that such vile rhetoric is given a platform and legitimized,” said Herzog.
“They engaged in hateful incitement, which could lead to violence and the death of Jews in horrifying incidents. Free speech does not extend to incitement of violence and demonization of the Jewish community, which faces the highest levels of religious-based violence in the United States,” he added.
“We must all stand against the continuing threat of antisemitism. No society can have room for such hateful ideas, no matter who expresses them,” concluded Ambassador Herzog.
Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations, Gilad Erdan, called for West to no longer be given a platform to make his antisemitic comments.
“All of the lights must be turned off on this despicable antisemite. Kanye West’s deplorable comments today endanger Jews around the world,” he wrote.
“It is past time for the curtain to drop on this racist. No stage for Ye. No microphone for Ye. No applause for Ye,” added Erdan.
West certainly did not help his own cause later on Thursday, when he posted an image blending a swastika with a star of David on Twitter. In response, Twitter owner Elon Musk announced that West’s account had been suspended for violation of Twitter rules that prohibit calls for violence against other individuals or groups.
(Israel National News' North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Israel National News articles, however, is Israeli time.)