Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) is calling on President Joe Biden to send the U.S. National Guard to college campuses to “guarantee Jewish students’ safety” after pro-Palestinian protests erupted at Columbia University ahead of Passover, a Jewish holiday.
“Eisenhower sent the 101st to Little Rock,” Hawley said in a post to X. “It’s time for Biden to call out the National Guard at our universities to protect Jewish Americans.”
The White House issued a strong rebuke on Sunday of the antisemitic remarks shouted at several pro-Palestinian protests calling for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
“While every American has the right to peaceful protest, calls for violence and physical intimidation targeting Jewish students and the Jewish community are blatantly Antisemitic, unconscionable, and dangerous — they have absolutely no place on any college campus, or anywhere in the United States of America,” White House deputy press secretary Andrew Bates said in a statement to the Washington Examiner.
Biden also issued a statement acknowledging the beginning of Passover, saying that his commitment to the safety of the Jewish people and the security of Israel is “ironclad.”
“The ancient story of persecution against Jews in the Haggadah also reminds us that we must speak out against the alarming surge of Antisemitism — in our schools, communities, and online,” Biden said. “Silence is complicity. Even in recent days, we’ve seen harassment and calls for violence against Jews. This blatant Antisemitism is reprehensible and dangerous — and it has absolutely no place on college campuses, or anywhere in our country.”
“My Administration will continue to speak out and aggressively implement the first-ever National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism, putting the full force of the federal government behind protecting the Jewish community,” the president continued.
The Washington Examiner reached out to the White House for comments on Hawley’s calls for the deployment of the National Guard.
Hawley is the latest member of Congress to speak out about the rise in antisemitism on college and university campuses. Calls to protect Jewish students resurged after demonstrations from pro-Palestinian groups erupted at Columbia University as its president, Minouche Shafik, was testifying on Capitol Hill last week.
Protests on campuses are stemming from the war between Israel and Hamas, the Palestinian terrorist organization that attacked the Jewish state on Oct. 7. Since the Oct. 7 attacks, congressional Republicans and most Democrats have condemned the rise in antisemitic protests and sentiments.
Last week, more than 100 students at Columbia University and Barnard College were arrested for being involved with a “Gaza Solidarity Encampment.” Rep. Ilhan Omar’s (D-MN) daughter, Isra Hirsi, was one of the students suspended from Barnard College for participation in the protests.
The level of campus unrest following clashes between pro-Palestinian and pro-Israel demonstrators resulted in Shafik making classes virtual on Monday, with the president condemning “intimidating and harassing behavior” from pro-Palestinian protesters.
However, members of Congress are expressing their opposition to the way antisemitism is being handled on college campuses. On Sunday, House Education and the Workforce Committee Chairwoman Virginia Foxx (R-NC) sent a letter to Shafik scolding her for the “ongoing chaos” at Columbia.
“A Jewish chaplain at the University has recommended Jewish students depart campus due to the University’s inability to guarantee their safety,” Foxx wrote. “Multiple Jewish students have already sought shelter off-campus.”
“Columbia’s continued failure to restore order and safety promptly to campus constitutes a major breach of the University’s Title VI obligations, upon which federal financial assistance is contingent, and which must immediately be rectified,” the Republican chairwoman continued. “If you do not rectify this danger, then the Committee will not hesitate in holding you accountable.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) condemned the demonstrations at Columbia, calling them “outrageous and un-American.”
“No student of any race or religion should have to leave campus because it’s become too dangerous,” the speaker said. “The universities allowing rampant antisemitism to rage on campus must be held immediately accountable.”
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Three Jewish House Democrats — Reps. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), Dan Goldman (D-NY), and Jared Moskowitz (D-FL) — are planning to visit Columbia’s campus on Monday to meet with Jewish students.
“I will be coming to Columbia University to walk with the Jewish students. If the University won’t protect them, Congress will!” Moskowitz said on Sunday.
