Leo Terrell on Antisemitism: 'If Jews' Rights Aren't Protected, Our Rights Aren't Protected

President Donald Trump has made fighting antisemitism a priority of his administration, particularly on college campuses. To that end, he's established a DOJ Task Force on Antisemitism and appointed Leo Terrell, currently serving as Senior Counsel to the Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division, to chair it.

Terrell recently sat down with Mike Wagenheim, Senior U.S. Correspondent for Israel's i24NEWS, to discuss his mission with the task force.

Leo Terrell with complete moral clarity:

“We have an obligation to protect Jewish Americans and make sure they have the same rights; if those rights aren't protected, ours aren't protected.”

pic.twitter.com/lY0KEJf39A
— Eyal Yakoby (@EYakoby) May 27, 2025

Terrell began by noting the close relationship between American blacks and Jews and their fight for civil rights.

TERRELL: I had the privilege to speak to 90 black pastors at the White House, and reminded them of the history between Jews and blacks — about the financial aid that the Jewish community gave to help create the NAACP; how two Jewish Americans lost their lives in June of 1964 when they went down to Mississippi to help blacks register to vote. I reminded those pastors of that. I reminded them that there has been a strong history of blacks and Jews in this country, and the Jews are facing the same problems that blacks faced. And we have an affirmative obligation, not just because of the history — because we’re all Americans. And so that's what I spoke about just last week.
And I will tell you right now: People who are invested in making sure there’s democracy and freedom of religion — Catholics, Baptists, Muslims, Jews, Christians — we have an obligation to protect Jewish Americans to make sure they have the same rights. If those rights aren't protected, our rights are not protected.

Wagenheim then asked about the partisan nature — of both antisemitism and accusations of antisemitism.

WAGENHEIM: I've gotta ask, because there’s a long history of Democrats accusing Republicans of accepting antisemitism on their side but doing nothing on their own. And it's been the same for Republicans — they've issued the same accusations toward Democrats, but don’t handle their side of the aisle. When we're talking about college campuses, the great bulk of them are run by the left; it's simply a fact. But there’s no doubt there’s antisemitism from other corners of America emanating from the right. Where is the initiative to tackle that?
TERRELL: There is hate on both sides, and I will submit to you that what we’re tackling — antisemitism — is an American, bipartisan issue. It was in these camps — Democrats were pro-support of Israel and Jewish Americans. It shouldn’t be that way. It is an American issue. I mean, we’re talking about why people want to live in this country: freedom of religion, a Constitution that has basically survived over 250 years.
And I think what we need to do is make sure we keep our eye on the prize. We need to eliminate antisemitism. This is where I think you get universal support from both sides. It's just: How do you eliminate it? And that’s where I think the president — President Trump — and we have a plan. I don’t think it was addressed as vigorously as it should’ve been in the last four years. I will submit to you that was called the "Michigan Strategy," where they wanted to win Michigan. Here — no politics involved. We want to eliminate. We want to put myself out of business. We have a lot to do.

Trump Floats Taking $3B in Harvard Funding and Sending It to an Entirely Different Type of School

Terrell is correct that there is a lot to do to root out antisemitism, and the task force is focusing on college campuses. The administration's tussle with Harvard University has been at the forefront of that effort, and Terrell has vowed they will take the legal fight over it all the way to the Supreme Court.

The Trump administration has frozen nearly $3 billion in funding for the Ivy League institution thus far and is now fighting to prevent the school from enrolling more foreign students.
The administration's push to bar enrollment of such students, who comprise approximately 27% of the student body, has been temporarily put on hold after a judge blocked the move, and the case is on hold until Thursday.
Terrell said the Trump administration will have to "match" Harvard in court as a legal blitz ensues, telling Fox News, "This is going to be a battle in the courtroom. If it goes all the way to the Supreme Court, Trump is going to do that… that's why the task force is here."

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