Donald Trump tweet with Star of David draws social media backlash
Accusing rival Hillary Clinton of corruption, Donald Trump sent a controversial tweet Saturday morning using a six-pointed Star of David -- a well-known Jewish symbol -- overlaid on piles of money.
(The original tweet has since been deleted.)
The graphic appears to be photoshopped from several different elements, including a Fox News poll that found 58 percent of voters believed Clinton to be "corrupt." It's juxtaposed against a photo of Clinton and a riff off her own campaign statement about making history as the first presumptive female nominee of a major party.
Next to Clinton is a red six-pointed Star of David with text reading "Most Corrupt Candidate Ever!" Hundred-dollar bills are scattered in the photo behind her.
It raised the eyebrows of more than a few Twitter users.
Some interesting graphic design choices here. https://t.co/wzOCScRwA5
— Matthew Yglesias (@mattyglesias) July 2, 2016
Uh oh... (That star...) https://t.co/s2IslEgbIM
— Zeke Miller (@ZekeJMiller) July 2, 2016
Several bluntly called the tweet anti-Semitic.
Interesting to see a major party nominee leverage the antisemitism meme so aggressively: pic.twitter.com/LmHZWegQte
— Prof. Jeff Brexit (@ProfJeffJarviss) July 2, 2016
pen and pixel antisemitism https://t.co/Lt1Q9MJqtp
— Rembert Browne (@rembert) July 2, 2016
A Clinton campaign staffer and an economic policy adviser also weighed in:
Why is there a Star of David? https://t.co/CMidmfHbjg
— Josh Schwerin (@JoshSchwerin) July 2, 2016
.@realDonaldTrump will deport 11M; attack judges heritage; bar Muslims. This new divisive dogwhistle isnt surprise: pic.twitter.com/3tiOTcC9PZ
— Michael Shapiro (@mpshapiro) July 2, 2016
Trump later tweeted an amended version of the graphic, nearly two hours after the Twitter firestorm began. The latest version uses a red circle in place of the Star of David:
Crooked Hillary -- Makes History! #ImWithYou #AmericaFirst pic.twitter.com/PKQhYhMmIX
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 2, 2016
Trump, for his part, has fought accusations of anti-Semitism and racism before.
In a March speech to AIPAC, the largest pro-Israel lobby in the United States, Trump proclaimed his love for Jewish people and Israel.
"I love the people in this room," Trump told AIPAC attendees. "I love Israel. I've been with Israel so long in terms of - I've received some of my greatest honors from Israel. My father before me. Incredible. My daughter Ivanka, is about to have a beautiful Jewish baby. In fact, it could be happening right now, which would be very nice as far as I'm concerned."