Despite multiple efforts on Monday to get an answer from the White House, officials remained silent on the issue of whether President Biden intends to deploy the National Guard to break up anti-Israel protests at Columbia University.
Fox News Digital asked the White House whether it would comment on the situation at Columbia University and if it required federal intervention, but didn’t receive any response. The silence comes as hundreds of anti-Israel agitators have mounted disruptive protests at the university’s campus in New York City, with some calling for violence against Jews and Jewish students.
“Eisenhower sent the 101st to Little Rock,” Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., said in a social media post Monday. “It’s time for Biden to call out the National Guard at our universities to protect Jewish Americans.”
“The nascent pogroms at Columbia have to stop TODAY, before our Jewish brethren sit for Passover Seder tonight,” Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., added. “If Eric Adams won’t send the NYPD and Kathy Hochul won’t send the National Guard, Joe Biden has a duty to take charge and break up these mobs.”
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It remains unclear whether President Biden would take action to break up anti-Israel protests raging at Columbia University. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images)
Last week, anti-Israel agitators initiated protests, staging what they labeled a “Gaza solidarity encampment” on the Columbia University campus and shutting down a central lawn at the university. The protesters, who erected tents as part of the action, called for hostilities in the Middle East to end and for the university to divest of companies that have ties to Israel.
On Friday, police broke up the demonstration and arrested more than 100 students, charging them with trespassing.
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However, more protesters have arrived on the scene since those arrests and have clashed repeatedly with police officers. Some protesters have loudly chanted antisemitic slogans, pledged allegiance to Hamas and even endorsed violence against Jewish people.
In response to the conflict, Columbia University Rabbi Elie Buechler recommended Jewish students leave campus because of safety concerns, and Columbia University President Dr. Nemat Shafik said Monday that classes would be virtual to avoid further violence.
Sen. Tom Cotton was among the legislators calling on Biden to take action in response to the protests. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
“I am deeply saddened by what is happening on our campus,” Shafik wrote on Monday. “Our bonds as a community have been severely tested in ways that will take a great deal of time and effort to reaffirm. Students across an array of communities have conveyed fears for their safety and we have announced additional actions we are taking to address security concerns.”
“The decibel of our disagreements has only increased in recent days,” she continued. “These tensions have been exploited and amplified by individuals who are not affiliated with Columbia who have come to campus to pursue their own agendas.”
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Meanwhile, President Biden issued a statement Sunday ahead of Passover, commemorating the Jewish holiday while also condemning rising antisemitic attitudes across the country.
Protests, such as those staged at Columbia University, have raged in the U.S. in the aftermath of Hamas’ attacks on innocent Israeli citizens on Oct. 7, which sparked Israel to bombard the terrorist group in Gaza.
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“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.”
