Donald Trump’s new antisemitism envoy said he plans to wage a “pro-Semitism” campaign that will aggressively challenge false narratives about Jews and Israel.
“Our goal is to lower the rhetoric around the globe immediately,” Rabbi Yehuda Kaploun, U.S. Ambassador-designate to combat global antisemitism, said Dec. 10 during the Jerusalem Post Washington Conference on Capitol Hill.
Kaploun is a Miami-based Orthodox Jewish businessman and devoted Trump ally who served as liaison to the Jewish community for the president’s 2024 campaign. His nomination was advanced by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and currently awaits full Senate confirmation.
“I want to shift the conversation to pro-Semitism. We need to be pro-Semitic, and we need to educate, educate, educate,” he said.
We need to be pro-Semitic, and we need to educate, educate, educate.”
Kaploun, who was born in Israel, said the president is deeply concerned for the well-being of Jewish families and charged him with being “responsible for every Jew,” The Jerusalem Post reported.
“The responsibility to protect every Jew in the world belongs to all of us. We are going to do this together,” he said, adding the challenge before him is daunting. “Two nights ago, I was accosted in a hotel lobby by people screaming ‘baby killer’ and ‘free Gaza.’ Antisemitism is alive and well.”
If confirmed, Kaploun will replace Deborah Lipstadt, a historian and Holocaust scholar confirmed by the Senate in 2022.
According to the Post, Kaploun said he will completely revamp the office and elevate its profile through partnerships with tech leaders: “He pledged to scrutinize incitement in educational materials and to demand accountability from international bodies receiving U.S. funds.”
Trump expressed full confidence Kaploun will use his business acumen and dedication to Jewish rights to ensure “his people” can worship and live freely.
“With antisemitism dangerously on the rise, Yehuda will be the strongest representative for Americans and Jews across the globe and promote PEACE,” the president said in a Truth Social post.
But Kaploun’s nomination has generated plenty of criticism, as well.
Hadar Susskind
“I had concerns about this nomination even before today’s (Nov. 19 Senate) testimony because Rabbi Kaploun had been complicit in weaponizing antisemitism,” said Hadar Susskind, president of the New Jewish Narrative, a progressive Zionist organization that promotes peace for Israelis and Palestinians.
Kaploun has failed to criticize the administration’s “flirtation with right-leaning antisemites” and refuses to acknowledge it is not inherently antisemitic to criticize Israel’s conduct in Gaza, he said.
“My message to the Senate today is that American Jews are smart enough to know when our leaders are taking our fears seriously and when they are exploiting us as political pawns. The administration’s weaponization of antisemitism has been appalling. Confirmation of Rabbi Kaploun adds insult to injury.”
Nearly 20 U.S. House Democrats, including several Jewish members, urged the Senate in a Nov. 18 letter not to confirm Kaploun due to his false and inflammatory accusations that Democrats refused to condemn Hamas for its 2023 attack on Israel.
“Additionally, Mr. Kaploun has a troubling history in failing to respond to antisemitic rhetoric uttered in his presence,” the legislators said. “Mr. Kaploun organized the event at which President Trump claimed that if he were to lose the 2024 election, ‘the Jewish people would have a lot to do with a loss’ — a textbook example of antisemitic scapegoating.”
Even some die-hard MAGA adherents blasted the president in comments to his social media post about Kaploun, according to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
“No one believes antisemitism is an issue but the Zionists. I will criticize our Greatest Enemy whenever I want,” one commenter said.