“I think we need the federal government,” Hikind, a Democrat, said during the “Fox & Friends” interview. “I hate to say this, but de Blasio and Cuomo need the help of President Trump. This in an epidemic that is happening, these acts of anti-Semitism. Out of control, and the leadership is not dealing with it.”
Trump, a Republican, referenced the interview later Monday morning in a tweet, writing: “Thank you to highly respected Jewish leader Dov Hikind for his wonderful statements about me this morning on @foxandfriends.”
During the interview, Hikind also claimed a double standard for hate speech directed at Jews, contending that some high-profile Democrats in Congress are “indulging in hate speech” and getting away with it.
“The hate, the anti-Semitism that emanates from within the left, you don’t hear anything,” Hikind said. “You hear very little. Anything that comes from the other side, it’s all — I mean, even the mayor of the city of New York has continued to call the hate ‘coming from the right.’ All the hate in New York is coming from the left.”
In a Fox News interview on Sunday, de Blasio lamented “an atmosphere of hate” that he said has developed in recent years and noted, “A lot of it is emanating from Washington.”
Asked whether he was blaming Trump, de Blasio said, “Not just the president,” adding: “We need a different tone, starting in Washington.”
His comments came amid an assessment of factors fueling hostility toward the country’s Jewish community in recent times.
During a Fox News Sunday appearance over the weekend, evangelical leader Franklin Graham said “hatred for Trump” and “a lot of people in the media” are contributing factors.