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Biden plan to combat antisemitism demands reforms across the executive branch and beyond
WASHINGTON (JTA) — President Joe Biden unveiled a multifaceted and broad strategy to combat antisemitism in the United States that reaches from basketball courts to farming communities, from college campuses to police departments.
“We must say clearly and forcefully that antisemitism and all forms of hate and violence have no place in America,” Biden said in a prerecorded video. “Silence is complicity.”
The 60-page document and its list of more than 100 recommendations stretches across the government, requiring reforms in virtually every sector of the executive branch within a year. It was formulated after consultations with over a thousand experts, and covers a range of tactics, from increased security funding to a range of educational efforts.
The plan has been in the works since December, and the White House has consulted with large Jewish organizations throughout the process. The finished document embraces proposals that large Jewish organizations have long advocated, as well as initiatives that pleasantly surprised Jewish organizational leaders, most of whom praised it upon its release.
Among the proposals that Jewish leaders have called for were recommendations to streamline reporting of hate crimes across local, state and federal law enforcement agencies, which will enable the government to accurately assess the breadth of hate crimes. The proposal also recommends that Congress double the funds available to nonprofits for security measures, from $180 million to $360 million.
One proposal that, if enacted, could be particularly far-reaching — and controversial — is a call for Congress to pass “fundamental reforms” to a provision that shields social media platforms from liability for the content users post on their sites. The plan says social media companies should have a “zero tolerance policy for hate speech on their platforms.”
In addition, the plan calls for action in partnership with a range of government agencies and private entities. It says the government will work with professional sports leagues to educate fans about antisemitism and hold athletes accountable for it, following instances of antisemitic speech by figures such as NBA star Kyrie Irving or NFL player DeSean Jackson.
The government will also partner with rural museums and libraries to educate their visitors about Jewish heritage and antisemitism. And the plan includes actions to be taken by a number of cabinet departments, from the Department of Veterans Affairs to the USDA.
“It’s really producing a whole-of-government approach that stretches from what you might consider the obvious things like more [security] grants and more resources for the Justice Department and the FBI,” said Nathan Diament, the Washington director of the Orthodox Union. “But it stretches all the way across things that the Department of Labor and the Small Business Administration can do with regard to educating about antisemitism, that the National Endowment of the Humanities and the President’s Council on Sports and Fitness can do with regard to the institutions that they deal with.”
An array of Jewish organizations from the left to the center-right echoed those sentiments in welcoming the plan with enthusiasm, marking a change from recent weeks in which they had been split over how the plan should define antisemitism. Still, a handful of right-wing groups blasted the strategy, saying that its chosen definition of antisemitism diluted the term.
Despite the relatively united front, there are elements of the strategy that may stoke broader controversy: Among a broad array of partner groups named in the plan is the Council on American-Islamic Relations, whose harsh criticism of Israel has led to relations with centrist Jewish organizations that are fraught at best. The call to place limits on social media platforms may also upset free speech advocates.
Biden recalled, as he often does, that he decided to run for president after President Donald Trump equivocated while condemning the neo-Nazis who organized a deadly march in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2017.
“Repeated episodes of hate — including numerous attacks on Jewish Americans — have since followed Charlottesville, shaking our moral conscience as Americans and challenging the values for which we stand as a Nation,” Biden wrote in an introduction to the report.
The administration launched the initiative last December, after years during which Jewish groups and the FBI reported sharp spikes in antisemitic incidents. The strategy was originally planned for release at its Jewish American Heritage Month celebration last week, but was delayed, in part because of last minute internal squabbling over whether it would accept a definition of antisemitism that some on the left said chilled free speech on Israel. Some right-wing groups were deeply critical of the new strategy for not accepting that definition to the exclusion of others.
Rabbi Levi Shemtov, the executive vice president of American Friends of Lubavitch (Chabad) praised the breadth of the plan, and said the delay seemed to produce results.
“The White House has taken this very seriously. The phrase that something is still being worked on can often be a euphemism for a lack of concern,” he said. “In this case, it seems to have resulted in an even more comprehensive and hopefully more effective result.”
Some of the initiatives in the plan focus less on directly confronting antisemitism and more on promoting tolerance of and education about Jews.The Biden Administration will seek to ensure accommodations for Jewish religious observance, the accompanying fact sheet said, and “the Department of Agriculture will work to ensure equal access to all USDA feeding programs for USDA customers with religious dietary needs, including kosher and halal dietary needs.”
Jonathan Greenblatt, the Anti-Defamation League CEO who was closely consulted on the strategy, said promoting inclusion was as critical as fighting antisemitism. “Is FEMA giving kosher provisions after disasters going to solve antisemitism?” he said in an interview. “No, but… it’s an acknowledgement of the plurality of communities and the need to treat Jewish people like you would any other minority community, and I think I’m very pleased to see that.”
In the months since Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff, who is Jewish, convened a roundtable to launch the initiative, the Biden administration has pivoted from focusing on the threat of antisemitism from the far-right to also highlighting its manifestation in other spheres — including amid anti-Israel activism on campuses and the targeting of visibly religious Jews in the northeast. Those factors were evident in the strategy.
“Some traditionally observant Jews, especially traditional Orthodox Jews, are victimized while walking down the street,” the strategy said in its introduction. “Jewish students and educators are targeted for derision and exclusion on college campuses, often because of their real or perceived views about the State of Israel.”
The proposal that may provoke controversy beyond American Jewry is the Biden Administration’s calls to reform the tech sector, which echo bipartisan recommendations to change Section 230, a provision of U.S. law that grants platforms immunity from being liable for the content users post. Free speech advocates and the companies themselves say that if the government were to police online speech, it would veer into censorship.
“Tech companies have a critical role to play and for that reason the strategy contains 10 separate calls to tech companies to establish a zero tolerance policy for hate speech on their platforms, to ensure that their algorithms do not pass along hate speech and extreme content to users and to listen more closely to Jewish groups to better understand how antisemitism manifests itself on their platforms,” Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall, Biden’s top Homeland Security adviser, said during a 30-minute briefing on the strategy on Thursday. “The president has also called on Congress to remove the special immunity for online platforms and to impose stronger transparency requirements in order to ensure that tech companies are removing content that violates their terms of service.”
Neo-Nazis and white supremacists encircle counterprotesters at the base of a statue of Thomas Jefferson after marching through the University of Virginia campus with torches in Charlottesville, Va., Aug. 11, 2017. (Shay Horse/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
In the weeks before the rollout, a debate raged online and behind the scenes amid Jewish organizations and activists about how the plan would define antisemitism. Centrist and right-wing groups pushed for the plan to embrace the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition. Among its examples of anti-Jewish bigotry are those focusing on when Israel criticism is antisemitic, including when “double standards” applied to Israel are antisemitic.
Advocates on the left say those clauses turn legitimate criticism of Israel into hate speech; instead, they pushed to include references to the Nexus Document, a definition authored by academics that recognizes IHRA but seeks to complement it by further elucidating how anti-Israel expression may be antisemitic in some instances, and not in others. Others sought to include the Jerusalem Declaration on Antisemitism, which rejects IHRA’s Israel-related examples.
In the end, the strategy said the U.S. government recognizes the IHRA definition as the “most prominent” and “appreciates the Nexus Document and notes other such efforts.”
A number of the centrist groups pressed for exclusive reference to IHRA, including the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations and the Simon Wiesenthal Center. Those groups praised the strategy and focused only on its embrace of IHRA. So did the Israeli ambassador to Washington, Michael Herzog.
“I would like to congratulate the Biden administration for publishing the first ever national strategy to combat antisemitism,” Herzog wrote on Twitter. “Thank you, @POTUS, for prioritizing the need to confront antisemitism in all its forms. We welcome the re-embracing of @TheIHRA definition which is the gold standard definition of antisemitism.”
Some center-right groups like B’nai Brith International, StandWithUs and the World Jewish Congress, praised the strategy while expressing regret at the inclusion of Nexus. Right-wing groups, such as the Republican Jewish Coalition and Christians United for Israel condemned the rollout.
RJC said Biden “blew it” by not exclusively using the IHRA definition. The Brandeis Center, which defends pro-Israel groups and students on campus, said the “substance doesn’t measure up.”
Groups on the left, however, broadly praised the strategy. “We call on our Jewish communities to seize this historic moment and build on this new strategy to ensure that the fight for Jewish safety is a fight for a better and safer America for all,” said a statement from six left-leaning groups spearheaded by Jews For Racial & Economic Justice.
Greenblatt said it was predictable that groups on the left would take the win and that groups on the right would grumble — but that it was also beside the point. IHRA, he said, was now U.S. policy.
“This document elevates and advances IHRA as the way that U.S. policy will be formulated going forward and across all of the agencies,” Greenblatt said. “That is a win.”
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Sovereignty Is the Soul of Democracy
A general view shows the plenum at the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, in Jerusalem. Photo: REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun
Democracy is often invoked as a slogan, yet rarely defined with precision. It is more than elections and campaign rallies. A true democracy rests on institutions that limit power, protect minorities, and uphold the rule of law even when it is politically inconvenient. A democracy requires an independent judiciary, a free press, and leaders who understand that their authority is temporary and constrained by law. Above all, democracy requires sovereignty: a nation must be free to govern itself.
By all of these standards, Israel stands as one of the most dynamic democracies in the world.
Israel’s parliamentary system is frequently misunderstood, particularly by observers accustomed to the American two party structure. Unlike the United States, Israel’s multi-party parliamentary democracy allows a wide range of political voices to enter the Knesset.
Coalition governments are formed through negotiation and compromise. This system may appear fragmented to outsiders, but in truth, it reflects a deeper level of representation. Communities that would be marginalized in a two-party structure can influence national policy. Power is dispersed rather than concentrated.
That dispersion of power is a democratic strength.
It also explains why Israel’s institutions continue to work, even amid intense political debate. The country has seen repeated elections, coalition collapses, and fierce public protests. Yet the army remains under civilian control. The courts continue their work. The press operates freely. These are not signs of instability. They are signs of democratic strength.
The legal proceedings involving Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu offer a powerful illustration. Whatever one’s political view of Netanyahu, the fact that a sitting prime minister can face prosecution demonstrates the independence of Israel’s judiciary. In much of the Middle East, leaders are untouchable. In Israel, no one is above the law. The trial proceeds through established legal channels, with the defense and prosecution presenting their arguments before judges bound by statute.
President Trump recently urged Israeli President Isaac Herzog to pardon Netanyahu. President Herzog responded appropriately. He emphasized that he is the president of Israel and that any pardon request would be considered only after legal proceedings conclude, in accordance with the law. That response was not defiance. It was democratic clarity.
Sovereignty is not a rhetorical flourish. It is the bedrock of self government. Critics frequently scrutinize Israel’s democracy, often holding it to standards not applied elsewhere in the region. Yet Israel remains the only state in the Middle East where self government actually happens — where civil society is vibrant, protest is protected, and the media is relentless.
Democracy is not the absence of controversy. It is the presence of functioning institutions capable of withstanding controversy.
Israel’s strength lies not only in its military or technological achievements but in its commitment to law and accountable governance.
Sovereignty is not negotiable. It is the soul of democracy itself.
Sabine Sterk is the CEO of Time To Stand Up For Israel.
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Tucker Carlson Did Not Even Leave the Airport During Quick Israel Visit to Interview Mike Huckabee
Tucker Carlson speaks at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana, Oct. 21, 2025. Photo: Gage Skidmore/ZUMA Press Wire via Reuters Connect
Controversial podcaster Tucker Carlson spent only a few hours in Israel on Wednesday to interview US Ambassador Mike Huckabee and chose not to leave the Ben Gurion Airport complex before flying out of the Jewish state, of which he has been strident critic.
Carlson landed at the airport on a private flight, did not leave the premises while interviewing Huckabee, and then immediately returned to Europe, Israel’s Channel 14 reported.
Sources also confirmed to the Jerusalem Post that the visit went as planned: short and confined to Ben Gurion Airport with Carlson arriving and leaving on private flights.
Channel 14 correspondent Libby Alon noted on the social media platform X that Carlson opted not to spend time any time in the country “despite all the invitations from the Christian community in Israel.”
Carlson, who describes himself as an ardent Christian, has falsely accused Israel, whose Christian population is growing and well educated, of persecuting Christians. Critics have noted that the far-right media personality has seemingly devoted more time on his podcast to targeting Israel over its treatment of Christians than to other parts of the world, such as Nigeria, where Christians are being murdered and otherwise persecuted in large numbers.
On Wednesday, Carlson posted a “Greetings from Israel” message on X which included a photo of himself with his left arm over the shoulder of an unnamed man, both standing in front of fluttering Israeli flags.
Greetings from Israel. pic.twitter.com/1uBWvqBNST
— Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) February 18, 2026
Online disagreements between Carlson and Huckabee over allegations of Israel mistreating Christians had prompted the quick trip.
On Feb. 4, Carlson published a nearly 90-minute podcast on X, titled “Christian Persecution,” which he promoted by asking, “How does the US-funded Israeli government treat Christians in the Holy Land? We asked some. Listen carefully to their accounts. This will shock you.” He interviewed Anglican Archbishop of Jerusalem Hosam Naoum and Saad Mouasher, a Christian businessman in Jordan who serves as the chairman of Jordan Ahli Bank.
Carlson then highlighted such segments in his discussions as “The Christian Hospital in Gaza That Was Bombed Eight Times by Israel,” “How Many People Have Been Killed in Gaza?” “How Are Christians Treated in Israel?” “How Much Has Jewish Extremism Increased in Jerusalem?” “Why Israel Makes It Difficult for Christians to Visit Holy Sites,” and “Why Christians Are Safer in Jordan Than Israel.”
Huckabee shared Carlson’s X posting that day and responded on top of it: “Hey @TuckerCarlson instead of talking ABOUT me, why don’t you come talk TO me? You seem to be generating a lot of heat about the Middle East. Why be afraid of the light?”
Answering back, Carlson shared Huckabee’s post and wrote, “Thanks for this. I’d love to. We’ll reach out to your office today to set up an interview. Much appreciated.”
Carlson’s apparent eagerness to escape Israel contrasts with his enthusiasm for countries which he celebrates rather than criticizes. On Feb. 8, 2024, for example, Carlson published a more than two-hour episode featuring an interview with Russia’s President Vladimir Putin, the authoritarian leader whose invasion to conquer Ukraine has now resulted in nearly 600,000 Ukrainian casualties and 1.2 million Russian soldiers’ deaths. According to reports, Carlson conducted the interview on Feb. 6 after arriving on Feb. 3.
Qatar received an enthusiastic endorsement last year from Carlson. On Dec. 7, Carlson interviewed Qatar Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani at the Doha Forum, where he revealed his plans to purchase a home in the desert monarchy known for its longstanding support of the Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas.
“I have been criticized as being a tool of Qatar, and I just want to say, which you already know, I have never taken anything from your country and don’t plan to. I am, however, tomorrow buying a place in Qatar,” he said.
On Feb. 11, Carlson published an interview with Ron Paul, the former Texas congressman, paleo-libertarian advocate, presidential candidate, and longtime opponent of Israel who previously said that “Palestinians are virtually in a concentration camp.”
A study released in December by the Jewish People Policy Institute (JPPI) analyzed podcast transcripts from Carlson and fellow far-right podcast host Candace Owens, finding that both had increased their content targeting Israel in 2025.
The researchers identified April as the turning point for Carlson’s refocusing on Israel, and that “the share of negative content about Israel rose sharply from 48.9% in the previous six-month period to 70.3% over the last six months.”
Some of Carlson’s decisions last year which drew the most attention included his promotion of Nick Fuentes, the white supremacist podcaster who has praised Adolf Hitler, celebrated Hamas, and advocated rape. This provoked a revolt at the Heritage Foundation with multiple resignations after its president, Kevin Roberts, defended Carlson.
Carlson also got in on the game started by Owens of blaming Israel for the assassination of Charlie Kirk, while throwing in some traditional collective blame against Jews for the crucifixion of Jesus.
In a Jan. 30 interview with podcast host Piers Morgan, Jeremy Boreing, the co-founder and former co-CEO of The Daily Wire, explained the distinction he saw between Owens — who he had previously hired — and Carlson.
“I’d be careful not to conflate Candace Owens — who is sort of the queen of the Grift Industrial Complex — with Tucker Carlson, who — like him or leave him — is engaged in an actual political project,” Boreing said. “As far as I can tell, Tucker is trying to create a new American majority out of a sort of amalgamation of left-wing economic populism on the one hand and right-wing social populism on the other.”
Describing the scope of the two podcasters’ apparent ambitions, Boreing called Carlson “actively engaged behind the scenes at the White House and staffing decisions,” stating that “he wields his influence to try to effectuate a political end.”
In a Jan. 28 interview on the “Triggernometry” podcast, Boreing expanded on the point, saying that Carlson “is part of a small cohort of people” including the likes of Fuentes, former US Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, and Steve Bannon, who formerly advised US President Donald Trump, in pursuing a “political project” to reshape the American political right.
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Madrid Museum Launches Investigation After Jewish Women Harassed, Kicked Out
Illustrative: Anti-Israel activists held a rally ahead of the game between Maccabi Tel Aviv and Real Madrid for the Turkish Airlines Euroleague, in front of the Palacio de los Deportes (Movistar Arena) in Madrid, Jan. 8, 2026. Photo: David Canales / SOPA Images via Reuters Connect
A national art museum in Madrid has launched an investigation after three elderly Jewish women — including a Holocaust survivor — who were verbally harassed over their openly displayed Jewish symbols were subsequently forced to leave, fueling criticism that the institution sided with the perpetrators rather than protecting the victims.
On Tuesday, a spokesperson for the Museum Reina Sofía told multiple news outlets that the institution would “immediately launch an independent and transparent internal investigation to clarify what happened,” formally confirming the opening of a probe as scrutiny over the incident intensified.
“The museum wishes to unequivocally express its commitment to equality, religious freedom, and zero tolerance for any type of violence or discrimination related to antisemitism,” the statement read. “The museum’s staff is highly qualified in fundamental rights, conflict management, and the prevention of any type of discrimination.”
“Once again, we would like to highlight the importance that Jewish artists, patrons, and benefactors have had for the institution and its collection, especially in the avant-garde, without whose selfless collaboration the museum as we know it today would be inconceivable,” it continued. “For all these reasons, we will not rest until the unfortunate events that have taken place are clarified.”
Footage of the incident was circulated on social media.
Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition in 2026, but watch Spain’s shame, as three elderly tourists, including a Holocaust survivor, are harassed & kicked out of Madrid’s state run Reina Sofia museum over Jewish symbols. Staff said visitors were ‘disturbed’ by their presence and… pic.twitter.com/XdAlSlfKzd
— Saul Sadka (@Saul_Sadka) February 16, 2026
First reported by the Spanish news outlet Okdiario, the three women were visiting the museum in central Madrid last Saturday when other visitors spotted them wearing a Star of David necklace and carrying a small Israeli flag.
At that point, a group of people started attacking them verbally, shouting antisemitic insults, and calling them “crazy child killers.”
Rather than intervening against the instigators, museum officials expelled the Israeli women, telling them to leave because “some visitors were disturbed that they are Jewish.”
A security guard also told the group to hide their Jewish symbols, insisting they could not be displayed inside the museum.
Even though one of them pointed out that Spanish law allows people to wear religious symbols and carry national flags in public institutions, they were still forcibly removed from the building despite not breaking any rules.
The Action and Communication on the Middle East (ACOM) group, a leading pro-Israel organization in Spain, announced Monday it will pursue legal action against the Museum Reina Sofía “for discrimination and possible promotion of hatred from a public institution.”
“The legal action will be directed both at the institution and its top official, the museum director, Manuel Segade,” ACOM wrote in a post on X, adding that the museum’s actions reflect “a persistent pattern of using political agendas, engaging in discrimination, and promoting narratives of hate against the State of Israel and the Jewish-Israeli community from a publicly funded institution.”
“A public institution should never be used as a platform for sectarian activism,” the statement continued.
As a state-affiliated cultural institution under Spain’s Culture Ministry, the Reina Sofía is internationally recognized as one of the country’s leading contemporary art museums.
In the past, the museum has also faced criticism for hosting anti-Israel demonstrations and presenting an exhibition titled “From the River to the Sea,” a popular slogan among pro-Palestinian activists that has been widely interpreted as a genocidal call for the destruction of the Jewish state, which is located between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea.
Like most countries across Europe and the broader Western world, Spain has seen a rise in antisemitic incidents over the last two years, in the wake of the Hamas-led invasion of and massacre across southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
Still, Spain stands out as one of the most extreme cases, with experts warning that antisemitic violence and anti-Zionist rhetoric have moved beyond a social phenomenon to, in many instances, being state-promoted and legitimized as a political tool.
In particular, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and several members of his left-wing party have come under mounting criticism from some of the country’s political and Jewish leaders, who accuse them of fueling antisemitic hostility.