CNN conservative contributor Rick Santorum on Tuesday suggested that President Barack Obama was to blame for rising number of anti-Semitic crimes under President Donald Trump.
Although Ivanka Trump recently called for "religious tolerance" following attacks on Jewish centers and gravesites, President Trump has said little about the rise in anti-Semitism.
On Tuesday, Santorum deflected to the Obama administration when CNN host Chris Cuomo asked him why Trump had not called out the alleged hate crimes.
"Let's look at the president's record and compare it with what we've seen in the last eight years," Santorum opined. "Number one, the president has stood by Israel in ways that President Obama has not, and stood very solidly with the state of Israel."
"I've got to tell you, Chris, this is why you hear about fake news," the former GOP presidential candidate continued, raising his voice. "For eight years -- eight years! -- the Obama administration sat by and said nothing about the increasing anti-Semitism on college campuses!"
"It's an outrage you guys are pointing to this 30 days in, and for eight years you ignored that story!"
Former Clinton campaign surrogate Christine Quinn reminded Santorum that Trump had refused to mention Jewish people in his Holocaust remembrance statement.
"This is a case of bomb threats!" she insisted. "Violence and desecrating cemeteries! I don't understand the school of thought. If you think President Obama didn't do enough then do more. This isn't about being compared to your predecessor, it's about defining yourself. And does President Trump want to be defined as someone who fights hate crimes and supports Jewish people?"
Santorum defended Trump's refusal to speak out about violence in the United State by saying that he was "much more supportive of the state of Israel than Obama."
"Donald Trump's base is more pro-Israel, more pro-Jewish people than anybody," Santorum added. "If you talk to anybody in the pro-Israel movement, they will tell you the bedrock of that is the evangelical Christian community in this country. In fact, the folks who have been walking away are liberal Jews, who are walking away from Israel, not conservative Christians."
