President Johnson to Visit Columbia University Amid Protests

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) announced he will visit Columbia University on Wednesday to meet with Jewish students, as the university faces massive pro-Palestinian protests that have drawn the national spotlight.

Hundreds of students occupied the Columbia campus for days, protesting the Biden administration’s response to the Israel-Hamas war, supporting a ceasefire in the conflict and urging Congress to stop sending military aid to Israel. They also demanded that Colombia divest from companies with ties to Israel and increase financial transparency.

More than 100 protesters were arrested on Friday on the orders of university leaders, but the demonstrations have only expanded since then, now extending to other college campuses across the country.

Johnson is expected to discuss during his visit the “worrying rise in virulent anti-Semitism on college campuses across the United States,” his office said.

The visit comes after a group of four Jewish Democrats visited the campus on Monday to also meet with Jewish students. Rep. Josh Gottheimer (DN.J.) threatened that university President Minouche Shafik must act quickly to quell the protests or face consequences from Congress.

“We are all here today as Jewish members of Congress to make one thing clear: Jewish students are welcome here at Columbia. And while Colombia’s leadership may be failing you, we will not,” Gottheimer said during the visit.

“We will do everything in our power to keep you safe and we will do everything we can in Washington to make sure you feel welcome at this university or any university in the United States of America,” he continued. “And Columbia University, if it doesn’t move forward, will pay the price.”

New York Governor Kathy Hochul (D) also visited the campus on Monday and denounced the protests. A White House statement on Sunday also called the demonstrations “blatantly anti-Semitic.”

A considerable number of protesters are Jewish, with a large group holding a Passover Seder from the protest camp on Monday to celebrate the start of the holiday.

In a statement Sunday, protest leaders rejected allegations that participants encouraged violence against Jewish people or advocated anti-Semitism.

“We are frustrated by media distractions focused on inflammatory individuals who do not represent us,” the leaders wrote in a statement. statement sunday. “Our members were misidentified by a politically motivated mob.”

“We firmly reject any form of hatred or intolerance and remain vigilant against non-students who attempt to disrupt the solidarity being forged among students,” they continued. “Palestinian, Muslim, Arab, Jewish, black and pro-Palestinian colleagues and colleagues who represent the full diversity of our country.”

In response to criticism from the Columbia administration, Shafik said on Monday in a statement that she is “deeply saddened” by the protests on campus.

“The decibel of our disagreements has only increased in recent days,” she said. “These tensions were exploited and amplified by individuals who are not affiliated with Columbia and who came to campus to pursue their own goals. We need a reset.”

“There is a terrible conflict raging across the Middle East with devastating human consequences,” she continued. “But we cannot allow one group to dictate terms and try to disrupt important milestones, like graduation, to promote their point of view. Let’s sit down and talk and discuss and find ways to agree on solutions.”