President Donald Trump’s meeting with Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin was supposed to be about diplomacy, trade, and the usual St. Patrick’s Day pleasantries. Instead, it turned into a headline-generating masterclass in straight talk, covering everything from Hamas hostages to JD Vance’s shamrock socks. Because, of course, it did.
Let’s start with Trump’s comments on the hostages still being held by Hamas. Now, for context, Martin is staunchly pro-Palestinian, as is most of Ireland, and he has repeatedly pushed for a Hamas-run Gaza to be recognized as a legitimate state—despite the atrocities of October 7th. So, when Trump started discussing a recent meeting with freed hostages, you have to wonder if this was a little strategic jab at Martin’s position.
Trump recounted that he had personally asked these hostages whether Hamas had ever shown them any kindness during their captivity. Did they ever offer reassurance? An extra slice of bread? A sign of humanity? The answer was a resounding no. According to Trump, every single one of them described their treatment as nothing but “pure hatred.” It was a stark reminder of what Israel is dealing with—and a direct counterpoint to Martin’s (and much of the international left’s) attempts to whitewash the reality of Hamas.
🚨 Trump:” I just saw 10 hostages and they were treated really badly. I was shocked. I asked them, ‘Was there any kindness shown? … Did they ever say, ‘Don’t worry, you’ll be ok … or give you an extra slice of bread or something?’ And all of these people said, ‘Zero. It was… pic.twitter.com/KSHzYjcVEo
— Raylan Givens (@JewishWarrior13) March 12, 2025
And let’s be honest: Trump doesn’t do passive-aggressive. If he’s sitting next to you and he has a point to make, he’s going to make it. That’s exactly what he did here, calling out the brutality of Hamas while Martin, a man who openly supports Palestinian statehood under Hamas control, sat right beside him. If Martin felt uncomfortable, well, good.
Later, Trump addressed concerns about Gaza’s population, stating clearly that “no one” will be deported. His administration’s approach is simple: if Palestinians want to leave, they should be allowed to—something Hamas actively prevents. That’s a rational position, but of course, rationality isn’t exactly in high demand among the pro-Palestinian activists who pretend Hamas is some kind of noble resistance movement instead of a terrorist organization.
But the real fireworks started when Trump turned his attention to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. While discussing the Democrats’ handling of the Israel-Hamas war, Trump went all in, declaring, “I blame the Democrats, and Chuck Schumer is a Palestinian, as far as I’m concerned. He used to be Jewish. He’s not Jewish anymore. He’s a Palestinian.”
President Trump: “Chuck Schumer is a Palestinian as far as I’m concerned. He used to be Jewish. He’s not Jewish anymore. He’s a Palestinian.” pic.twitter.com/XWpRuhIBnc
— TheBlaze (@theblaze) March 12, 2025
Cue the media meltdown. As we speak, MSNBC producers are probably pulling all-nighters crafting their outraged monologues. Rachel Maddow might be on the verge of spontaneous combustion, and you just know Chris Hayes is going to make this personal.
The big question, of course, is whether Trump’s comments were “antisemitic,” as the left will undoubtedly claim. Spoiler alert: no. He wasn’t making a literal statement about Schumer’s ethnicity or religion—he was making a pointed statement about Schumer’s political cowardice. Since October 7th, Schumer has tried to walk an impossible tightrope, offering the bare minimum condemnation of Hamas while spending most of his energy attacking Israel’s response. Trump’s message was clear: Schumer may have Jewish heritage, but when it comes to Israel, he’s politically aligned with the Palestinians.
And frankly, it’s a fair criticism. Schumer has spent decades marketing himself as a staunch ally of Israel, but the second it became politically inconvenient, he started hedging. If calling him out on that makes the press clutch their pearls, then so be it. They were going to clutch them over something anyway.
