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Rudy Giuliani calls Columbia protesters ‘terribly misguided people,’ says president Minouche Shafik is ‘hateful'
Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani blasted pro-Palestinian protesters after visiting Columbia University amid the demonstrations
Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani blasted pro-Palestinian protesters after visiting Columbia University amid the demonstrations. He also called for the resignation of university president Minouche Shafik because of how she handled the crisis.
“I think these are terribly misguided people,” Giuliani said on his 77 WABC show. Giuliani was seen wearing an American flag-printed shirt. He also wore a Yankees cap. Sitting in his car, he passed by protesters holding signs.
Reporters who approached Giuliani were shoved away by NYPD Community Affairs officers, prompting him to say they must be “a creature of [Mayor Eric] Adams.” He later went on to talk about the visit during his Tuesday night broadcast, where he asked listeners, “Who hates Jews more, Harvard or Columbia?”
‘She’s earned herself a major league firing’
“[Columbia has] to beat Harvard at something, so I guess they figured they gotta beat them at Jewish hatred,” Giuliani said, referring to the Gaza Solidarity Encampment that shut down the Morningside Heights campus.
Protesters at Columbia set up an encampment a week ago. They said they would not leave until the school agrees to divest from Israel or companies that are associated with its war effort.
Giuliani went on to call Shafik “a hateful person” and played an old clip of her discussing terrorism in the Middle East. “She’s earned herself a major league firing,” he said of the university president’s testimony on antisemitism on campus before Congress.
Several lawmakers, including House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), have called for Shafik’s resignation. A university spokesperson said on being asked about calls for Shafik to resign, according to The Hill, “President Shafik is focused on deescalating the rancor on Columbia’s campus. She is working across campus with members of the faculty, administration, and Board of Trustees, and with state, city and community leaders, and appreciates their support.”
