Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani claimed Sunday that the city’s current mayor, Bill de Blasio, is responsible for the recent spate of anti-Semitic attacks.
Giuliani tweeted that “the rise in anti-Semitic violence in NYC is something that could have been stopped at a much earlier stage if the City had a Mayor who embraced the Broken Windows Theory,” or at least, “a Mayor who worked full time & paid attention to what was going on.”
and Rudy Giuliani, lawyer for U.S. President Donald Trump and former Mayor of New York City, arrives for a signing ceremony for the “Permanent Authorization of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund Act” in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, U.S., July 29, 2019. REUTERS/Carlos Barria
The Broken Windows Theory posits that crime begets crime if the effects of criminal behavior — like broken windows, de palpitated buildings and graffiti — are not repaired or cleaned up. Put differently, it’s the belief that minor crimes and general civil disorder can create further crimes, sometimes more serious.
The rise in anti-Semitic violence in NYC is something that could have been stopped at a much earlier stage if the City had a Mayor who embraced the Broken Windows Theory, or at the least, a Mayor who worked full time & paid attention to what was going on.
— Rudy Giuliani (@RudyGiuliani) December 29, 2019
Giuliani, who is President Donald Trump’s personal attorney, was responding to the latest in a series of anti-Semitic attacks in New York City. An assailant stabbed five people in a rabbi’s home on Saturday. Other ugly incidents have marred the city’s celebration of Hanukkah and Christmas.
De Blasio suggested “Washington” was to blame for the anti-Semitism.
“I also want us to be clear what’s happening here,” de Blasio said Sunday. “An atmosphere of hate has been developing in this country over the last few years. A lot of it is emanating from Washington, and it’s having an effect on all of us.” (RELATED: There Have Been Four Anti-Semitic Incidents In One Week In New York City)
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio speaks during a press conference held in front of Gracie Mansion on September 20, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Yana Paskova/Getty Images)
In a follow-up to his original tweet, Giuliani went further and said that de Blasio “has watched anti-semitism rapidly metastasize, like a cancer, & is too unconcerned or lazy to nip it in the bud.”
Possibly the worst Mayor in NYC, de Blasio, has watched anti-semitism rapidly metastasize, like a cancer, & is too unconcerned or lazy to “nip it in the bud.” Otherwise called Broken windows theory, which should be brought back.
A COWARD in that he has yet….
— Rudy Giuliani (@RudyGiuliani) December 30, 2019
Last May, de Blasio blamed Trump and “white supremacy” for a series of assaults against Hasidic Jews in Brooklyn perpetrated by black men. (RELATED: Bill De Blasio Claims Anti-Semitism Is Just ‘A Right-Wing Movement)
On Monday, de Blasio suggested Giuliani was “exploiting a tragedy” and “can take a seat today.”
What a surprise: Rudy Giuliani exploiting a tragedy to sow division between New Yorkers and promote himself. It’s what he’s best at.
The guy who spent this week spreading anti-Semitic conspiracy theories over cocktails can take a seat today. https://t.co/DVjZGcLzDH
— Mayor Bill de Blasio (@NYCMayor) December 30, 2019