White House knocks Ron DeSantis over “so-called Islamophobia” remark at GOP debate

As President Joe Biden seeks to reassure Muslim American voters amid the Israel-Hamas war, the White House knocked Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for downplaying what he called "so-called Islamophobia" at the GOP presidential debate Wednesday night.

“In what is a heartbreaking crisis, violence and hateful rhetoric against Muslims and Arab Americans and Sikhs is spiking across our country," White House spokesperson Andrew Bates said Thursday in a statement to NBC News. "President Biden believes we have an urgent duty to come together as Americans and stand against every form of hate. It is not leadership to denigrate the very real pain that Islamophobia is causing; it is cynical and cruel. Nor is it leadership to spread the dangerous pretense that fighting against one kind of hate somehow subtracts from fighting another; that is only a sign of a desperate need for self-reflection."

In the debate, DeSantis and some of the other Republican candidates said the government should focus on combatting anti-semitism, not Islamophobia.

"What is Biden doing? Not only is he not helping the Jewish students who are being persecuted, he is launching an initiative to combat so-called Islamophobia. No, it’s the antisemitism that’s spiraling out of control. That is what we have to confront," DeSantis said.

Watch highlights from the third Republican presidential debate

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The White House on Thursday noted that Biden in May rolled out what was billed as the first-ever U.S. national strategy to fight antisemitism, months before he launched a similar effort to combat Islamophobia. Late last month, the White House announced an effort to counter antisemitism on college campuses.

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"President Biden is taking historic and forceful action against hate – against Islamophobia, against Antisemitism, and against anyone who tries to tear Americans apart," Bates said.

The White House and Biden campaign have been working to repair political damage to his support from Muslim and Arab voters caused by his stance on Israel's military campaign in Gaza, so they are eager to a draw a contrast with Republicans, who often dismiss Islamophobia.

Muslims Americans voted overwhelmingly for Biden in 2020. But community leaders in swing states have said they will defect from the president over his full-throated support of Israel.