Trump Will Visit Pittsburgh Despite Anger Over Synagogue Bloodbath

By Reuters October 29, 2018

President Donald Trump will travel to Pennsylvania on Tuesday, the White House said on Monday, after a mass shooting this weekend killed 11 people at a synagogue in Pittsburgh.

A group of Jewish leaders told Trump in an open letter that he was “not welcome in Pittsburgh until you fully denounce white nationalism.”

The synagogue massacre has heightened debate over the rhetoric Trump uses with critics saying it has encouraged right-wing extremism, a view which the administration rejects.

White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said he would be accompanied by his wife, Melania, “to grieve with the Pittsburgh community.” The Trumps will travel to Pennsylvania on Tuesday to “express the support of the American people and grieve with the Pittsburgh community,” Sanders said at a briefing.

A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

The coming year promises to be filled with more complex and historic developments. We are entering an era where independent, fact-based Jewish journalism will be more important than ever. We need to be ready for whatever 2025 will bring, and with your help, we can be.

We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.

If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.

— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO