Mike Johnson visited Columbia University, where he spoke to students about antisemitism on campus and even promised to "demand Joe Biden take action" to attack the problem. The speaker of the House of Representatives, along with Josh Hawley and Tom Cotton, agrees that sending in the National Guard to protect Jewish students is necessary.
The Republican became the fifth member of Congress to visit Colombia University. Jewish congressmen Dan Goldman, Kathy Manning, Jared Moskowitz and Josh Gottheimer visited campus earlier this week.
Johnson stopped by Columbia on Wednesday, where he first met with authorities, including President Minouche Shafik, and then spoke with students themselves about the antisemitic events on campus.
#WATCH |Speaker Johnson at Columbia University:
🗣️ "My intention is to call President Biden after we leave here, and share with him what we have seen with our own two eyes, and demand that he take action." pic.twitter.com/l70QEWtyMj
— VOZ (@Voz_US) April 24, 2024
"This is not free expression"
The visit concluded with a press conference. Johnson summed up what has been happening in Columbia.
"This is dangerous. This is not free expression, this is not First Amendment. They are threatening, intimidating, saying that they will take violence upon Jewish students. We met with Jewish students who are in fear. They can’t come on campus, they can’t study for their final exams. This affects everybody’s lives, and it affects the image that we portray to the world. This is not who we are as Americans," he said.
He mentioned the possibility of Shafik's eventual resignation. "We met briefly with the president and her top officials right before we came out on the steps here. We encouraged her to take immediate action and stamp this out. And our feeling is that they have not acted to restore order on the campus," he added.
The House speaker also joined Senators Hawley and Cotton's request to call in the National Guard. "If this is not contained quickly, and if these threats and intimidation are not stopped, there is an appropriate time for the National Guard. We have to bring order to these campuses. We cannot allow this to happen around the country. We are better than this," the Republican said.
Finally, Johnson assured that he would call President Biden to tell him what he heard at Columbia. He claimed he would pressure him to find a solution. "My intention is to call President Biden when we leave here, and share with him what we have seen with our own two eyes, and demand that he take action," he concluded.
