Q: Why did you hold a hearing in March about the rise of antisemitism?
A: The atrocities of October 7, 2023, underscored how imperative it is to learn from history. The horrific lessons of the Holocaust must never be forgotten. And yet, Hamas terrorists waged the deadliest attack on Jews since World War 2. They butchered children and raped women, murdering more than 1,200 people. The terrorists took 250
hostages, including Americans. The gruesome details were instantly shared around the world through social media.
You’d expect these evil crimes to foster a groundswell of support and solidarity for the Jewish people. Instead, an alarming cascade of events took root on college campuses across America. Support for Hamas, genocidal slogans and acts of antisemitism targeting Jewish students, shopkeepers, professors and rabbis served as a wake-up call to the world. Vandalized property, raging hatred and a radical agenda to target Jewish people here in America demanded attention to shed light on what was happening in plain sight.
Before the eyes and under the noses of leaders in education and government, antisemitism was gaining foothold here in America. Yet the Democrats refused to hold a hearing on antisemitism last Congress.
As chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, I invited witnesses to testify about the rising tide of antisemitism in America, exactly 80 years after U.S. and allied forces liberated survivors from Nazi concentration
camps in Europe. The horrors of the Holocaust are memorialized in museums and history pages. It is incumbent upon each successive generation not to ignore the hatred or diminish the truths discovered by American troops in 1945: the “walking skeletons,” emaciated corpses and unthinkable atrocities against humanity, including medical experiments, torture and hard labor.
History teaches us we can’t be neutral in the face of hatred. As Holocaust survivor Eli Wiesel said during his acceptance speech for the Nobel Peace Prize, “We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.”
Q: What’s new with your investigation to trace financial ties between Swiss banks and Nazi war criminals?
A: In 2023, I received whistleblower allegations of wrongdoing by Credit Suisse during its internal review into potential Nazi-linked accounts that had not previously been disclosed during past investigations. In response, I launched an investigation to examine these allegations, including Credit Suisse’s servicing of Nazi-linked clients.
With my leadership, the Senate Budget Committee issued its first subpoena since 1991 to learn more about the bank’s wrongdoing in its internal investigation. My review confirmed previously undisclosed ties with Nazi-connected Credit Suisse account holders. This work is ongoing. My focus remains to keep a bright light shining on one of the darkest chapters in modern human history in the pursuit of truth and justice.
This global forensic exam spans three continents and involves countless records, including digital and paper documents originating from the 1930s and 1940s. In February, I wrote a letter to the president of Argentina, Javier Milei, requesting his assistance to provide archival records documenting the use of Nazi “ratlines” during and after World War II. These secret networks provided the monetary and logistical pathways members of the Nazi regime used to escape justice and flee to South America. President Milei’s historic decision to release these records, and make them widely accessible, in response to my request is a victory for transparency and will help advance oversight of this important issue.
Transparency brings accountability. October 7 ushered in a new era of urgency to stop antisemitism in its tracks.
Combing through these historical archives will help piece together the enablers who facilitated the escape of Nazi war criminals, honor the memories of Holocaust victims and deliver justice to the survivors. As time marches on, tenacity matters. We must never forget six million souls were stolen in the Holocaust. I’m working as hard as ever to keep history alive so current and future generations don’t sit on the sidelines when genocide and antisemitism rear their evil heads. Holocaust survivor Simon Wiesenthal said it best, “Hope lives when people remember.”
May is National Jewish American Heritage Month.