What Almost Ended Trump’s Life

Dive into the harrowing tale of how inflammatory rhetoric set the stage for an assassination attempt on former President Trump. Explore the dangerous escalation from hateful words to violent actions over the past 2,000 years and see how deadly words can really be.

“Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” This well-known children’s rhyme, originating from a 19th-century poem, has a troubling contradiction in reality.

In the Jewish faith, we read from right to left. The message is clear: Words hurt.

Actions expend emotions, providing a release. Words act like gasoline on a flame, intensifying feelings until they reach a dangerous point of total explosion.

I vividly recall my first visit to Israel in 1994. My friend and I spent six weeks volunteering for the IDF, learning Torah in Jerusalem, hiking the Galilee, and eating nothing but shawarma.

This period followed the Oslo Agreements, which saw Hamas unleash a wave of terror through suicide bombings. The agreement barely passed in the Knesset by a single, politically motivated vote.

The ensuing chaos and perceived political corruption incited widespread anger. With every Hamas attack, verbal assaults against Prime Minister Yitzchak Rabin grew fiercer.

“Sticks and stones,” they say. Yet, I remember photographing a poster of Rabin with a bullseye on his face, initially finding it amusing.

This rhetoric escalated over the next 18 months, transforming from mere words to deadly threats. The relentless chant of “Rabin must go” reached its crescendo by an assassin’s gunfire on November 5th.

The assassin, Yigal Amir, was driven by the collective fury expressed through words. He pulled the trigger, but it was our words that put the gun in his hand.

The Price of Hurtful Words

The Chofetz Chaim warns us that all the tragedies that befall Israel stem from loshon hara: slander, insults, and verbal embarrassment inflicted upon one another through direct speech or gossip.

For nearly 2,000 years, we have endured exile. We don’t have prophets, a Temple, or a kingdom. We find ourselves begging foreign nations for permission to protect our children from terrorists instead of deploying our warriors to eliminate the threat.

All of this is rooted in baseless hatred. But where does such hatred originate?

It comes from people hurling words at each other that cut deeper than sticks or stones. It comes from the shame and humiliation of being on the receiving end of gossip that can destroy one’s reputation. The anger builds up, and eventually, someone reaches a breaking point.

• This happened on the 9th of Av two thousand years ago.

• It happened on November 5, 1995, and again on October 7, 2023.

• It happened on July 13, 2024.

From Rabin to Trump: The Warnings from History

For most of 2023, relentless verbal assaults on our leadership signaled vulnerability to Hamas. Their chief terrorists openly admitted that part of their motivation to attack when they did was the internal discord they observed, seeing it as a diabolical opportunity.

Eighteen months before the assassination of Prime Minister Rabin, I saw a picture of his face with a bullseye over it. Days before an extremist targeted President Trump, his political opponents encouraged their followers to “put Trump in the bulls-eye.”

God warns us that words can be deadly. The Torah regards words that cause embarrassment as a form of murder.

To prevent future tragedies, we must lower the volume of our rhetoric, but how do we achieve this?

King David’s Sales Pitch: Achieving Happiness Through Speech

For thousands of years, the laws of holy speaking were scattered across the vast expanse of the Talmud and countless Jewish legal texts.

Living through the latter half of the 19th century and the opening of the 20th and witnessing the transformative power of communication from the inventions of the telephone, radio, and television, Rabbi Yisrael Meir Kagan recognized the amplified impact of every word.

He meticulously compiled the laws, ethics, examples, and stories about righteous speech into a single, profound book. He named it the Sefer Chofetz Chaim, or the Book of the Good Life.

This title finds its roots in King David’s wisdom, offering a clear path to living a fulfilling life.

If ever there was a direct route to receiving Hashem’s abundant blessings, this is it. The name, Chofetz Chaim, draws from Psalm 34:13-14: “Who is the man who desires life, who loves days to see goodness? Guard your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceitfully.“

King David, like a masterful guide, makes the rewards of positive speech accessible with his simple advice. To experience days filled with life, happiness, and blessings, strive to elevate the unique ability God gives us that sets us apart from all other creatures on earth.

You can hear a lesson every day from this book at Rabbi Nachum Meth’s Shmiras HaLoshon Podcast or see a video lesson at Shmiras HaLoshon Daily.

Blessings Through Words: The Power of Positive Speech

This is how you can change the world!

Refine your speech, eliminate criticism of those you disagree with, and rise above the temptation to retaliate to criticism by mocking or belittling. Doing so adds a radiant light to God’s world, profoundly impacting your life, the lives of your friends and family, and the entire Jewish People.

Imagine the likelihood of violence at Mr. Trump’s speech if the insults hurled at him were no more intense than those directed at John McCain in 2008 or Mitt Romney in 2012.

You have the power to be a pioneer in creating a world where civility reigns by adhering to the principles of righteous speech.

You also have the opportunity to enjoy countless rewards:

1. God gives His blessings.

2. You represent the Jewish People in rectifying the grave sin of baseless hatred.

3. You earn respect and trust among everyone you know, as others see you as someone who they can rely on.

4. Gain self-confidence and respect by rising above the need to retaliate. Infuriate your enemies in the process.

5. Reinforce your faith in life by witnessing firsthand how evil self-destructs and goodness does prevail.

Embrace the power of your words and discover a new world of hope, happiness, and blessing.

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David Ben Horin lives in Afula with his family, millions of sunflowers, and Matilda, our local camel. David‘s Israeli startup, 300 Marketing Solutions, is a lean marketing agency for startups and small businesses that creates and promotes SEO-optimized ROI-driven to the right audience on LinkedIn to make your business the star of the show.