President Donald Trump used an antisemitic slur Monday in defending Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., after an article said he sued hundreds of patients over unpaid debts when he was a practicing physician.
Speaking at a campaign rally in Kansas, Trump said the reporting made Marshall, who is not Jewish, out to be “some kind of a shylock-type guy,” using a term widely recognized as offensive toward Jewish people.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Trump’s remarks.
Trump used the same slur last year in a speech to describe exploitative bankers as he was promoting his sweeping domestic policy bill. Some Jewish groups denounced his use of the term.
“Shylock” is a Jewish character in William Shakespeare’s play “The Merchant of Venice” sometimes called a usurer. The Anti-Defamation League, in a guide for educators teaching the play, says, “Shylock, and by extension, all Jews, are presented as money-hungry, conniving, and cruel.”
Trump at the time denied having knowledge of the antisemitic connotations of the term, saying he had “never heard it that way” and adding, “To me, shylock is somebody that’s a moneylender at high rates.”
Former President Joe Biden faced backlash in 2014 for using the word, which he later apologized for.
Marshall, an obstetrician-gynecologist, faced backlash after The New York Times reported last month that he sued more than 700 patients for unpaid bills, which resulted in scores of arrest warrants for missed court dates. His lawyer said Marshall had no involvement in the warrants or the arrests, and Marshall called the story a “hit job.”
“You got screwed with that stuff,” Trump said Monday about the reporting, addressing Marshall onstage. He did not mention the Times by name.
Marshall, who has represented Kansas in the Senate since 2021, faces Adam Hamilton in a closer-than-expected race. Hamilton is a megachurch pastor and former Republican who said he decided to run as a Democrat this year after having considered a bid as an independent. Hamilton has picked up a number of endorsements from influential Republicans and Democrats in the state.
The nonpartisan Cook Political Report characterizes the race as a “toss-up.” NBC News lists it as competitive but leaning toward the GOP.
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