If avoiding stares was Schoen’s goal, he didn’t succeed. Schoen wore a kippah heading into the Capitol building, but chose not to wear one on the floor. Plus, the Senate bans head coverings, but carves out an explicit exception for religious requirements. In public courtrooms in particular, some observant Jews fear that wearing a kippah could bring extra scrutiny from antisemitic jury members, judges, or in this case, members of the public. While it’s true that most Orthodox men regularly wear a hat or a kippah (also called a yarmulke) at all times, some elect not to wear a head covering at work or in situations where being identified as a religious Jew could cause harm. “I didn’t want to offend anyone… It’s just an awkward thing and people stare at it.” “I just wasn’t sure if it was appropriate, frankly,” Schoen said after the hearing to a CNN reporter who asked him why did not wear a kippah. So why wasn’t he wearing a kippah or another head covering, as many observant Jewish men do? Based on this fact, it’s likely that Schoen covered his head with his hand while he recited a blessing before drinking from his water bottle.
Jewish law, known as halacha, stipulates that in order to say God’s name, you should have your head covered. Whenever observant Jews drink or eat, they typically recite a blessing that includes the name of God before and after doing so. We didn’t ask Schoen, but we can say: Almost certainly, yes. Was the fact that he covered his head while drinking also because he is an Orthodox Jew?
David Schoen, one of Trump’s impeachment lawyers, already asked (and then withdrew his request) for Trump’s trial to pause for the Jewish day of rest. The Senate convened Tuesday for a historic first: former President Donald Trump’s second impeachment. What he got instead: a firestorm of speculation about why he held his hand over his head every time he took a sip of water. But my empathy with him is transient.What Donald Trump’s lawyer likely wanted: for America to spend this evening talking about how the former president was not responsible for the deadly Jan. I am familiar with David Schoen’s navigation between Jewish observance and public life. The professor said he could not "identity with someone who thinks that his observance of the Sabbath and holding his hand on his head while blessing God's name makes up for defending a national leader who has cruelly separated asylum-seeking children from their parents and making it nearly impossible for any endangered stranger to find sanctuary in the United States, turning America from a 'realm of grace' into a place with no room for the persecuted stranger." Heilman points out that throughout his presidency, Trump oversaw a period of increasing attacks on Jews that ballooned dramatically. ".there is no Jewish pride in his defense of a former president whose association with antisemitism and white supremacists began before he was elected and, until his last days in the White House, promoted anti-Jewish tropes and accusations, including supporting outrageous calumnies, most recently by Marjorie Taylor Greene, QAnon, the Proud Boys and others," Heilman writes.
Writing in the Israeli news outlet Haaretz, Queens College professor Samuel Heilman, who is an Modern Orthodox Jew, took aim at Trump defense attorney David Schoen, who is of the same faith.Īccording to Heilman, who is considered one of the leading authorities on Judaism, rather than honoring Orthodox Jewish identity, Trump's lawyer Schoen "is debasing it." Trump Lawyer David Schoen Shames Orthodox Jews Like Me Our hearts, our hopes, our prayers, our tears,Īre all with thee, -are all with thee! by Anonymous Our hearts, our hopes, are all with thee. Now Schoen is using it to defend a Fascist and his largely white nationalist supporters.
David Schoen's use of Longfellow's poem is remarkable given that he's an Orthodox Jew and that Winston Churchill famously quoted the first five lines to bolster British nationalism against the Nazis.