Hila's Reaction to Rudy Giuliani
Background
- During a live podcast episode in October 2024, AB mentioned that Rudy Giuliani gave a speech at a Trump rally where he claimed children in Palestine are "taught to kill us at 2 years old."[1]
- The crew was watching a clip of Giuliani's remarks.[2]
Claim
While watching the speech, Hila agreed with Giuliani's remarks by saying "I mean."
Truth
- The "I Mean" Was Dismissive, Not Agreeing: Hila's utterance of "I mean" was not an endorsement of Giuliani's false claim. Rather, it was a resigned or dismissive acknowledgment of Giuliani's character, essentially: "I mean, of course he'd say something like that." This interpretation is consistent with someone expressing exasperation at vile rhetoric, not agreement with it.[3]
- Consistent Opposition to Giuliani: Ethan and Hila have been very outspoken against Rudy Giuliani on many occasions, both before and after this moment.[4][5]
- Political Context: Just before this conversation, both Ethan and Hila were explaining how not voting for Kamala Harris hurts the pro-Palestine movement and that voting for Trump is supporting Israel—a position they were clearly outspoken about and still hold.[6]
Conclusion
Hila did not agree with or endorse Rudy Giuliani's false words regarding Palestinian children. The out-of-context "I mean" was a dismissive reaction to Giuliani's predictable bigotry, not an endorsement. The couple has been consistently outspoken against Giuliani, and their political stance at the time actively opposed the policies he was advocating for.