A University of Michigan professor accused President Donald Trump Wednesday of being a “mad bomber” while participating in a protest.
The protest, titled “No War with Iran,” which had been co-sponsored by other clubs such as the Arab Student Association; Huron Valley Democratic Socialists of America, and the College Democrats at the university was reportedly attended by 200 people, including faculty and students.
Juan Cole, a professor of history at the University of Michigan who specializes in the study of the modern Middle East and Islamic studies, made the remarks against the president and members of his administration during a Facebook live stream of the protest.
“We have a mad bomber in the White House,” Cole said during the protest. “We have somebody who’s erratic. We have a secretary of defense who’s a lobbyist for the arms industry. We have a secretary of state who is a Kansas oil man.”
The professor went on, rallying against recent and existing economic sanctions against Iran, accusing Trump of trying to destroy lives in the country and putting Iran “in a corner.”
“Iran was on the verge of being welcomed into the world community,” Cole stated. “It was going to buy Boeing jets.”
However, the professor stated that the protest was not an approval of the regime, but rather a tradition to descent against the government.
Cole had been part of the announced speaker lineup for the event, including Ann Arbor City Commissioner Zaynab Elkolaly and Palestinian Youth Movement leader Jenin Yaseen.
Campus Reform reached out to Cole for more information regarding his participation in the protest but did not receive a response in time for publication.
Cole also appeared on the podcast Democracy Now! and called the decisions part of the “hollow shell” administration while repeatedly calling the president’s behavior “erratic” with “clear personality deficits.”
The day after the protest occurred, he also tweeted, “only the trauma of white guys matters,[sic] apparently” against Indiana Representative Jim Banks after he had commented on Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar’s “PTSD” comments about Trump’s airstrike against General Qasem Soleimani.
As for the protest, the organizers of the event have planned a “teach-in” in Washtenaw County, Michigan and have started a GoFundMe page to collect donations for equipment for the event.
