Congressman Hank Johnson, a Democratic superdelegate supporting Hillary, was forced to apologize for comparing Jewish Israeli settlers to “termites” during a speech at his party’s convention in Philadelphia.
“There has been a steady [flow], almost like termites can get into a residence and eat before you know that you’ve been eaten up and you fall in on yourself,” Johnson said Monday when describing the “alarming” Jewish settlement activity in the disputed territories.
Johnson’s comments were first reported by the Washington Free Beacon. The event in Philadelphia was sponsored by the U.S. Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation, a supporter of the controversial Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement (BDS), which has been criticized for anti-Semitic rhetoric.
Johnson issued an apology on Twitter for his “poor choice of words.”
@ADL_National Poor choice of words – apologies for offense. Point is settlement activity continues slowly undermine 2-state solution.
— Rep. Hank Johnson (@RepHankJohnson) July 25, 2016
He also personally apologized to Rabbi David Wolpe, who ranked third on Newsweek‘s list of “Top 50 Rabbis for 2013.”
Rep. Hank Johnson reached out to me & offered a full apology for the language, the imagery and the hurt he caused. He was very gracious.
— David Wolpe (@RabbiWolpe) July 26, 2016
Johnson will cast his vote Tuesday to formally nominate Hillary Clinton as the Democratic Party’s nominee for president. It is not known why Hillary has not yet condemned Johnson’s remarks or moved to distance herself from her delegate.
