‘Stop Talking About Proportion’: John Fetterman Defends Israel Against Accusations of Genocide In Fiery Speech
(Francis Chung/POLITICO via AP Images)
Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) joined several of his colleagues on Wednesday in addressing a luncheon held by the Orthodox Union’s leadership and defended Israel against accusations of genocide ahead of a hearing at the International Court of Justice.
“Who are we? Who are they really fighting? It’s a group of cowards. They hide in tunnels. They hide behind civilians. They attack, kill, and usually children murder. And they do that. Stop talking about proportion on that. They shot their best shot on October 7th, and they would have taken more lives if they could’ve done that,” Fetterman said in a fiery speech before the group.
“But they couldn’t do it. And now let’s also talk about that. Now we’re talking about genocide. And now South Africa is now bringing that kind of a trial. Maybe South Africa, maybe ought to sit this one out where they’re talking about criticizing, given the history there. Sit it out,” Fetterman added to applause.
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) also took aim at South Africa’s genocide accusation, saying, “To say this is a genocide is absurd. It’s not what genocide means and it’s an outrageous thing [to be] attributed to the Israeli people.”
Gillibrand also defended Israel’s tactic during its war against Hamas in Gaza. “I heard of many instances where targets were denied because there were too many civilians around the one target,” she told the luncheon.
“They’re using extremely sophisticated and robust reviews of every single target, thousands of targets chosen every day and reviewed one by one to protect innocent life,” said the New York Democrat.
Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD), the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, also addressed the group and sounded the alarm on the rise of anti-Semitism in the U.S. following Hamas’s attack on October 7th. “I always thought we’d be safe here in America,” Cardin began adding, “That changed in America, has changed around the world. But we always had Israel, Oct. 7th changed that perception, that Jews are safe in Israel. So this is a dangerous time,” concluded the Maryland Democrat.
Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME), Josh Hawley (R-MO), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), and Marco Rubio (R-FL) were also among those who spoke at the event.
Fetterman, who in recent weeks has made headlines for rebuking the progressive base of his party, also took a swipe at pro-Palestinian protestors in the U.S. “Protests all around the nation, they’re blocking tunnels. They’re blocking roads. Why? Why aren’t they protesting? When will we get the hostages back home? Why aren’t they protesting Hamas?” Fetterman asked.
“Why aren’t they protesting systemic rape and torture of Israeli women and children? I will never get it,” he added, calling for every hostage to be brought released.
“Hamas is anathema to peace. We’ll never have a stable two-state solution. We will never have any peace for Israel until they are fully eliminated,” he continued, adding:
The right for Israel to eliminate them that right doesn’t come from me or anyone other than from Israel. And not only do they have a right to do that, I encourage them to do that. I hope they do that, every last one of them,” Fetterman concluded.
Watch the clip above.
