Sec. of State Kerry Backpedals on Israel “Apartheid State” Comment and Tries to Blame Partisan Politics … However, There are Calls for Kerry to Resign

Hey John Kerry, why the long face? He has certainly put his foot in his mouth this time …

Secretary of State John Kerry is feeling the backlash from his ignorant comments about Israel could become an “Apartheid state”.  Kerry tried to backpedal on the comments regarding one of the United State’s greatest allies; however,  Kerry still found time to make excuses and blame partisan politics for his foolish comments saying, “I will not allow my commitment to Israel to be questioned by anyone, particularly for partisan, political purposes. The tape of Kerry’s comments was published by the Daily Beast on Sunday, a recording of Kerry’s comments to a meeting of the Trilateral Commission on Friday in which he lamented the breakdown of talks between the Israelis and Palestinians.

Secretary of State John Kerry, under fire for warning that Israel risks becoming “an apartheid state” in the absence of a peace deal, released a statement Monday evening pushing back hard.

“I will not allow my commitment to Israel to be questioned by anyone, particularly for partisan, political purposes,” Kerry said in a release put out by the State Department. “… If I could rewind the tape, I would have chosen a different word to describe my firm belief that the only way in the long term to have a Jewish state and two nations and two peoples living side by side in peace and security is through a two state solution.”

Political purposes? As stated at Powerline, “Just how Mr. Pompous intends to disallow questions about his commitment to Israel is unclear. What is clear is that the questions being raised aren’t a matter of partisan politics.” The fact of the matter is that the criticism and backlash toward Kerry is coming from all sides, Democrats and Republicans alike. This is bi-partisan outrage. Last time I checked, Sen. Barbara Boxer of California was a Democrat.  Boxer said on Twitter that any statement comparing Israel to apartheid “is nonsensical and ridiculous.” But wait,  there is also criticism from the non-partisan Anti-Defamation League, the National Jewish Democratic Council, and by Democratic partisans like Senators Barbara Boxer and Mark Begich.

Fellow Democrat Nita Lowey of New York, ranking member on the House Appropriations Committee, also spoke out on Twitter against the comments, saying: “Inflammatory rhetoric comparing Israel’s democracy to repugnant apartheid policy is irresponsible, inaccurate & counterproductive.”

Democratic Sen. Mark Begich of Alaska also spoke out against Kerry’s comments.

“Secretary Kerry knows as well as anyone that negotiating lasting peace in this region of the world is difficult but it’s not productive to express his frustration in this way,” Begich said in a statement Monday. “This remark also implies Israel should ignore the pact between [Palestinian President Mahmoud] Abbas and the Hamas. Last time I checked, the U.S. didn’t negotiate with terrorist organizations and we shouldn’t expect the Israeli government to either.”

Senator Ted Cruz (TX-R) is calling for John Kerry to resign and for Barack Obama to accept it. Cruz said in a floor speech went on to say, “Secretary Kerry has thus proven himself unsuitable for his position and that before any further harm is done to our alliance with Israel.

“Mr. President, sadly, it is my belief that Secretary Kerry has proven himself unsuitable for the position he holds. And therefore, before any further harm is done to our national security interests and to our critical alliance with the nation of Israel, John Kerry should offer President Obama his resignation and the president should accept it,” he added. “Mr. President, I would suggest the absence of a quorum.”

Emergency Committee for Israel calls for John Kerry to resign.