‘Dean’ of White House Reporters: Jews, Get Out of Palestine

Veteran Hearst newspaper journalist, known as the “dean” of White House reporters, exposed her bias on video by saying that Jews "should get the hell out of Palestine." She apologized for her comments on Saturday, but Jewish and non-Jewish leaders have called on the 89-year-old journalist to “hang up the typewriter” and retire.

Her remarks, along with her grilling of White House Spokesman Robert Gibbs over the flotilla clash last Monday, expose an anti-Israel bias that also was revealed in Associated Press coverage several days ago.

Thomas’ comments, including the statement that Jews should "go back home to Poland, Germany, America and everywhere else," were posted Friday on a YouTube video. She had been asked after the White House Jewish Heritage celebration last Sunday if she had "any comments on Israel."

Thomas, a daughter of Lebanese immigrants, replied to Rabbi David Nesenoff of RabbiLIVE.com, "Tell them to get the hell out of Palestine. Remember, these people are occupied and it's their land. Not Germany. Not Poland."

Asked where the Jews should go, she shot back, "They go home. Poland. Germany. And America and everywhere else."

After the video was posted, Thomas wrote on her web site, “I deeply regret my comments I made last week regarding the Israelis and the Palestinians. They do not reflect my heartfelt belief that peace will come to the Middle East only when all parties recognize the need for mutual respect and tolerance. May that day come soon.”

That did not satisfy critics. Ari Fleischer, who was White House Press Secretary for former U.S. President George W. Bush, remarked, “She should lose her job over this. As someone who is Jewish, and as someone who worked with her and used to like her, I find this appalling.

"She is advocating religious cleansing. How can Hearst stand by her? If a journalist, or a columnist, said the same thing about blacks or Hispanics, they would already have lost their jobs."

Minnesota Republican Congresswoman Michele Bachmann said,” Once again the liberal media has shown its true colors. The White House media dinosaur, also known as Helen Thomas, has called on Jews to leave Israel and move back to Poland and Germany. This anti-Semitic sentiment has no place in our public discourse. I call upon her employer, [the] Hearst Corporation, to dismiss her at once. The White House needs to revoke her press credentials immediately."

Thomas’ bias was evident in her questioning of White House spokesman Gibbs. “The initial reaction to the flotilla massacre, deliberate massacre, an international crime, was pitiful,” she asserted.

Criticizing the Obama administration for not condemning Israel for the killing of nine terror activists who attacked Israel Navy commandoes when they were virtually unarmed, Thomas added, “What is this sacrosanct ironclad relationship where a country that deliberately kills people and boycotts every aid and abet the boycott?” Gibbs responded, "Well, look, I think the initial reaction regretted the loss of life as we tried and as we still continue to gather the relevant.”

Thomas retorted, “Regret won’t bring them back…. Why didn’t you initially condemn it?... Who put the US in charge of the world?”

After the initial Associated Press report of the flotilla clash, the Washington Times exposed its bias for immediately jumping to the conclusion that Israel was to blame for the violence.

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/137888