PHILADELPHIA (JTA) — Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, a surrogate for Donald Trump’s Republican presidential campaign, retweeted an anti-Semitic post and then apologized, saying it was in error.
The tweet, from a user called Saint Bibiana, alleged that Jews were blaming the former Soviet Union for leaks that were published recently from internal Democratic National Committee emails.
“CNN implicated,” reads the tweet sent Sunday. “‘The USSR is to blame!’ Not anymore, Jews. Not anymore.”
Retweeting on Sunday, Flynn wrote, “The corrupt Democratic machine will do and say anything to get #NeverHillary into power. This is new low.”
Soon afterward, Flynn tweeted that he had meant to retweet a link from CNN and apologized for his earlier tweet.
“The earlier retweet was a mistake,” he wrote. “My sincerest apologies.”
On Saturday WikiLeaks, which provided the DNC leak, also appeared to tweet an anti-Semitic message. Addressing critics of the leak, the group’s Twitter feed displayed a post that read: “Tribalist symbol for establishment climbers? Most of our critics have 3 (((brackets around their names))) & have black-rim glasses. Bizarre.” The tweet was later removed.
In recent weeks, Jews on Twitter have placed the triple brackets around their names to mock and undermine an anti-Semitic way of identifying Jews online.
Also Sunday, Trump said he “guessed” he would vote for a Democrat to stop white supremacist David Duke from being elected to office and added that he “rebuked” Duke, a former grand wizard of the Ku Klux Klan. Duke is running for the U.S. Senate in Louisiana and supports Trump.
“I guess, depending on who is the Democrat, but the answer would be yes,” Trump said on NBC’s Meet The Press, responding to the question about Duke. “Rebuked. Is that OK? Rebuked, done.”
On Saturday, after Duke announced his Senate candidacy, Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus tweeted that “David Duke & his hateful bigotry have no place in the Republican Party & the RNC will never support his candidacy under any circumstance.”
Help ensure Jewish news remains accessible to all. Your donation to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency powers the trusted journalism that has connected Jewish communities worldwide for more than 100 years. With your help, JTA can continue to deliver vital news and insights. Donate today.
