(AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) called for his colleague, Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT), to be brought in to lead Harvard University out of this current “mad season of antisemitism.”
Fetterman, who has defied the progressive base of his party to strongly support Israel during the current conflict, shared an op-ed in the Washington Post that argued for Romney to be brought in to “clean up” the “mess” at Harvard.
“As an alumnus of Harvard, and after this mad season of antisemitism at Columbia, I co-sign,” Fetterman wrote on Monday, while sharing an image of the op-ed’s headline.
“This former Governor of Massachusetts doesn’t need a paycheck, but Harvard and its academic peers needs to recalibrate from far-left orthodoxy,” Fetterman added.
Fetterman spoke to Semafor’s David Weigel back in January, in the wake of Harvard President Claudine Gay resigning, and was asked about his support for Israel and why he opposes the Boycott Divestment Sanctions movement.
As an alumnus of Harvard, and after this mad season of antisemitism at Columbia, I co-sign.
This former Governor of Massachusetts doesn't need a paycheck, but Harvard and its academic peers needs to recalibrate from far-left orthodoxy. pic.twitter.com/eaT0F5VaiR
— Senator John Fetterman (@SenFettermanPA) April 22, 2024
“Because Israel is really a beacon of the kind of values, the American values and progressive ideals, that you want to see,” Fetterman replied, adding:
In that region, it’s our strongest ally, and we have a very special kind of relationship. I don’t understand how anybody could vote against the Iron Dome, or want to harm Israeli businesses or the nation or anything. I’ll never understand that. Calling them “colonizers” — like, where does this come from? It must be TikTok or some kind of obscure classroom talk. As an alum of Harvard — look, I graduated 25 years ago, and of course it was always a little pinko. But now, I don’t recognize it.
The op-ed Fetterman supported in the Washington Post offered a similar take on the current situation at Harvard. “I never for a moment felt oppressed or marginalized as a student on the Harvard campus. But to my dismay, recent years have seen an unconscionable spike in — and even worse, an administrative tolerance of — hate speech directed at Jews, including targeting Jewish students. The university’s response has thus far been ramshackle and unproductive, to put it mildly,” wrote the op-ed’s author, former Harvard student Daniel Rosen.
Rosen also noted that, like Fetterman, “I am a lifelong Democrat, did not vote for Romney when he ran for U.S. president in 2008 and have no personal connection to him, I make this suggestion in the sincere and robust hope that he is someone who can navigate the university through painful but necessary reform and drive back the antisemitism that is tarnishing the institution’s credibility.”
Romney, who was elected to the U.S. Senate from Utah in 2018, has announced he will not seek reelection in 2024 and will leave the U.S. Senate when his term ends in January to make way for a new generation of leaders.
