LOOK IN THE MIRROR

Ron Johnson Loses It on Holocaust Scholar Who Criticized Him

Deborah Lipstadt accused Johnson of white supremacy after he claimed to be more afraid of Black Lives Matter protesters than Capitol rioters.

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) accused President Biden’s choice for his antisemitism envoy of spewing “malicious poison” for calling out lawmakers—including him—over white supremacist advocacy. Emory University professor Deborah Lipstadt appeared before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Tuesday after a months-long delay due to her past criticism of Republican lawmakers. Lipstadt had criticized Johnson last March after he said he was more afraid of Black Lives Matter protesters than Capitol rioters. “This is white supremacy/nationalism. Pure and simple,” she said. On Tuesday, Lipstadt characterized herself as an “equal-opportunity foe of antisemitism,” according to Politico. “A person’s political persuasions are irrelevant in the fight against antisemitism,” she said. Although she apologized for her comments against Johnson not being “nuanced” enough, he tore into her anyway, insisting she is “not qualified” to serve as the antisemitism envoy. “You have engaged in the malicious poison [and] vile and horrible charges against people including me that you don’t even know,” Johnson said.