Katherine Clark backs off Gaza ‘genocide' comments
'Last week, while attending an event in my district, I repeated the word 'genocide' in response to a question. I want to be clear that I am not accusing Israel of genocide, ' she said in the statement to POLITICO on Tuesday. 'We all need to work with urgency to bring the remaining hostages home, surge aid to Palestinians and oppose their involuntary relocation, remove Hamas from power, and end the war.'
Clark's statement was first reported by the Jewish News Syndicate.
Clark made her comments at an event hosted by a Quaker organization in her district last week, POLITICO previously reported. At the event, she called on those in the audience to 'take action in time to make a difference … whether that is stopping the starvation and genocide and destruction of Gaza' or other major political issues.
A spokesperson at the time did not walk back the characterization but also said that her position on the fighting in the region hadn't changed.
Though Democrats across the country have been critical of Israel's ground offensive in Gaza, very few have called it a genocide. Clark is the second-highest ranking Democrat in the House and would have been one of the most senior members of the party to take that stance.
The war in Gaza has roiled the Democratic Party, as politicians and potential 2028 candidates grapple with how to talk about the war and the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
San Francisco Chronicle
22 minutes ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Microsoft employee protests lead to arrests as company reviews its work with Israel's military
REDMOND, Wash. (AP) — Worker-led protests erupted at Microsoft headquarters this week as the tech company promises an 'urgent' review of the Israeli military's use of its technology during the ongoing war in Gaza. A second day of protests at the Microsoft campus on Wednesday called for the tech giant to immediately cut its business ties with Israel. The police department began making arrests after Microsoft said the protesters were trespassing. 'We said, 'Please leave or you will be arrested,' and they chose not to leave so they were detained,' said police spokesperson Jill Green. Microsoft late last week said it was tapping a law firm to investigate allegations reported by British newspaper The Guardian that the Israeli Defense Forces used Microsoft's Azure cloud computing platform to store phone call data obtained through the mass surveillance of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank. 'Microsoft's standard terms of service prohibit this type of usage," the company said in a statement posted Friday, adding that the report raises 'precise allegations that merit a full and urgent review.' The company said it will share the findings after law firm Covington & Burling completes its review. The promised review was insufficient for the employee-led No Azure for Apartheid group, which for months has protested Microsoft's supplying the Israeli military with technology used for its war against Hamas in Gaza. In February, The Associated Press revealed previously unreported details about the American tech giant's close partnership with the Israeli Ministry of Defense, with military use of commercial AI products skyrocketing by nearly 200 times after the deadly Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack. The AP reported that the Israeli military uses Azure to transcribe, translate and process intelligence gathered through mass surveillance, which can then be cross-checked with Israel's in-house AI-enabled targeting systems. Following The AP's report, Microsoft acknowledged the military applications but said a review it commissioned found no evidence that its Azure platform and artificial intelligence technologies were used to target or harm people in Gaza. Microsoft did not share a copy of that review or say who conducted it. Microsoft in May fired an employee who interrupted a speech by CEO Satya Nadella to protest the contracts, and in April, fired two others who interrupted the company's 50th anniversary celebration.
Los Angeles Times
22 minutes ago
- Los Angeles Times
Obama endorses redrawing California congressional districts to counter Trump
Former President Obama endorsed California Democrats' plans to redraw congressional districts if Texas or another Republican-led state does so to increase the GOP's chances of maintaining control of Congress after next year's midterm election. Obama said that while he opposes partisan gerrymandering, Republicans in Texas acting at President Trump's behest have forced Democrats' hand. If Democrats 'don't respond effectively, then this White House and Republican-controlled state governments all across the country, they will not stop, because they do not appear to believe in this idea of an inclusive, expansive democracy,' he said at a fundraiser Tuesday in Martha's Vineyard that was first reported by the Associated Press on Wednesday. 'I wanted just a fair fight between Republicans and Democrats based on who's got better ideas, and take it to the voters and see what happens,' Obama said. '... but we cannot unilaterally allow one of the two major parties to rig the game. And California is one of the states that has the capacity to offset a large state like Texas.' Redistricting typically only occurs once a decade after the census, to account for population shifts. In 2010, Californians voted to create an independent redistricting commission to end partisan gerrymandering. California's 52 congressional districts were last redrawn in 2021. Earlier this summer, Trump urged Texas leaders to redraw its congressional boundaries to increase the number of Republicans in Congress. Led by Gov. Gavin Newsom, California Democrats responded and proposed redrawing the state's district lines and putting the matter before voters in a special election in November. The issue came to a head this week, with Texas lawmakers expected to vote on their new districts on Wednesday, and California legislators expected to vote on Thursday to call the special election. Obama called Newsom's approach 'responsible,' because the matter will ultimately be decided by voters, and if approved, would only go into effect if Texas or another state embarks on a middecade redistricting and line-drawing would revert to the independent commission after the 2030 census. 'I think that approach is a smart, measured approach, designed to address a very particular problem in a very particular moment in time,' Obama said.
USA Today
22 minutes ago
- USA Today
The congressional mess in Texas
Texas Republicans push for a vote on a new congressional map. North Carolina braces for towering waves from Hurricane Erin. And how money may be affecting your love life. 👋 How's it going? Rebecca Morin here. Let's get going to Wednesday's news! But first: A dark night sky. A rare black moon is set to occur this week – even if you can't see it. Texas' congressional map may soon look different Let the debate begin. Texas House Republicans on Wednesday are expected to vote on redistricting plans aimed at flipping five Democratic-held U.S. House seats in the 2026 midterm elections. Lawmakers began debating the proposed map, but it's unclear how quickly Republicans could approve it. The move follows a two-week walkout by Texas Democrats that temporarily delayed the bill. The rare mid-decade redistricting comes at Trump's urging as the president seeks to boost Republican chances of preserving their narrow U.S. House majority next year. Follow for the latest on the vote. Democrats still protesting: In an effort to ensure lawmakers remain in Texas, Republican House leaders have assigned state law enforcement officers to monitor them. Several Democrats slept in the Capitol building in protest and publicly tore up permission slips required by Republicans for members to leave the chamber. How one state lawmaker, Rep. Nicole Collier, started the protest by sleeping at the statehouse. Towering waves threaten North Carolina Less than 300 miles from North Carolina's Outer Banks, the center of Hurricane Erin will roar by – setting up the vulnerable region for an intense battering of waves and storm surge. The effects of the massive storm could destroy dunes, threaten beachfront houses and flood roads. Powerful waves of 15 to 20 feet are expected to slam beaches, especially in North Carolina, for 48 hours or more as the hurricane crawls northward offshore through at least Thursday. The National Hurricane Center said Wednesday afternoon that conditions are expected to 'deteriorate' in the Outer Banks and strongly discouraged swimming at most East Coast beaches. See Hurricane Erin's projected path. Real quick Double-check your luggage Magic 8 ball? Sure. Antlers? You're good to go. But don't you dare think about packing this one item in your checked luggage. The Transportation Security Administration banned three new items from checked bags: cordless curling irons or flat irons containing gas cartridges, butane-fueled curling irons or flat irons, and gas refills (spare cartridges) for curling irons or flat irons. These items are allowed in your carry-on bags as long as they have safety covers to prevent activation. Check out these weird TSA approved items. Your bank and your love life When looking for a relationship, what's more important: love or money? For many Americans, they don't want "no scrub." Although the median U.S. annual salary is about $62,192, Americans on average expect their ideal partner to earn six figures, a new survey found. Women on average want their ideal partner to earn $110,000, and men expect theirs to earn $90,000, according to a Tawkify survey of 1,000 Americans. Some responses were contradictory: More than 6 in 10 Americans (63%) said they would marry for love, even if it meant a lifelong financial struggle. But if forced to decide between love and money, 46% said they would pick the latter. How income could be a dealbreaker for some. A break from the news Rebecca Morin is a newsletter writer at USA TODAY. Got thoughts or feedback? Reach out to her at rdmorin@
