Rudy Giuliani's claim that he's "more of a Jew" than George Soros sparks accusations of anti-Semitism
Rudy Giuliani isn’t holding back. In a wide-ranging interview with New York Magazine, the former mayor of New York City and Donald Trump's personal attorney unleashed on George Soros, the Hungarian billionaire who has supported the Democratic party and progressive causes worldwide. Giuliani sparked accusations of anti-Semitism by claiming that he was “more of a Jew” than Soros, a Holocaust survivor. Giuliani is Catholic.
Giuliani was discussing the ousted ambassador to Ukraine, Marie Yovanovitch, who has played a central role in the events surrounding Trump’s impeachment. Giuliani told New York’s Olivia Nuzzi that he believed Yovanovitch was “controlled” by Soros. He has previously bragged about “forcing out” Yovanovitch from her post in an appearance on Fox News. Giuliani was reportedly playing an active role in US foreign policy in Ukraine, which has dragged him into the middle of the impeachment inquiry.
“Don’t tell me I’m anti-Semitic if I oppose him,” Giuliani said. “Soros is hardly a Jew. I’m more of a Jew than Soros is. I probably know more about — he doesn’t go to church, he doesn’t go to religion — synagogue. He doesn’t belong to a synagogue, he doesn’t support Israel, he’s an enemy of Israel. He’s elected eight anarchist DA’s in the United States. He’s a horrible human being.”
Giuliani went on to lay out a vast web of dark theories about Soros’ influence in the government.
“He put all four ambassadors there. And he’s employing the FBI agents,” Giuliani said, concluding, “He’s a horrible human being,” Giuliani concluded. Giuliani has a history of making unfounded claims about Soros; in September, he went on ABC and laid out a theory that Ukraine actually interfered in the 2016 election, rather than Russia; “Soros was behind it,” he claimed. “George Soros’s company was funding it.'”
Many people were outraged by Giuliani’s claims about Soros. “Opposing Soros isn’t what’s #antiSemitic,” wrote the Anti-Defamation League’s Jonathan Greenblatt on Twitter. “Saying that he controls ambassadors, employs FBI agents and isn’t ‘Jewish enough’ to be demonized is.”
In an interview with NBC this month, a spokeswoman for Soros’ group, Open Society Foundations, went on the offensive against Giuliani.
“The anti-Semitic conspiracy theories and false allegations espoused by Rudolph Giuliani and his cronies are aimed at fomenting hatred, undermining democracy, as well as distracting from the impeachment process and the critically important national security and constitutional questions before Congress,” she said.
NBC News reached out to Giuliani after the New York interview ran and asked him to clarify what he meant with his comments regarding being more Jewish than Soros. “I’m more Jewish than half my friends,” he said.
