Queens deputy borough president pick withdraws after controversial Israel tweets emerge
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Newly named Queens Deputy Borough President Michael Hurwitz withdrew from the post Monday after facing scrutiny for past tweets criticizing Israeli policies. Photo by Wasted Time R via Wikimedia Commons
By David Brand
A newly named Queens deputy borough president abruptly withdrew from the post Monday, hours after his past tweets criticizing Israeli policies and lobbying efforts began to attract scrutiny.
Michael Hurwitz, director of food access and agriculture at GrowNYC, was tapped to serve as one of Queens Borough President Donovan Richards’ top officials on Sunday night.
Hurwitz was set to start the job in February but stepped aside Monday afternoon after some observers began to share a handful of his tweets denouncing Israeli settlements, an Israeli political leader and the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or AIPAC. He also defended Rep. Ilhan Omar, who has consistently criticized Israel’s policies regarding Palestine.
“For professional and personal reasons, Michael Hurwitz will not be moving forward at this time with the Queens Borough President's Office as Deputy Borough President as originally announced,” Richards’ spokesperson Breeana Mulligan said.
The tweets that generated controversy were posted on an account Hurwitz has used infrequently since 2016. The account is now private.
A screenshot of one of the tweets
A pinned tweet that remained public until at least Monday morning said, “#IlanOmar (sic) speaks the truth, that AIPAC $$ influences votes in Cngrss-nuthn 2debate-why I support J st and others promoting a progressive view, condemning settlements and racism but loving the core values. Took no time to apologize and sit with Jews to discuss pain caused.”
The tweet referenced Omar’s statements about AIPAC wielding too much influence among U.S. lawmakers. The House passed a resolution to condemn anti-Semitism and “all hatred” in a vote considered a rebuke to Omar after she tweeted that American support for Israel was “all about the Benjamins.”
“J st” refers to J Street, a liberal, pro-Israel political organization that supports a negotiated resolution between Israel and Palestine.
In another tweet, Hurwitz, who is Jewish, called right-wing Israeli politician Naftali Bennett a “cancer to Judaism.” He said Bennett was not welcome in the U.S. after Bennett said he was traveling to Pittsburgh in the wake of a mass shooting where a gunman, motivated by anti-Semitic hatred, killed 11 worshippers in October 2018.
Bennett, seen as a potential future prime minister of Israel, has been accused of anti-Palestinian prejudice.
Another tweet facing scrutiny Monday
Members of Queens’ large Orthodox Jewish community began to share and criticize the tweets Monday morning, leading up to Hurwitz’s agreement to withdraw.
Hurwitz told the Eagle that he and Richards “agreed that now is not the best time personally and professionally for me to join as was announced.”
“I’m excited to do good work in Queens and will continue to do that,” he added.
Hurwitz, an attorney and social worker, said he spent part of high school and college in Israel and returned to train with the Israeli military as he considered enlisting.
“I am a proud Jew. I am a lifelong Zionist,” he said “I love the state of Israel and I love that I’m raising my children Jewish in Queens.”
But Twitter, he said, is not an adequate venue for discussing complex issues like Israel-Palestine or Israel-U.S. relations.
“This is one of the most complex issues out there,” he said. “To try to put it into 250 characters or less was naive.”
