(JTA) — Political commentator Bill O’Reilly called for Democratic National Committee head Debbie Wasserman Schultz to resign for criticizing a Marco Rubio fundraiser held at the home of a donor who collects Nazi memorabilia.
Wasserman Schultz, a congresswoman from Florida, said on Sept. 22 that Rubio should cancel a fundraiser that was held at the Texas home of Harlan Crow, a multimillionaire real estate developer whose collection includes paintings by Adolf Hitler, a signed copy of “Mein Kampf” and other historical objects. The event was held on Tuesday night, the eve of Yom Kippur.
Thursday night, in a closing segment of his show “The O’Reilly Factor,” O’Reilly called Wasserman Schultz’s critique “insane” and said that she should subsequently resign immediately.
“I have been to Harlan Crow’s home and I have seen his collection of history,” O’Reilly said. “It is amazing, and any museum would be proud to display what he has. Both good and evil are represented in an educational way.
“By attacking Rubio using the Holocaust, the head of the DNC has shamed herself and her party. She should immediately resign.”
Wasserman Schultz had called Rubio’s decision to hold the fundraiser in Crow’s house “the height of insensitivity and indifference.”
“There’s really no need for such a gross act of disrespect,” Wasserman Schultz said in a statement.
On “The O’Reilly Factor,” Rubio called Wasserman Schultz’s claims a “despicable attack” and pointed out that Crow’s mother, Margaret, survived an attack in England from a German U-boat during World War II.
