Rep. Tim Walberg (R-Mich.) said during a town hall meeting last week that the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza “should be like Nagasaki and Hiroshima,” in reference to the United States using atomic bombs on Japan, which happened at the end of World War II.
Walberg said: “Get it over quick.” According to The Detroit News, Walberg’s office said that his comments about nuclear strikes were a metaphor to “support Israel’s swift elimination of Hamas.”
The town hall took place in Dundee Village Hall on Monday, with video footage from the event posted on YouTube and X, formerly Twitter, as HuffPost points out. Some of his comments can be heard on the social media footage while he is not seen on camera.
Walberg made the remarks after dismissing the idea of delivering more humanitarian aid to Gaza, the Palestinian territory, where half of the population is at “imminent” risk of famine. “We shouldn’t be spending a dime on humanitarian aid,” he said.
Since Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack, Israel has led a deadly bombing campaign throughout Gaza. More than 30,000 Palestinians have been killed, and millions have been displaced.
A spokesperson for Walberg told The Detroit News that his response was to a question about U.S. troops being deployed to build a port to send aid to the Palestinians in Gaza.
“Congressman Walberg vehemently disagrees with putting our troops in harm’s way. He has great empathy for the innocent people in Gaza who have been thrust into this situation due to the attack carried out by Hamas leaving 1,163 innocent civilians dead,” said Mike Rorke, Walberg’s spokeperson. “To this day, Hamas still is holding hostages, including Americans. Hamas should surrender and return the hostages.”
Rorke added: “During his community gathering, he clearly uses a metaphor to support Israel’s swift elimination of Hamas, which is the best chance to save lives long-term and the only hope at achieving a permanent peace in the region.”
Walberg’s comments align with sentiments expressed by former President and presumptive 2024 GOP nominee Donald Trump. Speaking earlier this month about Israel’s ongoing offensive in Gaza, Trump said, “You have to finish the problem.”
