Senior Staffer for Embattled ‘Squad’ Member Summer Lee Is Unmasked as Man Behind Antisemitic ‘Dear White Staffers’ Instagram Account

A staffer for a far-left Democratic Congresswoman, Summer Lee, has been unmasked as the provocateur behind the widely-read, antisemitic Instagram page, “Dear White Staffers,” which focuses on Capitol Hill, according to a report by Jewish Insider.The Jewish Insider report identifies the man behind “Dear White Staffers” as Philip Bennett, who works for Ms. Lee, a Pennsylvania member of Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s unabashedly progressive “Squad” who has been under fire in recent weeks for agreeing to speak at an antisemitic event — she would withdraw under pressure.The ‘Dear White Staffers’ Instagram site has in recent months taken a sharply anti-Israel turn.InstagramMr. Bennett did not respond to requests for comment from the Sun. He does not appear to have commented anywhere else on his unveiling.“Dear White Staffers” gained prominence in the last year as a plugged-in Instagram page that made anonymous commentary on Capitol Hill culture from the perspective of staffers of color and often made unsubstantiated claims about racism and insensitivity by white members of Congress. The page shifted, however, in the wake of October 7, into a discussion forum spreading anti-Israel and antisemitic content. “Dear White Staffers” has accused one Jewish member of Congress of seeking the death of children, blamed Israeli training for the Capitol Police’s response to a cease-fire protest at the Democratic National Committee headquarters that turned violent, and celebrated the attacks on October 7. Representative Summer Lee at Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, January 17, 2023. AP/Matt Rourke, fileJewish Insider’s investigation, confirmed independently by the Sun, pointed the finger at Mr. Bennett as being behind the account. The Jewish Insider stopped short of naming Mr. Bennett or listing his exact position within Ms. Lee’s office. However, the outlet, relying on interviews with Congressional staffers, listed key identifying aspects of Mr. Bennett’s resume that would exclude any other person from being the page’s progenitor. These aspects include prior positions in the offices of Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, Congressman Earl Blumenauer, and Congresswoman Julia Brownley and Mr. Bennet’s role in the Congressional staffer unionization effort, which he touts on his publicly available Linkedin. On Tuesday, the Washington Free Beacon named Mr. Bennett as the person behind “Dear White Staffers.”Mr. Bennett was also quoted in several outlets, including the New Arab, as partaking in an anti-Israel demonstration on Capitol Hill on October 16. Mr. Bennett, who was arrested by Capitol Police, told the outlet that he joined merely as a bystander, “I came back to the office, and I heard they were in the rotunda. I felt so moved by their action that I joined them.” As the Jewish Insider pointed out, Mr. Bennett was more seemingly disingenuous to the outlet about his role in the demonstrations, as posts on the “Dear White Staffers” detail his help in organizing the large disruptions. Before his days on Capitol Hill, Philip Bennett ran cross country for Knox College. Knox CollegeSources told the Jewish Insider that it is “an open secret among a growing number of Hill staff” that Mr. Bennett runs the account. Another source of evidence pointed to by the Jewish Insider was the similarity in postings between the “Dear White Staffers” account and Mr. Bennett’s personal account. The outlet reported that the two posted similar photos taken at similar times, both at Los Angeles.Mr. Bennett serves in a senior role in Ms. Lee’s office. According to Legistorm, Mr. Bennett earns nearly $80 thousand per annum working for Ms. Lee. The Hill previously named him as being among the top 25 staffers “who make Capitol Hill run” on account of his work creating a Congressional Workers Union. At the time, Ms. Lee exclaimed, “That’s my Dir. of Ops!!!” in a post on X, formerly Twitter. No staffers who were willing to confirm Mr. Bennett’s identity were willing to speak to the Sun on record for fear of retribution amongst their peers. The news of the senior staffer comes as Ms. Lee faces increasing pressure from her constituents to step away from her associations with anti-Israel activists. On Tuesday, more than 40 rabbis and cantors at the Pittsburgh area, which Ms. Lee represents, signed an open letter denouncing the freshman Congresswoman for her “divisive rhetoric” on Israel, which is “perceived as openly antisemetic.” Summer Lee speaks as Senator Markey listens during a news conference on the ‘Green New Deal’ in front of the U.S. Capitol on April 20, 2023 at Washington, DC. Alex Wong/Getty ImagesThe signatories note to Ms. Lee, “You graciously agreed to meet with us, and in that meeting, you promised us that you would call out antisemitism and temper your own language” after meeting with the group in the fall. However, the letter denounces Ms. Lee for not having “followed through on those commitments.” The letter, which includes the signature of the rabbi of the Tree of Life synagogue, which was the site of an antisemitic mass murder, Jeffrey Myers, was first obtained by the Jewish Insider.

Senior Staffer for Embattled ‘Squad’ Member Summer Lee Is Unmasked as Man Behind Antisemitic ‘Dear White Staffers’ Instagram Account

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