Washington, D.C. (September 17, 2014) -- The Republican Jewish Coalition (RJC) responded today to Vice President Joseph Biden's use of the term "Shylocks" to describe unscrupulous bankers who take advantage of U.S. military members deployed overseas.
RJC Executive Director Matt Brooks said:
"Some words are unacceptable in American political discourse and the Vice-President's use of the word 'shylocks' was tasteless, inappropriate and offensive. The Republican Jewish Coalition has frequently spoken out when public figures, Democrats or Republicans, have used inappropriate terminology in a political context. The name Shylock from Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice is so clearly derogatory and so clearly aimed at Jews alone that it has become shorthand for anti-Semitism. Vice President Biden was wrong to use that term and he should have known better. He owes the Jewish community an apology."
