Energy Department appointee who called internment 'necessary' resigns

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - An Energy Department head who said the internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II was "necessary" is out.

William Bradford, director of the Department of Energy's Office of Indian Energy, stepped down Thursday in the wake of new reports about his inflammatory statements online. He said the online comments were the result of hacking.

Bradford was no stranger to controversy, though.

Before he joined the administration, Bradford referred to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg as a "self-hating Jew" and President Obama as a "Kenyan creampuff."

In a statement to the Washington Post, he said he resigned "because I reached the conclusion over the previous four months that the best way to serve the president, the USA, and Indian Country would be from a position beyond the constraints I experienced."

Bradford has also deleted his Twitter account.

U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, was among those who led an effort to boot Bradford in June, after his Twitter comment on interment camps.

On Friday, Hirono said Bradford's comments were "truly beyond the pale."

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