The feud between U.S. President Donald Trump and MAGA congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene may not be exclusively about Israel, “but Israel is one of the pillars of the narrative” that fueled Greene’s decision to resign earlier this week, Haaretz’s Washington correspondent Ben Samuels told the Haaretz Podcast.
Until recently, the right was viewed as an unshakeable mainstay of American support for Israel. Schisms within the Republican Party have ruptured over Israel’s compatibility with MAGA-style isolationism, critiques of Israel’s wartime conduct and commentator Tucker Carlson’s embrace of Nick Fuentes.
Greene’s departure, which also comes amid a swirl of conspiracy theories about Jeffrey Epstein and the Mossad, is a red flag regarding the “deep realignment” taking place in the GOP and among evangelical Christians, Samuels said – and Israeli leaders are worried.
Omer Benjakob, Haaretz’s cyber and disinformation correspondent, joined the podcast to discuss his recent investigation into a major multi-platform online campaign by the Israeli government that seeks to rehabilitate its image among the American Christian right.
Benjakob said the multimillion-dollar campaign seems to be “less about pro- or anti- Israel arguments and more about trying to quell a growing wave of antisemitism.”
He noted that the “rapid decline of this ‘unshakable bond’ points to a dependency on a population that progressive voices have warned Israel for years against getting in bed with.”
Read more:
Losing the Republican Base, Israel Pours Millions to Target Evangelicals and Churchgoers
Why Netanyahu Is Sharing Leftist Conspiracy Theories About a Mossad Sex Cabal
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene Resigns From Office, After Trump's Support Withdrawal Last Week
Israel's Right Wing Bet the Country's Future on American Christian Nationalists. That Has Backfired
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.