If you’ve been following me for a while, you’ll know I’ve spent the past five or so years sounding the alarm -- evidently in vain -- on the mainstreaming of what was once relatively fringe antisemitism on the left of the political spectrum, particularly in the West.
Now, I’m noticing a similar pattern taking hold on the right, and we need to talk about it.
Please note this post will discuss this issue primarily in an American context.
FIRST THINGS FIRST
Like left-wing antisemitism, right-wing antisemitism is hardly a new phenomenon. After all, antisemitism, as the “world’s oldest hatred,” long predates the left-right political spectrum as we understand it today. The Nazi regime, for example, which murdered nearly 70% of Europe’s Jewish population, is what we would consider far-right. White supremacists, who hate Jews as a matter of principle, are far-right.
But since the Holocaust, blatantly overt and violent right-wing antisemitism -- temporarily, at least -- became increasingly sidelined in mainstream right-wing politics, especially with the rise of Christian Zionism and Evangelical influence on American politics (more on this in a second).
That’s not to say right-wing antisemitism ever truly disappeared from the mainstream right, because it didn’t. It simply became more covert. For example, the McCarthyist purges of the 1950s carried heavy antisemitic undertones, and McCarthy was, by all accounts, an antisemite, but at least in the open, he was going after “communists,” not Jews.
A RISE IN LEFT-WING ANTISEMITISM WILL ALWAYS LEAD TO A RISE IN RIGHT-WING ANTISEMITISM, AND VICE VERSA
Left and right antisemitism work together, not apart. They are not two separate entities. They utilize the same tropes, same conspiracies, and same stereotypes. Time and time again in history, and to the present day, right-wing antisemites have collaborated with left-wing antisemites with one ulterior mission: to hurt Jews. Antisemites always prioritize their antisemitism over their political views.
When antisemitism rises on the left -- as we have seen in the aftermath of the October 7 massacre -- it also rises on the right, and vice versa. When left-wing antisemites spread antisemitic conspiracies, stereotypes, and tropes, white supremacists hear them loud and clear, and vice versa.
It’s no surprise that with the mainstreaming of left-wing antisemitism in the aftermath of October 7, the antisemitic rhetoric of notorious far-right figures such as Candace Owens, Dan Bilzerian, David Duke, and Nick Fuentes is suddenly gaining more and more traction on the mainstream right as well.
Antisemitism is not a political position, though it is often weaponized by politicians, and addressing it as such is a distraction that hinders our ability to effectively combat how this bigotry moves and functions.
CHRISTIAN ZIONISM AND THE POLITICAL RIGHT
Zionism is the belief that Jews have a right to self-determination in the Land of Israel. In modern terms, this translates to support for the State of Israel’s continued existence. There are many Christians who are Zionists, but this differs from an entirely separate movement known as Christian Zionism.
Christian Zionism is the belief that the return of Jews to the Land of Israel and the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948 was the fulfillment of a Biblical prophecy. Many Christian Zionists also believe that the gathering of all Jews in Israel is a prerequisite for the Second Coming of Jesus. Jews will then be faced with the choice of converting to Christianity or death. Christian Zionism sees Jews and the State of Israel as a means to an end. It’s not about Jewish autonomy, sovereignty, identity, safety, or beliefs.
Christian Zionism is deeply popular with the right-wing American voter base and has been since the 1970s; as many as 80% of Evangelical Christians are Christian Zionists. However, though naturally many Jews consider the movement uncomfortable, if not outright antisemitic, it is much less overtly antisemitic than the antisemitism we see from far-right white supremacists like David Duke or figures such as Candace Jones.
THE MAINSTREAMING OF CHRISTIAN ZIONISM
American conservative right-wing attitudes toward the Jews started shifting after the Holocaust, but what really changed it all was the mainstreaming of Christian Zionism.
In the 1970s, an American pastor named Rev. Jerry Falwell formed an organization called the Moral Majority, with the purpose of mobilizing conservative Christians to register to vote for conservative candidates. One of the founding principles of the organization was “support for Israel and Jewish people everywhere.” By the 1980s, the Moral Majority had some six million members. They are credited for putting Ronald Reagan in office.
Falwell was a televangelist, and in 1980, he went on television in front of millions of viewers and stated, “I firmly believe God has blessed America because America has blessed the Jew. If this nation wants her fields to remain white with grain, her scientific achievements to remain notable, and her freedom to remain intact, America must continue to stand with Israel.”
While the Moral Majority was disbanded in 1989, 80% of American Evangelical Christians continue to support Christian Zionism. Despite their real intentions, this meant that, in practice, most conservative Americans started supporting policies regarding Israel that were usually -- but not always -- conducive to Jewish safety (after all, half of the world’s Jews live in Israel and most American Jews feel invested in the security and continued existence of the State of Israel). Overt expressions of conservative and/or Christian antisemitism became much less overt and less mainstream.
RIGHT-WING CONSPIRACY THEORISTS DRIVE A WEDGE BETWEEN CONSERVATIVE CHRISTIANS, JEWS, AND ISRAEL
Since the explosion of left-wing antisemitism post-October 7, overtly antisemitic figures on the right have gained more and more traction, often by regurgitating rhetoric that perfectly mirrors that of left-wing antisemites, or rhetoric that is only slightly repackaged to appeal to their right-wing audience. In particular, I’ve noticed influencers like Ian Carroll trying to drive a wedge between Evangelical/Christian supporters of Jews and Israel, thus pushing for overt antisemitism to become mainstream and accepted on the political right.
Consider, for example, Carroll’s now infamous, conspiratorial, and blatantly false rant on the Twins Pod, shortly before he went on the Joe Rogan Experience, the most listened podcast in the world:
“In the early 1900s…the Rothschild family hired this dude, this pastor, in the deep south. He made a new version of the Bible, called the Scofield Bible. He wrote this new Bible that has all these new interpretations of the text...that’s where Judeo-Christianity kinda came from, and the idea that…this modern Israel thing is the Israel of the Bible, it came from that Bible...And so they had the deals that they could make to get that Bible into all the mega churches across whole denominations of Christianity. So that was when Christianity got kind of…Jewified.”
A white supremacist and Holocaust denier Tweeted this regarding Ian Carroll’s nonsensical conspiracies about the “Scofield Bible”:
Conspiracy theories about and demonization of the Talmud are emblematic of the oldest kind of Christian antisemitism, dating to the Middle Ages. In his response, Carroll implies that his goal is to ultimately return this kind of classic antisemitic rhetoric to the mainstream.
THE RIGHT AND ANTISEMITIC PODCASTERS
The Joe Rogan Experience is the most listened to podcast in the world, with some 19.4 million subscribers on Spotify alone (that’s more subscribers than there are Jews in the world). While Joe Rogan doesn’t call himself a conservative, over half of his listener base identifies as Republican and even more identify as conservatives. In recent weeks, Rogan has hosted two prominent antisemitic conspiracy theorists on his podcast. Among them:
- Ian Carroll, whose comments on the show included calling Jeffrey Epstein “a Jewish organization working on behalf of Israel” and blaming Israel for 9/11.
- Darryl Cooper, a Holocaust revisionist, who used his platform on Rogan’s show to call Jews paranoid, claim Hitler opposed Kristallnacht, and insist that Hitler’s antisemitism was a natural response to Germany’s sorry economic state post-World War I.
Rogan justifies inviting these guests on as “just asking questions,” but he never seriously challenges their harmful claims.
Meanwhile, for months, other popular conservative podcasters such as Candace Owens and Tucker Carlson have spent the past year or so really ramping up the antisemitic rhetoric on their respective platforms, engaging on everything from Holocaust denial to October 7 denial to conspiracies about the Talmud and more.
Blair White is a conservative influencer and political commentator who in the past has expressed support for Israel. Now, as antisemitic conspiracies become more and more popular among right-wing figures, she too is engaging in this rhetoric.
For a full bibliography of my sources, please head over to my Instagram and Patreon.