Anti-Semitism and Anti-Christian Zionism On The Right

Today is International Holocaust Remembrance Day. We often repeat, reflexively, “Never again.” Yet far too many people forget the “again” part. Antisemitism has been with us since the beginning of recorded history. While it is important to study the Holocaust, modern education fixates on that Shoach at the expense of obscuring the long train of hatred towards Jewish people that continues to this day. That education also portrays Jews as victims, and teaches that anything short of mass extermination is not that big of a deal.  I would commend a new op-ed in the Wall Street Journal, titled “Holocaust Education Obscures Antisemitism.” It begins:

On Holocaust Remembrance Day, Jan. 27, it’s important to reflect on, mourn and remember the six million Jews murdered by the Nazis. As time passes and the Holocaust fades further from memory, this somber day grows increasingly important. Yet with antisemitism surging and Jews being murdered in attacks worldwide, it’s clear that remembering is no longer enough. If our understanding of Jew-hatred remains locked in the past, there’s a risk that current and future forms of antisemitism will spiral out of control.

Today is a very fitting day to publish my new essay in Civitas Outlook, titled Anti-Semitism and Anti-Christian Zionism On The Right. From the introduction:

On the political left, antisemitism has long been cloaked under the garb of anti-zionism. Those advocating for Palestinian rights insist they have no animosity towards Jews, but simply reject Zionism: the belief that Israel is the Jewish state. The defense of Zionism invariably falls to Jewish people, who explained that this purported anti-zionism was little more than a ruse for anti-semitism. And in recent times, Jews found allies on the right with Christians who zealously supported Zionism as both a matter of policy and faith. But a rupture is forming. A rising tide on the right is attacking Zionists and Christian Zionists alike. In every civilization, antisemitism has morphed to match the circumstances of the day on all sides of the political spectrum. Regrettably, this movement to oppose Christian Zionism is little different than left-wing anti-Zionism on college campuses. As the very bounds of conservatism continue to ebb and flow, stark lines are being drawn of how those on the right view Israel and the Jewish people. Conservatives need to account for how this shift is drastically altering American domestic and foreign policy.

It is tempting to start this analysis with Kevin Roberts’s ill-fated defense of Tucker Carlson. But we should step back a bit further. It has been widely reported that Carlson did nothing to push back against Nick Fuentes, a Holocaust denier, when Carlson interviewed him. But Carlson did express some opinions of his own. He described Christian Zionists as a “Christian heresy” whom he “dislikes more than anybody.” Among these heretics were Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, Senator Ted Cruz, former President George W. Bush, and others. Carlson actually said that Cruz was “serving for Israel.” Tucker charged that this Zionism is a “brain virus.” The implication was clear: disloyal American Jews have infected Christians to advance Israeli interests over American interests. Stop me if you’ve heard this trope before.

And from a somewhat hopeful conclusion:

Perhaps there is some room for hope. In a recent interview, the New York Times asked President Trump, “Do you think there’s room within the Republican coalition, the Make America Great movement, for people with antisemitic views?” Trump replied, “No, I don’t. I think we don’t need them. I think we don’t like them.” Trump is right. It is perverse to include Anti-Zionists and cozy up to antisemites. Christian Zionists should be welcomed, and antisemites excluded. 

Never again means never again.