U.S. President Donald Trump and Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House in April, 2025.Mark Schiefelbein/The Associated Press
When the history of the war in Iran is written, it will undoubtedly include a chapter on its effect on the MAGA movement.
The conflict may also be viewed as a seminal event in the relationship between Israel and America.
The war has opened up an ugly feud among many of the loudest and most influential voices on the U.S. right. On one side are those who believe Israel has become a strategic liability, leading the U.S. into conflicts it had no business getting involved in. On the other are those who say Israel is a crucial ally of the U.S. in a strategically vital part of the world. Those involved in the debate have been, at times, accused of antisemitism.
Among those rising up against Israel is Tucker Carlson, the one-time MAGA darling and confidante of U.S. President Donald Trump. Mr. Carlson has been vicious in his critique of the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, accusing it of leading a murderous campaign in Gaza that claimed the lives of tens of thousands of innocent men, women and children. He’s called the war in Iran “disgusting and evil.”
Opinion: Israel is caught in the junior partner’s paradox
Recent violence in the West Bank, where Palestinians have been attacked (killed in some cases) and forced from their homes by Israeli settlers, has likely also contributed to the enmity some on the right have toward Israel.
Lining up behind Mr. Carlson have been right-wing podcasters like Joe Rogan and Megyn Kelly, who have significant MAGA followings of their own. It’s hard imagining their criticism of U.S. involvement in Iran not swaying opinion on the war eventually.
On the other side you have, among others, people like podcaster Ben Shapiro and FOX radio host Mark Levin. Mr. Levin, in particular, has been outspoken about the backlash Israel has been receiving across the U.S. On his radio show, Mr. Levin has characterized those being critical as “woke-right neo-fascists” and “Jew haters.” He’s compared the censure Israel has been receiving to the “voices we heard in the 1930s and just as disgusting, evil and reprehensible.”
Mr. Levin has had a public feud going with Ms. Kelly. It prompted Mr. Trump to come to Mr. Levin’s defence in a recent social media post, saying those who speak “ill of Mark will quickly fall by the wayside … THEY ARE NOT MAGA, I AM.”
Former MAGA icon Marjorie Taylor Greene has also waded into the fray, saying Mr. Trump had betrayed his base by going to war. Meanwhile, Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz insisted recently that “biblically we’re commanded to support Israel.”
So far, Mr. Trump seems to be keeping his MAGA supporters in line. A recent YouGov-Economist poll showed 91 per cent of those surveyed who identified as MAGA supporters supported his handling of the war.
Who knows where all this leads. But there is little question anti-Israeli sentiment is building in the U.S., especially among young people. The NBC poll found that among Americans between the ages of 18-34, only 13 per cent had a positive view of Israel versus 63 per cent with a negative one. The one issue that seems to be galvanizing their views is the atrocities that have taken place in Gaza.
More concerning, however, is evidence of deeply held antisemitic attitudes (even Hitler-worshipping) among some young Republicans, a phenomenon chronicled recently in Rolling Stone magazine.
Among those 35-to-49, meantime, the NBC poll found only 20 per cent had a positive view of Israel versus 43 per cent with a negative one. Those with the highest opinion of Israel were those over 65.
The same survey showed support for Israel among Democratic voters completely collapsing since the Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, with only 13 per cent expressing a positive view of the country versus 57 per cent with a negative view. Support among Republicans has also eroded, but not nearly to the same extent.
Certainly, Israel’s cause wasn’t helped Tuesday by the high-profile resignation of Mr. Trump’s top counterterrorism official, Joe Kent. Mr. Kent, a sometime conspiracy theorist who has associated with far-right actors, said he was leaving his post because of his opposition to the Iran war and Israel’s influence on U.S. foreign policy. If nothing else, the move will help ingrain the emerging storyline that Israel lured the U.S. into an unpopular conflict.
Meantime, fresh images out of southern Lebanon that have shown apartment buildings being levelled by Israeli bombs has drawn comparisons to the destruction of Gaza. Hundreds of thousands of Lebanese have been displaced from their homes. This won’t help the public relations battle Israel is fighting either.
The impact of the war is likely to be felt for years to come. The downstream effects it has on the relationship between the U.S. and Israel could be profound.