The Volokh Conspiracy
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Yoram Hazony's Speech At The Second International Conference on Anti-Semitism in Jerusalem
"This is an extremely high level of incompetence by the entire anti-Semitism-industrial complex, some of whose representatives are sitting right here in this room."
Yesterday, my Civitas Outlook column discussed Anti-Semitism and Anti-Christian Zionism on the right. The piece led off with Kevin Roberts's infamous defense of Tucker Carlson, but I expanded the focus to two other prominent figures: Vice President J.D. Vance and Yoram Hazony.
To this day, Kevin Roberts's video has not been taken down. And I doubt he disagrees with the underlying message. What he said has become standard fare in some corners of the right. AtTurning Point's AmericaFest, Vice President J.D. Vance rejected "endless, self-defeating purity tests" and would not "bring a list of conservatives to denounce or to deplatform." Making the point more plainly was Yoram Hazony, one of the founders of the National Conservatism movement. Hazonydeclared, "nobody ever said that to be a good Natcon you have to love Jews." Hazony, an Orthodox Jew, is unquestionably not himself an antisemite, but reads from the same gospel as Roberts and Vance: antisemites, Hitler revisionists, and Holocaust deniers are welcome under this tent. Jews, Christian Zionists, and other classical conservatives can leave if they are uncomfortable. (In August 2025, I spoke at NatCon with some hesitation; I have come to regret my attendance at that conference.)
My column was right on time. Yesterday, Yoram Hazony delivered a keynote address at the international conference on anti-semitism in Jerusalem. (I attended that conference last year.) Yoram has posted his speech to Substack. It is long, but I encourage you to read all of it. Say what you will about Yoram--and I have a lot to say--but he is a clear thinker who tells you exactly what is on his mind. He hides nothing from the audience.
Yoram divides conservatism into three camps. Yoram argues that the pro-zionist "liberal" wing of the Republican party, led by Ted Cruz, has at most 25% of support of the movement. The alt-right, which has anti-semites in it, has maybe 10%. The remaining 65% is the nationalist wing. Yoram says, the nationalist group is up for grabs. It can be persuaded one way or the other. But the liberal wing, Yoram explains, has not done its job. Yoram argues that attempts to cancel Tucker failed because all charges of anti-semitism have not stuck. He also points out that President Trump hosted Tucker at the White House, even after telling the New York Times that anti-semites have no place in the movement.
One line, in particular, has garnered much attention. Yoram says that no one can create a "15-minute explainer video" to demonstrate why Tucker is in fact an anti-semite, because no such content exists. He then levels this charge:
This is an extremely high level of incompetence by the entire anti-Semitism-industrial complex, some of whose representatives are sitting right here in this room. Maybe some of you think you were persuasively "fighting anti-Semitism" over the last six months. But the unfortunate truth is that you weren't.
This line led to a blistering response from Tablet Magazine, a popular Jewish publication:
Tucker Carlson could goose-step down Pennsylvania Avenue butt-naked with a swastika carved into his forehead and it would be the fault of "the anti-semitism industrial complex" for not making the case "clear enough" to "Republican nationalists."
I understand entirely the point Yoram is making. Indeed, the response from Tablet feeds into his narrative that this internecine fight is likely to alienate undecided nationalists, and push them to the alt-right camp. Yoram would simply just allow these groups to exist to ensure that Jews keep a seat at the table. This was exactly the point he made at NatCon earlier this year. The key line was:
"Nobody ever said that to be a good natcon you have to love Israel. Nobody ever said that to be a good natcon you have to love Jews. Go take a look at our statement of principles. It's not a requirement."
And Yoram meant it. Indeed, his remarks presaged the entire Fuentes-Tucker-Roberts debacle. Like I said, Yoram deserves some credit for stating the issue so plainly.
Now, here comes my opinion. I think Yoram is so committed to the prospect of a successful nationalist movement in America and elsewhere that he is blinding himself to the real risks that Jews, in particular, face. He says we are not in 1930s Germany:
For example, most nationalist Republicans don't think America today is anything like 1930s Germany. They don't see any Nazi party in America poised on the threshold of victory.
On that point, we agree. The comparisons between Trump and Hitler are nauseating at this point. (I'm old enough to remember when George W. Bush was compared to Hitler.) But the Third Reich did not form overnight. Nor was Hitler the first to seek to destroy the Jews. Six thousand years of history teaches the same lesson again and again and again. Anti-semitism changes form and eventually leads to persecution, exclusion, and termination. We should not be so blind to think it cannot happen again. Yoram goes a step further, and asks what Mordechai and Esther, the heroes of the holiday of Purim, would do. I suppose Esther would have gone on Haman's podcast and baked him some hamantashen. As I wrote yesterday the main point of Never again is the second word: again.
Yoram might respond I am being too sensitive or paranoid. He might even say I am being counterproductive, because now the people who might have been inclined to listen to us will no longer do so. On this point, once again, I agree. Speaking out against the anti-semites on the right very well could alienate nationalists, who might become sympathetic to the anti-semites. This entire fight might seem foreign and counter-productive to people who do not really care about this issue. And there is a distinct risk of being excluded from the tent. I am well aware of this risk, and thought about it at some length before I resigned from Heritage. I am not so foolish to believe there is no specter of retaliation--if not now, at some point in the future. Indeed, the way this sort of payback usually work is that you never even find out about it. As the saying goes, revenge is a dish best served cold. (Those who keep charging me with auditioning should really rethink their arguments.)
If Jews are nudged from the conservative movement, where do we go? The Jewish people have been in a political wilderness before, and it will likely happen again. There is certainly no home on the political left, which has embraced the worst strands of anti-semitism and cultural Marxism. At present there is a home on the right, but that domicile may be fleeting.
At present, I think Vice President J.D. Vance is trying to stay out of the fray, one way or another. It was noted that his tweet about Holocaust Remembrance Day failed to mention Jews. At some point, the presumptive 2028 nominee will have to take a stand.
