The Dictatorship
How anti-Israel rhetoric contributes to antisemitism and real-world violence
On Sunday, hundreds of Australian Jews gathered, as Jews have done for millennia, to light the Menorah on the first night of Hanukkah. At the same time, two armed men engaged in another historic custom: targeting Jews because they are Jews. Fifteen people were killed in the massacre at Bondi Beach, including a 10-year-old girl and an 87-year-old Holocaust survivor.
For Australia’s small but vibrant Jewish communities, this weekend’s tragedy was horrifying but, on some level, hardly surprising. Since the massacre of more than 1,000 Israelis on Oct. 7, 2023, antisemitic incidents in Australia have increased fivefold. Indeed, only two days after the worst mass murder of Jews since the Holocaust, a demonstration outside the world-famous Sydney Opera House led to chants of “F— the Jews.”
Since then, the litany of antisemitic incidents in the land Down Under will be all too familiar to Diaspora Jewish communities around the world.
For Australia’s small but vibrant Jewish communities, this weekend’s tragedy was horrifying but hardly surprising.
A synagogue was burned to the ground. Kosher restaurants were vandalized. Protests were launched at Jewish restaurants. A Jewish educational institution was spray-painted with antisemitic epithets, and swastikas showed up on the walls of local synagogues. That this unending cycle of intimidation, threats and provocation would eventually lead to violence should be a surprise to no one.
Indeed, why in the two years since the worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust are Jewish communities in New York City, ManchesterLondonTorontoLos Angeles and Amsterdam under siege?
First, for more than two years, many anti-Israel activists have preached a message of “globalize the intifada” or “intifada revolution” and “from the river to the seaPalestine will be free” — a statement that negates the existence of Israel. They’ve spoken of a “global struggle against Zionism,” be it in Israel or New York or Sydney.
Israel’s detractors will argue that such rhetoric is not antisemitism or even inflammatory. They will parse their language and claim that calls for an intifada are merely a demand that opposition to Israel should be globalized and that Western countries must end their support for Israel.
But the second intifada in Israel was a suicide bombing campaign that directly targeted Israeli civilians. Restaurants and nightclubs were attacked. A Passover Seder was targeted. Buses were destroyed. Thousands were killed and maimed.
Raising the specter of intifada and then arguing that such words do not provide a permission structure to those intent on violence is willful blindness.
The events at Bondi Beach were merely a logical extension of this inflammatory rhetoric — and as this language becomes normalized, the threats to Jews everywhere only increase.
Second, many pro-Palestine activists simply make no distinction between Israeli Jews waging war in Gaza and Jews in Diaspora communities around the world. For them, if you’re a Zionist (and the overwhelming majority of Jews identify as such), you are as guilty as the Israel Defense Force soldiers fighting in Gaza.
It’s why pro-Palestinian activists recently gathered outside a synagogue in New York’s Upper East Side, because of an event with an Israeli organization called Nefesh B’Nefesh that provides information to Jews interested in moving to Israel. Protesters claimed that the event was aimed at encouraging Jews to move to West Bank settlements, a claim that Nefesh B’Nefesh denies. But even if the protesters were correct, how does that justify chants such as “From New York to Gaza, globalize the intifada,” “Take another settler out” or “We need to make them scared”? And the city’s newly elected mayor, Zohran Mamdani, who has refused to condemn the term “globalize the intifada,” took great care to equally blame both those outside shouting antisemitic slogans and threatening congregants and those inside the synagogue.
Raising the specter of intifada and then arguing that such words do not provide a permission structure to those intent on violence is willful blindness.
It’s why any Jew who refuses to condemn Israel or deny their religious, cultural or tribal connection to the Jewish State will inevitably, at some point, be branded a supporter of genocide (and for those who don’t believe me, I invite them to check out my Twitter feed after this piece is published).
Whatever one’s view is on the war in Gaza, simply because one is Jewish, simply because one is a Zionist and simply because one feels a connection to Israel, does not make one culpable for Israel’s actions. But for many of the most radical voices in the pro-Palestinian activist community, a Jew believing that Jews should have the same right to self-determination as any other ethnic group is a scarlet letter.
It’s why antisemitic incidents have not just increased in Australia but practically everywhere Jews live. And it’s why Diaspora Jews feel increasingly under siege.
One might expect sympathy over this calamitous turn of events — and the vulnerability of minority Jewish communities — but instead, the opposite is true.
Indeed, for months Australia’s Jewish community warned about the increase in antisemitic incidents and potential for violence. They beseeched the government to take the issue more seriously. But to no avail.
Are American Jews at a similar inflection point? Polls routinely show that an overwhelming majority of American Jews feel less safe, particularly as antisemitic incidents continue to rise. Earlier this week, a Jewish man was allegedy attacked by two men on a crowded New York subwayshouting “F*** the Jews.” Antisemitic incidents in the city have dramatically increased since Oct. 7. But there are more subtle forms of antisemitism from the left that are growing increasingly mainstream.
Earlier this fall, the progressive hosts of “Pod Save America” gathered in Washington for their annual conference and included Hasan Piker as a speaker. Piker has, over the past two yearsroutinely attacked Orthodox Jews as “inbred,” denied that Israelis were sexually assaulted on Oct. 7 and suggested Zionism was synonymous with Nazism. If Piker had made similar derogatory comments about other members of a minority group or excused terrorism by those who target non-Israelis, it’s impossible to imagine a liberal-leaning group platforming him. But as Jews have learned since Oct. 7, the rules for them are different.
After the shooting at Bondi Beach, both Democratic and Republican politicians quickly condemned the tragedy and piously declared that antisemitism is bad and has no place in our society. These declarations have become the Jewish equivalent of “thoughts and prayers” after the latest mass shooting.
They are a tool for ritualistically condemning antisemitism without actually confronting the anti-Jewish hatred that increasingly finds a home within each political party and is particularly potent among young people.
Without action, without direct condemnation and the ostracizing of those who traffic in antisemitism — and without a recognition that a good amount of anti-Israeli rhetoric has morphed into anti-Jewish hatred — the bloodshed at Bondi Beach will be repeated. But next time, it could be much closer to home.
Michael Cohen is an BLN columnist. He is also the publisher of the newsletter Truth and Consequences and hosts the weekly podcast That ‘70s Movie Podcast.
FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — Eight protesters accused by the Justice Department of having ties to antifawere sentenced Tuesday to decades in federal prison over a shooting outside a Texas immigration detention center that wounded a police officer. Prosecutors have called the shooting an act of terrorism.
One of the defendants, a former U.S. Marine Corps reservist convicted of opening fire during the July 4 demonstration outside the Prairieland Detention Center near Dallas, was sentenced to 100 years in prison, the maximum punishment.
The lengthy sentences were condemned by family members and supporters in a news conference outside the federal courthouse in Fort Worth. Hope Song, whose son Benjamin Songreceived the heftiest sentence, disputed prosecutors’ claims that her son shot the officer and said he didn’t intend to hurt anyone.
U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor, one of two judges overseeing the proceedings, said what happened wasn’t a protest but “an assault on democracy.”
“The need to deter this type of conduct is high,” O’Connor said.
The seven other protesters received prison terms ranging from 30 to 70 years.
Prosecutors said the eight are members of antifa, a decentralized anti-fascist organization and a targetof the Trump administration. Antifa is not a single organization but rather an umbrella term for far-left militant groups that confront or resist neo-Nazis and white supremacists at demonstrations.
President Donald Trump last fall signed an executive order designating antifa a domestic terrorist organization, even though there is no domestic equivalent to the State Department’s list of foreign terror organizations.
The defendants deny any affiliation with antifa and maintain they attended the demonstration in support of detained immigrants.
Prosecutor Frank Gatto urged the judge to impose stiff penalties.
“People with that kind of extremist beliefs need extra time in prison,” Gatto said. “They believe violence is justified.”
Phillip Hayes, Song’s attorney, said outside the courthouse that he takes issue with the idea that the protesters are extremists.
“This is a bunch of kids and young adults who really have a really big heart and really wanted their voice to be heard,” Hayes said. “It was never intended that anybody get hurt. It was never intended that any shots would be fired.”
Prosecutors said in court that Song had yelled “get to the rifles” and opened fire, striking a police officer who had just pulled up to the center.
Hayes argued that Song’s shots were “suppressive fire” and that a ricochet bullet hit the officer after he arrived on the scene and “aggressively” pulled out his firearm. He said his client will appeal the 100-year sentence.
“Song, aside from this day, has had an impeccable life. A former Marine. A good student,” Hayes said. “He had a lot of good qualities that were just ignored. The judge went ahead and gave as much as he could.”
Other defendants and their family members pleaded for leniency in court.
Autumn Hill said the gathering “seemed more like a party to me than anything else” and that she and others who participated “didn’t expect or want any violence or destruction of property to occur.”
Amber Lowrey told the judge that her sister, Savanna Batten, is a compassionate person with dreams of opening a bakery. She said Batten’s activism started with animal rights and evolved into anti-war and human rights advocacy.
“She’s the best person I know,” Lowrey said.
Hill and Batten both received 50-year sentences.
Other defendants previously pleaded guilty to providing material support to terrorists rather than take their case to trial.
Critics warn the case could have a wide-reaching impact on protests given that organizations operating within the U.S. are supposed to be protected by First Amendment free-speech rights.
Last week, federal prosecutors charged 15 peoplewith impeding the Trump administration’s immigration crackdownin Minnesota. They claimed the demonstrators were members of antifa who conspired against the federal government to block arrests and deportations by setting up blockades around government buildings and throwing chunks of ice at federal vehicles, among other actions.
The Dictatorship
Tulsi Gabbard and Senate GOP face difficult new questions over influence of her ‘guru’
About a month into Donald Trump’s second term, Senate Republicans weighed whether to confirm one of the president’s worst nominees. Indeed, the list of reasons to reject Tulsi Gabbard’s nomination for director of national intelligence was not short.
The former congresswoman lacked the requisite experience in intelligence matters. She had an indefensible habit of echoing Russian propaganda. She struggled to explain her record of defending Bashar al-Assad’s Syrian regime. Senators heard from former national security officials who issued unsubtle warnings about elevating Gabbard to an important and influential position.
But in case that weren’t quite enough, let’s also not overlook the fact that Gabbard was a member of a secretive Hare Krishna offshoot religious sect that is considered by many of its former members to be an abusive cult.
Gabbard, who wrapped up her tenure as DNI last week, has long insisted that any suggestion that she was somehow enthralled to or controlled by this sect or its leader, whom she has referred to as her “guru,” is just bigotry against her faith.
But it’s against this backdrop that The Washington Post obtained hundreds of secret memos prepared for Gabbard during her congressional tenure, which were put together by members of the alleged cult and which included thousands of pages of specific directives to her on policy and politics.
After careful analysis of thousands of these documents, which have not been independently verified by MS NOW, the Post determined that they likely came from Gabbard’s secretive guru, a man named Chris Butler.
The memos, starting in 2013, when the Hawaiian first arrived on Capitol Hill, reflect a dynamic in which Gabbard didn’t just take direction from the materials, but essentially took dictation from the alleged cult leader: Memos told Gabbard what she should do as a member of Congress, and she often did exactly that, sometimes word for word.
The Post’s Jon Swaine spent months trying to get Gabbard to respond to questions, but to no avail. Her spokeswoman reportedly encouraged Swaine to drop the story, saying, “I cannot imagine WaPo’s readers would be interested in yet another uncredible, bigoted attack on the DNI’s faith.”
On May 20, Swaine nevertheless alerted the DNI and top members of her staff to the fact that the Post was prepared to publish his reporting anyway on her association with Butler.
On May 22, Fox News reported that Gabbard was leaving the administration, ostensibly because of a health issue involving her husband.
This week, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer spoke on the Senate floor and commented on the reporting:
There are reports that Tulsi Gabbard was receiving instructions from a so-called guru and repeating them word for word. That ought to concern all of us if it’s true. No one knows who this guru really is, what his connections are, and where the instructions came from. … We need answers.
The New York Democrat’s comments made sense, though it’s worth considering who, exactly, “we need answers” from.
It stands to reason, for example, that Gabbard has some explaining to do, but I’m also interested in the answers from those who elevated her to an influential intelligence office in the first place.
In February 2025, confronted with an avalanche of reasons to reject Gabbard’s nomination, 52 Senate Republicans — every GOP member except Kentucky’s Mitch McConnell — shrugged off every red flag and voted to confirm her as the nation’s DNI, including so-called “moderates” such as Maine’s Susan Collins and Alaska’s Lisa Murkowski.
The question for these 52 senators seems obvious: Do you regret that confirmation vote and now recognize it as a mistake? Or do you still think it was a good idea to put Gabbard in this influential intelligence position?
Steve Benen is a producer for “The Rachel Maddow Show,” the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He’s also the bestselling author of “Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans’ War on the Recent Past.”
In the lead-up to the Iran war, President Donald Trump dismissed the possibility that Tehran would close the Strait of Hormuz despite warnings from his top military adviser, authors of a new book told MS NOW’s Lawrence O’Donnell on Monday.
In their first televised interview about “Regime Change: Inside the Imperial Presidency of Donald Trump,” New York Times reporters Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan said Trump also disregarded warnings from Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, about the potential effects on American weaponry and about casualties.
The initial closure of the strait, a narrow passageway through which a fifth of the world’s oil passes, led to a spike in gas and oil prices. According to Swan, Trump thought Iran would have limited time to take action because the war would be over quickly — a claim he has made repeatedly during the nearly four-month-long war.
“He felt that this regime was a paper tiger, that this was going to be a fast war,” Swan said on “The Last Word.” “He just said he felt that that was going to be the case, that they were going to collapse very quickly.”
“It’s a form of magical thinking, actually, is what it all boils down to,” he added.
The revelation is just one of several in the book — which is based on more than 1,000 interviews — that illustrate how Trump repeatedly bases geopolitical decisions on his own whims rather than experts’ assessments.
Another example of such thinking was when Trump floated a plan to expel 2 million Palestinians from Gaza so he could turn it into the “Riviera of the Middle East.” Haberman and Swan wrote in the book that one senior aide characterized the idea as “legitimately nutso … but very on-brand.”
Haberman also spoke about “how scared” people were inside the White House ahead of last year’s so-called Liberation Daywhen Trump unveiled sweeping global tariffs. (The Supreme Court struck down those tariffs in February.)
“They were scared at how close the bond markets came to just completely melting down seven days later, which was finally what got him [Trump] off of it, but again, it was the willingness to just go straight to the brink” that was jarring, Haberman said.
Despite such fear among Trump’s staff, Haberman added, the White House makes up “a group of people who genuinely want to see him succeed.”
Julianne McShane is a breaking news reporter for MS NOW who also covers the politics of abortion and reproductive rights. You can send her tips from a non-work device on Signal at jmcshane.19 or follow her on X or Bluesky.
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