American Jews: Jonathan Chait Wrong about Threats They Face

Jonathan Chait of New York magazine has discovered a troubling trend within the Republican Party, though he has “discovered” it only in the same sense that Christopher Columbus “discovered” America: The GOP establishment, having lost or abandoned its traditional gatekeeping role, has allowed some antisemites into its ranks and embraced some of the conspiratorial thinking that always comes with hatred of Jews.

Chait is not wrong about this, though he marshals an odd slate of evidence to support his argument. He begins with an anecdote about a recent Trump rally at which the leader of a group called the Patriot Freedom Project bemoaned that her nephew had been convicted of a crime related to his role in the rioting of January 6, 2021. It turns out that said nephew has said some unsavory things about Jews, which his aunt declined to mention in the course of her speech. Chait’s takeaway from this omission is that an antisemite “has become essentially a martyr figure championed by the Republican Party’s leader.” A stretch, to be sure, and Chait’s use of the story as his hook — as if it’s the paradigm of antisemitism run amok — is a bit suspicious.

About the Author

Tal Fortgang

Tal Fortgang is a legal policy fellow at the Manhattan Institute.

Featured Tags

Manage following

Israel

Antisemitism

Jonathan Chait of New York magazine has discovered a troubling trend within the Republican Party, though he has “discovered” it only in the same sense that Christopher Columbus “discovered” America: The GOP establishment, having lost or abandoned its traditional gatekeeping role, has allowed some antisemites into its ranks and embraced some of the conspiratorial thinking that always comes with hatred of Jews.

Chait is not wrong about this, though he marshals an odd slate of evidence to support his argument. He begins with an anecdote about a recent Trump rally at which the leader of a group called the Patriot Freedom Project bemoaned that her nephew had been convicted of a crime related to his role in the rioting of January 6, 2021. It turns out that said nephew has said some unsavory things about Jews, which his aunt declined to mention in the course of her speech. Chait’s takeaway from this omission is that an antisemite “has become essentially a martyr figure championed by the Republican Party’s leader.” A stretch, to be sure, and Chait’s use of the story as his hook — as if it’s the paradigm of antisemitism run amok — is a bit suspicious.