Vance's 4-Point Loss Theory Sparks Backlash Among Pro-Israel Conservatives

Pro-Israel conservatives issued a sharp rebuke of Vice President JD Vance on Thursday after he attributed the Republican Party's recent midterm losses to the United States' relationship with Israel.

Vance outlined four specific reasons for the electoral defeat during remarks delivered on Wednesday. He cited an unnamed pollster and listed the top demands of voters who abandoned the GOP. The first was to end the war in Iran. The second was to focus on the cost of living and inflation. The third was to put America first. The fourth was to change the relationship with Israel.

Vance stated that the real reason for the loss was obvious to almost everyone. He presented these four points as the leading drivers behind the shift in voter sentiment.

Eric Levine, a board member of the Republican Jewish Coalition, challenged the validity of Vance's polling citation. Levine told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency that he did not recall seeing a single exit poll in which any voter identified changing the relationship with Israel as a factor in their voting decision. He added that the claim made him wonder why the vice president would make such a statement.

Sid Rosenberg, a conservative radio host and friend of President Donald Trump, blamed Vance's constant calls for a ceasefire for the persistence of the conflict with Iran. Rosenberg wrote on X that Vance is a disloyal and agenda-driven problem for the party moving forward. He urged Trump to replace Vance as the chief Iran negotiator with Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Rosenberg, who is a favorite of Jewish conservatives for the 2028 Republican presidential nomination, has long faulted Vance for not being strong enough on Israel.

Rosenberg also demanded that Vance distance himself from right-wing commentator Tucker Carlson. Carlson condemns US military aid to Israel and has been accused of amplifying antisemitic tropes. In September, Rosenberg met with Vance at the White House as the vice president made overtures to the Jewish community following a series of controversial remarks. Rosenberg reported at the time that he and Vance hit it off and would likely hold many more meetings about substantial things. He noted that Vance was willing to listen and did not hate Israel or the Jewish people.

Jonathan Greenberg, director for combating antisemitism at Defending Education, called Vance's remarks nonsense. Greenberg, a former staffer for the American Israel Public Affairs Committee and a 2012 Republican candidate for state office in Illinois, is now unaffiliated. He described the current geopolitical situation as an Islamist-communist alliance that has infiltrated schools and teaches children to hate America. He argued that this is the same alliance Israel is fighting. Greenberg said the idea of taking an ally in that fight and feeding them to the same ogre that is coming after the United States makes no sense. He concluded that the vice president was wrong.

CUFI Action Fund, a nonprofit branch of the pro-Israel advocacy group Christians United for Israel, issued a statement describing Vance as clearly, demonstrably, and unambiguously wrong. The organization noted that in Vance's list of top four reasons for the Republican loss, Jews were effectively blamed twice. The statement referred to this as a dog whistle, pointing to Vance's criticism of both Israel and the war in Iran.

The organization argued that the war should have been over months ago. It stated that if the vice president wants someone to blame for the conflict's duration, he needs only look in the mirror. This alludes to the argument that Vance's proposed concessions to Iran helped drag out the war instead of ending it. CUFI Action Fund labeled the Vance-Carlson movement as woke rightism, describing it as loud as its candidates are weak.