U.S. Vice President JD Vance said in an interview Wednesday with Joe Rogan, the influential host of one of the world’s most watched podcasts, that while foreign countries often try to influence the American political system, what particularly troubled him in the current situation was that people inside the system were actively working to persuade others against him.
Vance pointed to the involvement of figures in the Israeli government who, he said, were conducting an influence campaign against him while using the services of Brad Parscale, who previously worked on Donald Trump’s campaign. According to the vice president, this was a coordinated influence operation intended to turn parts of the Republican Party against him. What angered him most, he said, was that the effort had succeeded in spreading a negative narrative among Republican voters.
Vance’s personal story is that of a man who built himself with his own hands. He came from Appalachia, grew up as the son of a single mother who struggled with alcohol addiction and was raised by his grandparents. He wrote about them in his bestselling memoir “Hillbilly Elegy,” which was later adapted into a popular Netflix film of the same name.
Despite his difficult background, Vance managed to attend Yale Law School. He later worked in the shadow of multibillionaire Peter Thiel and managed an investment fund for him.
It is worth remembering that before Donald Trump Jr., the president’s son and Vance’s close personal friend, chose him over the other candidates, Vance had spoken harshly against Trump and even described him as a bad and unfit candidate.
Although Vance was a young, first-term senator, he was ultimately chosen because he was seen as the clearest representative of the America First worldview.
The vice president promotes a policy of limited, or almost nonexistent, involvement in international affairs. His aim is to focus on what is happening inside the United States and redirect resources toward struggling regions such as Appalachia, enabling their residents to advance.
A leading voice for compromise with Iran
As part of that worldview, Vance was among the leading figures who favored compromise with Iran in order to avoid war.
Trump placed him in charge of managing relations with Iran. On the eve of the war in February, Vance tried to advance a framework that did not succeed. Later, during the second stage of the war, he managed relations with the Iranians, a process that led to the signing of a memorandum of understanding that was supposed to end the conflict.
Vance with hostage families
(Photo: The White House)
Vance is a convert to Catholicism. The combination of his religious commitment and his lack of interest in foreign involvement led him to head the faction in the administration that opposes the embrace Israel receives from Christian Zionists, an important bloc in the Republican Party.
Vance does not hold any exceptional emotional attachment to Israel based on religious considerations. Instead, he sanctifies nationalism and national interest. It is also important to note that the son of Tucker Carlson, an influential media figure who has become openly antisemitic over the past two years, previously worked for Vance.
During that period, Vance was frequently exposed to messages portraying Israel as a country that persecutes Christianity. This led him to view Israeli actions in terms that are deeply troubling to the Christian faith.
Christianity as a persecuted religion
When examining the situation, Israelis tend to forget that protecting Christianity as a persecuted religion is a supreme value for many people.
For the first time in the republic’s 250-year history, Trump acts from an almost messianic perception of himself as a defender of Christians around the world. He has even said that he ordered strikes against the Islamist terrorist organization Boko Haram because it persecuted Christians. At the same time, Israel keeps scoring spectacular own goals.
On one hand, there is talk of aspirations to expand into Lebanon, part of which is driven by messianic movements that want to settle on the Lebanese side of the border. On the other, there are serious incidents involving ultra-Orthodox Jews who spit at and harass Christian tourists in Jerusalem on a daily basis, as well as the recent physical assault of a nun by an ultra-Orthodox youth.
All of this makes it difficult for Christian Zionists to justify Israel when they see images of an IDF soldier smashing a statue of Jesus, a soldier climbing with military equipment on a statue of the Virgin Mary or a soldier carrying a map of the promised Land of Israel that includes Lebanon, while trying to explain that there is no intention to expel Christians.
Despite this, it is important to note that JD Vance was personally involved in the release of the hostages. The hostage families whom he received warmly, particularly the family of Edan Alexander, have testified to his personal commitment to securing their release.
Broadly speaking, Israelis have a tendency to throw out the baby with the bathwater and take offense at everything. That is not how international policy is managed, and it is not how a ship is navigated, particularly after Netanyahu governments gave up on the Democratic side over the past 20 years.
Israel must not reach a situation in which both the Republican candidate and the Democratic candidate want it to fail. It has a duty to find a path to JD Vance.
A friend who is a political science professor at an evangelical university estimated that as the election approaches, Vance will move away from the nationalist wing and toward the center, understanding that without the evangelical bloc he will not win the nomination.
Dr. Kobby Barda Photo: Tal GivoniBetting everything on one basket called Marco Rubio, while dismissing in advance the possibility that Vance may play a role or even replace the president under circumstances required by the Constitution, would be foolish and could critically damage Israel’s ability to function in the diplomatic arena.
The recommendation to the next government is to make every effort to repair relations both with the Democratic Party and with the vice president.
A good beginning would be to work with the hostage families, including the family of Edan Alexander, and focus on the points of agreement with Vance rather than on the dispute.
Dr. Kobby Barda is affiliated with the Multidisciplinary School at HIT and the Jewish People Policy Institute
First published: 17:33, 07.16.26