S3 E34. Is Israel an Ally or Working to Subvert American Democracy?

One week ago at the closing session of the Turning Point USA Conference in Tampa, Charlie Kirk moderated a debate between two conservative Americans with starkly different perspectives on the value of Israel as an ally of the U.S.A. Writer and commentator, Josh Hammer, spoke for the proposition that America and Israel are countries aligned in values and ideology. Dave Smith - a recently famous comedian and libertarian who has become a darling of the talk show circuit (Joe Rogan and Piers Morgan in particular) - represents the conservative isolationist camp. An “as a Jew” Jew, Dave opines on matters about which he has thin knowledge. His bottom line: Israel has nefariously influenced and taken control of American foreign policy. Domestic policy too, for that matter. Hammer, more grounded in knowledge and fact, explains that military support and alliances are necessary for a strong and principled America. And Charlie does a great job to manage the discussion. Some of the things that Dave says - and with confidence and pride - are astonishing. Like that America has no problem with Iran. And Iran has no problem with America. “I mean, geez”, he says, “Iran is a third world country and no threat to us”. For real. It’s a fascinating discussion. I learned a lot about this emerging and growing isolationist movement among conservative Americans - some of whom are turning sharply on Israel. It’s a fiery debate.

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Josh Hammer is the author of the new book, Israel and Civilization: The Fate of the Jewish Nation and the Destiny of the West. He is the senior editor-at-large of Newsweek, a syndicated columnist, and a fellow with the Edmund Burke Foundation and the Palm Beach Freedom Institute. He also hosts The Josh Hammer Show, a Newsweek podcast and syndicated radio show. A frequent pundit and essayist on political, legal, and cultural issues, Josh is a constitutional attorney by training and additionally serves as senior counsel for the Article III Project.

Josh has been published by the Los Angeles Times, the New York Post, The Telegraph, the Daily Mail, U.S. News & World Report, National Review, First Things, National Affairs, American Affairs, the Claremont Review of Books, The New Criterion, City Journal, Public Discourse, Tablet Magazine, Deseret Magazine, The Spectator, Fortune, Fox Business, The Times of Israel, The Forward, and the Jewish Journal. His legal scholarship has been published by the Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy and the University of St. Thomas Law Journal. Josh is a college campus speaker through Young America's Foundation and the Intercollegiate Studies Institute, and a law school campus speaker through the Federalist Society.

Josh graduated from Duke University, where he majored in economics, and from the University of Chicago Law School. He lives in Florida with his wife and daughter, and he also remains an active member of the State Bar of Texas.

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