Rep. Elise Stefanik has positioned herself in the months since Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7 as a champion in the fight against antisemitism. After going viral for asking university presidents whether calling for genocide against Jewish students was against their codes of conduct last December (an exchange her office helpfully packaged), the Republican from New York was hailed even by some liberal Jews as an ally.

Since then, she has questioned more university presidents and leaders of public schools on antisemitism. Per Politico, she “raked in more than $7 million during the first quarter of the year, fueled by her support from prominent Jewish Republicans in the wake of her grilling of university presidents over campus antisemitism.” Last month, she went to Israel to address the Knesset Caucus for Jewish and Pro-Israel Students on Campuses Around the World, where she chastised U.S. President Joe Biden and praised former President Donald Trump, whose support for Israel she described as “historic.” On the same trip, she met with Israel’s President Isaac Herzog. Her political star is on the rise, too: Trump is reportedly considering her to be his running mate.

I would love to be able to write a piece detailing the ways in which this is the culmination of a career spent dedicated to Jewish safety, or a reflection of her deep concern for America’s religious minorities. Sadly, I cannot do that, as Stefanik has, for years now, consistently pushed and defended antisemitic rhetoric. This is to say that though she presents herself as a champion against antisemitism, in reality, Stefanik is spreading it.

To be clear: I am not saying Stefanik is an antisemite. I do not know, and do not care, what is in her heart and mind. I only know her words and deeds, which include boosting antisemitic conspiracy theories and smears. Presumably, given that she is a politician, she has done this because it serves her political ends.

Most egregious, to my mind, is her embrace of........

© Slate