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Some conservatives are piling on right-wing commentator Charlie Kirk after his organization, Turning Point USA, found itself embroiled in accusations of antisemitism.
TPUSA contributor Lauren Chen promoted white nationalist Nick Fuentes' thoughts on the Israel-Hamas war, calling his take on the conflict "balanced and rational." In the same video, Fuentes said the war could have strategic advantages for the United States because it could "rally international support against" Israel, which he accused of wielding nefarious influence over the world (an obvious antisemitic trope).
And earlier this month, a woman who identified herself as a TPUSA "rep" on social media sparked backlash over antisemitic comments she made online about Jewish, conservative commentator Ben Shapiro related to the Israel-Hamas war. The woman accused Shapiro of being a "Jesus hating" shill, echoing Christian nationalist rhetoric alleging Jews killed Jesus Christ. The tirades earned condemnation from conservatives online, including from conservative commentator Erik Erickson and conservative writer Ben Domenech.
(TPUSA has denied any ties between the so-called rep and the organization.)
"If Charlie Kirk remains the head of TPUSA, the right has an anti-Semite problem that will follow them into the coming elections," Domenech said in a post.
TPUSA leadership, including Kirk, have acknowledged and tried to pour cold water on the controversies in their own ranks. But Kirk has stoked platformed antisemitic views amid the war, as well. Last week, he invited Steven Sailer, an extremist known for using racist and antisemitic tropes, on his podcast. He’s also suggested Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu may have known about the Hamas attack in advance and let it happen anyway, a claim supported by extremists -- like conservative agitator Stew Peters -- known to spread antisemitic conspiracy theories.
The claim about Netanyahu was condemned by conservatives online, too.
The backlash suggests some conservatives have come to believe Kirk and TPUSA do more harm to the Republican Party than good. After all, the organization's leaders have struggled to fulfill their vow to attract droves of young people to the conservative movement. These days, it seems TPUSA is little more than a magnet for controversy. The group's extremism was a top story last weekend for reasons unrelated to the Israel-Hamas war, too. On Saturday, the president of Arizona State University, which isn’t far from TPUSA headquarters, condemned members of a video crew from the organization as “cowards” after surveillance footage allegedly showed them following and harassing a queer instructor who the members baselessly accused of wanting to "push sodomy to young people." (TPUSA has accused the instructor of attacking first.)
It sure looks like TPUSA is taking on water as far as its public opinion is concerned. An Associated Press report last week that Kirk and his allies have made oodles of money off their ties to the organization already raised some eyebrows among conservatives like Erickson, who accused the organization of grifting.
Could it be that Republicans are finally recognizing the richly financed, Trump-loving TPUSA has little to show electorally for the millions of dollars it — and its leadership — have received from followers? It certainly seems so.
None of these things mean Republican rubes will stop forking over their money to Turning Point USA. But the controversies are piling up, and people are taking note, which suggests there are cracks forming in TPUSA’s facade.