Trump’s pick for vice president, Sen. J.D. Vance, arrives on the first day of the Republican National Convention, July 15. Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

Columnist Dan Perry July 16, 2024

J.D. Vance’s favorite political theorist is an Israeli Jew. 

In an interview with Jewish Insider in 2021, the newly anointed vice-presidential pick of former President Donald Trump enthusiastically cited his admiration for Yoram Hazony, who has been instrumental in nudging the Jewish state toward illiberalism and is busily resurrecting a movement called “national conservatism.”

“He’s sort of a conservative Jew who’s written about what Judaism means for national politics, and not national politics meaning specifically this nation — he lives in Israel — but just what it means to be a sort of nationalist and a patriot in the context of the Hebrew and Christian traditions,” Vance said. “So Yoram’s been quite influential to me.”

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The broader ethos of the “national conservatism” movement of which Hazony is a leader opposes modernity, liberalism and socialism. It calls for replacing the current elite with a new aristocracy via populism, and, most importantly, reintegrating church and state. It is a religious, conservative, law-and-order cornucopia that would delight the MAGA crowd, and should set off alarm bells for American Jews.

Hazony’s recent books, 2018’s The Virtue of Nationalism and 2022’s Conservatism: A Rediscovery attack globalization and lay out a vision for a world of independent, self-governing nation-states where religion is deeply enmeshed in political life.  

Hazony views globalization as a force that undermines sovereignty by imposing a homogenous culture, and argues for aworld of strong independent nations instead of international bodies and globalist agendas. He believes cultural and religious traditions provide both a moral foundation and a sense of identity, and criticizes liberalism for its emphasis on the individual, which he claims leads to a fragmented society. 

The Hazony worldview would have quite specific implications for the United States should the Trump-Vance ticket succeed.

• • Immigration: Hazony’s writings emphasize the importance of strong national borders but at the same time, influenced by libertarian thought, he advocates for a limited government with the exception of a robust defense and law enforcement. Vance may then advocate for stricter immigration controls, emphasizing the need to protect American jobs, culture and security. 

• • The culture wars: Vance has already projected a strong commitment to preserving “traditional” American values, the Christian religion and a resistance of progressive cultural shifts. This  translates into opposition to gay marriage, abortion rights and any LGBTQ+ rights, in particular for trans people, all of which Vance has expressed. Vance might also support education reforms that emphasize American patriotism, the inclusion of religious education in public school curriculums and policies that protect religious institutions from government interference. 

• • America First: Like Hazony, Vance might be skeptical of international institutions and agreements that he perceives as infringing on U.S sovereignty. This could mean a far more isolationist foreign policy, reduced involvement in international organizations, and possible withdrawal from global treaties — up to and including NATO. 

• Libertarianism: Inspired by Hazony, Vance would likely back deregulation and lower taxes, but also endorse protectionist measures to safeguard American industries from foreign competition, reflecting a blend of economic nationalism. This could involve tariffs on imported goods, such as Trump’s muted 60% tax on Chinese imports, as well as policies aimed at reducing the influence of multinational corporations on the American economy.

It is unclear whether Trump would actually listen much to Vance; many believe Trump chose the 39-year-old because he expects him to be a yes-man. Yet Vance’s admiration for Hazony’s ideas thus offers a possible glimpse into one version of the American future, and one in which such a United States would be aligned with an increasingly illiberal Israel. 

Along with the Kohelet Policy Forum, a conservative, right-wing Israeli think tank, Hazony is seen as a godfather of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s efforts to drastically curtail the power of the independent judiciary (which was derailed, for now, by the war with Hamas).

Speaking at the Israeli Conservatism Conference in 2019, where the idea to override the judicial checks and balances of Israel’s Supreme Court was robustly articulated, Hazony said: “Who we are deep down does not come from liberalism … We did not come [to Israel] to be another left-wing liberal enlightened group of people.”

For American Jews, Vance’s embrace of Hazony’s illiberal ideas could present a dangerous turn. While many Jews are drifting toward the populist right for fear of progressive ideologies and of the left’s embrace of Islamic grievance narratives against Israel, this alliance could be a double-edged sword. As nationalism and nativist sentiments rise, the focus of exclusionary policies can shift, and a xenophobic movement could easily turn on the Jews. 

On one hand, it is somehow pleasing — in an era typified by impatience, clickbait and spin — to see a politician wrestling with deep philosophical ideas. On the other, this particular case could prove to be a xenophobe’s delight.

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