The Progressive American

The Israel-Hamas War Doesn’t Justify Islamophobia or Antisemitism: Act Like It

December 27, 2023

It is one thing to be passionate about the ongoing violence, but prejudice is never acceptable.

Conor J. Kelly

Photo by youssef elbelghiti on Pexels.com

Over the last several months, there has been much that has been said about the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. Casualties have risen significantly in the Gaza Strip since Israel began its military operation against Hamas, with an estimated 20,000 dead, according to the Gazan Health Ministry. With the heavy death toll in Gaza and the gruesome reality of Hamas’ attack on October 7th, it is unsurprising and perhaps even inevitable that anger has spread. Sadly, that anger has been misused and, in some cases, has led to openly prejudiced actions against both Muslims and Jewish people across the world.

Prejudiced Violence and Rhetoric can’t be Ignored

No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, it should go without saying that using the current crisis in Israel and Palestine to attack Muslims or Jewish people is completely and utterly unacceptable. Already, we have seen incidents of violence against both Muslims and Jewish people, as well as people celebrating the deaths of 1,400 Israeli civilians on October 7th.

Edit: A previous version of this article pointed to an incident involving an Israeli restaurant in Philadelphia that faced protests from pro-Palestinian activists as an example of antisemitism and quoted a White House statement condemning the protests. However, Zach Gittrich of Agitation Rising noted that the protests were likely in response to censorship of pro-Palestinian employees and alleged funding provided to the IDF. As such, I have removed that section to avoid making false comparisons. I apologize for the error.

In another incident in Sydney, Australia, a group of pro-Palestinian protesters were heard shouting “Gas the Jews,” resulting in organizers of the protest kicking the antisemitic protesters out of the rally.

In a statement addressing the incident on social media, the organizers of the rally rightfully denounced the bigoted statements, saying, ” We are an anti-racist and anti-colonial movement, and we refuse to fight racism with racism…If you are an antisemite, you are not welcome at our rallies and are not a part of our movement. As we did today, we will ask you to leave, and we will continue to do this.”

Others, by contrast, have gone beyond the realm of vile rhetoric and have gone so far as to murder their perceived enemies. In my home state of Illinois, six-year-old Palestinian-American Wadea Al-Fayoume was murdered in cold blood by Joseph Czuba, with police noting that the attack was likely tied to Czuba’s alleged hatred of Muslims and Palestinians. Czuba plead not guilty.

Nor was it the last time that anti-Palestinian sentiment has devolved into open violence. In late November, three Palestinians were shot in Vermont while they were speaking Arabic and wearing keffiyehs, a traditional Arabic headdress. The police noted that it was likely a hate crime.

Jewish Americans have also seen violence and harassment, with synagogues and Jewish homes being vandalized across the United States. Rahm Emanuel’s home was spray painted with the word “Nazis,” seemingly comparing Emanuel’s Jewish heritage to genocidal statecraft. Emanuel serves not only as a symbolic target for hate because of his Jewish heritage but also because of his role as a leader both as a former Mayor of Chicago and as a contributor to both the Obama and Biden administrations, signifying a clear view that the perpetrator of the vandalism likely held some view of Jewish control in government.

Such rhetoric is extremely dangerous and has led to an increase in an already dangerous trend of antisemitism. In October, antisemitic hate crimes in LA increased by 140 percent, a disturbing record. This trend was so disturbing that Homeland Security Secretary Mayorkas warned that the rise in antisemitism since October 7th was not stopping anytime soon and further warned that anti-Muslim bigotry was also rising with little sign of stopping.

“In the days and weeks since, we have responded to an increase in threats against Jewish, Muslim, and Arab-American communities and institutions across our country…Hate directed at Jewish students, communities, and institutions add to a preexisting increase in the level of antisemitism in the United States and around the world.”
Homeland Secretary Mayorkas, 2023.

Unacceptable Hatred and Rhetoric Helps Nobody

The continuing spread of prejudicial violence, hatred, and harassment, while arguably an inevitable result of an ongoing war with ethnic implications, the reality is that the prejudicial sentiment that has risen out of the Israel-Hamas War is simply unacceptable. No reasonable person should make excuses for the abovementioned incidents, nor should they expect anyone to take their positions seriously if they engage in such rhetoric.

It is one thing to worry about the well-being of Palestinian and Israeli civilians. It is entirely different to attempt to seek vigilante justice against innocent people who are completely disconnected from the decisions of various leaders. Whether those leaders are non-state actors like Hamas or state actors like the Netanyahu administration.

Harassing Jewish people and vandalizing their homes doesn’t bring back the thousands of Palestinian dead or secure a Palestinian state. Nor does shooting three Palestinian students in any way reduce antisemitism or remove the suffering of Israeli family members who lost their loved ones on October 7th to Hamas’ attacks. It only increases the pain and suffering of everyday people who have to live with the consequences of a bigoted person’s actions.

Suppose the objective is to end the horrific violence in Gaza. In that case, we must ensure that any movement dedicated to that endeavor can protect itself from those who would use genuine grievances to justify hatred and cruelty. What is happening in Gaza is a humanitarian crisis, but we don’t have to spread the suffering. We have to end it.
George Santos Expelled: Where We Go From Here

December 3, 2023

The deceptive Republican is finally gone.

By U.S. House Office of Photography – https://santos.house.gov/sites/evo-subsites/santos.house.gov/files/evo-media-image/rep_santos_george_official.jpg, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=127344979

After a long and frustrating waiting period, George Santos, the former Congressman for New York’s 3rd Congressional district, has been expelled from the House of Representatives. The expulsion, a reaction to a litany of lies, ethical failures, and alleged criminal acts, is historic as Santos became the sixth person expelled from the House of Representatives. The expulsion, however, is likely not the end of this alleged con man’s presence in the public eye, and it certainly won’t be the last time GOP complicity will come under fire.

TURNING A BLIND EYE

While Santos’s year-long spree of deception and downright absurdity has been amusing, to say the least, it is worth reiterating that numerous Republicans stood behind his campaign in the 2022 election, with Congresswoman Elise Stefanik being an early supporter, going so far as to help him raise an estimated $100,000. Even as some Republicans began to raise alarms, Santos pushed on, and leadership failed to push him to drop out of the race.

In a January piece by The New York Times’s Nicholas Fandos, that Republican leadership:

Interviews with more than two dozen associates, adversaries and donors, as well as contemporaneous communications and other documents reviewed by The Times, show that Mr. Santos inspired no shortage of suspicion during his 2022 campaign, including in the upper echelons of his own party.

Well-connected supporters suspected him of lying and demanded to see his résumé. Another former campaign vendor warned a state party official about what he believed were questionable business practices. And the head of the main House Republican super PAC told some lawmakers and donors that he believed Mr. Santos’s story did not add up.

But in each case, rather than denounce Mr. Santos publicly, the Republicans looked the other way. They neglected to get the attention of more powerful leaders or to piece together shards of doubt about him, and allowed him to run unopposed in the 2022 primary. Some assumed that Mr. Santos’s falsehoods were garden variety political embellishments; others thought Democrats would do their dirty work for them and Mr. Santos would be exposed in the heat of a general election campaign.
Nicholas Fandos, “Santos’s Lies Were Known to Some Well-Connected Republicans,” The New York Times, January 13, 2023, sec. New York, https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/13/nyregion/george-santos-republicans-lies.html.

The fact that Santos was never pushed out from the onset of his campaign is unacceptable. While many have focused on Santos himself as the source of much of the problem, a position that is fairly easy to hold, Santos couldn’t have gotten where he did without the silence of GOP operatives.

The fact that several people within the campaign knew about Santos’ lies about his career and history and didn’t publicly denounce it means that the people he was trying to represent had no means to know about the man they were considering for public office. Whether it was lying about his mother dying on 9/11 or his claims that he worked for Goldman Sachs, Santos was hiding his corrupt nature from the people, and GOP operatives let him do it, and now they may have to pay for it.

GOP Allies Exposed? Or Empty Threats?

While Santos is no longer in power, he hasn’t shown any sign of remorse or any willingness to go peacefully. As of December 3rd, Santos has made several posts explicitly accusing several members of Congress. In one post, Santos accused New York Congressman Brandon Williams of drunkenly attacking two former staffers and claimed that there would be an ethics complaint filed against Williams along with potential criminal charges.

Two days prior, Williams was shown accosting a former campaign manager of his, saying, “You f*** with my family, I will end every relationship you have. Every single friend.” While a statement by Williams’s office stated that the former manager made inappropriate comments about Williams’s family, it is unclear how accurate that is.

Still, the fact that Santos is increasingly willing to call out his former colleagues could mean that dirtier elements of the House GOP could come under scrutiny. During the debate over Santos’ expulsion, Santos accused Rep. Max Miller (R-Ohio) of being a woman beater, referencing accusations that came from Former White House Secretary Stephanie Grisham.

Though Grisham didn’t name Miller in her book where she outlined the accusations, once the accusations were out, Miller sued her for defamation, effectively confirming he was the target. Where that will go remains unclear, but the fact that the accusation was made should concern House GOP leadership.

Of course, there is a risk of giving Santos too much credit here. He is, after all, a brazen liar of the most ridiculous degree. His conduct suggests he has no principles of any kind and that he is beyond redemption or remorse.

It is possible, and even likely, that he is making accusations to hide from his malfeasance. I wouldn’t expect anything less from him at this point. That said, considering the party that put him into power and how they have conducted themselves over the last year and a half, I wouldn’t put it past the House GOP to have inadvertently given Santos dirt on some of their members. If that is the case, then the House GOP is in big trouble, and it could further tarnish its already sordid reputation. We will have to wait and see.
Elon Musk Double Downs on Antisemitic Tweet

December 3, 2023

After previously endorsing an antisemitic conspiracy theory, Elon told advertisers to “Go f**k” themselves and doubled down in a weak apology.

U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. — Tesla Inc. Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk speaks with Lt. Gen. Richard Clark, Superintendent of the U.S. Air Force Academy, during the Ira C. Eaker Distinguished Speaker Presentation in the Academy’s Arnold Hall on April 7, 2022 in Colorado Springs, Colo. (U.S. Air Force photo by Trevor cokley).

In yet another example of his recklessness, Elon Musk has once again doubled down on a poorly thought-out and prejudiced position that inevitably leads to a backlash. In an interview with The New York Times reporter Andrew Sorkin, Musk, among other things, lashed out at advertisers leaving his site and apologized for supporting a previously antisemitic post, only to double down on the themes of said post. The response to the interview with Musk, though focused on his vulgarity, indicates his complete disregard for holding himself accountable for his rhetoric.

As many of my readers will know, I have little sympathy for Elon’s supposed appeals to free speech, especially regarding his approach to regulating Twitter (I won’t call it X), resulting in left-wing journalists being banned. But even more so when it comes to his endorsing a conspiracy theory that has been used to justify violent murders. Namely, the idea that Jewish people were spreading anti-white hatred to destroy the West.

As I explained in my previous post:

On November 15th, a poster going by the name “The Artist Formerly Known as Eric” responded to a post challenging antisemites to say that Hitler was right about Jewish people. His reply, which is still up, blamed Jewish people for a perceived influx of immigrants.

Elon responded, saying, “You have said the actual truth,” before continuing that the ADL was targeting and undermining the well-being of white people across the nation. Elon’s post set off a firestorm, resulting in multiple companies suspending their advertising on the site.

The claim that Jewish people are creating an environment of anti-white hatred has previously been used in antisemitic attacks, such as the Tree of Life Synagogue shooting. It was the deadliest antisemitic attack in American history.

Despite this, Elon doubled down hours later, writing: “And, at the risk of being repetitive, I am deeply offended by ADL’s messaging and any other groups who push de facto anti-white racism or anti-Asian racism or racism of any kind. I’m sick of it. Stop now.”

While some have argued that Elon’s post was directed more at the ADL than Jewish people in general, I am not so certain. Elon explicitly responded to someone directly claiming that Jewish people at large were involved in attacking the West, a known antisemitic conspiracy theory that has led to the deadliest antisemitic attack in all of American history.
Conor Kelly, Elon Musk’s Antisemitism Must be Confronted, November 27th 2023.

With that context in mind, it shouldn’t surprise anyone that I am deeply skeptical of Elon’s intentions going into the interview mentioned above. Such skepticism seems to have been warranted, as moments after apologizing for his response to said post, he suggested that there were still Jewish people who were funding “demonstrations for Hamas in every major city in the West.” He further explained that “If you generically, without condition, fund persecuted groups … some of those persecuted groups, unfortunately, want your annihilation.”

These comments are not, as some may believe, a genuine apology and withdrawal of antisemitic sentiment. It is a rephrasing of the same position in a nicer tone. By refusing to name which Jewish person or group of persons are engaging in this alleged activity, Elon has effectively tied Jewishness and Jewish people to a supposed attempt to harm white people. As Elad Nehorai explained:

Musk’s comments were essentially an attempt at a more “acceptable” version of saying that Jews are the funders behind the minority groups trying to destroy the Western world. This is, in fact, the Great Replacement conspiracy theory — the same one that he supposedly apologized for backing. Musk’s latest version is more qualified, and an attempt to be more specific, but it’s still a conspiracy theory based on the idea that Jews are manipulating world affairs in order to destroy white civilization.

Musk has basically said some version of this conspiracy theory for more than a year now. For example, in September, he said George Soros was funding an “invasion” of immigrants into European countries. “The Soros organization” he wrote, “appears to want nothing less than the destruction of western civilization.” In fact, it is easy to find tweet after tweet after tweet after tweet by Musk spreading versions of this conspiracy theory.
Elad Nehorai, Why Elon Musk’s ‘f— yourself’ Dealbook moment wasn’t the worst part of the interview, 2023.

Musk’s antisemitism is constant, unending, and remorseless. He can pretend that his objective is to bring free speech, but the reality is that he is trying to spread a racist and dangerous idea while also attempting to avoid the inevitable consequences that come with that idea. Nobody should be surprised that Elon is facing a boycott, and even fewer people should be surprised if he destroys the platform he claims to liberate. So long as his prejudiced rhetoric continues, the boycott will continue, and we will all pay the price for his arrogant prejudice.
The Demise of the Ramaswamy Campaign {Re-Uploaded}

November 30, 2023

With the slow loss of attention on Vivek Ramaswamy’s campaign and the exodus of his national political director, it looks like Vivek’s bid for the presidency is dead in the water.

Sedgedorrit, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

As many of you may know, I do not like Vivek Ramaswamy. His needless cockiness and unearned bravado, combined with his poor understanding of the Russo-Ukrainian War, have soured my opinion of the self-styled entrepreneur. Even more so than some of the other candidates running for the GOP nomination. Thankfully, his short time in the spotlight and his bid for the presidency may end soon.

Previously, Vivek enjoyed a position as a potential alternative to the former President, enjoying spikes in favorability among Republicans in May, June, and September, respectively.

Screenshot of Overall Polling by FiveThirtyEight

However, his overarching support has declined amid challenges from GOP candidates like Nikki Haley and Ron DeSantis, with the latter seemingly struggling against the former. Vivek, who once enjoyed a strong position among the candidates, is now ranking fourth among the GOP primary candidates, with Trump leading them all easily.

And Vivek’s staff have also picked up on this reality, with his national political director, Brian Swenson, jumping ship to join the Trump campaign, pushing his duties to Vivek’s communications director, Mike Biundo.

Having a key part of your campaign is bad. That much is obvious, but to have your national political director leave a mere six days before your next primary debate is even worse. Ramaswamy’s attempts to appeal to a younger energy may have made him interesting during the first debate, but now that he has been on the debate stage two more times and has faced pushback from other candidates like Haley, it is unlikely that he will be able to recover fully, especially with the loss of such a critical staffer.

Of course, while nothing is inevitable, and we shouldn’t presume that Ramaswamy’s campaign will die on the spot—there are a few months left to go —it does look like this once-confident ‘revolutionary’ is witnessing the end of his movement.
Elon Musk’s Antisemitism Must be Confronted

November 27, 2023

Musk’s recent endorsement of antisemitic conspiracy theories can’t go unchallenged.

By: Conor J. Kelly

U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. — Tesla Inc. Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk speaks with Lt. Gen. Richard Clark, Superintendent of the U.S. Air Force Academy, during the Ira C. Eaker Distinguished Speaker Presentation in the Academy’s Arnold Hall on April 7, 2022 in Colorado Springs, Colo. (U.S. Air Force photo by Trevor cokley).

It should not be surprising to anyone who has read my work over the last several years that I don’t like Elon Musk. I have previously condemned his purchase of Twitter and his unwillingness to adequately regulate the platform, as well as his attempts to smear a former employee as a pedophile. However, I never expected to see him become so incredibly open with his prejudice and antisemitism. In recent months, however, it has become increasingly clear that he is not afraid to engage in outright conspiracy theories about Jewish people. We can’t ignore or allow that to go without consequences.

On November 15th, a poster going by the name “The Artist Formerly Known as Eric” responded to a post challenging antisemites to say that Hitler was right about Jewish people. His reply, which is still up, blamed Jewish people for a perceived influx of immigrants.

“Okay. Jewish communities have been pushing the exact kind of dialectical hatred against whites that they claim to want people to stop using against them. I’m deeply disinterested in giving the tiniest shit now about Western Jewish populations coming to the disturbing realization that those hordes of minorities that support flooding their country don’t exactly like them too much. You want truth said to your face, there it is.”
Antisemitic Twitter poster, November 15th, 2023.

Elon responded, saying, “You have said the actual truth,” before continuing that the ADL was targeting and undermining the well-being of white people across the nation. Elon’s post set off a firestorm, resulting in multiple companies suspending their advertising on the site.

The claim that Jewish people are creating an environment of anti-white hatred has previously been used in antisemitic attacks, such as the Tree of Life Synagogue shooting. It was the deadliest antisemitic attack in American history.

Despite this, Elon doubled down hours later, writing: “And, at the risk of being repetitive, I am deeply offended by ADL’s messaging and any other groups who push de facto anti-white racism or anti-Asian racism or racism of any kind. I’m sick of it. Stop now.”

While some have argued that Elon’s post was directed more at the ADL than Jewish people in general, I am not so certain. Elon explicitly responded to someone directly claiming that Jewish people at large were involved in attacking the West, a known antisemitic conspiracy theory that has led to the deadliest antisemitic attack in all of American history. Only after he agreed with someone explicitly suggesting that Hitler was right did he attempt to qualify his agreement.

If anything, Elon’s posts suggest that, at the very least, he was using the ADL as a symbol of Jewishness rather than being angry at the organization alone. Using the ADL as a stand-in for Jewish people and trying to backtrack doesn’t make him less antisemitic; it makes him a coward. Going to Israel to meet Netanyahu does not change what he said.

Elon’s actions merit condemnation and a full-fledged advertiser boycott. Elon has long played to the far-right, and it is increasingly clear that he is far too comfortable engaging in prejudiced conspiracy theories that are extremely dangerous. Advertisers must recognize that reality if antisemitism is to be countered. Since October 7th, there have been an estimated 800 antisemitic attacks. One poll found that 70 percent of Jewish Americans feel unsafe.

It is the responsibility of every American and every person to do what they can to push back against this prejudice, just as it is the responsibility of every person to push back against anti-Black or Islamophobic rhetoric. All prejudices must be opposed. Elon being the so-called free speech warrior on Twitter doesn’t absolve him of this obligation. If we as a society expect to stop antisemitism, we must hold Elon and all those who support his actions accountable. This is not merely an outrage mob against a social media influencer. It is a public necessity.
Tik Tok Conservative Lies about Far-Right Grifter and the 2016 Election

November 9, 2023

Tik Tok Conservative and Gateway Pundit Contributor, Victor Nieves lies about the case of Douglass Mackey AKA Ricky Vaughn.

By: Conor J. Kelly

Screenshot of Victor Nieves’ TikTok post surrounding Douglass Mackey via https://www.tiktok.com/@notvictornieves/video/7291417790018342190

In this age of social media and political discourse, it is very easy for one to lose sight of the truth. Poor regulation by social media companies and addictive algorithms make it easier for lies, half-truths, and misinformation to spread. One app, in particular, has grown to be a major source of misinformation, TikTok. However, it is not always the case that such misinformation is based on outright deception. That can’t be said for conservative TikToker and Gateway Pundit contributor Victor Nieves and his coverage of the sentencing of right-wing meme poster Douglass Mackey, AKA Rickey Vaughn.

Who is Victor Nieves?

Victor Nieves is a large but fringe TikTok user with nearly seventy thousand followers and over a million likes on the app and enjoys a strong eleven thousand subscribers on YouTube despite not uploading often. This is in part thanks to his work on the far-right site, The Gateway Pundit, as well as his book, Conservative Prudence: Fighting For America The Right Way (2022).

Screenshot of his TikTok

Staunchly homophobic and opposed to marriage equality, Nieves is not only a fringe figure thanks to his association with the Gateway Pundit, he is firmly at odds with the consensus of the American public. A June poll conducted by Gallup found that an estimated seventy- one percent of Americans support gay marriage.

Even without his position on gay marriage, Nieves is far from unwilling to hold water for the right-wing propaganda machine, primarily using Gateway Pundit articles to support his claims, despite it being rated very low in reliability by Mediabiascheck.

Screenshot from MediaBiasCheck

It is perhaps unsurprising then that Nieves would be spreading misinformation, as he does so quite regularly, one time claiming that Covid lockdowns would return, only for them to never appear. That is not surprising, considering his video cited Alex Jones’ InfoWars, a far-right conspiracy website. While ridiculous, the post does not show much evidence of outright lying by Nieves. The same can’t be said about his post on the far-right Twitter user, Douglass Mackey, AKA Rickey Vaughn.

Who is Rickey Vaugn?

Rickey Vaughn is the pseudonym of a far-right Twitter user and meme poster. He was known for multiple racist posts involving both antisemitism and anti-Black prejudice. Much of his work involved racist posts where he accused Jewish people of controlling the media for the benefit of Black people and at the expense of white people. In 2018, The Huffington Post exposed his identity, and he eventually dropped his false identity.

In 2021, he was indicted for a plan to trick Hillary Clinton voters into voting via text during the 2016 election. According to the indictment, nearly five thousand people attempted to vote this way, resulting in Mackey being charged with violating the rights of voters. In March of this year, he was convicted after prosecutors noted he was in a group with other influencers planning to restrict Black turnout via misinformation, and recently, he was sentenced to seven months in jail. However, if you listen to Nieves, that is not at all what happened.

Not So Honest Coverage

In a video posted to TikTok on October 18th, Nieves claimed that Mackey was convicted and sentenced for merely posting memes and trolling Clinton supporters. He also argues that the actions by Mackey are commonplace online as a sort of joke. He also condescendingly says that if someone falls for this trick, they probably shouldn’t be voting in the first place, as if he has the authority to decide who should vote.

There’s just one problem. Nieves’ own source provides information that he simply doesn’t tell his audience. His source, Pro-Trump Meme Maker Douglass Mackey, AKA, ‘Ricky Vaughn,’ Sentenced to 7 Months in Prison for Trolling Hillary Clinton During 2016 Election (2023) by Cristina Laila, also argues that Mackey is being improperly imprisoned for jokes. However, what it mentions, and Nieves doesn’t, is that prosecutors were alleging that Mackey was involved with a group of people who intentionally sought to restrict Black turnout.

In the exact article Nieves uses as a background, Laila notes:

According to the unsealed indictment, Mackey conspired with others on Twitter to encourage black people to cast their votes via text message.

The Eastern District of New York said in its indictment that one week before the 2016 election, Mackey tweeted an image of a black woman in front of an “African Americans for President Hillary” sign.
Cristina Laila, Pro-Trump Meme Maker Douglass Mackey, AKA, ‘Ricky Vaughn,’ Sentenced to 7 Months in Prison for Trolling Hillary Clinton During 2016 Election, 2023.

Nowhere in the fifty-two-second video does Nieves mention the alleged intent to prevent Black voters from participating in the 2016 election, nor does he or his source mention Mackey’s consistent hatred of Black and Jewish people. Instead, he casts Mackey as a hapless jokester on Twitter who happens to be conservative. That dishonest framing and complete disregard for the context of the indictment and subsequent conviction should disqualify Nieves as a serious commentator. When the Gateway Pundit, your own media site, is being more honest than you are, it might be a good idea to reevaluate your decision-making.

It is one thing to worry about the way this ruling can impact speech on the internet. It is another thing entirely to lie and hide key context that would change the way people view a given topic. Mackey was not arrested for being a troll; he was arrested for engaging in a plan to rob people of their basic rights through social media manipulation. If Nieves or other conservative commentators like him want people to take them seriously, they might want to try a bit of honesty. Though considering the state of the rest of his content, I wouldn’t hold my breath.
The Candidate Nobody Asked For: Jill Stein

November 9, 2023

After two failed attempts at the Presidency, Jill Stein is at again.

By: Conor J. Kelly

By Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=47492926

With a year away from the election, there are a number of candidates running to unseat President Biden from the Oval Office. Some are serious, like former President Donald Trump, and some are not, such as Dr. Cornel West and Robert F Kennedy Jr. While the GOP is holding its primary and has conducted its third debate, the reality is beginning to set in that Donald Trump is likely going to be the nominee for the GOP and Biden the nominee for the Democrats. But now, another candidate has decided to enter the fray, the twice-failed Green Party nominee, Dr. Jill Stein.

Who is Jill Stein?

For those unfamiliar with Stein, she is a physician and former nominee for the Green Party. She advocates for a Green New Deal and has long raised the issue of Climate Change being a threat to the well-being of America and the world. To some, she would appear to be a strong competitor against the current establishment Democratic Party and the two-party system. Indeed, Stein’s announcement speech said as such when she posted it on Twitter.

Democrats have betrayed their promises for working people, youth and the climate again and again, while Republicans don’t even make such promises in the first place,” she said in a video announcing her candidacy, and accused both parties of being “a danger to our democracy.”
Jill Stein, 11/9/2023

The Potential Dangers of a Stein Candidacy

This potential appeal may prove difficult for the Biden administration, and it is worth noting that prior races have seen Stein potentially serve the interests of the right. In 2012, she was not as significant, as she only managed to get roughly 470,000 votes. In 2016, that was not the case, with Stein gaining 1.4 million votes, with some arguing that she siphoned votes away from Clinton. However, that has been contested by some scholars.

Still, she remains on the ballot in 17 states, making her a significant force in the race and a potential threat to the Biden campaign, as it already has struggled to maintain a strong defense against Trump in key states. A rather convenient position for the former president’s campaign.

The announcement came mere days after Democrats successfully won in key states in the recent elections in Virginia, Ohio, and Kentucky, to name a few, suggesting, at the very least, potential backing from right-wing groups. However, that is not confirmed, and there is little to no evidence of such intent by any right-wing actors as of yet.

Still, it would not surprise me in the slightest as Republican operatives were previously exposed in 2020 for financing and encouraging Kanye West’s campaign for President in an attempt to siphon off Black voters. Needless to say, that didn’t work.

Even if Stein’s campaign is not an attempt to siphon off votes, her record on things such as foreign policy suggests a dangerous streak that would lead to a pro-Putin element.

Stein’s Weird Putin Connection

While Stein has not been demonstrated to be a knowing Russian asset as previously claimed by former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, she has been promoted by the Russian-controlled Internet Research Agency during the 2016 election.

She has also repeatedly equivocated Russia’s occupation of Crimea. In an interview with Vox, she said:

These are highly questionable situations. Why are we—Russia used to own Ukraine. Ukraine was historically a part of Russia for quite some period of time, and we all know there was this conversation with Victoria Nuland about planning the coup and who was going to take over … Let’s just stop pretending there are good guys here and bad guys here. These are complicated situations. Yeah, Russia is doing lots of human rights abuse, but you know what? So are we.
Jill Stein on Russia’s illegal occupation of Ukrainian territory.

She has also participated in the so-called Real Path to Peace event, which failed to address measures to prevent Russia from further encroaching on Ukrainian territory even as Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, is facing charges for the forcible deportation of Ukrainian children from the country.

More damning, however, is the fact that in 2015 Stein attended the 10th anniversary dinner of the state-supported propaganda machine for the Russian government, RT. She attended it with Trump’s former National Security Advisor and current conspiracy theorist, Michael Flynn. More damning than sitting with a right-wing conspiracy theorist is the fact that the infamous dictator himself, Vladimir Putin, sat with Stein at the same table. In the simplest of terms, Stein’s supposed frustration with Putin faded away the moment she decided to have dinner with him.

Stein herself claims that she didn’t know Putin was going to be there and barely said anything to her. However, even if that were true, and I sincerely doubt that it is, it would still not justify attending an event that celebrated an authoritarian kleptocracy’s media arm.

RT is that media arm and has been that way since its inception. So much so that its Editor in Chief, Margarita Simonyan, referred to RT as being similar to Russia’s Defense Ministry and argued that RT was part of an “information war against the whole Western world…” There is no acceptable defense that would allow Stein to celebrate such an organization and should disqualify her from being taken seriously as a candidate for president.

Mind you, this media outlet has assisted and maintained the line for Vladimir Putin, who Stein herself has admitted is a dictator. That alone suggests either an unwitting contradiction in her moral framework or a complete disregard for the dangers posed by the Russian government. Either way, this is disqualifying.

Jill Stein Should Not Run For President

While much of what has been discussed here involves her takes on Russia and her influence as a repeated failure of a presidential candidate, there is much that could be criticized on her record. Her history with vaccines alone is reason enough to disregard her.

More than that, Stein has demonstrated a willingness to make attempts towards power, which she practically knows she will never have, all the while risking the rise of the far-right. At a time when the former president is threatening to invoke the Insurrection Act and is planning to investigate his political rivals, it is completely unacceptable for a candidate like Stein to enter the fray. We already have enough issues with far-right as it is, we can’t afford to lose the 2024 election to its biggest voice all because a failed third-party candidate couldn’t accept that the American people don’t want her.
The Progressive American is Coming Back to WordPress

October 21, 2023

The Progressive American Website is returning.

Image from my Instagram.

Good morning everyone,

It has been a while since I have written here, and I have missed it quite a bit. Having my own website, despite some of the difficulties that came with it, was quite an experience that I enjoyed thoroughly despite Elon making the situation difficult, as I wrote about before I left the website.

https://conorpolitics.wordpress.com/2023/02/13/the-progressive-american-is-moving-to-substack/

However, since then, Elon has feuded with Substack over its desire to create a competitor site and has decided to block access to Substack links and previews, which has, unfortunately, prevented me from being able to present my articles. Whereas Substack seemed like a good replacement that was financially manageable, that is no longer the case due to the main source of social media attention being erased by Elon’s unfortunate decision-making as Twitter’s CEO.

{Note: I still refuse to call it X. That is a stupid name.}

Therefore, the website has been recreated as theprogressiveamerican.com. All subscribers to the original website and the Substack have been moved here, so there is no need to act on your part if you are a free subscriber. If you are not, I will be deactivating your paid Substack subscription since I don’t want to charge you for content that is no longer active. There will be more information going forward, but you will still receive a free subscription anyway, as you are still part of the email list.

Keep an eye out for further information, and make sure to share the website with your friends and family! Thanks again for your wonderful support over the years, and have a wonderful weekend.
Control and Abuse: Russell Brand

September 21, 2023

And the hacks that defend him.
Russell Brand, the populist comedian and conspiracy theorist, has officially been accused of rape and sexual assault. The allegations, first reported by the UK’s Sunday Times, have caused various reactions, with Brand denying the allegations on his social media. But more than an example of a celebrity being accused of serious misconduct, Brand’s allegations are concerning not only because of the alleged controlling nature of Brand himself but also because of those who seem inclined to defend him despite the seriousness of the allegations against him.
{DISCLAIMER: I am going into detail about what Brand is accused of doing to these women during the alleged assaults since they are extremely graphic, and it is not my goal to play to shock. Saying they are alleging rape and sexual assault is enough.}
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The Allegations Contextualized
Right off the bat, examining the context in which Brand is accused of committing wrongdoing is important. Brand is accused of committing sexual assault, rape, and emotional abuse by four women between 2006 and 2013, at the height of his popularity as a comedian and media personality.
If the allegations are true, which I am inclined to believe they are due to the consistency of behavior described, it would suggest that, at the very least, Brand is a danger to those around him, and those defending him are contributing to that danger. But I will get to that in a second. The following description comes from the Guardian’s timeline, linked below.
According to The Guardian, one of the women accused Brand of sexually assaulting her while they were in a relationship when she was 16. Brand was 30 at the time. Brand was a BBC radio producer during this period and ran his show.
The Guardian, describing the allegations, said:
She told the Sunday Times they had met when Brand approached her in Leicester Square after she had been shopping, and proceeded to go through her shopping bags and critique her purchases. She said he took out a dress and said: “You’re going to wear this on our date this week.”
She claims she told her mother, who advised her to text Brand and tell him her age, but that he was undeterred, and on the date asked her to confirm she was 16.
The woman said that over the following weeks, Brand referred to her as “the child” and she alleged that he was controlling, and sexually and emotionally abusive. She said he sent a car to her secondary school to take her out of lessons and asked her to save his name as “Carly” in her phone to deceive her parents. He also allegedly gave her “scripts” on how to lie to her parents, and advised her to hide the relationship from her friends, describing the experience as “isolating”.
The woman and a family member described Brand’s behaviour to the Sunday Times as grooming.
Another woman, who has identified herself as Jordan Martin, accused Brand of sexually assaulting her during the course of a six-month relationship that started in February of 2007. Martin alleges that he assaulted her at the Lowry Hotel in Manchester after he found out she was texting an ex-boyfriend, forcibly seizing her phone and attempting to remove its batteries before grabbing her sexually. She outlined this experience in a book in 2014 and stands by her account.
Another woman told the Sunday Times that she met Brand at an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting in 2013 and that he sexually assaulted her at his home, with her pleading, “ What are you doing, stop, please, you’re my friend.” Brand would then relent, according to her, but would end up snapping at her and firing her from her position, threatening her with legal action if she ever said anything.
It is also worth noting that Brand has previously joked about sexually assaulting women.

In 2020, the young woman Brand allegedly groomed as a child contacted Brand’s literary agent, attempting to draw attention to the issue of Brand’s behavior, but was dismissed as seeking money. Later, the talent agency Travistock Wood, which Brand’s agent co-founded, released a statement saying it had been “horribly misled” by Brand.
While everyone is entitled to a presumption of innocence, it is important to note that most of these allegations demonstrate a consistent pattern of control over women in Brand’s orbit.
Nor is it the first time Brand has been accused of controlling behavior, albeit indirectly. His ex-wife, Katy Perry, has previously noted in a 2013 interview that Brand was seemingly disturbed by the level of influence she held as a celebrity. Describing her experience with Brand, Perry explained:
“At first when I met him he wanted an equal, and I think a lot of times strong men do want an equal, but then they get that equal and they’re like, I can’t handle the equalness. He didn’t like the atmosphere of me being the boss on tour. So that was really hurtful, and it was very controlling, which was upsetting. I felt a lot of responsibility for it ending, but then I found out the real truth, which I can’t necessarily disclose because I keep it locked in my safe for a rainy day. I let go and I was like: This isn’t because of me; this is beyond me. So I have moved on from that.”
While certainly not enough to indict Brand criminally, it does suggest that Brand seeks control over women not just in their lives as loved ones but also in their bodily autonomy and ability to choose their own path going forward. Such a controlling pattern is dangerous for obvious reasons but is also indicative of a quasi-presumption of ownership over others.
Examining The Russell Brand Defenders
To understand Brand’s current allegations, it is important to acknowledge his position as a conspiracy theorist within the last several years and how that plays into his defense against the allegations.
Brand has been part of a conspiratorial web of podcasters and YouTubers for the last few years, questioning the efficacy of Covid mitigation strategies and vaccines. His work has contributed to various ridiculous assertions, including the belief that Ivermectin is an effective treatment against COVID-19, despite all evidence. He has also promoted conspiracy theories involving the war in Ukraine, primarily siding with the Russian narrative of the conflict. He has even supported the thoroughly debunked biolabs conspiracy.
His previous appeals to left-wing populism combined with his newfound anti-globalist conspiracies made it so that right-wingers such as Tucker Carlson could present their opinions, which were based on little more than conjecture and conspiracism, as an objective representation of the facts that media elites were hiding from the public.
The utility of Brand as a conspiracy theorist to the right and the conspiracy-minded internet is precisely what makes his publicly available erratic history easy to ignore. Rather than merely being another celebrity facing salacious accusations, Brand is a rhetorical godsend for right-wingers as he does not fit neatly into their right-wing box while affirming their preconceived beliefs about the pandemic and politics.
To lose that is to lose a political weapon.
And it is evident in the right’s defense of Brand.
In his video announcing the allegations, Matt Walsh described the issue titled Russell Brand Hit With Sex Assault Allegations. Is This His Punishment For Questioning The Left’s Narratives? He also argued that Brand’s views were “intolerable to those in power” and that he was possibly targeted for his actions, pointing to a woman claiming that she was contacted by journalists asking about her interactions with Brand only for her to have her story discarded due to her not alleging any wrongdoing against Brand.
While I can neither confirm nor deny the allegations by this woman, as the video by Walsh does not provide her username and she does not identify the alleged journalist in question, it is worth noting the go-to defense by Walsh. Power. To Walsh, the accusations against Brand are part of a larger attack pattern against dissident voices.
His YouTube video, titled Another Politically Inconvenient Thinker Accused Of Sexual Assault (2023), is even more explicit, arguing that sexual assault allegations are “trivially easy” to use for political suppression.
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It is worth noting that Walsh has made unusual comments about the fertility of underaged girls in unveiled podcasts in which he argued that teen pregnancy was not a problem but that unmarried pregnancy is. Describing the general public’s opposition to underaged pregnancy, Walsh explained that:
“To all of a sudden act like this phenomenon of girls getting pregnant at a young age, to be considered young – 16 or 17 – to act like it’s a new thing is ridiculous. It’s always been that way.”
While not an explicit endorsement of teenage pregnancy, it does fit with what is alleged against Brand in the case of the 16-year-old. It also fits with a thought process of control over women, as Walsh argued that girls are “most fertile” at younger ages, as if fertility and not consent are central components of relationships.
But Walsh is not the only one who is defending Russell Brand. Lauren Chen, whom I have previously criticized for her weak defense of Kanye West’s antisemitism, also came out with a defense of West in which she towed the same line.

In her video, she argues that Brand is being targetted by Big Pharma and that the women coming forward now don’t seem to add up in their stories without actually addressing them, dismissing them as “hearsay.” I should note that Chen tends to defend firing figures, as I noted in my video, so while Chen’s defense does little to address the allegations, it does fit with a pattern of behavior.
Perhaps more disgusting is Ben Shapiro’s defense of Brand, which appealed to Brand’s previous promiscuity as a sign that he was not engaging in sexual abuse against her, along with the inevitable age of consent defense.
“Brand was 30 and she was apparently 16. Now, in the United States, crime. In the UK, not crime. The age of consent in the UK is 16 … Scuzzy, scumbaggy behavior? Sure. Criminal behavior? No, if you’re, again, in the UK”- Ben Shapiro, Russell Brand DENIES Allegations, Sept. 18th 2023
While Shapiro does acknowledge that the 16-year-old girl further alleges sexual abuse by Brand, he proceeds to make the same tired argument about her hesitance to go to the police, asking why she didn’t come forward sooner. Mind you, this was a relationship that she is alleging she was groomed into engaging in. The gravity of which she didn’t fully appreciate until years later.
It is especially frustrating because, unlike Walsh and Chen, Shapiro repeatedly acknowledges that Brand was creepy towards women for a long time. Yet he still has to play the game of alleged media bias while attempting to undercut the allegations against Brand without any direct evidence of intent. He knows better.
Concluding Remarks
When I began this article, I didn’t plan to go into as much detail as I have in part because I felt it was unnecessary. Brand’s allegations are serious, and he has a history of controlling and pervy behavior. While that alone does not mean he is guilty, it should give pause to anyone who would normally defend him.
That said, as I went through the arguments from Brand’s defenders, I couldn’t help but notice that they maintained similar, oft-repeated arguments that rarely address the actual meat of the issue. And all for one man who has admitted he has a problem with women.
All of this is to say that the same bad-faith actors on the right have built themselves into a self-protecting network that seemingly exists to defend the worst, even when the situation is still in play.
Even as police have received their first report against Brand, this network of right-wingers will likely continue to ignore the seriousness of what Brand is facing and what these women allegedly have faced. All for the sake of maintaining a rhetorical weapon.
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Rep. Lauren Boebert is the Epitome of Republican Arrogance

September 19, 2023

Her recent expulsion from a production of ‘Beetlejuice” is another example of the hollowness of the GOP.

Jeffrey Beall, CC BY 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

One can’t go far without hearing about some of the most vile things about Colorado’s Representative from the 3rd district, Lauren Boebert. Recently, she has come under fire for what could be lightly described as “inappropriate behavior” at a theater. Rather than rehash some of the obvious complaints against her misconduct, I would like to talk about the arrogance that underlies Boebert’s current position.

For those pleasantly unaware, Lauren Boebert was expelled from a theater production of Beetlejuice over alleged rowdy behavior, including taking pictures, vaping, and making excessive noise during the show. Boebert’s campaign manager, Drew Sexton, initially denied that she had been vaping during the show.

That was a mistake.

Video evidence uncovered by 9NEWS would later show that she was vaping despite claims to the contrary, and a more focused video showed her and her date, Quinn Gallagher, groping each other during the show.

Boebert’s statement did not make things much better.

The strange and inappropriate conduct by Boebert is precisely the kind of lurid nonsense that normally be ignored as nothing more than gossip. Normally, I wouldn’t even bother to write about it.

That said, Boebert has consistently played into the slanderous narrative that LGBTQ people are groomers who are hellbent on transing children. And yet, she had no problem not only vaping around a pregnant woman and fondling her date in public, where children were present.

And yet, the GOP remains silent about her conduct or how it flies in the face of their party’s so-called family values. Instead, they have taken to complaining about the Senate, which they failed to take, changing its dress code on the floor.

At a time when our government is facing a shutdown due to recklessness from the GOP, you would think that the Republican leadership would be interested in containing bad behavior among its own, but so far, it seems like they don’t care.

Nobody should be surprised.

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Originally published at https://progressiveamerican.substack.com.