Marco Rubio's case for war 'inflamed already angry MAGA elites': 'Record scratch moment'
Secretary of State Marco Rubio infuriated MAGA's already angry "America First" wing – and especially antisemitic influencers on the right – by identifying Israel as the driving force behind the U.S. military action in Iran.
The secretary of state justified the airstrikes as necessary because Israel intended to launch its own attacks on Iran, which he said would have resulted in retaliatory airstrikes against American forces, and Axios reported that set off howls of rage among President Donald Trump's right-wing base.
"Rubio's remarks were widely interpreted as making the U.S. look subordinate to Israel's interests," Axios reported. "And they inflamed already angry MAGA elites who had spent the day railing against President Trump's decision to go to war."
Pro-Trump influencers expressed their frustration that the 79-year-old president had fallen into the thrall of military hawks and neocons he explicitly ran against since entering politics, and anti-Israel voices and explicitly antisemitic influencers claimed vindication.
"So he's flat out telling us that we're in a war with Iran because Israel forced our hand," posted The Daily Wire's Matt Walsh. "This is basically the worst possible thing he could have said."
MAGA influencer Mike Cernovich described Rubio's comments as "a record scratch moment," while podcaster Megyn Kelly expressed "serious doubts" about the operation, and former Trump adviser Steve Bannon demanded more explanation about the decision.
"If we knew Israel would strike and Iran would retaliate against us, where was the coordination?" Bannon said. "We need a strategic explanation."
Nick Fuentes, an influential white nationalist who called on his "groyper" followers to abandon Trump, called the operation "a war of aggression for Israel."
"Americans will die in terrorist attacks and in missile strikes so that Israel can expand its borders in every direction," Fuentes said. "Trump, Vance, and Rubio sold us out."