The Times of Israel
Story by Jacob Magid
July 15, 2026
US Vice President JD Vance fumed on Wednesday at a reported Israeli government-funded influence campaign aimed at criticizing the efforts of President Donald Trump’s administration to negotiate an end to the Iran war.
“There was this Time article that came out yesterday… It lists a bunch of people who have been paid by a former Trump campaign person who was himself paid by certain elements within the Israeli government, and those people are attacking me viciously for trying to accomplish the negotiation objective that the president set for the country,” Vance said during an interview with podcaster Joe Rogan, calling it a “very discreet, extremely well-funded campaign to try to derail the negotiations.”
Time revealed on Tuesday that Trump’s former campaign manager has been leading a pro-Israel influence campaign directed and funded by the Israeli government, targeting young Americans within Trump’s MAGA base.
According to the report, Brad Parscale and his company, Clock Tower X, were tapped last September by an ad agency to conduct an influence campaign on behalf of Israel. Time cited the US Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) filings in its report.
Officially, the influence campaign was aimed at tackling rising antisemitism online, though Time cited an Israeli Foreign Ministry official familiar with the campaign as saying its real goal was to “preventing young conservatives from turning against Israel.”
While the official aim may have been antisemitism, the Trump administration reportedly identified posts published simultaneously by conservative influencers that criticized last month’s memorandum of understanding to end the Iran war, which Time suggested were part of Pascale’s campaign.
Parscale admitted that the goal of the campaign was to stop young Americans from turning against Israel, but pushed back on the idea that the effort extended to tarring the administration’s diplomacy with Iran.
Vance brought up the story unprovoked during his Rogan interview.
Related video: Israel reportedly warns the US that Iran is again targeting Donald Trump (Espresso)“It’s social media posts, it’s leaking to reporters — they’re attacking me obsessively, saying that we should not be negotiating with Iran. We should just keep the military campaign going indefinitely,” he claimed.
“People have come after me and said I’m influenced by Qatar, that I’m influenced by foreign governments, that I take my marching orders from Tucker Carlson, and there’s just so much bullshit out there,” he said.
“Foreign governments try to influence the United States all the time. Israel does it. Other countries do it… What bothers me is when American leadership allows that influence to affect their judgment and to affect what they are advocating for,” Vance argued.
“When I open up the pages of Time magazine, and I see that there’s a foreign influence campaign being funded to tank the very deal that I was pursuing, and many of the people who were receiving that money were attacking me in completely dishonest ways, my response to that is, Go to hell. I’m going to do what I have to do for the American people. I represent Americans first,” he asserted.
“There are some people within (the Israeli) system we know beyond a shadow of a doubt who are manipulating and trying to change American public opinion to keep the war going on indefinitely,” Vance charged.
Asked whether the US would have launched its war against Iran if it were not for Israeli influence, Vance responded in the affirmative.
“I think the president, completely separate from any influence from Israel, believes very strongly, and again I agree with this, that Iran should not have a nuclear weapon,” he said.
A surprised Rogan pressed Vance on whether the US would have continued the war, which began on February 28, for as long as it did if not for Israeli influence, though the vice president maintained his position.
Vance has been one of the most outspoken members of the administration in criticizing Israel, particularly as he has come under fire for the MOU that he helped negotiate.
He made headlines last month when he called out far-right members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government who had blasted the administration for the deal, telling them they needed to “wake up” and realize that Trump is the last world leader who still likes Israel.
Claims trajectory of Iran talks still positive
Asked by Rogan about the status of Iran negotiations, Vance claimed that there was a divide in Iran’s leadership between pragmatists who want to make a deal with the US and hardliners who do not.
According to Vance, the hardliners “freaked out” after the MOU was reached because they saw how much oil the US was able to get out of the Strait of Hormuz and began targeting ships there as a result.
“They’ve basically said, ‘We’re going to try to shut this thing down. We’re scared about losing our leverage.’ The pragmatists in their system are saying, ‘This was a mistake. Let’s keep on talking,'” Vance said.
“Do I know how this is ultimately going to shake out? Of course I don’t. But what we’re doing is a delicate diplomatic dance where we’re using economic leverage points, we’re using carrots and sticks, we’re trying to talk to the pragmatists, and then of course when they commit acts of violence, we’re responding to it,” Vance continued.
“All of those things are happening simultaneously to get us on a better trajectory. Yes, they’re shooting right now, but with all that said, is their nuclear program still destroyed? Yes. In the context of the broader negotiation… things are happening simultaneously to get us on a better trajectory,” he declared.
While the US has claimed Iran’s nuclear program has been destroyed, Tehran still has stockpiles of highly enriched uranium and other nuclear enrichment sites that have not been targeted by the US.
Vance went on to blast hawkish US conservatives whose only solution, he claimed, was to “bomb Iran into oblivion.” The vice president said these conservatives want to try and topple the regime, though America’s experiences doing so elsewhere had not been positive and required a massive deployment of ground troops.
Asked if he would have launched the war against Iran if he were in Trump’s position, Vance acknowledged that he was “less enthusiastic” about the operation than others in the administration.
However, he said his job was not to be a “public commentator” but to support the president, which he would continue to do as long as Trump’s decisions remain “legal and ethical,” as they have been to date.
“The goal is certainly good, which is to prevent Iran from getting a nuclear weapon,” Vance said.
Pushes unproven claim that Epstein had Mossad ties
The headline of the interview for most American media outlets was Vance’s response to a question about the Epstein Files. The vice president said the administration was “guilty” of mishandling the issue, while insisting that Trump was not implicated in any wrongdoing.
Vance then asserted that Jeffrey Epstein had ties to the highest levels of Israeli intelligence, echoing unproven rumors regarding the late convicted pedophile’s ties with the Mossad.
“He clearly had connections to the highest levels of American intelligence. He clearly had connections to the highest levels of Israeli intelligence,” Vance said.
Apparently referencing Epstein’s documented ties to former Israeli prime minister Ehud Barak, Vance said, “Epstein seemed to be connected to the elements of the Israeli deep state that were left of center. Like I’ve always found that fascinating.”
“It wasn’t like he was super connected to the right of center of Israeli politics. America, he was connected across the board. Like he had Republican friends, he had Democratic friends,” the vice president added.
No comments:
Post a Comment