On Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas militants carried out one of the most depraved acts of violence in modern memory. Their surprise assault on Israeli civilians left roughly 1,200 people dead and some 250 taken hostage. Even more chilling was the perpetrators’ evident glee: terrorists filmed and live-streamed their brutality, broadcasting scenes of barbarism across social media in real time.
Americans initially responded to the attacks with shock. In the days that followed, however, as Israel launched counterstrikes against Hamas in Gaza, Democrats’ early expressions of solidarity with the Jewish people began to give way to a more pronounced emphasis on the Palestinian cause — even as many Palestinians, according to polling and public displays, were affiliated with or expressed support for Hamas.
In the more than two years since the Oct. 7 massacre, Democrats have shown a growing and barely veiled contempt for the Jewish people. That’s why the sudden public expressions of concern about antisemitism from several Democratic leaders over the past few days have come as such a jolt.
Consider last week’s incident outside a synagogue in Queens, New York, where pro-Hamas protesters chanted, “Say it loud, say it clear, we support Hamas here.” In response, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) — who has long identified herself as pro-Palestinian — posted on social media: “Hey so marching into a predominantly Jewish neighborhood and leading with a chant saying ‘we support Hamas’ is a disgusting and antisemitic thing to do.”
A reporter asked New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani to comment on the antisemitic protesters on Friday, the same Mamdani who refused to condemn the slogan “Globalize the intifada” during his campaign. The mayor said that language “has no place in New York City” and is “wrong.”
Mamdani followed up with a social media post on the subject. He wrote: “As I said earlier today, chants in support of a terrorist organization have no place in our city. We will continue to ensure New Yorkers’ safety entering and exiting houses of worship as well as the constitutional right to protest.”
More shocking still was a post on X from Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker (D), who shared a photo of himself shaking the hand of a young Jewish boy with the caption, “Shabbat Shalom, Illinois.”
By the time New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) posted, “Hamas is a terrorist organization that calls for the genocide of Jews,” it was clear that a hard pivot among Democrats was taking place.
As the commenter on X notes below, “Something is going on. Messaging has been delivered, and messaging is driven by polling.”
For over two years, these same politicians embraced anti-Israel activism wherever it surfaced — on college campuses and beyond. Now, in near lockstep, they have changed direction entirely.
This is no accident; it is coordinated messaging — and we have seen this movie before. Word has come down from party leadership that a pivot away from the Democratic Party’s antisemitic excesses toward a more Israel-friendly posture is politically necessary if Democrats hope to win back the House in November. Party leaders have likely concluded, based on focus groups, polling, and donor sentiment, that the majority of Americans continue to support Israel and unequivocally condemn the terrorist organizations that seek its destruction.
Another theory is that Democrats, closely monitoring events in Iran, the primary sponsor of Hamas, believe the regional balance may be nearing a decisive moment — and are scrambling to ensure they are aligned with the side that ultimately prevails.
But there may be more to the party’s sharp reversal on this issue than meets the eye. Some observers speculate that Democrats intend to capitalize on the antisemitic drift of certain prominent Republicans — Tucker Carlson comes to mind — to cast the party as a whole as hostile to Jews. As implausible as that may sound at first, it may be precisely the strategy now taking shape.
This theory has fueled debate on social media throughout the day.
This reversal is real, and it is deliberate. And the strategy behind it — who it is meant to shield, who it is meant to target, and how it will be deployed — will come into sharper focus in the weeks ahead.
Elizabeth writes commentary for Legal Insurrection and The Washington Examiner. She is an academy fellow at The Heritage Foundation. Please follow Elizabeth on X or LinkedIn.
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