Standing Against Hate

Standing Against Hate: Why Supporting Israel Makes Me a True Republican, Not “Israel First”

As a proud U.S. Marine veteran who served three years on active duty—including a 15-month deployment overseas during wartime—I know what it means to risk everything for America. I put my life on the line for the United States of America, not for any foreign nation.

Yet some so-called Republicans and conservatives in Oregon have taken to calling me “Israel First” simply because I support our steadfast democratic ally in the Middle East. This name-calling is not principled disagreement. It is hatred dressed up as policy critique, and it has no place in the Republican Party.

Let me be clear: the overwhelming majority of Republicans—80 to 90 percent, including President Donald Trump—stand with Israel. Supporting Israel’s right to defend itself against Iran-backed terrorists is not some fringe position. It is mainstream conservative belief rooted in shared values of democracy, self-reliance, and the defeat of radical Islamism.

Israel has never asked American troops to fight its wars. Israelis have always fought and died for their own country with their own sons and daughters. My service was for the Stars and Stripes, period. Anyone who twists my support for Israel into disloyalty to America is not arguing in good faith—they are playing a dangerous game of identity politics and ancient prejudice.

The claim that Israel or Prime Minister Netanyahu “controls” President Trump is nothing new. It is a recycled antisemitic trope that has echoed for centuries: Jews secretly run the world, the media, the banks, and now the White House. This is the same poisonous lie that fueled pogroms, the Holocaust, and modern conspiracy theories. It has nothing to do with legitimate debate over Iran’s aggression or U.S. foreign policy. It has everything to do with personal antisemitism.

Sadly, this hate is not only coming only from the radical left. It is being mainstreamed by voices like Tucker Carlson and Candace Owens—figures who have repeatedly trafficked in these tropes. Owens was even named Antisemite of the Year in 2024 by StopAntisemitism for her record of defending Hitler’s Germany, promoting conspiracy theories about Jewish power, and stoking fear of Israel.

When self-described conservatives echo these voices while attacking fellow Republicans who support Israel, they are not conserving anything—they are importing the very bigotry our party has historically rejected.

I am running for the United States Senate from Oregon as a Republican who believes in ethical individualism, common sense, and human equality. That is why my campaign has a simple, non-negotiable pledge: ZERO tolerance for antisemitism, racism, or any form of group judgmentalism.

Every human being is created equal and must be judged by their character and actions, not by their ethnicity, faith, or ancestry. Period.

The Oregon Republican Party must match this standard. We rightly condemn racism whenever it appears in our ranks. Antisemitism deserves the exact same moral clarity. Silence is not neutrality—it is complicity. If the ORP fails to call out this rising hate, it is effectively approving its growth among Oregon Republicans.

That is not who we are.

That is not the party of Abraham Lincoln, the first Republican president and the Great Emancipator who fought to end slavery and expand human freedom.Lincoln’s Republican Party was founded on the moral high ground of human rights. We reclaimed that ground by defeating fascism and communism abroad while protecting liberty at home.

Today, the same moral clarity demands that we reject antisemitism with the same vigor we reject every other form of bigotry. Oregon Republicans can—and must—lead the way. We must stop the hate, nip group judgmentalism in the bud, and once again become the party that stands for every American regardless of background.

To every Oregonian who believes in America First, not hate first: this is our moment. I am not “Israel First.” I am America First—and part of putting America first is standing with our allies who share our values while rejecting the bigotry that divides us.

If you are tired of the name-calling, the conspiracy theories, and the moral cowardice masquerading as conservatism, I ask for your support in the 2026 Senate race. Together, let us reclaim the soul of the Republican Party. Let us reject hate, embrace truth, and prove once again that the GOP is the party of moral courage, individual liberty, and human dignity.

Russ McAlmond MBA,MSFS,CFP
U.S. Marine Veteran
Republican Candidate for U.S. Senate, Oregon
mcalmondforcongress.org