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Wednesday, January 28, 2026

Michele Bachmann: Negotiating with “the Number One funder of Terrorism” (Judean Rose)



Disclaimer: the views expressed here are the sole responsibility of the author, weekly Judean Rose columnist Varda Meyers Epstein.

I used to read antisemitic comments online with a sort of grim detachment. The ugliness was real, but it felt like something I could observe from a distance—how people swallow stupid lies, how hatred hardens into certainty, how mobs form without ever meeting the people they condemn.

Since October 7, that distance has narrowed. Sometimes the hatred is no longer “interesting.” It hurts.

It hurts because Jews were butchered and raped—and the global reaction was not what any reasonable person would expect in relation to such atrocities. Victims became villains. Murderers and rapists were recast as “resistance.” And when the Jews defended themselves, they called it “genocide.” We were even told we were “occupiers,” as if an indigenous people can be said to “occupy” its own land. The moral inversion is sickening to anyone in command of the facts of October 7, and what has since transpired.

But it’s not all bad. When the haters peddle awful lies about the Jews, the rare thing that steadies you is a friend who speaks plainly—someone willing to describe reality without euphemism, and to risk doing so, even at a high cost.

Sometimes that friendship shows itself in a single gesture. Senator John Kennedy posted a brief message acknowledging the suffering of the Israeli hostages and their families, and congratulating Israel on the return of the last hostage from Gaza, Ran Gvili. At the same time, he acknowledged the suffering of the Israeli hostages and their families. The replies were a familiar torrent of moral inversion and cruelty. The contrast said more than the post itself ever could about the overwhelming hatred toward a people that were tortured, murdered, abused, and held captive—a people whose babies were burned alive.


The truth is, aside from my favorite senator, Israel has too few true friends today. One of them is Michele Bachmann. Bachmann served in the U.S. House of Representatives for Minnesota’s 6th District from 2007 to 2015 and was a candidate for the Republican presidential nomination in 2012. She previously served in the Minnesota Senate and is currently dean of the Robertson School of Government at Regent University.

When I heard an excerpt of Michele Bachmann’s remarks at the Pray Vote Stand Summit, I was touched, filled with gratitude for her honest, plain talk. Bachmann got it when so many do not. She saw everything that was bad about putting terrorists and businessmen with regional interests in charge of negotiations, and she was unafraid to say so.

Dean Bachmann asked the right questions. There was no sign that she cared about the risks of speaking the truth. Just a forthright laying out of the facts—trying, and at times failing—to restrain her passion for the subject of how the negotiations were going.

Keep in mind that the summit was held in October. So much has happened since then. Though some things remain unchanged. We still have two non-cabinet figures—Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner—selling an imaginary peace that threatens Israel’s survival (she didn’t say it in those words—that was all me).

“We have a Secretary of State named Marco Rubio,” Bachmann said. “Why wasn’t he involved in these negotiations?”

She turned to Qatar, explaining something that everyone should know, but too many do not:

“Qatar is the number-one funder of terrorism in the world,” Bachmann said, painting a picture of a wealthy engine of political Islam and a patron of Hamas. She warned about the way money and access can shape foreign policy decisions, especially when those decisions concern Israel. That having Qatar shape the atmosphere around the talks could not be a good thing.

Trump’s chosen interlocutors, Witkoff and Kushner, do business with Qatar and Saudi Arabia. Yet they were put in charge of negotiations that come with direct consequences for Israel’s security and the safety of its people.

After watching an excerpt of her remarks, I reached out with some questions. I was honored when Michele Bachmann, graciously consented to answer my questions. It’s obvious that Michele Bachmann is a busy lady—someone with a full plate—yet always ready to take on more. It’s the reason I reached out to her.

Varda Epstein: In your remarks at the Pray Vote Stand Summit, you expressed concern about President Trump’s decision to involve Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner in negotiations with Qatar, despite their business ties and Qatar’s role as a major sponsor of Hamas. More recently, Israel’s security cabinet has reportedly blamed Jared Kushner  for the composition of the Executive Board for the proposed Board of Peace, which includes (rabidly anti-Israel) Turkish and Qatari representation and was, according to Prime Minister Netanyahu, "not coordinated with Israel and runs contrary to its policy."

Why do you think the president continues to rely on Witkoff and Kushner? Who stands to gain from this approach, and what risks does it pose for Israel?

Michele Bachmann: The President has full confidence in his envoys, Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff. Their diplomatic portfolios have enlarged in the last year since they were dispatched at the President’s direction during his second term.

Neither envoy appears to be employees of the federal government. They are volunteers, according to press accounts.

Concerns have been raised over past and ongoing business relationships between Mr. Witkoff and Qatar, and Mr. Kushner and Qatar and Saudi Arabia. Mr. Witkoff was a former business partner with Qatar. Mr. Kushner’s investment company was in business, and remains in business, with Saudi Arabia and other Arab investors, all while Witkoff and Kushner are currently conducting U.S. foreign policy with these business partners.

The questions of conflicts of interest are obvious and concerning.

One question concerning these relationships, regards the level of Qatari and Saudi influence on American foreign policy decision making, in particular regarding Israel’s security.

Varda Epstein: In recent months, a number of prominent conservatives—including Heritage Foundation president Kevin Roberts and commentator Megyn Kelly—have publicly defended Tucker Carlson, even after his interview with white nationalist Nick Fuentes. Why do you think this shift is happening, and what does it signal about the direction of the Republican Party?

Michele Bachmann: Tucker Carlson and other high-profile commentators have made controversial statements this year. These statements are vocal, intentional, and are dividing the pro-Israel Republican base. Grounded by pro-Israel evangelicals, the Republican Party historically supported strong support for Israel.

Tragically, the Democratic Party moved from an often pro-Israel party to holding a decidedly anti-Israel posture.

The anti-Israel embrace of the Democratic Party is now attempting to similarly turn, or at least divide pro-Israel support from within the Republican Party.

The Republican Party is pro-Israel and will remain that way unless it is taken over by an anti-Israel Presidential candidate. An event like that would certainly terminate a Republican candidate’s chances for electoral victory.

Varda Epstein: Given J.D. Vance’s isolationist worldview and his close relationship with Tucker Carlson—including employing Carlson’s son as a senior aide—what do you believe a Vance presidency would mean for Israel?

Michele Bachmann: A Republican Presidential candidate who does not value the importance of the U.S.-Israel relationship to vital national security interests, will likely lose a general Presidential election. Pro-Israel support is a foundational value of the Republican Party.

If Israel is not America’s greatest ally, then which nation is? Which nation has served as America’s greatest partner advancing peace in the Middle East?

What other nation has offered more to America by way of intelligence assets? Weapons development? Innovation and technology development? 

What other nation demonstrates similar moral clarity and commitment to advancing civilization and human rights than Israel? No other nation on earth compares to a demonstration of moral clarity more than Israel.

People need to consider where the United States would be without our partnership with Israel. As Prime Minister Netanyahu said, “Israel is what is right with the world.”

Varda Epstein: After watching your Summit address, many of my colleagues and readers remarked how much they miss your voice in government and your staunch support for Israel. How do you see your own role in public or political life going forward?

Michele Bachmann: I use my mind to learn all I can about our world and how humankind benefits from following the truths and precepts of the Bible.

History, Sociology, Economics, Astronomy, Anthropology, Archeology, Biology, Physics, etc., all reflect and demonstrate the truths given to us from the pen of Moses, David, Solomon, and the Prophets.

We, finite humankind, live in a world created by the infinite God. My job is to know Him more, obey Him more, and communicate His love and truth to others.

***

In her Summit remarks, Bachmann argued that Israel was nearing decisive victory against Hamas when diplomacy intervened and stopped it cold. Israelis well recognize this pattern. A war Israel did not choose becomes a war Israel is not allowed to win. The hostages are used as leverage. And a terror organization is encouraged to negotiate.

When Israelis speak about friendship, they are not being sentimental. Friendship means clarity under pressure. It means refusing to sanitize those who finance terror because they also broker lucrative deals. It means understanding that Israel cannot outsource its security to assurances offered far from its borders.

That is why Bachmann’s voice is important. She speaks as someone who understands that Israel is an ally. Not a problem to be managed, but an ally whose survival is nonnegotiable.

Israel has too few friends right now. And Michele Bachmann is indeed a friend—one who understands the wider implications of negotiating with terrorists, not just for Israel, but for the entire world. 

Buy EoZ's books  on Amazon!

"He's an Anti-Zionist Too!" cartoon book (December 2024)

PROTOCOLS: Exposing Modern Antisemitism (February 2022)

    
 

 



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