US Vice President Vance Criticizes Israel's Secret Campaign Against Iran Deal

US Vice President J.D. Vance intensified his criticism of Israel following revelations that Israel hired a former Trump advisor to run a covert campaign opposing the Iran nuclear agreement. In an interview on Joe Rogan's podcast, Vance confirmed the report by Time magazine that Israel contracted Brad Parscale, Trump's former digital campaign manager, through the advertising agency Havas to manage a digital influence campaign. The campaign aimed to produce 100 original pieces monthly, primarily targeting Generation Z on platforms like TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and podcasts, with a goal of 50 million monthly impressions. Israel agreed to pay $1.5 million per month for this effort.

The campaign also sought to influence how AI tools such as ChatGPT and others portray Israel and the conflict. Documents filed under the US Foreign Agents Registration Act revealed that the campaign began in September and was officially framed as a fight against antisemitism. However, Israeli officials confirmed its strategic goal was to prevent conservative youth from turning against Israel amid criticism from figures like Tucker Carlson and Steve Bannon.

Following the US-Iran ceasefire agreement on June 17, prominent Trump-aligned influencers harshly criticized the deal, sharing content that undermined the administration's position. Conservative activist Charlie Kirk warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in May 2025 that support among conservative circles was collapsing, describing it as an emergency. Parscale claimed he has unique access to the MAGA audience but has not spoken to Trump in over five years.

Internal messages showed influencers were offered payment based on post reach, with rates up to $4,250 per post. Israeli and White House officials expressed frustration and anger over the campaign, which they say worsened the situation rather than improving it. The campaign also involved creating websites to feed data to AI systems to shape their narratives. Parscale denied acting against Trump’s goals or the ceasefire agreement and dismissed the allegations as fabrications by anonymous sources. The White House condemned the campaign as a foreign-funded effort to sway US policy, emphasizing its seriousness. Neither Netanyahu’s office nor the White House issued official comments on the report.