When the White House Religious Liberties Panel Turned Toxic | WATCH
Commissioner Carrie Prejean Boller sparked outrage by hijacking a White House hearing on antisemitism to defend Candace Owens and demand a condemnation of Israel. Harvard alum Shabbos Kestenbaum fires back, calling out the attempt to derail a domestic civil rights discussion with foreign policy debates.
Jewish activist and Harvard alum Shabbos Kestenbaum, who previously sued Harvard over campus antisemitism, testified yesterday at the White House Religious Liberties Commission’s first public hearing focused on antisemitism.
The hearing, held at the Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C., featured witnesses including Kestenbaum, Yeshiva University President Ari Berman, former UCLA student Yitzy Frankel, and former Auburn basketball coach Bruce Pearl. They spoke about rising antisemitism on U.S. college campuses and in American institutions since the October 7, 2023 attacks.
Kestenbaum’s testimony centered on discrimination faced by American Jews and Christians at home. However, one commissioner, Carrie Prejean Boller, a Catholic conservative activist and former Miss California, repeatedly shifted the focus to Israel and Gaza. She questioned witnesses about whether criticizing Israel or opposing Zionism constitutes antisemitism, asked them to condemn Israel’s actions in Gaza, and stated, “I’m a Catholic and Catholics do not embrace Zionism… Are all Catholics anti-Semites?” She also referenced Catholic theology and defended Candace Owens from antisemitism accusations.
In a widely shared X post after the hearing, Kestenbaum wrote: “I testified to the White House Religious Liberties Commission today.
I am deeply disappointed that one member, rather than listening to my testimony on the discrimination against American Christians and Jews, decided to focus exclusively on Israel.
Here’s my response:”
He attached video of his direct rebuttal, emphasizing that the commission’s mandate is to address religious liberty in America, not debate foreign policy or Israel. Other commissioners interrupted at points to redirect the discussion back to domestic issues.
The commission was set up by President Trump to protect religious freedom on U.S. soil and advise on threats like campus Jew-hatred. Turning a hearing about American antisemitism into a debate over Israel and Gaza defeats the purpose. Kestenbaum is right to call it out, the focus should stay on protecting Jews and Christians right here at home.