Against Performative Extremism

How Influencer Politics and Algorithm-Driven Radicalism Are Sabotaging the Anti-War Right

Since October 7th, 2023, public opinion regarding Israel has changed dramatically. Prior to the outbreak of this latest chapter in the Israel-Palestine Conflict, there was widespread bipartisan support for Israel. Critics of Israel were routinely dismissed as conspiracy theorists and antisemites. However, in the last two-and-a-half years, Americans have begun to question the relationship their government has with the State of Israel. Draconian pro-Israel censorship laws, enormous aid packages, and Israel’s genocidal crimes against the Palestinians and other Middle Eastern groups, including Christians, have thoroughly woken up the American public.

However, while the majority of the American people are questioning the US-Israel relationship, the actions of politicians have not reflected this shift. This is due to the influence of the Israel lobby. Groups like the American-Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) and pro-Israel billionaires use their vast financial resources and influence to crush those who oppose them. Rep. Thomas Massie, one of the most notable right-wing critics of Israel and the Iran War, is currently facing a primary challenger propped up by President Donald Trump and a large AIPAC and Miriam Adelson-funded war chest. So, when former NYU professor and activist Michael Rectenwald announced that he was forming a political action committee to counter the influence of the Israel lobby, I was intrigued.

The Anti-Zionist America PAC (AZAPAC), born in 2025, promised to contribute financially to candidates across the political spectrum who opposed Israel’s influence. I jumped at the opportunity to help the organization by interviewing two of AZAPAC’s most notable candidates: Aaron Baker, who is challenging Randy Fine in Florida’s 6th District, and Mike Wilnau, who is running in Florida’s 11th District.

Florida, the Trump-era “center” of the Republican universe, has become ground zero for a host of populist conservative candidates opposed to costly foreign wars. The most prominent example of this is James Fishback, a candidate in the Republican primary for governor of Florida. Fishback has differentiated himself from his main opponent, Rep. Byron Donalds, in his willingness to criticize the Israel lobby alongside vested interests, including companies like Palantir and BlackRock.

Multiple candidates in the same ideological lane as Fishback have emerged in different congressional races across the state, including Aaron Baker, who is challenging Randy Fine in Florida’s 6th District. However, Dan Bilzerian, a second Israel-critical conservative candidate, has entered the race, effectively splitting the America First base. The fragmentation of the populist right could lead to Randy Fine winning by default. If the goal of the America First movement in Florida is to win elections and make meaningful change in Washington, the movement must remain united behind one candidate.

To truly understand the gravity of this problem, it is important to examine both of the aforementioned candidates. Starting with Florida’s 6th District race, Aaron Baker has been in the race for over half a year, garnering endorsements from James Fishback and, initially, the Anti-Zionist America PAC, which contributed $3,000 to his campaign. He has raised about $95,000 at the time of writing, thanks to grassroots support he began building during his first campaign against Randy Fine in the 2025 special election. In this election, Baker won 14% of the vote in the primary with little media coverage, not an insignificant result for an outsider candidate with little name ID. During his 2026 campaign, Baker has received significantly more coverage and popular support, posing a real threat to Fine.

However, Baker’s campaign has been significantly damaged by the most recent candidate to enter the race: social media influencer, poker player, and veteran Dan Bilzerian, who entered the race in early April. Soon after, AZAPAC switched its endorsement from Baker to Bilzerian. Bilzerian, who has millions of followers across social media platforms, has significantly more financial resources than Baker. Bilzerian has pledged to contribute $1 million of his own money towards his congressional run. However, like Randy Fine, Bilzerian does not reside in Florida’s 6th District, although he grew up close to the area. While he may have more financial resources, his lack of grassroots support will harm him electorally.

This has been made evident in Bilzerian’s first failed campaign rally. The rally was not even set to be held in Florida’s 6th district. Instead, the rally was to be held 20-40 miles from the congressional district’s borders, demonstrating the Bilzerian campaign’s lack of connection to Florida and general incompetence. This begs the question: why would AZAPAC choose to endorse the incompetent and superficial Bilzerian campaign over the well-established grassroots campaign of Aaron Baker?

Unfortunately, AZAPAC has shifted its focus from winning elections to garnering clicks. Fundamentally, candidates who are honest yet measured are not rewarded by the algorithm. Social media platforms, like X, appeal to the lowest common denominator, which has an insatiable hunger for edginess and performative extremism. Dan Bilzerian is the perfect embodiment of this phenomenon.

Originally gaining prominence for his degenerate, trust fund-funded playboy lifestyle, Bilzerian understands better than anyone how to garner attention. He built a strong following of millions of people across different platforms, which only grew after he transitioned to an anti-Israel influencer in 2023, publicly rejecting his former lifestyle. Since then, he has become increasingly more extreme and factional, calling Nick Fuentes, a major online right-wing figure, a “fed” and criticizing him for being insufficiently hardline on Jewish supremacism. While Bilzerian has certainly lost money and credibility from his online antics, he is still extremely wealthy with an estimated net worth of $200 million. When examining the finances of AZAPAC, it is not hard to speculate as to why Michael Rectenwald and AZAPAC Treasurer Lori Price would want to court such an individual.

Based on FEC disbursement records (as opposed to total receipts), about 45 percent of AZAPAC’s total disbursements went toward payroll, consulting fees, reimbursements, and related payments to the PAC’s founder, Michael Rectenwald, and treasurer, Lori Price. In terms of total receipts over the same period, Rectenwald has received about $28,000, and Price has received about $13,000, accounting for about 24 percent of receipts. This raises the question of if AZAPAC is more concerned with raising money for candidates or its leadership. If AZAPAC is indeed more concerned with the latter, it would make sense why they would want to bring Bilzerian into the fold, as more visibility means more donations. Indeed, it appears that AZAPAC has become more of a media/influencer funding drive than a legitimate political organization.

Ultimately, the AZAPAC will do the most damage not to Randy Fine or the Israel lobby but to the anti-war right. The extremism of Dan Bilzerian alienates ordinary voters and potential allies who would otherwise support AZAPAC. Additionally, the incompetence and general shadiness of Bilzerian and AZAPAC make legitimate criticism of Israel easier to dismiss as grifting. This, in turn, heavily weakens efforts at coalition-building, creating endless division instead of meaningful wins, which benefits the individuals and organizations the Bilzerian and the PAC claim to oppose. The problem dividing the America First right is not anti-Zionism itself, but the performative extremism of influencers. Serious political movements require discipline, organization, and credible leadership. If we allow grifters, selfish influencers, and incompetent individuals to pass themselves off as thought leaders, the movement risks failure.