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• Vance told Joe Rogan he knows "beyond a shadow of a doubt" some in Israel's government are swaying US opinion on Iran
• His evidence traces to a specific FARA-filed contract paying Trump's former campaign manager to run pro-Israel content
• Israeli officials themselves call that campaign a failure, not evidence of a coordinated plot

WASHINGTON (TDR) — Vice President JD Vance told podcaster Joe Rogan on Wednesday that he knows Israeli officials are "manipulating" American opinion to keep the Iran war going. Unlike most such accusations, this one points to an actual paper trail.

The big picture: Vance's claim traces directly to a TIME investigation published Tuesday documenting a real, disclosed contract, not an anonymous rumor.

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• Trump's former campaign manager Brad Parscale, through his firm Clock Tower X, was hired via ad agency Havas to run a monthly $1.5 million pro-Israel content campaign targeting young conservatives
• Filed under the Foreign Agents Registration Act, the contract called for 100 pieces of content monthly, 80% aimed at Gen Z on TikTok, Instagram and podcasts

Why it matters: This isn't the usual vague "foreign influence" charge. It names a specific person, a specific filing, and a specific dollar figure, which makes it harder to dismiss and easier to fact-check.

• A U.S. intelligence official told TIME the concern is that "American influencers... paid by a foreign country" were trying to shift the president's own thinking, not just public opinion generally
• Vance was explicit that ordinary lobbying doesn't bother him, his objection is narrower than "Israel tried to persuade Americans"

Driving the news: On Rogan's show, Vance said the campaign was designed to keep the war going "indefinitely," "not towards any objective."

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• He said he has "good relationships" with some Israeli officials and doesn't believe they're involved
• He separately said Trump was not blackmailed or pressured into the Iran strikes, calling that idea "insane"

What they're saying:

• Brad Parscale, to TIME — "I have never funded, organized, or participated in any effort to undermine President Trump"
• An unnamed Israeli official, to TIME — "We are pissed at Brad Parscale. He was supposed to make things better. But what did he do with it? Things have only gotten worse"

Yes, but: The people who paid for the campaign are the ones calling it a failure, not proof of a working plot to extend the war.

• Israel's own Foreign Ministry reportedly framed the goal as defensive: stopping young conservatives from turning on Israel, not steering U.S. policy toward more war
• Parscale disputes the anti-Trump framing entirely and says none of the FARA-registered funds paid influencers directly

Between the lines: The real driver may be organic, not manufactured. Pew polling cited in the same TIME report found only 32% of Americans view Israel's government favorably, the lowest in decades, with young Republican disapproval rising too.

• A campaign built to stop that erosion is a different story than one built to prolong a war
• Both can be true: a real influence operation existed, and it was reacting to a real shift in opinion it didn't cause

What's next:

• Parscale's FARA filings remain public record and open to further scrutiny
• Watch whether Vance's office releases further evidence beyond the TIME reporting he cited
• The underlying Iran ceasefire, which prompted all of this, remains fragile regardless of who's blamed for criticizing it

If a foreign government pays to defend its own reputation and the campaign backfires, is that manipulation, or just an ad buy that didn't work?

Sources

This report was compiled using reporting from TIME, Cyprus Mail/Reuters, The Jerusalem Post, The Times of Israel, Jewish Insider, Ynetnews, i24NEWS, Middle East Eye, Mediaite, and Yahoo News

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