(José Niño, Headline USA) An antisemitism task force with ties to the Heritage Foundation revealed on Thursday it would sever its relationship with the conservative organization following widespread criticism of the think tank’s support for Tucker Carlson and his interview with nationalist commentator Nick Fuentes.
The National Task Force to Combat Antisemitism’s co-chairs disclosed in a Thursday email obtained by Jewish Insider that they would pursue their mission “outside the Heritage Foundation for a season.”
One task force member speaking to Jewish Insider indicated the group remains open to future collaboration with Heritage should the organization change course. “We hope that one day we’ll be able to collaborate with Heritage again,” the member stated, requesting anonymity due to the sensitive nature of internal conversations.
Established after the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks, the task force played a central role in developing Project Esther, Heritage’s primary antisemitism countermeasure framework launched last year as a response to the Biden administration’s national strategy addressing the rise of antisemitism.
Project Esther contained no references to right-wing antisemitism. The co-chairs announced in their Thursday correspondence that this gap can no longer be overlooked, and that the task force will focus on right-wing so-called extremism, too.
“The NTFCA will also now expand our work to fight the rising scourge of antisemitism on the Right, beyond our previous work combating the pro-Hamas movement on the Left,” the co-chairs stated, revealing plans to co-host a conference titled “Exposing & Countering Extremism and Antisemitism on the Right” on Nov. 18 in Washington alongside the Conference of Christian Presidents for Israel.
Leading the task force are Mario Bramnick, a Florida pastor serving as president of the Latino Coalition for Israel; Victoria Coates, vice president of the Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Institute for National Security and Foreign Policy at the Heritage Foundation; Ellie Cohanim, former deputy antisemitism special envoy during the first Trump administration; and Luke Moon, a pastor and executive director of the Philos Project.
Heritage Foundation has faced mounting criticism since president Kevin Roberts published a video standing by Carlson as the podcaster weathered backlash over his Fuentes interview.
During a Wednesday staff meeting, Roberts issued an apology for the video, which continues to remain posted on X. He conceded the video failed to adequately clarify that while he opposes “canceling” individuals like Carlson, this stance does not constitute “endorsing everything they’ve said.”
There has been speculation that @Heritage is distancing itself from @TuckerCarlson over the past 24 hours.
I want to put that to rest right now—here are my thoughts: pic.twitter.com/F8bcxBIqKI
— Kevin Roberts (@KevinRobertsTX) October 30, 2025
However, he has declined requests to take down the video, according to someone with knowledge of the internal discussions. Removing the video was among the measures recommended earlier in the week by task force members.
The four co-chairs committed to advancing the work they initiated under Heritage Foundation’s umbrella. According to the task force member, the organization provided substantial support for the group’s launch and operations, including meeting spaces, publishing capabilities, research support, and funding for administrative and policy staff. The co-chairs have not disclosed the task force’s next institutional home.
“The future of the Conservative movement will include a broad coalition of people that love America and all she stands for,” the co-chairs stated. “We cannot allow the Conservative movement to be corrupted and destroyed by those consumed with attacking America’s Judeo-Christian heritage and values, thereby distracting us all from the real challenges facing our nation.”
José Niño is the deputy editor of Headline USA. Follow him at x.com/JoseAlNino
