Pro-Israel congressman refuses to endorse Vance in 2028 amid GOP rift on Iran war

Florida Congressman Randy Fine blasts Vance for blaming US relationship with Israel for Republican midterm losses, accuses him of betraying the president.

By World Israel News Staff

Florida Republican Rep. Randy Fine has declared that he will oppose Vice President JD Vance in the 2028 Republican presidential primaries, accusing him of betraying President Donald Trump and attempting to shift responsibility for the party’s midterm election defeat onto Israel and American Jews.

In an interview with the Jerusalem Post published on Monday, Fine sharply criticized Vance’s assessment of the November 3 elections, in which Democrats captured both chambers of Congress, and accused the vice president of undermining efforts to defeat Iran.

“I won’t endorse JD Vance in the 2028 primary,” Fine told the Post, condemning the vice president’s post-election statements as unacceptable.

The controversy began Wednesday, when Vance published a lengthy statement on X attributing the Republican losses primarily to the continuing war with Iran.

“The reason we lost is the war,” Vance wrote.

The vice president cited polling of former Republican voters who had abandoned the party, identifying four priorities that he said could persuade them to return: ending the Iran war, reducing inflation and living costs, putting American interests first and changing Washington’s relationship with Israel.

Vance specifically called for Republicans to “Change our relationship to Israel,” a position that provoked criticism from pro-Israel conservatives who interpreted it as an attempt to blame the Jewish state for the administration’s political difficulties.

Fine accused the vice president of redirecting blame toward Jews rather than accepting responsibility for the administration’s failures, calling the approach inexcusable.

He also described Vance’s remarks as a betrayal of Trump, arguing that the vice president was distancing himself from policies he had helped implement.

Speaking separately to Fox‘s “LiveNOW” on Sunday, Fine compared the rhetoric surrounding Vance’s election analysis to the antisemitic political climate in Germany during the early 1930s.

The congressman accused Vance of contributing to the prolonged conflict with Iran by promoting negotiations with Tehran that ultimately failed to achieve a lasting settlement.

In Fine’s assessment, the problem was not the American decision to attack Iran’s nuclear infrastructure, but the administration’s failure to bring the war to a decisive conclusion.

He blamed Vance’s diplomatic approach, including an earlier memorandum of understanding with Tehran, for allowing the fighting to continue.

Fine also indicated that he would prefer Secretary of State Marco Rubio or Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas as possible presidential candidates in 2028.

The criticism comes as Vance, widely considered a leading potential contender for the Republican nomination, seeks to establish an independent political identity.

According to Reuters, the vice president increasingly emphasized economic nationalism, restrained foreign policy and domestic security during the final weeks of the midterm campaign, while distancing his public messaging from some of Trump’s more controversial policies.

However, sources familiar with White House discussions told Reuters that Vance’s post-election statements were not intended as a break with the president and that then-White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles had been informed of the message beforehand.

Trump has acknowledged that the Iran war contributed to the Republican defeat, particularly through rising gasoline prices, but has maintained that military action against Tehran was necessary to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons.

“I would have done nothing different,” Trump told reporters Wednesday.

Fine’s criticism follows similar objections from major pro-Israel organizations.

The political arm of Christians United for Israel accused Vance of encouraging resentment toward Jews by identifying both the Iran war and relations with Israel as reasons for Republican losses.

The Anti-Defamation League also challenged Vance’s analysis, citing election polling indicating that only 4% of voters identified foreign policy as their principal concern.

A spokesperson for Vance rejected allegations that the vice president had blamed Jews for the election outcome, emphasizing his record of condemning antisemitism.

The dispute has also exposed divisions over the growing influence of conservative commentator Tucker Carlson and others on the isolationist right.

Fine identified Carlson’s faction as a source of hostility toward Israel within the Republican Party, warning that its political influence was growing.

The Florida congressman also addressed the election of Michigan Democrat Abdul El-Sayed, who defeated Republican Mike Rogers to become the first Muslim elected to the US Senate.

Fine described El-Sayed as a “Muslim terrorist,” alleging that the senator-elect had connections to the Muslim Brotherhood.

Fine went on to address Israeli politics following the October 27 Knesset elections, expressing opposition to the participation of political factions he considers hostile to Israel in a governing coalition.

Donald TrumpIranIran warJD VanceRandy Fine