Opinion: Tuberville's Troubling Alliance

Guest Opinion By Ken McFeeters, Republican Gubernatorial Candidate

Does Senator Tommy Tuberville have an unholy alliance with Israel? A recent case involving Tom Alexandrovich, a senior Israeli official, suggests the question is worth asking. Alexandrovich was arrested in the United States for soliciting sex from a minor—yet instead of facing the same restrictions any ordinary American would, he was allowed to flee back to Israel.

If you or I faced such charges, we'd be slapped with GPS monitoring, strict bail conditions, and barred from leaving the state. But not Alexandrovich. Not if you hold power and foreign connections. Why the double standard?

The uncomfortable answer is that too many in Washington and the media seem to have greater allegiance to Israel than to the United States.

And where was Tuberville while this happened? Silent.

It isn't the first time Tuberville has looked the other way. When asked about the powerful pedophiles exposed in the Epstein case, Tuberville shrugged: "we won't get involved" and "we've got a lot more problems than that." He waved off one of the most serious scandals of our time as if it were an inconvenience.

Even more alarming are Tuberville's own words about free speech. Recently, he suggested that questioning Israel should be considered "hate speech" and punished with jail time. Notice—he did not say hateful slurs against Jewish people. He did not say illegal activity. He said questioning Israel. Period.

Who defines "hate speech"? Tuberville apparently thinks he does. That's not the Constitution. That's not free speech. That's authoritarianism in defense of a foreign government.

This is where Tuberville's loyalties come into question. By his words and actions, it appears his allegiance is not to the people of Alabama, but to the political and financial establishment in Washington—an establishment deeply tied to Israel.

The push for IHRA-style legislation makes this plain. The International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's definition of antisemitism, which more than twenty states have already adopted, goes far beyond condemning real antisemitism. Seven of its eleven examples involve criticism of Israel or Zionism. Under this definition, questioning Israeli policy could be labeled hate speech.

That is not about protecting Jewish people from hate. That is about silencing critics of a foreign government. And Tuberville is all in on it.

Let's be clear: I don't like or trust Washington, and I don't have much patience for our own government either. But at least our First Amendment protects us when we speak out against them. Tuberville, by contrast, seems determined to carve out a special exception where one government—Israel—is above criticism. That should alarm every Alabamian.

It is my opinion that Tuberville has cut a deal with the media and the DC establishment: they give him support, he pushes IHRA hate speech laws in Alabama. By doing so, Tuberville has sold out the people of this state to a foreign power.

That's why every gubernatorial candidate should be required to make a pledge: to veto any and all IHRA hate speech legislation. I make that pledge here and now. If elected governor, I will veto every attempt to pass these laws in Alabama.

Don't think it can't happen here. Twenty-four states already have IHRA language on the books. Florida just enacted IHRA language into law:  Chapter 1 Section 015 - 2024 Florida Statutes - The Florida Senate.

Tuberville has raised more campaign money than any politician in Alabama history—and no one raises that kind of money by putting the people first. They raise it by serving the donors and interests behind the curtain.

Tuberville's silence on Alexandrovich, his dismissal of Epstein, his calls to jail critics of Israel—these are not isolated missteps. They are a pattern. A pattern that suggests his loyalty lies not with Alabama, not with America, but with a foreign agenda.

That's not leadership. That's betrayal.

About the Author: Ken McFeeters is a Republican Candidate for Governor of Alabama. Ken is a former congressional candidate for Alabama's 6th District and past president of the Mid-Alabama Republican Club.

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