On April 1, 2024, Jewish Insider, a Washington-based news publication focusing on Israel and issues affecting the Jewish American community, was the first to report that Brandon Herrera had “posted as recently as 2022 YouTube videos replete with imagery, music and jokes about the Nazi regime and the Holocaust[.]”
At the time, Herrera was a Republican candidate in the runoff election associated with the 2024 election cycle for the U.S. House of Representatives in Texas’ 23rd Congressional District.
The following day, the San Antonio Express-News followed up with its own story about Herrera that also included a link to Herrera’s Nazi-themed video.
At one point, in the video originally posted in 2022, Herrera can be seen “goose-stepping” to Ericka, the preferred military marching hymn of the Waffen SS, and then later firing an MP-40 submachine gun that Herrera refers to as “the original ghetto blaster.” At another point in the video, an associate seems poised to perform a Nazi salute before Herrera interrupts him and gestures at the camera. Towards the end of the video, Herrera and his masked partner, who happens to be affecting a German accent, can be seen shooting up a case of White Claws being used to represent Jewish people in hiding during the Holocaust.
Most recently, in March of 2026, the Express-News reported that a clip had emerged of Herrera on his podcast in which he brags about his 1939 English edition copy of Mein Kampf.
By the time this particular incident was being reported, incumbent Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-Texas, had abandoned his reelection campaign amid a sexual misconduct investigation, and Herrera, who had forced Gonzales into a runoff, had become the presumptive GOP nominee for the seat in the 2026 election cycle.
In saner times, Herrera’s abhorrent displays would have been an obvious and insurmountable political liability that would have rendered Herrera completely unelectable in any election under any circumstances.
But in Texas, especially during the Trump era, these displays were apparently not enough to derail his political ambitions. It’s notable that although Herrera did not manage to win the nomination outright, he did manage to secure the most votes in the March 3rd Republican primary during the 2026 election cycle, a striking indication of his continued appeal among voters in the district.
Just one election cycle earlier, the Republican Jewish Coalition (RJC) appeared determined to confront Herrera denouncing him on its website as a “goose-stepping extremist who pals around with online Nazis.” It would also launch a $400,000 advertising campaign in May of 2024 opposing Herrera in the Republican runoff associated with the 2024 election cycle.
The powerful American Israel Public Affairs Committee also sprang into action against Herrera. On May 15, 2024, Jewish Insider reported that the AIPAC-linked United Democracy Project super PAC was also launching what is described in the article as “a $1 million, two-week ad buy” campaign opposing Herrera.
Federal Election Commission data compiled by MyRepTracker confirms a total of five independent expenditures by UDP targeting Herrera, totaling approximately $1.06 million.
But apparently, opposition to antisemitism has its limitations. As noted in a Politico article from March, when “faced with the choice of a candidate they’ve long accused of antisemitism and a Democrat, these pro-Israel and Jewish groups are thus far choosing to sit on their hands.” Following Gonzales’ abrupt withdrawal from the runoff in March of 2026, once Herrera became the presumptive Republican nominee, the RJC began to equivocate, indicating that it would rather hold its fire during the general election than support Herrera’s Democratic opponent, Katy Padilla Stout.
AIPAC has followed a similar course of action choosing to condition its support for Padilla Stout on her support for Israel. According to an Express-News article, AIPAC contacted Padilla Stout and encouraged her to submit a position paper clarifying her views on Israel and the U.S.–Israel relationship as part of its endorsement process. Padilla Stout declined the invitation explaining that “AIPAC’s definitely a little controversial, and I’m not sure that they fully align with my values.”
What is perhaps most alarming about this situation, however, is the number of prominent Republican political figures that have endorsed Herrera.
Trump, for example, endorsed Herrera just days after Gonzales dropped out of the race.
Although Ken Paxton, the current Texas attorney general and Republican nominee for U.S. Senate, has not issued a formal endorsement statement, he has publicly supported Herrera on numerous occasions including a campaign stop in El Paso in late September.
In addition to endorsing Herrera, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) has actively campaigned with him, raised money on his behalf, and even defended him during a recent interview on CNN.
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) and Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) have also endorsed Herrera. He’s also been endorsed by Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) and Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.), among many others.
What’s particularly interesting about Rep. Luna is that she was actually invited to appear as a panelist on “Real Time With Bill Maher” on March 20, 2026, soon after endorsing Herrera who had recently become the GOP nominee for CD 23.
It should, of course, be noted that, by this point, Herrera’s Nazi-themed videos and other antisemitic displays and gestures had already received substantial media coverage.
Maher, a stealth Republican luminary and Breitbart favorite, has positioned himself as a steadfast defender of Israel and rarely fails to mention Israel on his show. He also regularly castigates Democrats for what he has characterized as their enabling of antisemitism, even absurdly suggesting at times that Jewish identity has become a political liability within the party.
And yet, when presented with the opportunity to directly confront a sitting Republican congresswoman who had endorsed a candidate who has regularly engaged in some of the most egregious displays of antisemitism, Maher remained conspicuously silent.
The inconsistency in the treatment of Herrera by both Maher and prominent members of the Republican Party is difficult to ignore and exposes a troubling double standard.
Maher has repeatedly and forcefully condemned what he vaguely identifies as the Democratic Party’s tolerance of antisemitism, but he has demonstrated considerably less enthusiasm and determination in confronting tangible, indisputable displays of antisemitism by a Republican candidate.
Maher’s inconsistency is similar to the hypocrisy of Republican leaders who have embraced and supported a congressional candidate whose brazen displays of antisemitism they once condemned.
Confronting antisemitism should not be subordinated to political expediency or any other consideration. Ultimately, if Maher and the Republicans expect their condemnations of antisemitism to have any credibility, they must aggressively confront the rampant antisemitism in the Republican Party, starting with the candidacy of Brandon Herrera.
