Put simply, Restore Britain is run by thickos

Responding to the barrage of criticism over the last few days, Rupert Lowe has published a statement (or rather whoever runs his X account has).

The media continues to try and paint me as some raging anti-Semite, seemingly driven mainly by Restore Britain’s policy of banning both halal and kosher slaughter.

My position is this.

Considering the state of Britain, what happens in a Middle Eastern foreign conflict is so far down my list of priorities. Restore Britain’s politics is not defined by what happens in Palestine.

The clue is in the name.

Britain is our one and only priority.

I opposed our involvement in the Iranian war for exactly that reason, unlike the Tories and Reform.

I didn’t think it would serve our interests, and it hasn’t. At all.

It has driven the cost of living up and made life more difficult for British families.

We must do what is right for Britain.

I believe that Hamas are murderous terrorists and I’d like to see the Israelis wipe them off the face of the planet.

In fact, the best way to keep Jewish people safe in Britain is to deport the many thousands of Islamists who want them, and us, dead. That along with ending immigration from Islamic countries which so freely provide us with these scumbags.

Do I think Israel is beyond criticism? No. And I certainly don’t think disapproving of certain Israeli decisions should be immediately denounced as ‘anti-semitism’.

But quite frankly, I’m not overly interested. A Restore Britain Government’s foreign policy agenda will be guided by what is right for the British people, not what happens in the Middle East.

That will be our sole aim and I make no apologies for it.

My priority is Britain, and Britain only.

Lowe’s opening premise is deeply dishonest. He says “The media continues to try and paint me as some raging anti-Semite, seemingly driven mainly by Restore Britain’s policy of banning both halal and kosher slaughter”.

This is not the case. Restore is racking up a reputation for antisemitism because its deputies are pandering to the online base which is comprised of vocal antisemites, and one notorious one in particular who dabbles in Holocaust denial. While Lowe has his own personal politics, which define the party for now, his deputies have other ideas - largely centred on ethno-nationalism and antisemitism.

As an aside, Firas Modad responded to yesterday’s post, in which he asks "Why does criticising Israel lead to a career ending campaign?". The short answer is... it doesn't. There are plenty of foul deeds one can criticise, but we always have to view with suspicion anyone who singles out Israel for criticism while maintaining complete silence about other regimes. Where you find a monomaniacal obsession with Israel you are usually looking at antisemitism, which is a hugely reliable indicator of crankery. In the British context, on the right, it tends to suggest doctrinal British nationalism - and all the intellectual rot that goes with it. Their obsession with Israel is a useful barometer.

In the case of Restore, and young Mr Downes, he's signalling to the online base (similarly obsessed with Israel and vehemently antisemitic), essentially contradicting his own leader. As far as any mainstream party of the right is concerned, that should be career ending. These are people who hold Israel responsible for everything from 9/11 to the British weather - and lack the intellectual agility to imagine a world more complicated than that. Retards basically, and I'm saying you shouldn't vote for retards of any stripe.

As to the rest of Lowe’s statement, his position is not a million miles from my own. I share his view that “Hamas are murderous terrorists and I’d like to see the Israelis wipe them off the face of the planet”. I am also sceptical of military interventions. In fact, I am hard pressed to disagree with anything else he’s said here.

But this is why Restore is stupid. Had they codified this into a foreign policy posture (with a bit more formal detail) from the beginning, put it on the website, and imposed discipline on their spokesmen to stick to the script, they would have avoided this very predictable debacle - not least because it would have been a deterrent to all the cranks they've attracted. It was such an obvious ambush and they walked into it of their own volition.

As readers will know, I told them this would happen but they're too thick to grasp the point. Sadly, I’ve been right about this from day one. Ultimately, Restore Britain is run by thickos. That's the basic problem. They just aren’t good at this and there’s no fixing that.