The Trump administration said ‘many Jewish groups' support a controversial nominee — some have never heard of him

CNN

09-07-2025

In defending its nominee to lead the Office of Special Counsel, the government's top watchdog, the Trump administration insisted to CNN last week that Paul Ingrassia, a 30 year-old lawyer with a history of racist rhetoric and ties to a Holocaust denier, had the backing of 'many Jewish groups,' listing four.
But when CNN reached out to those groups, most said the same thing: they don't support Ingrassia — and, in some cases, don't even know who he is. One went on the record to support Ingrassia — but that came after its executive director initially told CNN they were not supporting his nomination.
The first group listed, the Zionist Organization of America, and its leader Mort Klein, told CNN through a spokesperson that he doesn't know Ingrassia and had not endorsed him.
The chairman of a second group, the US Holocaust Memorial Council — which the administration originally referred to as 'The Holocaust Council' — told CNN it is a nonpartisan, nonpolitical group that does not take positions on political nominees.
The executive director of a third listed group, the Israeli Defense and Security Forum (IDSF) — an Israeli-based advocacy group for the country's national defense, also told CNN they had never expressed support for Ingrassia.
The executive director of a fourth group, the Israel Heritage Foundation, initially told CNN the same. But several days later the group's president said they were in fact supporting Ingrassia.
Ingrassia, who has just over six months of government experience, was nominated in May to lead the Office of Special Counsel, an independent agency tasked with protecting federal whistleblowers and enforcing civil service laws.
Last week, CNN's KFile reported Ingrassia's history of racist invective and conspiratorial rants, as well his claims that straight White men were the most intelligent demographic group.
In a tweet, Ingrassia called the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack against Israel, which killed an estimated 1,200 people that day and took another 251 people hostage, a 'psyop,' or a psychological operation.
His nomination has drawn scrutiny over his past promotion of conspiracy theories and tweets from his podcast that included calls for martial law following Donald Trump's 2020 election loss and harsh anti-Israel rhetoric aimed at the GOP.
Ingrassia has also been scrutinized for his ties to Nick Fuentes, a noted White nationalist and Holocaust denier, as well as his defense of Fuentes' ability to post on social media.
Given a chance to respond to those comments last week, the administration replied with a statement attributed to an unnamed senior administration official.
'He has the support of many Jewish groups and has been a steadfast advocate for Jewish causes and personnel during his time working for the Trump administration,' the statement read.
When asked which groups were consulted, the administration initially named just two: the Zionist Organization of America, and a group they called 'The Holocaust Council' — of which no group by that name could be found.
Reached for comment, a spokesperson for Morton Klein, the president of the first group listed, initially told CNN last Thursday that he had never heard of Ingrassia and had not endorsed his nomination.
Told of his denial by CNN, the administration pointed to a segment from June in which Klein is asked on the 'Wise Guys with John Tabacco' show on Newsmax if he'd support 'my buddy Paul Ingrassia,' for special counsel.
'If you ask me to do that I will certainly do that,' Klein replied.
Told of the administration's response, a Klein spokesperson reiterated it was an off-hand comment, and he did not know who Ingrassia was.
After several emails from CNN asking for clarity on 'The Holocaust Council,' the administration said they meant the United States Holocaust Memorial Council, the board of trustees for the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C.
But that group is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, and the chair of the board of trustees told CNN they do not endorse nominees.
'The museum and the council do not take positions on nominees. We're a nonpolitical and nonpartisan organization,' Stuart E. Eizenstat, chair of the Holocaust Memorial Council and a Biden presidential appointee, said in a phone interview.
When asked if they meant individual board members support Ingrassia, a senior Trump administration official responded, 'it's a good question,' and then did not respond to follow up inquiries.
At least one member of the board of trustees of the Holocaust Memorial Council has commented in the past on Ingrassia publicly: Siggy Flicker, a former cast member of 'the Real Housewives of New Jersey,' whom Trump appointed in May. Flicker called Ingrassia an 'antisemite' several weeks ago in a since-removed post on Instagram. A source familiar with the board said Flicker removed the post after speaking with Ingrassia.
Flicker did not respond to repeated CNN requests for comment.
The administration also pointed to Jonathan Burkan, a Trump-appointed member of the Holocaust Memorial Council, as supporting Ingrassia's nomination. But Burkan told CNN, while he spoke to Ingrassia through a mutual friend and Ingrassia told him he was not antisemitic, 'I don't get involved in any nominations. I'm just not doing that.'
Last week, CNN reported that Ingrassia was spotted at a 2024 rally for Fuentes in Detroit and defended him online, including calling for his reinstatement on Twitter. A now-deleted X account tied to Ingrassia's former podcast also echoed far-right and anti-Israel rhetoric, amplified Fuentes' posts, and called for Trump to declare martial law after his defeat in 2020.
Ingrassia disputed to The Intercept and NPR in May that his attendance at the rally was intentional. 'I had no knowledge of who organized the event, observed for 5-10 minutes, then left,' he told NPR.
After CNN's story published, the administration listed two other groups — the Israel Heritage Foundation and the Israel Defense and Security Forum — as supporting Ingrassia.
IDSF's CEO Yaron Buskila told CNN that his organization had not endorsed Ingrassia, but that it was possible one of its 50,000 members did.
'No one ever supported him or said something about him in the media. Generally we are not supporting politicians, we support only ideas that can benefit the security of Israel,' he told CNN in an email on Sunday.
The director of international relations for the group also told CNN on Monday in an email they were not supporting Ingrassia.
'I wish we can be more helpful, but as you probably know, IDSF is an Israeli NGO (not a Jewish NGO) that focuses on Israeli national security issues. We really are not a relevant organization to be addressing the viability of a candidate for the Office of Special Counsel,' Elie Pieprz, the director, told CNN.
'We are not familiar with Paul Ingrassia and are not in a position to express support or opposition to his nomination,' he added. 'If anyone claimed that IDSF took a position on this, it was inadvertent. IDSF is not opposed or in favor of his nomination.
'None of us in the IDSF staff even heard about Paul Ingrassia before you mentioned him,' he continued.
The Israel Heritage Foundation is supporting Ingrassia's nomination, the group's executive president Stephen Soloway told CNN on Monday. Their support came after the group's executive director Rabbi David Katz told CNN on Thursday they were not supporting Ingrassia.
'Something doesn't make sense,' Katz told CNN in a phone call. 'It doesn't make sense, I have no idea who he is.'
On Monday, Soloway told CNN that Katz was wrong. The group was supporting Ingrassia's nomination.
'He's a major supporter of Judaism,' Soloway told CNN. 'He's not an antisemite. I consider Paul a very good friend.'
Asked about the discrepancy with Katz, Soloway told CNN, 'Rabbi Katz is our cheerleader,' before insisting CNN cover 'Zofran Muhammed' in the New York City's mayoral race, presumably meaning Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic nominee.
As CNN also reported on Wednesday, Ingrassia has promoted a 9/11 conspiracy theory and others, defended January 6 rioters, and amplified extremist voices online. He describes himself as 'Trump's favorite writer' after the former president reposted his content nearly 100 times in 2024 alone.
Ingrassia did not respond to a request for comment.