Tipsheet

Ro Khanna Should Just Be Called Jussie Smollett Over This Fiasco in Israel

Matt Vespa
Matt Vespa  |  July 16, 2026 6:30 AM

You can tell when everyone knows a story is bullshit by how long it lasts. The Jussie Smollett hate crime hoax in 2019 quickly fell apart because everyone knew it was a lie— even black Americans saw through it. The timing, the location, the noose—all were met with immediate doubt. Only naïve white liberal women fell for it, and they quickly accepted it once the story faced modest scrutiny. 

Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA), someone hardly anyone knows but who decided to announce his 2028 presidential run early, chose to travel to Israel without informing anyone, got himself detained in a restricted area, and later spun a story about a violent armed detention that never actually happened. He was accompanied by a camera crew and some New York Times reporters. 

He wanted a confrontation, and he got it. It just didn’t pay dividends because everyone is now laughing at him. He’s finally admitted he kept Jerusalem in the dark about his trip, which was really a taxpayer-funded media production for his ‘brutal’ detention to pander to anti-Israel progressives back home:

“I did that on purpose [not tell the Israelis]! I’ve been to Israel multiple times, I wanted to see the West Bank through the lens of the Palestinians,” he said. 

Well, thanks for being honest, Temu Jussie. At least you admitted it days later.

The Israelis offered to give Khanna a briefing on their security situation, along with visits to those who survived the October 7 attacks. Khanna refused for obvious reasons.