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“Nothing short of treasonous”: Right-wing media ramp up attacks on Democratic officials, mainstream news, and Iran war critics as “traitors”

Fox host Will Cain: “As we’re in a high-stakes moment overseas, some Democrats sound like they’re not on team America”

Written by Isabella Corrao, Jane Lee & Helena Hind

Published

In the last month, right-wing media figures have labeled a wide range of people and entities they associate with the Democratic Party — from former President Barack Obama to mainstream media figures and critics of the Iran War — as “traitors,” in some cases explicitly demanding they be tried for treason and put to death. This rhetoric showcases the right's escalation and propensity for more extreme reactions during the second Trump administration.

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  • “Enemies of the state”: Right-wing media are calling Democrats, journalists, and opponents of the Iran war “traitors”

    • Fox host Will Cain said Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) criticizing Trump’s “bungled mismanagement” of the Iran war “is nothing short of treasonous." Cain opened the segment by telling viewers, “As we’re in a high-stakes moment overseas, some Democrats sound like they’re not on team America.” He also called Murphy a “traitor” for making a sarcastic social media post about the war: “Chris Murphy responding to a post about Iran's shadow fleet running a blockade. He responded with one word: ‘awesome.’ That post triggered immediate backlash, as it should. Critics calling him, as they should, a traitor.” [Fox News, The Will Cain Show, 4/21/26]
    • Newsmax’s Carl Higbie said Murphy “should be expelled from the Senate and charged with treason.” Higbie claimed that “in this case, like we have a U.S. senator … rooting for the enemy of the country he's supposed to represent.” [Newsmax, Carl Higbie Frontline, 4/22/26]
    • Newsmax guest Zuhdi Jasser called Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) a traitor and enemy of the state for opposing war in Iran. Jasser: “To see traitors like Ilhan Omar talk about our troops the way she does and Israel's moral force the way she does, these are enemies of the state. They’re part of the Marxist-jihadist global axis, if you will.” [Newsmax, Sunday Agenda, 3/1/26]
    • Fox host Mark Levin: “You have [Democratic House Minority Leader] Hakeem Jeffries saying that we're going to lose the war. You know what that is? That's a traitor. That's right, I said it. That's a traitor.” [Fox News, Hannity, 3/6/26]
    • MAGA podcaster Benny Johnson: “Is Ilhan Omar like out here telling Iran when they’re going to attack? Could you be charged as a traitor here?” [Rumble, The Benny Johnson Show, 3/2/26]
    • YouTuber Zack Hoyt, known online as Asmongold, said Democratic Gov. Tim Walz should be charged with “treason or sedition” over supposed fraud claims related to Somali immigrants in Minnesota. Asmongold: “I think they should go all the way. And I think that if they knew that he was allowing that to happen, I think they should charge him for treason or sedition. Because the money that was basically reallocated to Somalia funded Al-Shabaab, which is a terrorist organization. So, Tim Walz indirectly allowed a terrorist organization to be funded by the American taxpayer, and he did so willingly and knowingly. And I think if that's the case, I think he should be tried for treason.” [YouTube, AsmongoldTV, 3/4/26; Media Matters, 12/11/25]
    • Fox’s Greg Gutfeld said Walz is guilty of “treason.” Gutfeld: “If Walz goes abroad to bash Trump, he's also bashing America because he's the agent for America. … He is, in effect, a traitor. But we already knew that.” [Fox News, The Five, 4/20/26]
    • Discussing Trump’s war against Iran on right-wing cable outlet One America News, ACT for America founder Brigitte Gabriel said: “The mainstream media is an agent of the enemy and they should be charged with treason.” She elaborated: “The mainstream media is working with the association — supporting the enemy in defeating American sentiment and defeating the American resolve.” [OAN, Real America with Dan Ball, 3/16/26]
    • Newsmax host Carl Higbie said the reporter “from our team” who leaked information about a downed American fighter pilot in Iran should be tried for treason and put to death. Higbie: “You better bury this person, because if the IRGC had gotten ahold of that guy before we did, God forbid. I mean, they would have — that would’ve been on that leaker's shoulders. Look, I say find that person. Try him for treason. Absolutely no plea deals, no mercy, no compassion. Treason, 18 U.S. Code chapter 115-2381, quote, ‘Whoever, owing allegiance to the United States, levies war against them or adheres to their enemies, giving them aid and comfort within the United States or elsewhere, is guilty of treason and shall suffer death.’ Sign me up.” [Newsmax, Carl Higbie Frontline, 4/6/26]
    • On Fox Business, former Canadian politician and conservative podcaster Goldie Ghamari said critics of Trump and his Iran war are “traitors.” Ghamari: “It's absolutely horrifying that these — to me, like, they sound like traitors — these traitors are actually defending the Islamic regime, and they're attacking President Trump.” [Fox Business, The Evening Edit, 4/7/26; National Post, 1/10/26]
    • On The Tucker Carlson Show, guest Buckley Carlson said: “Tulsi Gabbard, you know, a year ago revealed that Barack Obama was directly guilty, I believe, of treason. I don't know how you could say it any other way.” Carlson continued, “A former president who advocated and financed and allowed his national security apparatus to survey and obstruct and take out a sitting U.S. president.” [The Tucker Carlson Show, 4/20/26] 
    • Newsmax’s Rob Astorino criticized Murphy: “His response of ‘awesome’ when he thought that Iranian ships broke through the blockade is just – it's treasonous. This stuff is literally bordering on treason.” [Newsmax, Saturday Agenda, 4/25/26]