Politico Deletes Antisemitic Cartoon Showing Trump and Netanyahu Covered in Blood

AP Photo/Alex Brandon

Politico has deleted a cartoon accused of being antisemitic and depicting President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu draped in blood-covered prayer shawls and sitting on a ship that has a bag of blood-soaked money hanging above their heads.

The Washington Free Beacon was the first outlet to cover the cartoon, which was published on Friday and removed on Saturday.

Ex-New York Post cartoonist Sean Delonas made the cartoon, which showed several Republican lawmakers and members of Trump’s cabinet unwittingly sailing towards a waterfall, thinking they’re heading towards Iran. The ship is sailing under the moneybag and a flag that reads “Mission Accomplished,” and the cartoon is titled “Ship of Necons.”

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) is seen draped in the bloody prayer shawl, as well as Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), who also has a yarmulke on his head; Graham has been one of the biggest cheerleaders of Operation Epic Fury and has made hats that say “Make Iran Great Again.” 

Vice President JD Vance angrily looks down towards the sea and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is also depicted looking sternly out ahead. Below them are some odd-looking Trump supporters wearing MAGA hats clamoring next to the ship.

Free Beacon reporter Alana Goodman wrote:

The cartoon plays on classic anti-Semitic tropes about Jews covertly controlling events, in this case the decision to launch the war in Iran, and using financial exploitation to do so. The exaggeration of Netanyahu’s nose in a grotesque, caricatured style plays on age-old efforts to dehumanize Jews.

The drawing was published as part of Politico’s “Cartoon Carousel,” which Politico describes as a round-up of the “best” political cartoons of the week.

(Via Sean Delonas on Caglecartoons.com)

Politico said the cartoon was deleted after the Free Beacon’s story published on Friday.

“We removed a cartoon by independent cartoonist Sean Delonas from this week’s gallery after weighing comments from readers that it did not meet our standards,” Politico said in a statement. “Sharp arguments and provocative imagery in political cartoons are within bounds. Images that could be reasonably interpreted to rely on ethnic stereotypes or employing tropes that have been involved in historically hateful ways are not.”

Goodman also reached out to Delonas for comment; he told her he charges “$500 for a 1/2 hour interview and $750 for a full hour.”

You can view the full image above, via CagleCartoons.com.

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