Who is Rabbi Shmuley? Candace Owens feud explained as author urges Ben Shapiro to fire podcaster

On Friday, March 8, 2024, Rabbi Shmuley took to X and called out Candace Owens, claiming that she was an antisemite. He also warned The Daily Wire founder Ben Shapiro that if he continued to “employ” her, the “righteous god” would never give the news outlet any “blessing.”

Trigger warning: This article mentions the Israel-Hamas conflict, antisemitism, racism, Nazism, and more that may upset the readers. Discretion is advised.

Rabbi Shmuley, dubbed “America’s Rabbi” on his official website, took a dig at Candace Owens after the latter accused him and his daughter of harassing her “publicly with smears” for years because she did not “parrot their perspectives.”

In the wake of this ongoing feud on X, here’s looking at who Rabbi Shmuley is.

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Rabbi Shmuley is the former host of TLC’s Shalom in the Home

According to shmuley.com, Rabbi Shmuley’s original name is Jacob Shmuel Boteach. He has been described as “the most famous Rabbi in America” by The Washington Post and Newsweek.

The website also regards him as “the face of Judaism in the modern world” known for his “respected values and spiritual voices.” He is also “one of the leading defenders of Israel.”

Besides being a rabbi, Shmuley is also a regular guest on global media outlets including CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC. He has appeared on shows such as Oprah, The Today Show, The View, Dr. Phil, The O’Reilly Factor, and Good Morning America, among others.

Now 57 years old, Rabbi Shmuley is a Los Angeles native deemed a relationship expert. He has written over 36 books, including Good Mourning, Kosher Jesus, and Judaism for Everyone, and is one of the most sought-after international best-selling authors whose works have been translated into 20 languages.

He has also hosted two seasons of the prime-time reality TV series Shalom in the Home on TLC and identifies as a Republican who ran for Congress in 2012, as per Wiki. He is also the former unofficial spiritual advisor to Michael Jackson.

An orthodox Jew by origin, he founded the L’Chaim Society in Oxford, England, as per Famous Birthdays. He is married to Debbie and shares nine children with her.

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Exploring the latest feud between Rabbi Shmuley and Candance Owens

Recently, conservative political commentator and podcaster Candace Owens launched a series of allegations against Rabbi Shmuley on X.

In the first one, she reposted @dom_lucre’s tweet about how Shmuley knew about Michael Jackson’s alleged obsession with Hitler and the Nazis and reportedly downplayed it. The post comprised snaps from different publications that covered similar stories.

“Rabbi Shmuley is a monster who has waged horrific campaigns against black and brown people in an effort to control our voices and destroy our relationships with one another. Any publication who promotes him is complicit,” Owens wrote in her caption.

In her next post, Candance Owens continued slamming Rabbi Shmuley and claimed he and his daughter spent “two years” harassing and slandering her name to ensure that she suffered financially, as she did not agree with their perspectives.

“I’ve had enough. So today on the show: Michael Jackson, Diddy, & Kanye,” she wrote in the caption alongside the YouTube link of her latest podcast episode titled, “I’m DONE being threatened. The Michael Jackson and Diddy connection exposed!”

Under the same post’s comment section, Owens continued by saying how the rabbi and his daughter “routinely attack Christians” and engage in “obvious, manipulative, and monstrous behavior while simultaneously pretending that they are being victimized.”

“Rabbi Shmuley’s deep hatred for Blacks, Muslims, and Christians is beyond evident by his public commentary. Stop telling the very people that he attacks that we need to be silent because he calls himself a rabbi,” she added.

In the wake of all these attacks, Rabbi Shmuley issued his response. Captioning his post, “I called out Antisemite @CandaceOwensPod,” he included a 2-minute and 9 seconds-long video, defending himself and hitting back at Owens.

“Hi everybody. My understanding is, although I’ve not seen it myself, Candace Owens has launched a broadside attack against me and my daughter Rochel Leah, for calling her out on her antisemitism, Jew-hatred, and bigotry, over the last year at least,” the rabbi began.

He then reminded everyone how Owens defended Kanye West when the latter stated he “loved Hitler,” and added that to praise Hitler, one had to be full of hatred.

“Kanye West, they say, is troubled, that’s an excuse. He’s a vile Jew hater and Candace Owens is his bestie, best friend, defended him saying he’s not an antisemite, what has always stuck by him,” he alleged.

America’s Rabbi then went on to talk about the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel and how the whole world saw Jewish women being abused and mentioned that Candace Owens at the time said she could not come to a “moral decision” about who was right and wrong.

“She’s a died-in-a-wool antisemite. I will see what she said and respond accordingly. But the real shame is that Ben Shapiro, who wears the yarmulke and runs The Daily Wire… continues to employ her. He continues to profit off Jew-hatred and antisemitism,” he stated.

He wrapped up by directly addressing Shapiro and warning him that “the righteous god who watches all that we do” will never give him or his media outlet “any blessing” from the money he was “making off Candace Owens.”

Shmuley concluded by saying it was “shocking” and “disappointing” how Shapiro would side with Owens and reminded him that if any other news outlets “employed someone who said they love Kanye West,” or did not know who to support in the aftermath of the October 7 conflict, Shapiro and his team would sit and call them out.

Rabbi Shmuley’s daughter Rochel Leah also referred to Ben Shapiro and said how his silence on the entire case is "shocking," sharing screenshots of Candace Owens’ recent posts against them.