Fox News host Laura Ingraham issued a grave warning to viewers last week in response to the recent progressive sweep of Democratic congressional candidates, a warning that included a potential “implication” that left two podcast hosts laughing hysterically.
“If we turn our government over to a bunch of Democrat socialists, Israel will be treated like South Africa was in the 1980s,” Ingraham said on Fox News last week. “It will be boycott all the way.”
South Africa was famously hammered with international sanctions in the 1960s to pressure the nation’s leaders to end its apartheid system of government, which institutionalized racially discriminatory policies on a systemic level, creating multiple legal frameworks for those of different ethnicities. The sanctions proved successful, with South Africa’s apartheid system being dismantled in the 1990s.
Critics, including leading human rights organizations, have accused Israel’s government of operating under apartheid, with the more than 3.2 million Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied West Bank living under different legal frameworks than the more than 700,000 Israeli settlers illegally living in the Palestinian territory.
As such, Jeremy Johnson and Gage Kosmanopoulos – two leftist podcasters who host the show “Head in the Office” – erupted into laughter after hearing Ingraham’s cautionary tale.
“Oh no, my steak is too juicy and my lobster is way too buttery bro, no! Is there an implication here that it was wrong to do that, that it was wrong to treat South Africa like that in the 80s?” said Kosmanopoulos.
“What are we talking about, genuinely? What are you supposed to do with this? Right-wing commentary has devolved to a point where it is genuinely beyond parody.”
Despite the international sanctions, Israel maintained a deep and friendly relationship with South Africa throughout its time operating under apartheid. The two nations established a secret defense agreement in 1975, and in 1977, the Carter administration voiced fears that Israel was cooperating with South Africa to develop a nuclear weapon.
“They list a good thing that Democratic socialists want that is broadly popular around the country, and then they try to make it sound evil and nefarious – here, she’s not even trying!” said Johnson. “She’s just saying Israel will face justice for what it’s done, oh no.”
Abier Khatib, a prominent pro-Palestinian advocate who shared the clip of Johnson and Kosmanopoulos’ reaction to Ingraham, said she “can’t believe she said that” in a social media post to her more than 368,000 followers on X.
I don’t think I’ve ever heard a more obvious admission 😂😂
I can’t believe she said that 😂 pic.twitter.com/Skt6jz65Ol
— Abier (@abierkhatib) June 28, 2026