A conservative commentator who has argued that white Americans face racism and that their "identity" should be protected withdrew his nomination Tuesday for a senior State Department diplomatic post after Republican opposition threatened to derail his confirmation.
Jeremy Carl was nominated by the White House to serve as assistant secretary of state for international organization affairs, but his confirmation chances appeared dead after Sen. John Curtis, R-Utah, expressed his opposition to Carl.
Carl was questioned by both Republicans and Democrats at his confirmation hearing over comments he made about protecting "white identity" in American culture.
"Unfortunately, for senior positions such as this one, the support of the President and Secretary of State is very important but not sufficient," Carl wrote in a post on X.
"We also needed the unanimous support of every GOP Senator on the Committee on Foreign Relations, given the unanimous opposition of Senate Democrats to my candidacy, and unfortunately, at this time this unanimous support was not forthcoming."
Carl previously served as deputy assistant secretary of the interior during Trump's first administration. He called his Senate hearing "theatrical" in an article published by The Spectator.
In a 2024 book, "The Unprotected Class: How Anti-White Racism Is Tearing America Apart," Carl argued that white Americans have experienced ongoing discrimination and argued that their historical identity has been "erased" from the nation's narrative, Politico reported.
During Carl's confirmation hearing, Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., asked him to define "white identity." Carl described the concept as "certain types of Anglo-derived culture that comes from our history."
Following the hearing, Carl rejected claims he was a white nationalist in a lengthy post on X.
"I am, of course, not a White nationalist, and actual White nationalists have criticized me and my work very harshly because they understand that I am an American civic nationalist, very concerned with the preservation of our common culture and our unity as a nation, something I stressed several times during our hearing," Carl wrote.
"The 'White culture' then that I was referring to was simply the culture of the overwhelming majority of Americans who lived here prior to the passing of the Hart-Celler Immigration Act of 1965, which radically transformed American demographics," he added.
"I firmly believe that Americans of *every* race or cultural background can ultimately share in and contribute to that culture."
Curtis said he would reject Carl's nomination after Carl agreed with a podcast host who criticized Jews for claiming "special victim status" due to the Holocaust.
"I find his anti-Israel views and insensitive remarks about the Jewish people unbecoming of the position for which he has been nominated," Curtis said.
Sam Barron ✉
Sam Barron has almost two decades of experience covering a wide range of topics including politics, crime and business.
© 2026 Newsmax. All rights reserved.