Candace Owens and Ben Shapiro Feud on X

Shapiro: ‘If you feel like taking money from The Daily Wire somehow comes between you and God, by all means quit’

Published: November 15, 2023
  |   By Chris Karr

The Daily Wire co-founder and editor emeritus Ben Shapiro appeared to nudge the outlet’s host Candace Owens to quit over recent posts to X regarding the Israel-Palestinian conflict.

In the wake of Hamas’ attack against Israel on Oct. 7, Owens has posted comments on X, formerly Twitter, that were critical of pro-Israel advocates.

“No government anywhere has a right to commit a genocide, ever,” Owens said in a Nov. 3 post. “There is no justification for genocide. I can’t believe this even needs to be said or is even considered the least bit controversial to state.”

The same day, she quoted a post from Dave Rubin in which the podcaster sarcastically told her “thank you for taking a strong stand against Hamas’ stated genocide of the Jews, which is in their charter.”

She replied, “In short—if the blanket statement that genocide is wrong upsets you in any way, then you need to check yourself. I said exactly what I meant and I won’t be backing down or apologizing or further clarifying this statement.”

In another post responding to Rubin, she wrote, “What’s amazing about this is that I did not name any country in this tweet. I simply stated that genocide is wrong—ALWAYS. This is not a controversial stance.”

The apparent disconnect in outlook between Owens and Shapiro reached a flashpoint when a video of The Daily Wire co-founder calling the Candace host’s comments “disgraceful” and “disreputable” went viral.

“She still works for my company,” he said. “And I think she’s been absolutely disgraceful. I think that her faux sophistication on these particular issues has been ridiculous.”

In a Nov. 14 post, Owens quoted the following scripture from the New Testament:

Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.

She added, in a subsequent post, “Christ is King.”

In a Wednesday evening quote post, Shapiro responded: “Candace, if you feel that taking money from The Daily Wire somehow comes between you and God, by all means quit.”

Owens fired back: “You have been acting unprofessional and emotionally unhinged for weeks now. And we have all had to sit back and allow it and have all tried to exercise exceeding understanding for your raw emotion.”

She added: “But you cross a certain line when you come for scripture and read yourself into it. I will not tolerate it.”

Pundits on X swiftly weighed in on the exchange.

On Wednesday evening, Tucker posted an interview with Owens on X where they touched on the issue.

“I saw the video when everybody else saw it when I woke up,” she said, referencing the viral video featuring Shapiro. “It looks like maybe he didn’t know he was being recorded. … I can’t respond to it beyond what he’s saying because it’s just ad hominem attacks.”

Leftist pundit Brian Krassenstein said, in response to the interview, “I have to give Owens credit for remaining above the petty tit-for-tat attacks. I disagree with her on many issues, but she showed character here.”

Owens thanked Krassenstein for his response.

“Genuinely chooses to pause and read the Bible has calmed me in times when I normally choose to be emotionally reactive,” she wrote. “I am glad you enjoyed the interview and I hope that even if you don’t agree with my viewpoints, you can respect the differences we might have,”

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