The Evolution of Islam and The American Right

Later this year, Americans will recognize September 11, 2026 as the 25th anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center back in 2001.

The attack was enacted by Al-Qaeda, a radical Islamic organization. And while countless Muslims decried the violence as both a tragedy and as an anti-Islamic act, the following years saw many Muslims (and people suspected to be Muslims) severely mistreated.

Right after 9/11, there were nearly 20 times the amount of assaults on muslims every year as there had been in the 90’s. And, while that figure has risen and fallen in the decades since, in certain circles, a suspicion of Muslims in the U.S. and even an all out hatred of the Islamic faith has lingered.

One of the circles in which Islam has often been called into question has been the far right. Speaking of Muslims back in 2015, Trump said “Without looking at the various polling data, it is obvious to anybody the hatred is beyond comprehension.” He said this in connection with his plans to prevent Muslim Immigration into the United States. A plan which, when elected, he partially saw through, by banning refugees from seven predominantly Muslim nations from entering the country.

And it wasn’t just Trump calling out Islam. In 2019, Muslim Advocates called on FOX News to fire Tucker Carlson for what he said about Minnesota Representative Ilhan Omar and her Muslim faith.

In a much more grave instance, also in 2019, a man killed nearly 50 people in a Christchurch, New Zealand Mosque. In his manifesto, he named conservative commentator Candace Owens as the person who had most radicalized him. Candace, of course, did not endorse these killings. But her stance on Islam at the time was certainly more negative.


But in 2026, a quick look through the talk shows and podcasts of Carlson, Owens and other right-wing commentators, will paint a very different picture of how these groups feel about Muslims. The same pundits who once criticized Islam, are now defending it.

To better understand the right’s evolving relationship with Islam, I spoke with Matthew Schmitz. Schmitz is the editor of Compact Magazine and the Religion Editor for the Washington Post Opinion Section. He is also Cohost of the Against The Grain podcast. Schmitz wrote an article back in May about the phenomenon of conservative influencers who have radically changed the way they talk about Islam online. We talked about this trend, how Trump measures up and what it might mean for the future of the Republican Party.