FALSE PROPHET
Blake Masters
U.S. Senate Candidate, Arizona
Blake Masters is a venture capitalist and the Republican nominee for Arizona’s U.S. Senate race. Masters emerged from the orbit of far-right billionaire Peter Thiel, having served as COO of Thiel Capital and President of the Thiel Foundation. Inspired by his vicious anti-immigrant rhetoric and other extremist and nationalist statements, he has been endorsed by multiple prominent white nationalists and antisemites including Gab CEO Andrew Torba, Charlottesville terrorist Nick Fuentes, and founder of the neo-Nazi blog Daily Stormer Andrew Anglin.
Masters’ Christian Nationalist Rhetoric
From his campaign website: “I’m a Christian, husband, father, businessman, gun owner, and an early member of President Trump’s MAGA movement.”
Has encouraged people to read the manifesto of Unabomber Ted Kaczynski, calling the domestic terrorist one of his intellectual influences
On nationalism: “It definitely looks more nationalistic, but I think it’s a healthy nationalism. There’s that N-word — nationalism — that you’re not supposed to say.”
Blames gun violence on Black people: “It's gangs. It's people in Chicago, St. Louis shooting each other. Very often, you know, Black people, frankly. And the Democrats don't want to do anything about that.”
A leading figure in supporting Donald Trump’s election-denial Big Lie. Falsely claims a third of the people outside the capital on January 6th were FBI agents
Has appeared on Christian nationalist movement leader and fellow False Prophet Steve Bannon’s show ‘War Room’
Masters is also endorsed by former President Donald Trump and has been referenced as the “Future of the GOP” by Tucker Carlson. His supporters believe that his campaign is entirely rooted in being "based," which is slang for “anything that owns the libs.” The Washington Post lists Masters as “said no or did not respond” when asked if he would accept the results of the 2022 election.
Masters does not use as much religious rhetoric as some of the other False Prophets of Christian nationalism, but nevertheless identifies as a Christian while promoting policies that would build power for conservative Christians and deny equal rights to others. His campaign is an important reminder that academic researchers define and identify examples of dangerous Christian nationalism as much by identity and policy as by rhetoric and symbolism.
Masters’ Christian Nationalist Policy Positions
Opposes the right to abortion access: “It’s a religious sacrifice to these people, I think it’s demonic.”
On immigration, embraces the racist “Great Replacement” theory that partially inspired a mass shooting in Buffalo, NY, accusing Democrats of “flood[ing] the nation with millions of immigrants ‘to change the demographics of our country’”
Aired anti-immigration campaign ads that critics have called “one of the most vile and dangerous nativist ads we’ve seen, nearly indistinguishable from sections of the white supremacist gunman’s screed in the racist Buffalo mass murders."
Opposes marriage equality, saying about marriage, “It’s not just Disney, you know—‘follow your heart. It has a point.” (The point, to Masters, is procreation. He has not to our knowledge said whether he believes senior citizens or infertile couples should also be banned from marriage.)
Has supported similar stolen-election lies and January 6 conspiracy theories as spread by fellow False Prophets and Christian-nationalist movement leaders Rev. Franklin Graham, General Michael Flynn, Bishop Joseph Strickland, strategist Steve Bannon, and Pastor Tony Perkins.