Podcast Summary: "Andrew Porwancher, 'American Maccabee: Theodore Roosevelt and the Jews' (Princeton UP, 2025)"
Podcast: New Books Network
Host: Amber Nichol
Guest: Andrew Porwancher
Episode Date: December 28, 2025
Book Discussed: American Maccabee: Theodore Roosevelt and the Jews (Princeton University Press, 2025)
Main Theme
This episode explores the complex relationship between Theodore Roosevelt and the Jewish community, as examined in Andrew Porwancher's new book American Maccabee. The discussion delves into Roosevelt’s personal affinities and contradictions regarding Jews, his policies at home and abroad, and how his attitudes reflected broader American paradoxes—ultimately offering a nuanced reconsideration of his legacy.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
1. Genesis of the Project and Roosevelt’s Interest in Jews
- Motivation Behind the Book
- Porwancher was inspired by exploring Hamilton’s legacy and conversations with historian Jonathan Sarna, who remarked that no one had yet properly written about Roosevelt’s relationship with Jews.
- Sarna’s prompting led Porwancher into a six-year research journey, culminating in American Maccabee.
- Quote:
- "When Sarna gives you the green light, you go full speed. And so I delve down this six year rabbit hole..."
— Andrew Porwancher [03:07]
- "When Sarna gives you the green light, you go full speed. And so I delve down this six year rabbit hole..."
2. Roosevelt’s Identification with the Maccabees and Jewish Masculinity
- Personal and Symbolic Resonance
- Roosevelt overcame childhood frailty by embracing rugged masculinity—he related to Jewish immigrants through this lens.
- He romanticized the Maccabees, ancient Jewish warrior heroes, seeing Jewish vigor and resilience as emblematic of American ideals.
- Roosevelt recruited Jews to the NYPD based on these ideals without asking about their background, only that they look "unmistakably Jewish".
- Quote:
- "Roosevelt’s lifelong interest and valorization of the Maccabees reflects both his particular premium on a kind of rugged masculinity... and Roosevelt's belief that Jews could find their belonging in America not by shedding their Jewishness, but by embracing the most lionized, heroic aspects of their own Jewish tradition, which for Roosevelt was the Maccabee warriors."
— Andrew Porwancher [06:07]
- "Roosevelt’s lifelong interest and valorization of the Maccabees reflects both his particular premium on a kind of rugged masculinity... and Roosevelt's belief that Jews could find their belonging in America not by shedding their Jewishness, but by embracing the most lionized, heroic aspects of their own Jewish tradition, which for Roosevelt was the Maccabee warriors."
3. The Two Roosevelts: Philosemitism & Antisemitism
- A Study in Contradictions
- Porwancher argues Roosevelt simultaneously embodied philo-Semitic and anti-Semitic attitudes, often in the same breath.
- Provided significant support and opportunity for Jews, yet used anti-Semitic slurs privately and sometimes publicly, reflecting broader American ambivalence.
- Highlights include Roosevelt’s derogatory language (“circumcised skunk,” “sheeny”) and simultaneous public advocacy.
- Quote:
- "Oftentimes his philo Semitism and anti Semitism could actually work in tandem rather than intention... And I think that Roosevelt's mixed approach on Jews... was reflected locally, nationally, internationally, in a variety of ways."
— Andrew Porwancher [09:32]
- "Oftentimes his philo Semitism and anti Semitism could actually work in tandem rather than intention... And I think that Roosevelt's mixed approach on Jews... was reflected locally, nationally, internationally, in a variety of ways."
4. The Alvart Affair: An Anecdote of Principle
- Roosevelt’s Response to Antisemitic Agitation
- In the 1890s, Roosevelt is confronted by Jewish leaders about hate-monger Herman Alvart lecturing in New York.
- He stands by free speech, assigning only Jewish police officers (chosen for their “pronounced Hebrew physiognomy”) to protect Alvart, turning the situation into a rebuke of bigotry.
- Quote:
- "The sight of Jews protecting Alvart did far more to undermine Alvart's hateful message than preemptive censorship ever could have."
— Andrew Porwancher [13:06]
- "The sight of Jews protecting Alvart did far more to undermine Alvart's hateful message than preemptive censorship ever could have."
5. Class Distinctions Within Jewish America
- Who Roosevelt Consulted and Championed
- Roosevelt’s Jewish advisors were primarily affluent, Americanized “uptown” Jews of German descent, not more recently arrived, impoverished Eastern European Jews who were actually in crisis.
- This mediated the advocacy he offered and reified class lines within American Jewry.
- Quote:
- "He is willing almost exclusively to rely on the elite uptown Central European Jews to speak for people whose own experiences were quite different than their own."
— Andrew Porwancher [15:33]
- "He is willing almost exclusively to rely on the elite uptown Central European Jews to speak for people whose own experiences were quite different than their own."
6. Reconsidering Roosevelt’s Legacy
- Does This Book Change How We Should See Him?
- Porwancher resists simple moral judgments; instead, he urges readers to grapple with the full complexity of Roosevelt’s record.
- For admirers, the shortcomings become sharper; for skeptics, his courage on behalf of Jews might be newly appreciated.
- Quote:
- "There are moments where Roosevelt is peddling an anti Semitic trope, or ... treating Jews as more of an electoral force rather than treating the the plight of Jews as as a fundamentally moral question. And yet... this book will actually greatly improve their view of Roosevelt. We see Roosevelt who even in his private correspondence... is willing to call out [the] anti Semitism [of friends]..."
— Andrew Porwancher [18:51]
- "There are moments where Roosevelt is peddling an anti Semitic trope, or ... treating Jews as more of an electoral force rather than treating the the plight of Jews as as a fundamentally moral question. And yet... this book will actually greatly improve their view of Roosevelt. We see Roosevelt who even in his private correspondence... is willing to call out [the] anti Semitism [of friends]..."
7. Anecdotes from Roosevelt’s Youth: The Holy Land Trip
- Material Left on the Cutting Room Floor
- Roosevelt traveled to the Holy Land at 14 and recorded his experiences in detail, including his impressions of Jews praying at the Western Wall.
- Porwancher is planning a scholarly article on this formative experience.
- Quote:
- "I was able to really reconstruct his daily happenings. And... Roosevelt goes to the Kotel... writes as a 14 year old about seeing Jews weeping at the wall."
— Andrew Porwancher [23:31]
- "I was able to really reconstruct his daily happenings. And... Roosevelt goes to the Kotel... writes as a 14 year old about seeing Jews weeping at the wall."
8. Future Projects: The Great Jewish Lunacy Trial
- Continuing the Exploration of Jewish-American History
- Porwancher’s next book will recount the case of Warder Cresson, America’s first diplomat to Jerusalem, who converted to Judaism and was tried for lunacy because of it.
- The trial became a national conversation about religious liberty and the boundaries of faith and reason in America.
- Quote:
- "This case, that was nominally a lunacy case, really rested on whether conversion to Judaism is evidence of insanity..."
— Andrew Porwancher [26:09]
- "This case, that was nominally a lunacy case, really rested on whether conversion to Judaism is evidence of insanity..."
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
-
On Roosevelt’s Ambivalence:
"Roosevelt is such a rich figure to study because his contradictions embody America's own."
— Andrew Porwancher [07:18] -
On Inclusion and Stereotypes:
"By saying that Jews were better students than the American students, he's suggesting that Jews are somehow not quite American."
— Andrew Porwancher [09:06] -
On Roosevelt’s Courage:
"We see a Roosevelt who makes history by elevating a Jew for the first time in our nation's past to a presidential cabinet position."
— Andrew Porwancher [20:10] -
On the Podcast Host’s Own Transformation:
"I went in highly critical of Roosevelt... but I left kind of with a greater appreciation for who he was as an individual and as a person."
— Amber Nichol [21:49]
Timestamps for Key Segments
- Book Origin Story & Influence of Jonathan Sarna — [03:07]
- Roosevelt’s Identification With the Maccabees & Jewish Masculinity — [04:52]
- The Two Roosevelts: Philosemitism vs. Antisemitism — [07:17]
- The Alvart Affair Anecdote — [10:58]
- Class Politics Among the Jewish Community — [14:02]
- Reconsidering Roosevelt’s Historical Legacy — [17:09], [18:48]
- Roosevelt’s Youthful Holy Land Diary — [22:16]
- Upcoming “Great Jewish Lunacy Trial” Book — [25:21]
- Trial Outcome Spoiler: Cresson Acquitted on Appeal — [28:15]
- Closing Reflections — [29:03]
Tone & Language
The conversation is scholarly but warm, blending insights from new research with accessible storytelling. Both host and guest are eager to bring nuance to Roosevelt’s legacy and the broader story of Jewish experience in America, inviting listeners to engage thoughtfully with the complexities of history.
Conclusion
This episode offers a thoughtful look at Theodore Roosevelt’s flawed but fascinating relationship with Jewish Americans and Jewish identity, urging listeners and readers to move beyond simple judgments in favor of deeper understanding. Porwancher’s research reframes not just Roosevelt’s legacy, but also American attitudes toward both inclusion and prejudice.
Recommended for:
Anyone interested in presidential history, Jewish-American experiences, or the contradictions at the heart of American democracy.