4. Scott Jennings

Scott Jennings is a CNN senior political commentator and Republican strategist who served as special assistant to the president and deputy director of political affairs under George W. Bush. Known for his combative on-air style, he has become one of cable news’s most consistent defenders of Israel, repeatedly pressing guests on CNN’s NewsNight to acknowledge Hamas’s October 7 atrocities and Israel’s right to defend itself, and pushing back forcefully against comparisons that he views as excusing terrorism.

In June 2025, Jennings travelled to Israel for the first time, touring Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, kibbutz Nir Oz, and the site of the Nova music festival massacre to bear witness to the events of October 7. His trip coincided with the outbreak of Israel’s first war with Iran, and he found himself stranded in Tiberias as airspace closed, using the moment to argue on social media and in interviews that Israel’s campaign against Iran was, in his words, part of the fight for Western civilization. He has continued to defend Israel’s actions and the return of hostages under President Trump’s peace deal in subsequent television appearances.