questioning the loyalty of American
Jews who support the Democratic Party, in sharp contrast to the tide of
condemnation from Jewish critics who accused him of trafficking in
anti-Semitic stereotypes.
Benjamin Netanyahu's decision to keep quiet on the controversy reflected
the importance of his close alliance with Trump — a relationship that
has dented the bipartisan support Israel has traditionally enjoyed in
Washington as well as Israel's equally important ties with the American
Jewish community.
With an eye on re-election, Trump has attempted to use his close ties
with Netanyahu to win over Jewish voters, who overwhelmingly vote for
Democrats. Critics say it is part of a broader strategy that has also
targeted minorities and immigrants with sometimes racist rhetoric to try
to shore up his base of white, working-class voters.
Most recently, Trump has focused these efforts on trying to paint
Democratic Representatives Ilhan Omar of Minnesota and Rashida Tlaib of
Michigan as the faces of the Democratic Party.
Last
week, Netanyahu barred the two women, who are both Muslim and outspoken
critics of Israel, from visiting his country after a public appeal by
Trump. Democratic leaders, who only days earlier had visited Israel in a
show of bipartisan support, criticized the Israeli decision.
``Where has the Democratic Party gone? Where have they gone where they
are defending these two people over the state of Israel?'' Trump told
reporters in the Oval Office on Tuesday. ``I think any Jewish people
that vote for a Democrat, I think it shows either a total lack of
knowledge or great disloyalty.''
The comments triggered an outpouring of condemnations from Jewish
American groups and Democratic lawmakers, who accused Trump of invoking
anti-Semitic stereotypes by implying American Jews have dual loyalty to
the United States and Israel. At a time of rising anti-Semitism in the
U.S., some expressed fear that Trump's words could invite new violence
against Jewish targets.
But Netanyahu remained silent about the latest uproar. His office
declined comment, while Yuval Steinitz, a Cabinet minister in
Netanyahu's Likud party who is close to the prime minister, dismissed it
as internal U.S. politics.
'We embrace everyone'
``We mustn't intervene in the elections and the political disagreements
in the United States,'' Steinitz told Israel Radio. ``We have close
supporters and friends in both parties, Democrats and Republicans, both
Jews and non-Jews, and we embrace everyone and want everyone's support
and friendship.''
Israeli President Reuven Rivlin spoke to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on
Wednesday, stopping short of directly criticizing Trump's remarks but
emphasizing the importance of U.S.-Israel ties.
``We must keep the State of Israel above political disputes and make
every effort to ensure that support for Israel does not become a
political issue,'' Rivlin, whose role is largely ceremonial, told
Pelosi, according to a statement.
This is not the first time Trump has been accused of making comments seen by some as anti-Semitic.
On
the campaign trail, he told Jewish Republicans in 2015 that ``you're
not going to support me because I don't want your money.'' Following a
march by neo-Nazis and white supremacists in Charlottesville, Virginia,
in 2017, he said there were ``very fine people on both sides'' after
clashes between protesters and counterprotesters. On international
Holocaust Day in 2017, Trump condemned the ``horror inflicted on
innocent people by Nazi terror,'' without mentioning anti-Semitism or
the 6 million Jews killed by the Nazis and their sympathizers.
Netanyahu's low profile contrasted with his criticism of Omar this year
when she suggested Israel's supporters were motivated by money and not
ideology. Omar, accused by Democrats and Republicans of repeating
anti-Semitic tropes, later apologized.
For decades, Israel has maintained staunch bipartisan support in
Washington, saying that warm relations with both parties is the bedrock
of the relationship with its closest ally.
Netanyahu's speech to Congress
Those ties have frayed under Netanyahu, whose conservative worldview
largely mirrors the Republican platform. Netanyahu appeared to side with
Mitt Romney in his race against Barack Obama in 2012. And in 2015,
Netanyahu famously delivered a speech to Congress attacking Obama's
nuclear deal with Iran, infuriating the then-president and souring what
was already a strained relationship. Netanyahu's ambassador to
Washington, U.S.-born Ron Dermer, is a former Republican Party
operative.
The alliance with Trump, who is popular with the Israeli public, has
paid great dividends for Netanyahu. Over staunch objections from the
Palestinians, Trump has recognized Jerusalem as Israel's capital and
moved the U.S. Embassy to the contested city. With strong Israeli
encouragement, he withdrew from the U.S.-led international nuclear deal
with Iran, and more recently recognized Israel's annexation of the Golan
Heights, captured from Syria in the 1967 Mideast war. Trump, guided by a
team of advisers with close ties to Netanyahu, has cut hundreds of
millions of dollars in aid to the Palestinians and closed the
Palestinian diplomatic offices in Washington.
But
these gains have come at a price. The attention given to Omar
and Tlaib has raised their profile at a time when Israel wants to
isolate them within the Democratic Party. In addition, Jewish voters
continue to overwhelmingly oppose Trump and appear to be linking
Netanyahu to the president.
A series of decisions by Netanyahu, ranging from incendiary comments
about Israel's Arab minority seen as racist, along with the cancellation
of a mixed-prayer area at Jerusalem's Western Wall, have further
alienated American Jews. Opinion polls in recent years have shown sharp
differences in support for Israel among American Jews, with Republicans
far more supportive than the Democratic majority.
Columnist Chemi Shalev, writing in the daily Haaretz, said Netanyahu was taking a risky path.
``In the eyes of many if not most U.S. Jews, Trump has now evolved from a
suspect accused of anti-Semitism into a felon convicted beyond any
reasonable doubt,'' Shalev wrote. ``Their anger and frustration are
compounded by the widespread perception that in their hour of need, the
prime minister of Israel is siding with their defamer.''
Trump's value
Shmuel Rosner, a senior fellow at the nonpartisan Jewish People Policy
Institute in Israel, said he expected Netanyahu to keep a low profile
because the relationship with Trump is too valuable.
``He believes that keeping his relations with Donald Trump is essential
for Israel's well-being and safety,'' Rosner said. ``I don't think
Israel is going to distance itself from a president whose policies and
expression of views are favorable to Israel.''
Rosner said Netanyahu will likely try to assure Democrats that he values
their support and reach out to American Jews, even though he said many
Israeli leaders quietly believe that support from the Jewish American
community is not what it should be.
``There's a complicated situation here for Israel to navigate,'' he
said. ``Maybe the only way to fix this thing is to wait for a new
president or a new prime minister or a new atmosphere.''
VOA