Trump Boasts ‘No President Has Been Better Friend to Israel’, Accuses Biden of ‘Bowing Down’ to Iran

Last week, the former president let slip in an interview that “10 years ago, 15 years ago,” Israel “literally owned Congress,” and lamented that “today it’s almost the opposite” thanks to progressive Democrats like representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar.

Former president Donald Trump and former vice president Mike Pence addressed an event where they showed support for the Republican Jewish Coalition on Saturday, playing up their record of support for Israel and bashing the Biden administration for allegedly ‘turning its back’ on the US ally.

“The alliance between the United States and Israel had never, ever been stronger. Under my leadership we recognised the eternal capital of Israel, and opened the American embassy in Jerusalem. We also recognised Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights. We appointed a special envoy to combat the scourge of anti-Semitism…and we withdrew from the corrupt, hypocritical UN Human Rights Council which is shamefully biased against the United States and Israel,” Trump said, speaking to the group in a prerecorded video address during its annual meeting in Las Vegas on Saturday.

“Perhaps most importantly, we withdrew from the unfair and one-sided Iran nuclear deal, and imposed the toughest-ever sanctions on the regime,” Trump added, boasting that “no president has ever been a better friend to the state of Israel and I’m very proud of that.”

Accusing the current administration “and the radical left Democrats” of “systematically and intentionally” working “to dismantle all of our successes”, Trump charged Biden with “bowing down to the Iranian dictatorship and Israel’s safety and security like never before”.

“[Biden’s] unbelievable weakness toward the Iranian regime directly provoked a missile assault on Israeli civilians; thousands of missiles being shot,” Trump suggested, apparently referring to the May 2021 Gaza War. He did not specify what Iran had to do with the conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.

Trump urged the Republican Jewish Coalition to consolidate its efforts over the next year to help elect “a record number of Republicans at every level of government in next year’s midterm elections…You see what’s happening in Congress with respect to the hatred of Israel by some of these Democrat congress people. We cannot let that continue,” he said.

Pence echoed Trump’s criticisms of Biden, accusing the president of having “turned his back on Israel,” “restored funding for the Palestinian Authority, announced his intention to rejoin the Iran Nuclear Deal,” and made plans “to open a consulate in Jerusalem for the Palestinian people. This is an unlawful step and it’s time for Congress to act to deny President Biden from opening a consulate in Jerusalem,” Pence said. “God is not done with America or Israel yet, and I know the best days are yet to come,” he added.

Along with Trump and Pence, other big name Republicans and potential 2024 hopefuls including former New Jersey governor Chris Christie, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, effete South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham and former Trump UN ambassador Nicky Haley also spoke at the meeting.

A Democratic Party spokesperson dismissed the significance of the Republican Jewish Coalition convention, saying in a statement that Nevada had “rejected Republicans’ ideological bankruptcy three separate times in the past four years,” and suggesting that Democrats were “delivering jobs creation, health care, and middle-class tax relief to hardworking Nevadans” while “these Republicans are focused on blocking the progress of President Biden in the name of protecting the disastrous legacy of Donald Trump.”

The Republican Jewish Coalition is a major lobbying group promoting Jewish Republicans and closer US-Israel ties. The RJC is one of just one of several similar groups in Washington, with others including the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or AIPAC, and political action committees providing campaign financing such as the Pro-Israel America PAC, JStreetPAC, NorPAC and the Joint Action Committee for Political Affairs. Despite generally favouring Republicans, the lobbyists typically give tens of millions of dollars to both parties each election cycle to ensure that their favoured policies remain in place no matter who wins.

Quiet Part Out Loud

Last week, Trump raised eyebrows when he complained in a radio interview that Israel no longer has sufficient control of US Congress. “The biggest change I’ve seen in Congress is Israel literally owned Congress – you understand that – 10 years ago, 15 years ago. And it was so powerful. It was so powerful. And today it’s almost the opposite,” Trump said, speaking to radio host Ari Hoffman.

Today, Trump claimed, “You have between AOC and Omar – and these people that hate Israel. They hate it with a passion – they’re controlling Congress, and Israel is not a force in Congress anymore. I mean, it’s just amazing. I’ve never seen such a change,” he said. “And we’re not talking about over a very long period of time, but I think you know exactly what I’m saying. They had such power, Israel had such incredible power – and rightfully – over Congress, and now it doesn’t. It’s incredible, actually,” he added.

AOC and Omar entered the House in 2019, and were among 11 House lawmakers who recently voted against a $1 billion programme to find Israel’s Iron Dome missile defence system. That bill is now being held up by Republican Senator Rand Paul in the upper house. AOC and other members of the so-called progressive ‘Squad’ have also aligned to vote against condemning the anti-Israel Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions– a Palestinian movement seeking to pressure Israel to meet its obligations under international law by withdrawing from occupied territories, removing the separation barrier in the West Bank, providing full equality for Arab-Israeli citizens, etc. The squad remains a small minority in the Congress, with the House overwhelmingly condemning BDS in 2019 in a mark of fealty to Israel.