Democrats Celebrate Peace with the UAE & Bahrain

You might not know it from listening to President Donald Trump, but Democrats have supported much of his Israel policy. Unfortunately, Trump prefers to use Israel as a political football than to use the strong bipartisan support for Israel as a tool for accomplishing good.

Congressman Ted Deutch, who chairs the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Middle East, North Africa, and International Terrorism, has as strong a pro-Israel record as any member of Congress. When the Trump administration announced the moving of our embassy to Jerusalem, Deutch celebrated the move. But the Trump administration declined to invite him to the opening of the Jerusalem embassy. The Trump administration refused to invite a single Democrat to the opening ceremony for the Jerusalem embassy.

Now, as a new era of peace and diplomacy in the Middle East appears to be falling into place, Deutch and other Democrats are joining with Israel in celebrating deals with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. But you wouldn’t know it from the politically-driven rhetoric coming from Trump and his allies.

It’s no secret that I am not a fan of President Trump. But I am a fan of most of his Israel policy actions. I’ve joined with many pro-Israel Republicans and Democrats in celebrating the peace agreements with the UAE and Bahrain.

The truth is, any reasonable person supports these peace agreements. As Democratic Majority for Israel recently pointed out, only extremists and bad actors oppose them.

And who is attacking the historic Israel/UAE peace agreement & suspension of annexation?

☑️Palestinian Authority Leadership
☑️PLO
☑️Hamas
☑️Hezbollah
☑️@IfNotNowOrg
☑️@codepink
☑️@RashidaTlaib
☑️Iran
☑️Turkey https://t.co/739SgnoZOk

— Democratic Majority for Israel (@DemMaj4Israel) August 14, 2020

Tomorrow, the United States, Israel, the UAE, Bahrain, and others will come together at The White House to sign a historic agreement that benefits all countries and their people.

I know many people have received invitations to witness and celebrate this critical moment in history. What I don’t know is if any of them are Democrats.

I know my friend, Mayor Gabriel Groisman from Bal Harbour will be in attendance. I know Republican leaders from Congress will be there. But have any Democrats have received an invitation?

I do not doubt that if invited, Ted Deutch and many other Democrats would welcome to opportunity to witness this great moment in history. 

President Trump deserves credit for this accomplishment. But if he once again politicizes it by excluding Democrats, don’t mistake their absence for disapproval or indifference. Understand that Democrats overwhelmingly support Israel, even if Trump doesn’t welcome the bipartisan celebration of peace.