Israel and Trump

Lately, I’ve noticed a succession of anti-Trump articles in the Times of Israel, and hints in these that he represents anti-Semitic trends in the USA. I, a native of the USA, have to conclude that the Times knows as much about internal workings of the US as I do about internal workings in Israel. I have lived through every US president beginning with Roosevelt in a home where politics was the discourse at supper. Trump is the most pro-Israel president in my lifetime, except for maybe Nixon: Roosevelt not only turned refugees back but supported the 1939 White Paper, Truman imposed an arms-embargo, Eisenhower forced the withdrawal from the Sinai, Kennedy and Johnson sustained the embargo, Carter we all know about, Reagan was neutral, Bush leaned away and sponsored the Madrid talks, Clinton pushed Oslo down Israel’s throat, Bush Jr. had his hands tied, Obama we know about.

Yes, I am linking Jewish attitudes about anti-Semitism to attitudes about Israel. If you buy the Jewish left’s view that Judaism is all about their concept of social justice and that the Shoah is the center of Jewish worship, then Carter, Clinton, and Obama are right up there with Moses. But if you think that Israel is the hope of Judaism, then there is no one better than Nixon who materially helped Israel in 1973 and Trump who now has told the Palestinians, by not answering their phone calls, that they have to rethink their positions. Israel has never had a more receptive person in the White House than Trump and Israelis should not comingle their criticism of Trump on charges of his failure to deliver “progressive” policies with charges that he is anti-Semitic.

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Arnold Flick, 3890 Nobel Dr. #1206 San Diego, CA 92122 [email protected] February 26, 2017