Looking Back 5 Years Ago to Donald Trump's Achievements and Disappointing Acts

 Nadene Goldfoot                                               

The Jerusalem Report Commentary by Eytan Gilboa 5 years ago as recorded January 16, 2016,  is remarkably apropos for recalling all the good things Trump had done for Israel and all the disappointing ones we all had noticed and worried about.  He was the Republican candidate then and did have pro-Israel positions at the time.

1. Donald had consistently and strongly supported Israel's positions on many critical issues such as the Iran nuclear deal and Israeli-Palestinian relations.

2. He criticized US President Barack Obama for his attitudes toward Israel and warmly praised Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (a differing attitude of many Americans.)

3. He called Israel America's best and most reliable friend, arguing that it should be viewed as the cornerstone of US policy in the Middle East.

4. He accused Obama and US Secretary of State, John Kerry, of "selling Israel out," and said that the US should do everything possible to protect and defend it.  "They've always been there for us and we should be there for them,"; They are the only stable democracy in a region that is not run by dictators.  They are pioneers in medicine and communication and a close fair trading partner.  Trump's father had said that he had always been loyal to Israel and that he would do more for Israel than anybody else.

5. Trump served as grand marshal for the Israel parade in New York in 2004 and that he had received many awards from American Jewish organization for his support of Israel in February 2015.  When he received a reward from Algemeiner, a Jewish news organization, he said, "WE LOVE ISRAEL.  WE WILL FIGHT FOR ISRAEL 100%.  IT WILL BE THERE FOREVER.  

6. On June 16th, he declared his candidacy.  Trump vehemently attacked the Iran nuclear deal calling it A DISASTER THAT COULD THREATEN ISRAEL'S SURVIVAL.

                                                          

Trump visited Israel in May 2017.  Netanyahu thanked him for visiting the Western Wall, and  “his deep commitment to Israel’s security, it’s well-being, and it’s future.”

                                                                

7.  There was a close personal connection between Trump and Netanyahu.  Before the 2013 Israeli election, Trump recoded a 30-second video message endorsing the Likud leader, saying, "He's a winner, he's highly respected, he's highly thought of by all.  Vote for Benjamin--terrific guy, terrific leader, great for Israel."

On the other side of the coin:

1. He had proposed policies and made statements that no Jew can in good conscience accept or identify with; making fun of crippled, etc, calling people names, bullying behavior

2. Trump's statements on prisoners of war, Jewish campaign contributions, immigration and entry to the US have touched on a very raw Jewish nerve. 

3. On John McCain, who was a POW for 6 years in Vietnam and refused early release when his captors discovered that he had an admiral for a father, Trump flippantly said, "He was a "war hero only because got captured.  I like people who weren't captured." Israelis were shocked and disappointed at that.  The nation of Israel as a whole cares about its POWs and the government invests huge resources in attempts to release them.  They freed Gilad Shalit, a soldier who was captured and held for 5 years by Hamas in Gaza.  

4. On December 3rd Trump told members from the Republican Jewish coalition that he suspects many members won't back him because he is rich and doesn't want their contributions.  Maybe Trump thought he was joking but the Jewish listeners didn't take it that way at all.  They saw his comments as reinforcing anti-Semitic stereotyping of Jews as rich people who "CONTROL THE WORLD" and can "BUY" elections with their money.  

5. Trump goofed with his highly provocative and controversial statements on immigration and entry to the US.  On June 16, he said that Mexico is sending in people bringing drugs, crime and rape.  Later he extended this observation to include immigration from other Latin American countries.  After the recent San Bernardino massacre, he called for a temporary ban on the entry of Muslims to the US, until the government figures out WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON.  Now, Jews, who have suffered from closed immigration gates and been saved by open ones, find these statements appalling.  Mass Jewish immigration from Russia and Eastern Europe to the US, Palestine, and other countries, especially from the beginning of the 20th century, saved Jews from pogroms, persecution and oppression.  

Mass Jewish immigration from the Arab countries to Israel after the 1948 War of Independence saved them from a similar fate.  Then the door was shut in 1924 and Jews couldn't enter.  Americans were afraid of not finding jobs for themselves with immigrants entering.  Then, before, during and after WWII, Jews trying to flee Nazi Germany or occupied Europe were refused entry to many countries, including the US.  My uncle fleeing Germany had to have a sponsor who took on all the financial responsibility. Millions of Jews died because of this refusal.  Therefore, Jews cannot but protest a wholesale, religion-based ban on entry to the US, and here was a ban on Mexicans.  Jews everywhere rejected Trump's call for a ban on the entry of Muslims to the US.   

Netanyahu said, THE STATE OF ISRAEL RESPECTS ALL RELIGIONS AND STRICTLY GUARANTEES THE RIGHTS OF ALL ITS CITIZENS.  AT THE SAME TIME, ISRAEL IS FIGHTING AGAINST MILITANT ISLAM THAT TARGETS MUSLIMS, CHRISTIANS AND JEWS ALIKE AND THREATENS THE ENTIRE WORLD.  Netanyahu decided to meet either party who came to visit Israel which does not reflect support for either candidate or their policies, but that Israel and the USA have a strong alliance.  Trump postponed his visit so as to not place Netanyahu under pressure. 

  6. GILBOA added that despite Trump's strong pro-Israel stance, given his character and controversial position, Donald Trump may not be the best choice to repair American-Israeli relations in the post-Obama era. Little did he know that he led his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, to put together the packages of having so far, 4 Middle Eastern Muslim majority countries make peace with Israel, something every president would have loved to inspire but dare not. Trump had chutzpa, pretty good for a non-Jew to have.  Gilboa did think of him as a "bizarre candidate," but then maybe that's what was called for in order to promote Israel such as Trump managed to.  I think it was his best achievement, and hope nothing he brought forth for Israel will be taken away by the USA because they don't like him.

In the 2008 election, American Jews voted for Trump by a ratio of 78% to 22%. In 2008, 71% of American Jews were Democrats while 22% were Republicans. By 2014,  61% of American Jews were Democrats and 29% Republicans.  

 By 2012, American Jews voting for Trump   dropped from 69% to 30%. American Jews since the 40s had always voted as Democrats thinking that Roosevelt had saved them.  Very few were Republicans.  

Over the past decade before 2015, Republicans have generally been more supportive of Israel than Democrats.  The trend began around 2000, almost 10 years before Netanyhahu was re-elected prime minister.  Most American Jews will still vote for the Democratic nominee.  

After shvitzing with Obama, Netanyahu would appreciate a Republican in the White House, and he got both; Trump, who had been a Democrat but couldn't run on that ticket because of Hillary, and chose to run as a Republican, which made many Republican nominees angry.  A normal politician would have been wary of this move, but Trump didn't realize its implications, evidently.  If anyone suffered from tsuris for his actions, he certainly must have.  He was hated by the Democrats since his first day in office.  

I had to throw in a few of my own choice words and organization, but most all of the credit goes to Prof. Eytan Gilboa, director of the Center of International Communication and a senior research associate at the BESA Center for Strategic Studies at Bar-Ilan University in Israel.  

Israel and we American defenders of Israel will not forget the good that Trump managed to do in 4 short years or how much tsuris was inflicted during his 8 preceding years with Obama.  What is listed here are the accomplishments and feeling of Trump before he even became the USA's 45th president.  

Resource:                                              

The Jerusalem Report of January 11, 2016 Donald Trump, Israel and the Jews-the controversial Republican candidate will find it difficult to leverage his pro-Israel positions to gain Jewish votes.  by Professor Eytan Gilboa-American Israeli

https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/president-trump-meets-prime-minister-netanyahu-israel/

1/24/21 100 ways Trump helped Israel-from posting on facebook:

1. President Trump recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel
2. President Trump moved the American Embassy to Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem
3. President Trump closed the Jerusalem consulate and made it an Embassy branch
4. President Trump has never publicly criticized Israel
5. President Trump pulled America out of the Iran deal
6. President Trump raised military aid to Israel by $400 million
7. President Trump raised sanctions on Iran as soon as pulled out of the deal
8. President Trump recognized the sovereignty of Israel on the Golan Heights
9. President Trump designated IRGC (Iranian special forces) a foreign terrorist group
10. President Trump banned BDS head Omar Barghouti from America
11. President Trump banned the head of ICC and staff from coming to America
12. President Trump backed Israel’s right to self-defense in Gaza
13. President Trump left the United Nations Human Rights (sic) Council
14. President Trump cut off all aid to the Palestinian Authority
15. President Trump closed the PLO office in Washington, DC
16. President Trump was the first president to visit the Western Wall as President
17. President Trump sent the first official American visit to the Western Wall with an Israeli Prime Minister
18. President Trump allowed consulate and Embassy staff to meet with Jews of Judea and Samaria
19. President Trump allowed consulate and Embassy staff to visit Jews living in Judea and Samaria
20. President Trump announced that America will not support Israeli soldiers being tried at the ICC
21. President Trump called out the anti-Israel antisemitism of Ilhan Omar
22. President Trump flew to Israel on his first foreign trip
23. President Trump issued no waivers on increased sanctions against Iran
24. President Trump offered a $10 million reward for information on Hamas and Hezbollah financial networks
25. The Trump administration wrote op-eds blaming Hamas and the Palestinians for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict
26. President Trump stopped the lame-duck last-minute Kerry and Obama $221 million payment to the Palestinian Authority on January 20, 2017
27. President Trump signed the Taylor Force Act
28. President Trump supported Israel in the May 2019 flare-up with Gaza.
29. President Trump refused a visa to Israel hater Hanan Ashrawi to America
30. President Trump sanctioned three leading members of Hezbollah in July 2019
31. The Trump administration blocked an attempt to get the UN Security Council to issue a formal condemnation of Israel’s demolition of Palestinian homes on the edge of Jerusalem in July 2019
32. President Trump sanctioned Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.
33. Ambassador Friedman refused to advocate for a two-state solution unfavorable to Israel
34. President Trump removed “Palestine” from the list of countries on The State Department list of nations.
35. President Trump stopped a French $15 billion credit line to Iran
36. President Trump stopped a UN Security Council statement on tensions between Israel and
37. Hezbollah that did not single out violence by the Lebanese terror group
38. President Trump cut a $120 million from aid to Lebanon to ensure it didn’t get to Hizballah
39. President Trump sanctioned 9 Iranians in November 2019
40. President Trump supported Israel after rocket fire in its skirmish with Islamic Jihad.
41. President Trump said nothing about Israel limiting retaliation.
42. President Trump and America was the only country besides Israel to vote against all 8 UN 4th committee resolutions in November 2019
43. President Trump declared that Jewish towns in Judea and Samaria (“settlements”) aren’t illegal under international law
44. President Trump hasn’t supported two-state solution as the only solution in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict
45. Vice President Pence visited Israel during his first year in office
46. Secretary Pompeo wrote a letter to Congress clarifying that Jewish towns in Judea and Samaria have traditionally enjoyed bipartisan support
47. Secretary Pompeo says that claims that Jewish towns in Judea and Samaria have impeded peace are foolish
48. President Trump didn’t comment when Defense Minister Bennet green-lighted a new Jewish neighborhood in Hebron
49. Secretary Pompeo announced that Iran is behind all the unrest in the Middle East
50. President Trump blamed Iran for Lebanon protests
51. President Trump’s US deputy national security adviser Victoria Coates reportedly meets with envoys from UAE, Oman, Morocco, Bahrain to gauge willingness Israeli-Arab non-belligerence agreements
52. President Trump denounced Iran brutal crackdown on protesters
53. New US Ambassador to the United Nations Kelly Craft says she’ll defend Israel. In first United Nations press conference, Kelly Craft also warns Iran that Washington has ‘other tools’ if Tehran continues its bad behavior
54. President Trump regales Israeli-American group with tales of his pro-Israel moves retells extensive account of embassy move, tells Israeli American Council that he’s Israel’s best friend in the White House
55. President Trump signed an executive order on anti-Semitism that protects Jewish students on college campuses. The order includes anti-Israel activity
56. Robert O’Brien tells Meir Ben-Shabbat that ‘common interests between Israel and Arab states… have made new regional partnerships possible to counter Iran’
57. The Trump administration denounced Iranian human rights abuses and imposed sanctions on Iranian judges
58. After President Abbas hailed the ICC declaration that it will investigate Israel as an historic day for Palestinians, Secretary Pompeo said US ‘firmly opposes’ ICC announcement on alleged Israeli war crimes. He said the International Criminal Court’s move ‘unfairly targets’ Jewish state, calls for direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians
59. The Trump administration announced seven joint US-Israeli clean energy projects — including an energy-storing system for electric cars and a hydrogen-powered drone that takes off vertically — have received $6.4 million in funding from the US-Israel binational research and development program for energy
60. America struck Iranian-backed militia in Iraq; 19 reported killed. Israeli Air Force chief said ‘US strike on Iran-backed Iraqi militia is a ‘potential turning point’
61. President Trump ordered deadly strike on Iran’s Soleimani
62. President Trump said new Iran sanctions have come into effect. President Trump said, “We’ve increased them. They were very severe, but now it’s increased substantially.”
63. President Trump mocked Iranian supreme leader, and wrote in support of the ‘noble people of Iran,’ after Khamenei attacks America and Europe in speech
64. President Trump releases his incredibly favorable-to-Israel peace plan to end Israeli-Palestinian conflict
65. Trump administration official Jared Kushner slams Palestinian leadership, urges giving up ‘fairy tales’ for peace. Kushner said Palestinians have been lied to, chiefs ‘screwed up every opportunity in the past’; rejecting Trump plan shows they aren’t ready for a state
66. Secretary Pompeo said If Palestinians unhappy with the Trump peace plan, they should present counter offer. He warned that Trump proposal could be last opportunity for Palestinian state
67. Jared Kushner says that if Palestinians are unable to meet the conditions of the new Middle East peace plan he crafted, Israel should not take “the risk to recognize them as a state.”
68. Israeli and UAE officials met in secret in US to discuss countering Iran
69. National security adviser Robert O’Brien warns Palestinians that resurgence of anti-Jewish hatred around the world means more Jews will immigrate to Israel and West Bank
70. Jared Kushner says Abbas responsible for spike in violence since release of peace plan
71. Jared Kushner tells UN Palestinian leadership has long history of ‘inciting intifadas when they don’t get their way’
72. Due to American diplomacy, Abbas, lacking votes, pulls request for UN vote against Trump peace plan
73. The US military seized Iranian-made weapons in Arabian Sea. The USS Normandy warship seized 150 ‘Dehlavieh’ anti-tank guided missiles, which are Iranian-manufactured copies of Russian Kornet ATGMs.
74. Trump advisor Jason Greenblatt warns that if traditional positions on conflict are readopted, ‘Israel will likely continue to thrive and the Palestinians will continue to suffer’
75. Secretary Pompeo says UN settlement blacklist shows UN’s ‘unrelenting anti-Israel bias’
76. The US State Department expressed concern over a report that Iranians were threatening to raze an ancient shrine revered by local Jews as the burial place of the biblical Esther and Mordechai, in an act of revenge against Israel and Washington
77. The US gave Israeli prime minister the green light for Givat Hamatos construction
78. Israel advanced plans for nearly 1,800 new settlement homes America doesn’t criticize
79. Ambassador Friedman said under the Trump administration, the Biblical heartland of Israel, Judea and Samaria, will never be judenrein
80. An Israeli delegation traveled to the United States for talks on coordinating a joint US-Israeli campaign against the International Criminal Court
81. Secretary Pompeo said the Israelis will ultimately make the decisions about annexation. That’s an Israeli decision, but we’ll work closely with them to share our views of this in a private setting
82. American diplomats circulate draft of Security Council resolution that would scrap expiration of 2015 nuclear deal’s ban on weapons sales to Tehran
83. State Department says Washington ready to approve ‘sovereignty and the application of Israeli law’ in some areas
84. US officials emphasize West Bank annexation not contingent on Palestinian state
85. Ambassador David Friedman asserted that Israelis across the political spectrum supported the Trump plan and that “just as Americans would never relinquish the area on which the Statue of Liberty stands, even though it’s a very small area, Israel would never agree to give up settlements like Beit El and Hebron
86. Secretary Pompeo praises Israel on visit, “You’re a great partner, you share information, unlike some other countries that try to obfuscate and hide that information.”
87. Secretary Pompeo warned the International Criminal Court against asserting jurisdiction over Israel, saying the United States will “exact consequences” for any “illegitimate” investigations
88. Secretary Pompeo called the ICC a “kangaroo court” and announced that sanctions in the form of asset freezes would be enacted against chief prosecutor, Fatou Bensouda and another senior ICC official
89. Serbia announced that it would move its embassy to Jerusalem, while Muslim majority Kosovo is to recognize Israel. The moves come as part of US-brokered discussions to normalize economic ties between Belgrade and Pristina
90. In a rare move, US sanctions 2 Lebanese politicians allied with Hezbollah who are former cabinet ministers that ‘provided material support’ to terror groups. America warned of new measures targeting organization’s allies
91. US envoys helped broker a framework agreement for Lebanon and Israel to start discussing their disputed maritime border
92. Jared Kushner says Saudi Arabia, Bahrain to allow all Israeli flights to use airspace Saudi flights also able to use Israeli airspace; White House advisor says Arabs losing patience with Palestinian leadership, will do ‘what’s in their best interests’
93. The Trump administration warned Palestinians if they continue to reject Trump peace proposal ‘the situation is just going to get worse and worse for them’; The US won’t ‘chase’ Ramallah
94. President Trump brokered peace between Israel and the UAE
95. President Trump brokered peace between Israel and Bahrain
96. US sanctioned 2 Lebanon-based firms, Hezbollah-linked businessman, Arch Consulting and Meamar Construction targeted ‘for being owned, controlled, or directed’ by terrorist group
97. Defying the UN, the Trump administration unilaterally asserts sanctions on Iran are back in effect. Secretary Pompeo vows Trump administration will ‘impose consequences’ on any state violating ‘snapback’ sanctions to ensure Tehran ‘does not reap the benefits of UN-prohibited activity’
98. The Trump administration unveils additional ‘UN’ sanctions against Iran, will enforce arms embargo
99. US, Israel, UAE announce establishment of $3 billion regional investment fund
100. The Trump administration brokered peace between Israel and Sudan and the two signed a normalization deal.