Values of American and Israelis and How They Differ Through Trump's Deal

 Nadene Goldfoot                                             

USA's Jewish newspaper:  In celebration of the Forward’s quasquicentennial year — that’s fancy talk for 125th anniversary — we decided to take a walk back through history. Instead of compiling our annual Forward 50 list of influential American Jews, we created the Forward 125, with one entry for each year of our existence. Starting, of course, with the man who made our lists possible: Ab Cahan, the visionary founding editor who launched the Forward in 1897 with a 50-person collective, declaring: “Let’s publish a good, popular newspaper, content-rich and interesting.”

Jewish people make up approximately 2.4% of the adult population in the United States, which equates to roughly 7.5 million people when including children. The US is home to one of the largest Jewish populations globally.

There are approximately 7.6 million Jewish people in the U.S. Among adults who identify with a specific denomination, the breakdown is: Reform (37%), Conservative (17%), and Orthodox (9%). The remainder (roughly one-third) are nondenominational or identify as "just Jewish". As you see, the largest segment are Reform Jews, Jews mostly belonging, I'd say, to the Democratic Party. 

 Israel is a diverse nation of roughly 9.8 million people. It is primarily a Jewish state, making up about 73-74% of the population, while Arabs (who are mainly Muslim, but also include Christian and Druze communities) make up about 21%. The remaining percentage includes various other minority groups and non-Arab/non-Jewish residents. Secular (Hiloni): Roughly 40% to 50% of Israeli Jews identify as secular. While they may observe certain cultural traditions, they generally do not strictly follow Orthodox religious law. Traditional (Masorti): About 23% to 30% identify as traditional. They occupy a broad middle ground between strictly Orthodox and entirely secular, observing many religious practices but having varying levels of strictness. The Conservative religious movement exists in Israel, but it is much smaller. The vast majority of Israeli Jews identify either as secular (Hiloni), traditional (Masorti), or Orthodox (Datim/Haredim).  Modern Orthodox / Religious Zionist (Dati): About 10% to 15% fall into this category. They blend observant, Orthodox lifestyles with active participation in modern life and the military/workforce. Ultra-Orthodox (Haredi): About 10% to 13% of the Jewish population belong to the ultra-Orthodox community. They lead strictly religious lifestyles, often residing in dedicated communities like Jerusalem and Bnei Brak, and prioritize intense study of the Torah. 

We learn that there aren't many Jews in the USA at all, but  many of the outspoken leaders happen to be Jewish. We're only 2.4% of the USA people.  It's interesting, though, that there aren't any Jewish ladies at the View's table, which tries to have both Democrats and Republicans.

Looking at this demographics, it's understandable that the American public as a whole are neither aware or interested in Israel's problems.  They are engrossed in their rising gas prices, the fact that the USA keeps talking about "the war" when they were promised none of that, soccer games, coming elections, and Trump's 80th birthday party.   At this point in time, he is still planning on running for another term though illegal to USA rules.  Who bothers so far to follow rules, anyway!    

Jews of Israel worry about one thing;  Security;  because their security has been threatened by Iran whose goal is to wipe Israel off the maps.   

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., June 11, 2026. Daniel Heuer | Reuters

This all shows up for me to understand by TRUMP'S DEAL signed Monday, June 15th by Trump and Vance:   " President Trump has said the text of his agreement to end the Iran war won’t be released until it’s signed in person by Washington and Tehran on Friday,"  then Sunday night, the 14th. aid.

It consists, they say, of one page and a half leaving the central issues involving Iran in the lives of the USA and Israel  unresolved !!!

      August 11, 2025 after a shouting match:  Trump, Benjamin Netanyahu have shouting match over photos of starvation of Palestinians  in Gaza with explanation of food there-terrorists taking it.

Here, Trump had recently commented that Israel was the perfect ally, and then he f...king yells at Netanyahu in a terrible put-down way in front of Israel's new friends in the Middle East which is a terrible move for Israel.  

His  great DEAL gives lots of money back to Iran. "We know what they will do with that;  procure more arms for the terrorists.   He calls for a cease fire, meaning Israel putting an end to their defensive warfare shooting back at their attacker.  This deal contradicts the original deal made by Obama and Biden.  He can get away with this because Israel is unimportant to his constituents, except for a minority of religious American Christians.   Actually, Polls indicate that roughly eight-in-ten Americans are at least somewhat concerned about key events and the ongoing conflicts in the Middle East. However, only about 30% to 50% of U.S. adults report being deeply engaged or "extremely" or "very" concerned about the unfolding events.   So that's where Israelis stand.  

The reported 1.5-page memorandum of understanding between the U.S. and Iran serves as a framework to negotiate an end to the Gulf war, featuring a 60-day ceasefire and measures to secure the Strait of Hormuz. It reportedly outlines a verifiable long-term nuclear commitment from Iran in exchange for significant sanctions relief and a potential $300 billion reconstruction fund. Read the full details at Fox 59.

Resource:

ILTV-Wednesday 6/17/26

https://www.hadassah.org/18women

https://www.cnbc.com/2026/06/14/us-iran-war-peace-deal.html

https://www.cnn.com/2026/06/15/world/live-news/iran-war-g7-summit

https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5927787-trump-iran-agreement-details/