Washington – Benjamin Netanyahu’s first Trump-era Washington visit offers a chance to repair ties to Democrats that frayed during years of chilly relations under the Obama administration, but many party members said they do not expect much improvement given the Israeli prime minister’s close alignment with Republicans.
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“There’s a lot of mending of fences that has to happen between the Netanyahu government and a lot of Democrats who feel like he unnecessarily politicized the U.S.-Israeli relationship,” Democratic Senator Chris Murphy, a Senate Foreign Relations Committee member, said in a telephone interview.
The low point came in March 2015 when Netanyahu sidestepped the White House and State Department to arrange a speech to the Republican-led Congress opposing the international nuclear deal with Iran then being negotiated by President Barack Obama.
Led by the Congressional Black Caucus, more than 55 Democratic members of the Senate and House of Representatives skipped the speech to protest what they viewed as an attack on Obama, the first African-American U.S. president.
Tensions between Netanyahu and congressional Democrats have remained despite nearly seven decades of bipartisan support for Israel in Congress, which has used its spending authority to make Israel the largest recipient of annual U.S. military aid.
After Trump took office last month, Netanyahu tweeted his applause for Trump’s plan to build a wall to keep out people from Mexico, which Democrats consider an expensive and racially tinged insult to a U.S. neighbor and ally.
Many Democrats also are wary of Netanyahu’s support for building new settlements on land claimed by the Palestinians, and worry about statements from some in his government opposing the possibility of a Palestinian state.
MASSIVE AID PACKAGE
Democrats faulted congressional Republicans for using Israel as a wedge issue, despite strong Democratic support for initiatives such as a $38 billion military aid package the Obama administration signed in September.
“It doesn’t look good or feel right when one party says, ‘Well, we’re better on Israel than the other party,’ or if one party is trying to work in lock-step with Israeli officials,” Representative Eliot Engel, the top House Foreign Affairs Committee Democrat, told Reuters.
Israeli officials said Netanyahu’s aides have been aware of the need to re-establish a semblance of bipartisan even-handedness, even as the prime minister works to create a personal bond with Trump.
Aides traveling with Netanyahu did not respond to requests for comment on Tuesday. But as he left for Washington, Netanyahu made a point of saying he would meet with congressional leaders from both parties, signaling something of a rebalancing.
“The alliance between Israel and America has always been extremely strong. It’s about to get even stronger,” Netanyahu told reporters.
Rubbish. Democrats cannot be close to Netanyahu or any Jews because their anti establishment constituent muslims, blacks and latinos hate Jews. Period. Simple. Why else would BLM get involved in Palestinian rights? These loser democrats represent the dregs of humanity and therefore are not allowed to form ties with others.
Why do you need to be a Democrat to say that?
As long as Bibi behaves as Zionists tend to behave, how can there be any relationship with such a being?
Provocative. Snub. Ignore. Really great tactics employed by Mr. Netanyahu.
It wasn’t a failure of Obama that the ties with Israel was partially severed but their own doing. Let’s see if the cat can cut his own tail.
But no welcome to you Bibi, get home to your settlements. Isn’t it a great place to live?
The Democrats are oisgeshpielt. There is no need for Bibi to coddle up to them. The Republicans are in control, and the reset will happen.
And why do we care what the dems think? Last I checked they weren’t the party in power.
Nothing this administration will do that they won’t find fault with.
Sick people.