Trump picks pro-Israel Mike Huckabee as US ambassador to Israel
President-elect Donald Trump has nominated former Arkansas Governor and staunchly pro-Israel conservative Mike Huckabee as his US ambassador to Israel, according to Asharq Al-Awsat.
The announcement on November 12th was immediately praised by senior Israeli officials, offering an augury of the US’s coming foreign policy in the Middle East.
In a statement, Trump said: “He loves Israel, and the people of Israel, and likewise, the people of Israel love him. Mike will work tirelessly to bring about Peace in the Middle East!”
The former Arkansas governor has publicly criticized President Joe Biden for pressuring Israel to moderate its destruction of Gaza and has opposed calls for a ceasefire.
On News Nation in March, Huckabee said: “If a person is pro-Israel, how can you be pro-Biden because the Biden administration has made it very clear they will make concessions to Hamas.”
Mike Huckabee is an evangelical Christian and has been a vocal supporter of Israel and Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank throughout his career.
In a 2017 interview with CNN, he said: “There’s no such thing as an occupation,” and referred to the West Bank by its biblical names Judea and Samaria.
READ: Israel: There will be no ceasefire with Lebanon’s Hezbollah
Huckabee has also led evangelical tours of Israel for many years.
The Christian sect are an overwhelmingly pro-Israel part of Trump’s base and voted heavily in favour of him in the recent election.
The announcement follows Trump’s selection of pro-Israel New York Congresswoman Elise Stefanik as his ambassador to the United Nations, according to Levantis.me.
On November 11th,, he chose Stefanik who has little foreign policy experience and holds staunchly pro-Israel views.
In a statement Trump said: “Elise is an incredibly strong, tough, and smart America First fighter.”
Since the beginning of Israel’s war on Gaza, Stefanik has attacked the UN and accused it of antisemitism for its criticism of Israel’s bombardment of Gaza.
Elise Stefanik has also supported bills targeting pro-Palestinian student encampments that were erected this past spring in protest against the war.
READ: Israel’s Smotrich calls for West Bank annexation
She was one of the few US lawmakers who labelled the protests, which called on the US administration to cut economic ties with Israel or companies that support the war, as antisemitic.
According to MiddleEastEye, this was on the basis that they were critical of Israel.
After aggressively interrogating several university presidents during a hearing, who had presided over the encampments, her name circulated around Washington.
In the hearings, she repeatedly asserted that the slogans “from the river to the sea” and “globalise the intifada” were tantamount to calls for genocide.
Once the Senate confirms her nomination, she will succeed US ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield, who has held the position for the entire Biden administration.
Asharq Al-Awsat and Levantis.me
