Trump slams Kamala Harris for Israel comments as he hosts Benjamin Netanyahu
Former President Donald Trump on Friday urged Jewish voters to support his candidacy while hosting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, and slammed Vice President Kamala Harris for making “disrespectful” comments about Israel.
“I think what she said is disrespectful. It’s not a very nice thing about Israel. I just don’t see how a Jewish person could vote for her,” Trump, 78, told reporters. Harris, whose husband, Doug Emhoff, is also Jewish, on Thursday accused Israel of killing “too many” civilians in the Gaza Strip.
“She’s a far-left person. San Francisco destroyed San Francisco,” Trump said of his potential Democratic rival in the Nov. 5 election. “She’s really a destroyer. She doesn’t know how to build.”
Vice President Kamala Harris said Thursday that Israel has killed “too many” civilians in the Gaza Strip. AFP via Getty Images
Sitting across from the Republican presidential candidate, Netanyahu suggested Harris could derail plans for a U.S.-backed ceasefire with her forceful comments declaring “I will not be silent” about civilian deaths and widespread hunger in Gaza.
“we [a ceasefire deal] “The more Hamas understands that there is no gap between Israel and the United States, the sooner an agreement will be reached. I hope that today’s statement does not change that,” Netanyahu said.
The plan supported by the Biden-Harris administration calls for an end to Israel’s invasion of the Gaza Strip before the Hamas terror group is militarily defeated, and experts have questioned whether Netanyahu is serious about pursuing the idea or is waiting to see whether Trump wins the election.
Trump has vowed to staunchly support Israel and oppose Iran if he wins, and said the Biden-Harris administration has done too little to enforce oil sanctions against Iran, which provides funding and training to Hamas and other anti-Israel militias, including Lebanon’s Hezbollah and Yemen’s Houthi movement.
“We tore up the Iran nuclear deal and unfortunately the Biden administration did nothing,” Trump said. “We held all the cards. Iran never used terrorism because they had no money. Nobody was buying their oil and now they’re a rich country.”
As the conflict between Israel and Hamas marks one year in October, Trump claimed voting for him would prevent World War III.
“If we win, things are very simple. Everything will be resolved quickly. If we don’t win, there will be a major war in the Middle East, and maybe World War III.”
Former President Trump said at the Mar-a-Lago event that if he was re-elected to office, “everything would be right in the nick of time.” AP
Harris, 59, condemned Israel’s actions after meeting separately with Netanyahu at the White House the previous day, following President Biden, 81,’s decision on Sunday to stop seeking a second term and instead endorse Harris.
She also vowed to “unwaveringly” support the Jewish state’s right to exist and masked her criticism by condemning Hamas terrorists who launched the war on October 7, but then faced criticism from within her own party.
“I don’t agree with those comments,” Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.) said on Fox News on Friday.
Trump previously courted the support of Jewish voters, complained bitterly when exit polls showed religious minorities overwhelmingly supported Biden’s successful 2020 campaign, and was infuriated when Netanyahu congratulated Biden while Trump was still contesting the election results.
As president, Trump implemented a series of pro-Israel policies, including recognizing Israel’s annexation of the disputed Golan Heights from Syria and moving the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, ignoring long-standing concerns about the city’s disputed status.
The Trump administration also brokered diplomatic relations between Israel and five Muslim-majority countries: Bahrain, Kosovo, Morocco, Sudan and the United Arab Emirates.
President Trump hosted Prime Minister Netanyahu at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, on Friday afternoon. Margom Martin/X
But Trump has also been criticized by Jewish leaders for dining at Mar-a-Lago in 2022 with anti-Semitic rapper Kanye West and white supremacist Nick Fuentes, who praises Adolf Hitler. After the dinner, Trump said he “didn’t know anything” about Fuentes.
Trump’s attempt to make support for Israel an election issue comes after Democrats in Congress criticized incumbents for not doing more to counter Iran.
A group of 62 House members, including prominent Democrats such as Adam Schiff and Eric Swalwell of California, urged President Biden in January to fully implement U.S. sanctions on Iranian oil sales in response to a surge in Iranian oil exports. Approximately twice as much Iran’s annual export levels in 2019 and 2020.
“Iran currently exports more than 1.4 million barrels of crude oil each day, with more than 80% of it going to China. Between February 2021 and October 2023, the Iranian regime made at least $88 billion from these illicit oil exports.” group I have written.
Vice President Harris’ office and the Harris campaign did not immediately comment on Trump’s remarks.
Trump slams Kamala Harris for Israel comments as he hosts Benjamin Netanyahu
Former President Donald Trump on Friday urged Jewish voters to support his candidacy while hosting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, and slammed Vice President Kamala Harris for making “disrespectful” comments about Israel.
“I think what she said is disrespectful. It’s not a very nice thing about Israel. I just don’t see how a Jewish person could vote for her,” Trump, 78, told reporters. Harris, whose husband, Doug Emhoff, is also Jewish, on Thursday accused Israel of killing “too many” civilians in the Gaza Strip.
“She’s a far-left person. San Francisco destroyed San Francisco,” Trump said of his potential Democratic rival in the Nov. 5 election. “She’s really a destroyer. She doesn’t know how to build.”
Sitting across from the Republican presidential candidate, Netanyahu suggested Harris could derail plans for a U.S.-backed ceasefire with her forceful comments declaring “I will not be silent” about civilian deaths and widespread hunger in Gaza.
“we [a ceasefire deal] “The more Hamas understands that there is no gap between Israel and the United States, the sooner an agreement will be reached. I hope that today’s statement does not change that,” Netanyahu said.
The plan supported by the Biden-Harris administration calls for an end to Israel’s invasion of the Gaza Strip before the Hamas terror group is militarily defeated, and experts have questioned whether Netanyahu is serious about pursuing the idea or is waiting to see whether Trump wins the election.
Trump has vowed to staunchly support Israel and oppose Iran if he wins, and said the Biden-Harris administration has done too little to enforce oil sanctions against Iran, which provides funding and training to Hamas and other anti-Israel militias, including Lebanon’s Hezbollah and Yemen’s Houthi movement.
“We tore up the Iran nuclear deal and unfortunately the Biden administration did nothing,” Trump said. “We held all the cards. Iran never used terrorism because they had no money. Nobody was buying their oil and now they’re a rich country.”
As the conflict between Israel and Hamas marks one year in October, Trump claimed voting for him would prevent World War III.
“If we win, things are very simple. Everything will be resolved quickly. If we don’t win, there will be a major war in the Middle East, and maybe World War III.”
Harris, 59, condemned Israel’s actions after meeting separately with Netanyahu at the White House the previous day, following President Biden, 81,’s decision on Sunday to stop seeking a second term and instead endorse Harris.
She also vowed to “unwaveringly” support the Jewish state’s right to exist and masked her criticism by condemning Hamas terrorists who launched the war on October 7, but then faced criticism from within her own party.
“I don’t agree with those comments,” Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.) said on Fox News on Friday.
Trump previously courted the support of Jewish voters, complained bitterly when exit polls showed religious minorities overwhelmingly supported Biden’s successful 2020 campaign, and was infuriated when Netanyahu congratulated Biden while Trump was still contesting the election results.
As president, Trump implemented a series of pro-Israel policies, including recognizing Israel’s annexation of the disputed Golan Heights from Syria and moving the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, ignoring long-standing concerns about the city’s disputed status.
The Trump administration also brokered diplomatic relations between Israel and five Muslim-majority countries: Bahrain, Kosovo, Morocco, Sudan and the United Arab Emirates.
But Trump has also been criticized by Jewish leaders for dining at Mar-a-Lago in 2022 with anti-Semitic rapper Kanye West and white supremacist Nick Fuentes, who praises Adolf Hitler. After the dinner, Trump said he “didn’t know anything” about Fuentes.
Trump’s attempt to make support for Israel an election issue comes after Democrats in Congress criticized incumbents for not doing more to counter Iran.
A group of 62 House members, including prominent Democrats such as Adam Schiff and Eric Swalwell of California, urged President Biden in January to fully implement U.S. sanctions on Iranian oil sales in response to a surge in Iranian oil exports. Approximately twice as much Iran’s annual export levels in 2019 and 2020.
“Iran currently exports more than 1.4 million barrels of crude oil each day, with more than 80% of it going to China. Between February 2021 and October 2023, the Iranian regime made at least $88 billion from these illicit oil exports.” group I have written.
Vice President Harris’ office and the Harris campaign did not immediately comment on Trump’s remarks.
Josh Christenson contributed to this report.
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