Great Godfather of Israel

a little history

There is much literature on the relationship between the United States and Judaism, particularly from Jewish sources, The Jewish Virtual Library explains that this relationship It dates back to the birth of the United States of AmericaTo quote a phrase from both the nation’s respected Founding Fathers, from John Adams to Thomas Jefferson: “I will assert that the Hebrews have done more to civilize man than any other nation.” He also points out that The settlers who arrived in what would later become the United States were inspired by the Biblical account of the Hebrew people And that language, Hebrew, was compulsory at Harvard University until 1787. And there are several quotes from the architects of independence and the United States Constitution in which they show their support for the idea of ​​establishing a state for Jews in Palestine, something that came after the genocide and Germany’s defeat in 1948. President Harry Truman’s America was actually the first country to recognize the new state.“Eleven Minutes After the Declaration of Independence.”

Diplomatic and material assistance to the State of Israel

Anyone who follows international information knows that it is practically impossible for any UN resolution condemning the Israeli government to succeed. Veto power of the United States as a permanent member of the Security CouncilThe other four are Russia, China, the United Kingdom and France. According to the Chicago Council of Global Affairs, the first US veto on a resolution against Israel was in 1972 and it has exercised this right since then until the end of last year (2023). (To defend Israel 45 times since the creation of the UN in 1945, which is half the total of US vetoes (89).Of those 45 vetoes imposed by the US on resolutions critical of Israel, 33 were related to the occupation of Palestinian territories or the treatment of Palestinian civilians.

Regarding material aid, the latest official data (2022) from the United States government. “Aid” to Israel: $3.3 billion. Almost entirely dependent on military aid, Israel is a prosperous country that does not need development aid. In fiscal year 2022, only one country surpassed Israel as a recipient of US aid, Ukraine, which has been at war since 2022, which received $12 billion, much of it devoted to the Ukrainian economy and development. Until the massacre carried out by Hamas on October 7, 2023. As a result of that aggression, the United States Congress this spring approved certain items that added to 26 billion dollars to Israel, more than half, about 14 billion, unconditional military aidIsrael has received its largest aid package since its founding. Military assistance takes the form of tanks, ammunition, bombs, rockets and other weapons.

Tel Aviv knows it can rely on Washington for the most important issues, although there may sometimes be discrepancies in that goodwill, depending on the government in each country, more about nuance than substance. Perhaps the biggest disagreement occurred between Barack Obama and Benjamin Netanyahu, secondly over the relationship Obama’s Vice President Joe Biden maintained with Netanyahu.

Because

There are many factors. America’s support to Israel Cold War becomes almost unconditional When Washington believes that communism is the key element in curbing Soviet Union influence in the Middle East (the Middle for America), and stability in that region is an essential priority, Oil market stability. For this reason, Washington also considered it in its strategic interest to support states such as Egypt and Saudi Arabia. Another element that appears in the late 70s Ayatollah’s revolution in Iran Joe overthrows the Shah’s regime, and takes American hostages at the embassy in Tehran, resulting in the end of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

Regarding internal reasons for support of Israel, there are two major reasons that are linked: Public opinion, and therefore votes, and the Jewish lobby the one who exercises the most AIPAC (American Israel Public Affairs Committee). Any politician who wants to build a career or remain in office attends the annual AIPAC conference. Will have to see them there. It is not the only Jewish pressure group, but it is by far the most important and most Orthodox. As a progressive counterweight, the group J Street was created in 2008, a name with a double meaning, “J Street”, J for Jewish, and K Street for allusion to K Street, the street in Washington where most of their lobbies are. Headquarters. So AIPAC is closer to the Republican Party and J Street is closer to the Democrats.

But, as they say in Spanish, they distribute the eggs in many baskets. One good thing about America is that it is relatively easy, transparent, to follow the path of money into politics, lobbies, not all of it, but most of the pressure put on politicians by various interest groups is transparent. For example, on the same AIPAC website they claim about money donated to the electoral campaign for the last legislative elections (2022): “We have supported 365 pro-Israel candidates, Democrats and Republicans support (…) We helped defeat 24 candidates who would have weakened US-Israel relations,” they show alongside a photo of the 365 congressmen who support and as a motto. expose in Being pro-Israel is good policy and beneficial. And they are informed about the candidates they support in these elections (in addition to the president, they are also legislative) and are also invited to contribute money to their campaigns. J Street does the same thing, although with a smaller budget, inviting contributions in selecting candidates and giving priority to those whose seats are at risk of going to another party.

At the end of the year, the British newspaper The Guardian analyzed the relationship between donations given to congressmen and their votes and found that there was indeed a relationship: “

As a result of the above historical legacy and lobby work, public opinion in the United States has been mostly pro-Israel, but the Netanyahu government’s response to the October 7 massacre and changes in American society have nuanced that support.

Public opinion: support is subtle

According to the most recent survey conducted from September 16 to 22 by the prestigious Pew Research Center, ahead of Iran’s latest missile launch against Israel, the number of citizens has increased, to 61%, who want their government to help find a diplomatic Join solution. percentage of people who Consider that retaliation against Hamas is excessive, 31% Compared to 27% in December. Note that, despite this increase, Those who consider Israel’s response disproportionate do not reach one-third of the population.

Another phenomenon reflected in opinion polls and collected by two other analysis centers, INSS (Institute for National Security Studies) and Brookings, is that a Growing ideological and generational divideThe most pro-Israel group are elderly Republican voters, and the least pro-Israel are young people who sympathize with the Democrats. The most prominent example of this divide is the protests on many university campuses in the US which is also due to a generational divide. Demographic growth with an increasingly religiously, ethnically and culturally diverse society. If young progressives are the most critical in their support of Israel, it is clear The party that has suffered from the current situation is the Democratic Party, the party of President Biden and Vice President HarrisRegarding religion, The greatest support for Israel is among Jews and white evangelicals, The latter are the electoral pillars of the Republican Party and Donald Trump.

The conclusion in the INSS article from March this year is interesting: “The Biden government has supported Israel’s military response and opinion polls show a loss of support within the Democratic Party, which puts pressure on political decisions in an election year. Israel must take into account internal factors in the public debate in the United States, Because they affect the decisions of the Biden administration and the future of relations between the United States and Israel. “Israel has to be mindful of the implications of its actions on American politics.”

Donald Trump, Kamala Harris and Israel

It is easy to draw two things from everything discussed above: one, Every candidate for President of the United States will have a policy of support for Israel.Two, that would be a lot of support Old, not critical, even if he’s a Republican politicianIn the case of Donald Trump this is not an assumption, but a confirmation of the four years of his presidency. President Trump crossed another taboo line in international politics, recognized Jerusalem as the capital of the Jewish state And, as a result, the US Embassy was moved from Tel Aviv to the main city of all disputes, Jerusalem. with that decision Trump destroys any aspirations of Palestinians to see East Jerusalem as capital of an imaginary, and increasingly unworkable, Palestinian state. It should be said that the President Joe Biden hasn’t undone that movementNor was it expected. Throughout his long political career, Biden has been vigorous in his support for Israel, and nearly thirty years ago, in October 1995, during Bill Clinton’s presidency, he affirmed that Jerusalem was the capital of Israel and asked the Senate Was that the United States United so they recognized it.

As far as Kamala Harris is concerned, Vice President and Presidential candidates try to please everyone, Emphasizes his support for Israel’s right to defend itself and, at the same time, out of conviction or electoral interest (criticism of Biden’s policy with Israel among his voters), highlights the suffering of thousands of innocent Palestinian victims And demands for them “the right to freedom, dignity and self-determination.” During the campaign, former President Trump has said of the vice president and opponent that “he doesn’t like Jews.” It goes without saying that Harris’s husband is Jewish and in their home they celebrate Jewish traditions just as much as Christian ones.

The Washington Post said in a recent article How foreign policy might change with President Harris, Based on sources close to the government and the candidate’s public statements. She stressed that, out of loyalty and because she is vice president, she tries not to disagree with Biden’s policy and does not expect any major changes, except in relations with Israel, if he becomes president. Can be done. With Harris, the Post claims the White House will confront Netanyahu more, he could also consider imposing more conditions on the aid the US provides to Israel and force him to respect international courts. But the article also includes this warning, “Many Middle East veterans have “Changing US policy toward Israel may be politically difficult.”