Willie R. Tubbs, FISM News
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The divide between President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has grown so vast that it appears Biden is unwilling to have Netanyahu visit the White House.
Tuesday, Biden told reporters that he was so concerned about the Netanyahu government’s proposed judicial overhaul, that he would not invite Netanyahu to the White House “in the near term.”
“Like many strong supporters of Israel, I’m very concerned,” Biden said. “And I’m concerned that they get this straight. They cannot continue down this road. And I’ve sort of made that clear … [Hopefully], the prime minister will act in a way that he is going to try to work out some genuine compromise. But that remains to be seen.”
Tuesday evening, Netanyahu responded to Biden’s remarks with a polite, though firm, request for Biden and all other foreign entities to allow Israel to govern itself. The prime minister also defended his court plans.
“I have known President Biden for over 40 years, and I appreciate his longstanding commitment to Israel,” Netanyahu tweeted. “The alliance between Israel and the United States is unbreakable and always overcomes the occasional disagreements between us.
“My administration is committed to strengthening democracy by restoring the proper balance between the three branches of government, which we are striving to achieve via a broad consensus.
“Israel is a sovereign country which makes its decisions by the will of its people and not based on pressures from abroad, including from the best of friends.”
I have known President Biden for over 40 years, and I appreciate his longstanding commitment to Israel. The alliance between Israel and the United States is unbreakable and always overcomes the occasional disagreements between us
— Benjamin Netanyahu – בנימין נתניהו (@netanyahu) March 28, 2023
Israel is a sovereign country which makes its decisions by the will of its people and not based on pressures from abroad, including from the best of friends.
— Benjamin Netanyahu – בנימין נתניהו (@netanyahu) March 28, 2023
Biden’s remarks are in keeping with ever louder calls on the left for Israel to change course. Thus far, these calls have gone unheeded, although Netanyahu’s government has delayed voting on the bill in the face of widespread protest.
Liberals in the United States and elsewhere have been particularly displeased with Netanyahu’s plans to limit the power of Israel’s supreme court, which opponents say would, among other things, put Palestinians in the West Bank in danger of being oppressed.
Netanyahu and his lieutenants have argued that the proposal is necessary as the supreme court has overstepped its authority and begun to exert undue influence on national affairs.
DESANTIS STILL A GO FOR VISIT
If Biden is pulling away from Israel, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a likely 2024 presidential candidate, is courting an alliance.
The Jerusalem Post and Museum Of Tolerance Jerusalem, which have partnered to host an event titled “Celebrate the Faces of Israel,” announced that DeSantis will visit Israel and speak to an audience of about 400 attendees, including about 120 U.S. Jewish philanthropists, on April 27.
“At a time of unnecessarily strained relations between Jerusalem and Washington, Florida serves as a bridge between the American and Israeli people,” DeSantis said.
DeSantis, who has vowed to be a strong ally to Israel, has previously brought a trade delegation to America’s longtime closest ally in the Middle East in 2019.
The different approaches of Biden and DeSantis are the latest examples of Democrats and Republicans diverging on the issue of Israel.
While it would be inaccurate to say Israel has no friends on the left — there remains a rather staunch pro-Israel contingent among the Democrats — farther left progressives have shifted the party’s overall position closer to Palestinian interests.
According to recent polling data, Democrats in America favor Palestinians over Israelis in the two people’s longstanding conflict, while Republicans are more solidly allied with Israel.