Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu greets Marco Rubio, the U.S. secretary of state, in the West Wing Lobby of the White House, April 7, 2025. Photo courtesy of Joyce N. Boghosian/White House.

By MITCHELL BARD

JNS

Even among his most ardent Jewish supporters, U.S. President Donald Trump is becoming harder to defend. The man once hailed as the “most pro-Israel president in history” is now acting more like Joe Biden with a MAGA hat. Trump’s betrayals of Israel—once unthinkable to his loyal base—are piling up, leaving some MAGA Jews struggling to justify their support.

Trump Disappoints

Reports that Trump threatened to abandon Israel if it did not halt its war against Hamas (denied by the administration) should have sent shivers down the spine of every Israeli policymaker and American supporter.

Even the most stalwart defenders of Israel in the administration, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, are being conscripted into pressure campaigns against Israel, forced to deliver ultimatums that would have once been unthinkable under any Republican president.

Trump’s record of actions that would have earned him the label of “anti-Israel” if carried out by a Democrat is now undeniable:

  • He forced Israel into ceasefires with both Hamas and Hezbollah.
  • He has, like former President Biden, micromanaged aspects of Israel’s wars with Hezbollah and Hamas, as when he warned Israel not to target infrastructure in Beirut and delay “Operation Gideon’s Chariots” in Gaza.
  • He imposed a 17% tariff on Israeli imports, effectively punishing one of America’s closest allies.
  • He eliminated USAID funding for Israel when he dismantled the agency.
  • He legitimized negotiations with jihadist enemies of Israel and their supporters—the ISIS leader of Syria, the Islamist president of Turkey, the Hamas-sponsoring Qatari emir, and the Iranian mullahs—while offering Israel nothing in return.
  • He initiated direct talks with Hamas, reversing decades of bipartisan American policy that refused to legitimize the terror group.

Without Israel’s Consent?

Those negotiations led to the release of Israeli-American hostage Edan Alexander at the expense of other Israeli hostages, ending the siege on Gaza and allowing humanitarian aid that Israel says Hamas exploits. Initially framed as a goodwill gesture from Hamas to Trump, the truth emerged: The release was a political trade orchestrated by Trump without Israel’s consent.

Trump visited the Gulf states but skipped Israel. During the Mideast trip, he made deals without securing a single concession for Jerusalem. He dropped sanctions on Syria without any guarantees for Israeli security and forcing Israel to end most of its operations; made an unprecedented $142 billion arms sale to the Saudis without getting an agreement to normalize relations with Israel; and accepted the $400 million bribe (er, plane) from Qatar without the expulsion of Hamas representatives or a promise to end support for the terrorists.

Betrayals

Trump has also talked about providing the Saudis and UAE with F-35 stealth fighter planes that would violate the law and decades of policy guaranteeing Israel’s Qualitative Military Edge over the Arabs.

As apparent consolation for Trump’s snub, U.S. Vice President JD Vance was supposed to travel to Israel but backed out, citing “logistical reasons.” Reports indicated that the real reason was to avoid appearing to support Israel’s intensification of military operations in Gaza.

In a stunning betrayal, Trump told Israel not to attack Yemeni terrorists because the United States would “handle it,” only to cut a deal with the Houthis that did not require a halt to their missile attacks on Israel, which have since escalated.

Then came the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Syria, removing a critical buffer against Iranian and Turkish expansionism.

Iran Deal

And now, most ominously, Trump seems determined to strike a nuclear deal with Iran. His advisers floated terms, later reversed, nearly identical to former President Barack Obama’s, despite Iran making clear it will never accept restrictions preventing it from acquiring nuclear weapons. Also troubling, Trump, like Obama, acceded to Iran’s demand to exclude its sponsorship of terrorism and missile development from negotiations.

Meanwhile, Trump has prevented Israel from taking military action against Iran’s nuclear facilities, and his administration has repeatedly leaked stories about Israeli preparations in an apparent effort to sabotage their plans.

Adding insult to injury, many of the decisions affecting Israel have been made without consulting Jerusalem. This type of shock diplomacy is more associated with hostile administrations.

Now Versus Then

That brings us to Rubio and Huckabee.

Channeling his predecessor, Antony Blinken, Rubio declared that the humanitarian crisis in Gaza is “undermining Israel’s standing and national security” and praised Israel for lifting the blockade, only to complain that it wasn’t enough. This is the same Rubio who, as a senator, said aid “would go directly to Hamas and would be controlled by them.”

The Price?

No one is more pro-Israel than Huckabee, who has gone out of his way to reassure Israelis that Trump hasn’t abandoned Israel. Still, Globes reported that the ambassador told Israeli officials that Washington is displeased with Israel’s proposed regulations regarding Chevron’s dominance in the gas sector and a mandate that streaming platforms, like Netflix and Amazon Prime, invest a portion of their revenue generated in Israel in local productions.

Journalist Oren Dori reported that while Huckabee spoke of “a partnership” between Washington and Jerusalem, the subtext was unmistakable: Israel must prove its usefulness to America. Under Trump’s transactional foreign policy, friendship comes at a price.