But yesterday, shortly before addressing the pro-Israel AIPAC lobby in Washington, he told CNN: “There’s nobody more pro-Israel than I am”.
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In the lead-up Donald Trump’s appearance before the American Israel Public Affairs Committee’s (AIPAC) annual conference Monday evening, a prominent Rabbi in the reform Jewish movement told TMN that the Republican front-runner must demonstrate contrition in order to be considered a viable candidate. He said he frequently confers with Sam Clovis, one of Trump’s top policy advisers, and that there has been a series of conference calls and briefings in recent weeks.
“It’s not up to the U.N.”, Trump said.
“I really believe the United States, Israel and the world are safer as a result, but still as I laid out in a speech in a Brookings Institute previous year”, Clinton said, speaking about the existential threat of nuclear weapons in Iran.
As Trump prepares to meet with some Republican lawmakers in Washington on Monday, Clinton closed with something of a challenge to the GOP as its leaders come to grips with the possibility that he will indeed lead the party ticket this fall. The speech will reportedly focus on his 30-plus years of alleged support for pro-Israel causes, as well as address his understanding of the country’s tumultuous history. Most recently, it worked hard to try and scuttle the Iran nuclear agreement, putting the group at odds with ardent deal supporters Clinton and Democrat Bernie Sanders, and to a certain degree, with Kasich, the lone Republican who has not said he would automatically rescind the pact.
Sanders, who is now the only Jewish candidate running in the presidential race, noted that he has “personal ties with Israel”, recalling months he spent as a young man living on a kibbutz.
Cruz took the stage with a shot at Trump, correcting his use of the term “Palestine” to refer to territory occupied by Israel.
Livingston said outside the meeting that party unity is crucial and that Republicans should unite behind Trump to stop a Hillary Clinton presidency. At a forum in February, Trump said he’d like to remain neutral between the two parties, sparking criticism from his rivals for the GOP nomination, who said he was not supporting Israel strongly enough.
She signalled she’d be friendlier than the current president – promising that one of her first acts in office would be to invite Benjamin Netanyahu, the hawkish Israeli prime minister and occasional antagonist of Barack Obama, to the White House. Rallies in Utah and Arizona on Friday and Saturday were hit with protests – some that escalated into violent altercations.
Her stance against Jewish settlements on land claimed by the Palestinians has been criticised by some in the pro-Israel community, but she has been received warmly by pro-Israel groups in the past.
“If you see bigotry, oppose it. If you see violence, condemn it”, Clinton said.
Trump’s precise views on foreign policy are, indeed, something of a moving target. “When I’m president, I will veto any attempt by the United Nations to impose its will on the Jewish state”, he said.
The moves come as the Republican establishment and a group of influential conservatives intensify efforts to thwart Trump’s march to the nomination, but with no unified strategy for how to achieve that goal. “And that’s the Donald Trump that you’re gonna start seeing more and more of right now”, Carson said.
In a speech to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, Trump said he would side with Israel, a close US ally, in any negotiations between the Israelis and the Palestinians.
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And, asked whether he would recognise Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and move the United States embassy from Tel Aviv to Washington.
