Trump confirms Maariv report — and refrains from public support for Netanyahu in the elections

The elections in Israel are approaching, the primaries in the Likud party are being held today (Monday), and US President Donald Trump has still not provided public support to anyone in the race, not even to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Furthermore, he said today in an interview with Fox News:

"I think it is best that I stay out of the elections in Israel, but I may support someone."

As recalled, yesterday political correspondent Anna Barsky reported that Trump has so far refrained from giving Netanyahu the public support in the elections that he had hoped for. When they met at the White House about two weeks ago, Trump even asked him directly about his standing in the polls. Netanyahu hesitated, and one of his advisors hurried to answer the President that he is "winning." On four different occasions in recent weeks, Trump was asked if he supports Netanyahu, and in all of them he evaded expressing explicit support.

This abstention has additional significance because of the history between the two. Trump has already proven in the past that he is willing to throw his full weight into an Israeli election campaign: days before the April 2019 elections, he recognized Israeli sovereignty over the Golan, a move he himself later boasted had helped Netanyahu. This time, at least for now, he is keeping this card to himself.

The Israeli opposition also understands the value of this card. Sources in the circles of Gadi Eisenkot, Naftali Bennett, and Yair Lapid have in recent months passed messages to Trump's people, through acquaintances, donors, and political allies, asking him to remain neutral in the elections. This activity shows how much Trump's position has become a component in the Israeli election campaign, even before he decided whether to intervene in it.