President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attend the Abraham Accords signing ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House, in Washington, Sept. 15, 2020.
Alex Brandon/AP
Benjamin Netanyahu said he hopes Donald Trump will condemn antisemitism following his dinner with Ye and Nick Fuentes.
In an NBC interview, Netanyahu avoided sweeping criticisms of the former president and praised his policies involving Israel.
Netanyahu, a longtime ally of Trump’s, won reelection last month and is due to resume power as Prime Minister.
Israeli Prime Minister-Designate Benjamin Netanyahu said he hopes to see former President Donald Trump, his longtime ally, will condemn antisemitism following Trump’s controversial dinner with outspoken white supremacists.
Trump faced backlash from his own party following his Mar-a-Lago dinner with Ye, the rapper formerly known as Kanye West who has spouted anti-semitic threats, and white nationalist Nick Fuentes.
On Sunday’s “Meet the Press” on NBC News, host Chuck Todd asked Netanyahu, who is set to return to power after his election win last month, about his “unique relationship” with the former president.
“He has consistently flirted with some really fringe characters that spout this anti-Semitic behavior, that preach white supremacy and white nationalism, things like that. And he doesn’t denounce it. He has yet to denounce Kanye West at all. He’s yet to denounce being with a white supremacist a few days ago,” Todd said. “Why does he have this difficulty do you think?”
“On this matter, on Kanye West and that other unacceptable guest, I think it’s not merely unacceptable, it’s just wrong. And I hope he sees his way to staying out of it and condemning it,” Netanyahu said after listing the “great things” he believed Trump did for Israel while in office, including recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and withdrawing from the Iran nuclear deal.
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Todd asked if Trump’s “behavior is creating death threats to Jews” by inspiring antisemitism, citing the Tree of Life Synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh that left eleven dead.
“You want to praise him for what he did for you. It’s an ‘ends justifies the means’ argument,” Todd said, asking if Trump’s rhetoric wipes “away anything good he did for Israel?”
“If it’s systemic and continues, and I doubt that it will because I think he probably understands that it crosses a line,” Netanyahu said.
Todd said that Netanyahu was “more critical of some Congressional Democrats who are critical of the Israeli government than you are of a Donald Trump, who’s been elevating people who praise Hitler.”
“Does that go to this sort of transactional nature if it’s, you know, ‘But they’re helping Israel. And if they’re helping Israel, that’s what got to come first?'” Todd asked.
“Sorry, Chuck, I just nullified that argument on this very program and on previous programs when I came out very strongly against that meeting with those anti-Semitic rantings, which in the case of at least one of the participants seemed to be something that is, how shall I say this, related to personalities probably more than views,” Netanyahu said. “But they’re bad enough either way. You don’t exculpate them. Whoever says it for whatever reason is wrong. You don’t praise Hitler.”