Trump’s Knesset ‘pep talk’ a ringing endorsement of Israel — and of peace

President Donald Trump has held many rallies, but never one in the parliament of a foreign nation.

Trump’s speech to the Knesset on Monday was a raucous, celebratory affair with the audience of Israeli lawmakers showering him with adulation. 

Trump’s reception made it a little like a State of the Union address with no Democrats in attendance (although there was one disruption).

For all the focus on Trump as the dyspeptic voice of “American carnage” — and there’s no doubt that he can be excoriating about his political enemies — he is a natural at the vaultingly optimistic pep talk. 

His speech was utterly characteristic upbeat Trump.

It was amusing, boastful, discursive, and full of over-the-top praise for everyone in his charmed circle. 

Its ideological significance was Trump’s ringing endorsement of the Jewish state. Certainly, no American president has ever given a more lavishly pro-Israel speech.

It was especially notable coming at a time when international opinion has swung hard against Israel, and when anti-Zionism and even anti-Semitism have been on the rise in the United States — both on college campuses and among MAGA influencers.

Some of the most powerful podcasters on the right are probably workshopping conspiracy theories as we speak to explain how Trump has been manipulated by dark forces into becoming a tool of the Jews. 

One thing we’ve learned in recent months is that isolationists and malicious enemies of Israel are part of Trump’s coalition, but the president absolutely does not number himself among them. 

“I love Israel,” Trump said at the end of his Knesset speech. “I’m with you all the way.”

Again and again, he emphasized this theme.

He boasted of being the best friend Israel has ever had.

He bragged about how much aid he’s given Israel, and the lethality of the weapons he’s sold to the Jewish state.

He hailed close US-Israel military cooperation, and went on at length about the brilliance of the mutual US-Israel attack on Iranian nuclear facilities. 

He said the United States and Israel share the same values, and we will always be vital allies. 

He celebrated the achievements of the Jewish people, and marveled at how much Israel has been able to accomplish on a small speck of land in the Middle East. 

Sometimes Trump lacks subtlety, and one wishes he’d be more circumspect — while sometimes he lacks subtlety, and one marvels at his willingness to speak the truth of the matter in a way no one else will.

The Knesset speech was an instance of the latter, and will long be remembered as a deep-felt statement of the unique bond between America and the Jewish state. 

Trump pushed back against the image of himself as a warmonger, and instead argued — now with a lot of evidence — that he’s much more interested in peace.

It’s a testament to Trump’s real-estate background that his foreign policy is based to a large extent on deal-making and economic development.

And it’s no accident that he tapped two men with backgrounds in real estate, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, to cinch the Gaza deal. 

Trump offered a vision of a Middle East newly focused on building in his speech, and the Gaza deal does indeed open up a vista of extending the historic Abraham Accords in momentous ways. 

Still, there is much hard work ahead that will require US commitment and staying power.

How will Hamas, which is already undertaking violent reprisals against its internal enemies, be disarmed and displaced from power in Gaza?

Who will provide security in the portions of Gaza not controlled by Israel?

Will Qatar and Turkey, who have done so much to support malign actors in the region, get on board a Trumpian vision of peace and prosperity — of normality — for the region?

These and other questions will do much to determine the future of Gaza.

But there’s no question, as far as Trump is concerned, about the United States’ commitment to its Israeli ally. 

X: @RichLowry