WASHINGTON — During a 75-minute interview published Thursday in Time magazine, U.S. President Donald Trump repeatedly avoided backing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s reelection campaign prior to Israel’s October 27 polls.
The decision not to endorse Netanyahu dealt a blow to the Likud party leader, who has routinely used his close relationship with the U.S. leader as a key argument to remain in office.
”I can only say that I’m not involved in politics anymore,” Trump stated when asked if Israeli voters should give Netanyahu another term.
The neutral stance comes despite Trump actively campaigning for Republicans in the upcoming U.S. midterm elections and publicly supporting several foreign leaders, including Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, Polish President Karol Nawrocki, and various Latin American officials.
This reserved posture contrasts sharply with past elections, such as in 2019, when Netanyahu displayed massive campaign billboards featuring himself alongside Trump, an image Trump subsequently shared on his social media feeds.
While refusing an endorsement, Trump commended Netanyahu’s political durability. Netanyahu is currently fighting a yearslong corruption trial, surviving massive 2023 judicial reform protests, and facing criticism over intelligence failures surrounding the October 7, 2023, attack by Hamas.
Late last year, Trump sent a letter to Israeli President Isaac Herzog requesting a pardon for Netanyahu, praising him as a formidable wartime leader.
”Well, people have written off Bibi many, many times, just like they’ve written off me many, many times,” Trump observed. “I wouldn’t underestimate Bibi.”
Commenting on main opposition contender, centrist candidate Gadi Eisenkot, Trump noted,
”I don’t hear bad things about him.”
Although Trump suggested in June that he would likely back Netanyahu, he noted at the time that he first wanted to see who would enter the race against him.