Trump Israel ambassador pick Mike Huckabee is longtime ally of settlers
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Trump and Huckabee at an event in Pennsylvania last month. Photo: Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty
President-elect Donald Trump announced he will nominate former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee as U.S. ambassador to Israel.
Why it matters: Huckabee has a close relationship with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He has also repeatedly expressed support for Jewish settlers and has backed the idea of Israel annexing parts of the occupied West Bank.
- Israel already has its most pro-settler government in history, and some on the Israeli right now hope Trump's second administration will be the most pro-settler ever in the U.S.
What they're saying: "Mike Huckabee loves Israel and the people of Israel... he will work tirelessly to bring about peace in the Middle East," Trump said in a statement.
- In 2015, Huckabee said Israel has a stronger historical connection to the West Bank than the U.S. has to Manhattan.
- In 2019, Huckabee said that he personally believed Israel had the right to annex parts of the West Bank.
- During his 2008 presidential run, Huckabee said "there's really no such thing as a Palestinian" and argued that land for a future Palestinian state should be taken from other Arab states, not Israel.
Flashback: Netanyahu considered announcing the annexation of parts of the West Bank late in Trump's first term, but could not fully align with Trump's team on that issue.
- Right-wing members of Netanyahu's government have already called for annexations since Trump's victory.
- The West Bank settlements are widely viewed as illegal under international law. Annexing them would spark a major international uproar and potentially block any path to a Palestinian state.
- Trump has not made clear how he plans to proceed on this issue.
Behind the scenes: Huckabee, an Evangelical pastor and a host of a show on Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN), wanted to be appointed ambassador to Israel during Trump's first term in office, sources tell Axios.
- Trump decided at the time to appoint his former lawyer David Friedman.
- Friedman was a candidate to return to the role, but the president-elect chose Huckabee.
- "He is a dear friend and he will have my full support. Congrats Mike on getting the best job in the world," Friedman wrote on X.
Between the lines: Netanyahu recently announced that Yechiel Leiter will be the next Israeli ambassador to Washington.
- Leiter, who will assume office the same day as Trump on Jan. 20, is a settler and longtime activist for settlement expansion.
- Never before have two diplomats in charge of the U.S.-Israel relationship had such openly pro-annexation world views.
State of play: Israel's ultranationalist minister of finance Betzalel Smotrich said on Monday that Trump's electoral victory "brings with it an important opportunity" to push for annexation of the Israeli settlements in the West Bank.
- Smotrich said Israel had been "one step away" from annexing the settlements during Trump's first term, "and now the time has come to do it."
- Smotrich said annexation of the settlements in the West Bank is the only way to prevent a Palestinian state from ever being established, and that he'd instructed his team to prepare to work with the new Trump administration on the issue as soon as possible.
The latest: Trump also announced on Tuesday the appointment of businessman and close friend Steve Witkoff as the U.S. envoy to the Middle East.
- Witkoff is a real estate magnate and is known for his pro-Israel positions.
- Trump said in a statement that Witkoff has succeeded in every project he has undertaken in his life and that he will be a "relentless voice for peace."
Go deeper: Trump and Netanyahu envoy met about Middle East wars
