Trump hasn’t laid out a clear vision for Gaza — and that’s probably deliberate.
VOX
Former President Donald Trump hasn’t said much publicly about the war in Gaza, despite implementing hardline pro-Israel policies while he was in office. But what he has said has put him squarely in line with a GOP base that is beginning to lose interest in the war, even as it maintains support for Israel.
And recently, he’s begun taking an increasingly hostile stance against Palestinians and their supporters in the US.
Earlier this month, he reportedly told donors behind closed doors that he would pursue a zero-tolerance policy with respect to what he reportedly referred to as the “radical revolution” that has swept US college campuses in recent months, saying he would have deported protesters who aren’t US citizens.
“Well, if you get me elected, and you should really be doing this, if you get me reelected, we’re going to set that movement back 25 or 30 years,” he reportedly said.
If Trump sees college campuses as another front in the culture wars that he can play up for the election, the war in Gaza itself may be a thornier matter.
Trump, who routinely touts his support of Israel more broadly, has reportedly said he supports Israel in its continued “war on terror” after the October 7 attack by Hamas. And like members of the Israeli government, he has cast doubt on the continued viability of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that has been a cornerstone of US policy for decades.
At times, however, he has also been critical of the Israeli campaign. He’s said Israel should “get it over with … get back to peace and stop killing people.” But he’s also emphasized they “have to have a victory” and implied that what’s really the issue is that Israel is “absolutely losing the PR war” and “losing its power” in Congress. He has also criticized Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, with whom his relations have cooled since Netanyahu’s acknowledgment of Joe Biden’s 2020 electoral win.
By that account, it’s clear that Trump would be even harsher on protesters and hug Israel even tighter than Biden. But as Biden’s support erodes due to his perceived failure to be critical enough of Israel, Trump can avoid scrutiny out of the spotlight on the incumbent president.
Trump’s political calculation on Gaza
This isn’t new from Trump.
During his first term, Trump was one of the most pro-Israel US presidents. He recognized Israel’s controversial annexation of the Golan Heights and the country’s capital as Jerusalem, despite the fact that control of Jerusalem has been a sticking point in negotiations between the Israelis and Palestinians for decades.
