The chairman of the US Senate's foreign affairs committee, Democrat Senator Robert Menendez, warned opposition leader Binyamin Netanyahu that if he includes extreme right-wing elements such as Knesset Member (MK) Itamar Ben Gvir in a future government, it will have negative consequences on relations between the United States and Israel. The information was leaked by two American sources who were present at the meeting between the two.
Representing New Jersey, a state with a large Jewish population, Menendez is considered an Israel-friendly senator in the Democrat Party, while leading the most hawkish opinion in the party against returning to the nuclear deal with Iran. Menendez even voted against the nuclear agreement with Iran in 2015. In light of his seniority and his role as chairman of the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee, Menendez is one of the most powerful and influential people in the American Congress and in Washington in general when it comes to foreign policy and especially on the Israeli issue.
Menendez arrived in Israel in early September as part of a delegation of senators led by Republican Senator Lindsey Graham. On September 5, members of the delegation met with Netanyahu. The meeting began with an embarrassing incident in which Netanyahu tried to film and record the meeting against the wishes of the American senators.
Menendez calling out Netanyahu’s courting ofextremist Ben Gvir was an American thumb on scale of Israeli election politics. Whether it has a impact or not, a conservative pro-Israel anti-JCPOA Dem took a shot across Bibi’s bow and made US-Israeli relations a factor in elections.
— Aaron David Miller (@aarondmiller2) October 2, 2022
According to two American sources who are familiar with the contents of the meeting, Menendez raised with Netanyahu his concern about the political partnership he maintains with extreme right-wing elements, especially with "Otzma Yehudit" chairman Itamar Ben Gvir. Menendez told Netanyahu that he had "serious concerns" that he would combine "Extremist and polarizing elements" like Ben Gvir in a future government if he wins the elections on November 1.
Netanyahu did not like Menendez's comments and tried to oppose them, which created a lot of tension in the meeting. "People who were in the room saw how angry Bibi was," said one of the sources.
However, the Democrat senator did not retract his words even after Netanyahu expressed his dissatisfaction with them and continued to press Netanyahu on this issue.
Every single Israeli news outlet reported this story about Democratic US Senator Bob Menendez, Benjamin Netanyahu and Itamar Ben Gvir. Some even published multiple op-eds about it. Yet none of those articles noted all 3 men are funded by the same Kahanist billionaire, Simon Falic pic.twitter.com/zTkyIJwzLQ
— David Sheen (@davidsheen) October 3, 2022
"Senator Menendez told Netanyahu that he must understand that forming a coalition of this type could significantly erode the bipartisan support in Washington, which has always been the basis of the bilateral relations between the United States and Israel," said the source who attended the meeting.
In the Biden administration as well as in the American Congress, especially in the Democrat Party, Ben Gvir and to a large extent also MK Bezalel Smotrich is seen as racists who support Jewish supremacy. The United States Ambassador to Israel Tom Nides has not met with the two since taking office.
Brad Sherman joins Menendez in warning Israelis against the rise of Ben Gvir, doing so publicly, rather than through leaking to the press https://t.co/cvtYqmOb3f
— Jacob Magid (@JacobMagid) October 4, 2022
Itamar Ben Gvir responded to the anonymous reporting of the meeting and tried to use it to score political points against the current Prime Minister Lapid: "It turns out that there is no limit to Foreign Minister Lapid's cynical exploitation of his position when he continues through false briefings to drag the chairman of the American Senate committee into interfering in the Israeli election process. Lapid destroys Israel's foreign relations and gives up its sovereignty for political needs. My excellent relationship with senior Republicans will continue to exist. In the next elections, we will win, we will establish a full right-wing government and I will play an influential role in taking care of the soldiers and the people of Israel, despite the opposition of the chairman of the Senate from the Democrat party in the USA, the left and the supporters of terrorism in Israel."
