On Sunday, Vice President Kamala Harris refrained from confirming whether Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu is a dependable ally, as highlighted in a segment aired by CBS News’ 60 Minutes.
During the interview, Harris was confronted with a range of contentious yet effective wartime actions taken by Netanyahu that contradicted the explicit public requests of the Biden administration. The interviewer pressed her on whether the United States still holds any “sway” over Netanyahu.
In her response, Harris was vague, describing the relationship with Israel as an “ongoing pursuit.”
“Do we have a real close ally in Prime Minister Netanyahu?” the interviewer asked again.
“I think, with all due respect, the better question is do we have an important alliance between the American people and the Israeli people?” Harris responded. “And the answer to that question is yes.”
In July, Harris opted to skip Netanyahu’s speech to Congress in favor of attending a sorority lunch.
President Joe Biden has also treated Netanyahu as somewhat of an outcast, supporting calls from Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) earlier this year for Israelis to remove Netanyahu from power and hold fresh elections.
Generally, Democrats have distanced themselves from Netanyahu. However, his approval ratings have surged in Israel since October 7, and recent polling indicates that his coalition would win reelection if elections were conducted today.
Many Israelis remain skeptical of Harris, perceiving her as unsupportive of their interests. On Sunday, one of Netanyahu’s ministers criticized Harris for pledging hundreds of millions of dollars in aid to Lebanon while Hezbollah continued its assaults on Israel from Lebanese territory.
{Matzav.com}