President Trump has claimed credit for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s performance in Tuesday’s Knesset election.
There is not yet a clear winner in the election, which is the first time Israelis have headed to the polls since the October 7 attacks.
However, Trump wrote on Truth Social on Tuesday that his endorsement of Netanyahu turned around the latter’s campaign and may still carry him back to office.
“When President Trump endorsed Bibi Netanyahu, the whole tide turned, and now, rather than a decisive defeat for a Great Prime Minister, it looks like a big come-from-behind stalemate, or even a WIN for Netanyahu,” Trump wrote, seemingly crediting the quote to a man named Irving C. Schwartz.
Still quoting Schwartz, Trump wrote: “It all took place AFTER the Endorsement by President Trump, who only wants what is good for the Middle East, Israel, and the United States of America!”
Gadi Eisenkot, a former Israeli army chief who leads the Yashar party, has called for Netanyahu to be ousted as prime minister.
However, exit polls suggest that neither Netanyahu’s grouping nor that of Eisenkot will secure enough seats for a majority in the Knesset.
While returning from a rally in Texas, Trump insisted that the election was close and that Netanyahu had performed well.
“I hear he did very well. It's pretty close, very good,” he said yesterday. “When the endorsement came out, it helped him a lot.”
“But actually, I heard he did pretty well,” Trump continued. “He's probably winning or tied. But I heard he's doing pretty well.”
Trump and Netanyahu have been closely aligned during the former’s second term, with the U.S. and Israel both launching strikes on Iran.
On Sunday, Netanyahu touted his endorsement from Trump in a televised message.
“US President Donald Trump has come with a friendship that has never existed before between an Israeli prime minister and an American president,” he said, according to Reuters, which reviewed the message. “And it is doubtful we will ever have such a friendly president again.”
“He has another two years, and he says he is calling on you to vote for me.”
The U.S. is less than a week away from its own major set of elections - the midterms.
Amid grim polling for the Republican Party, Trump has thrown his weight behind GOP campaigns across the country and has appeared at a number of rallies.
Voters disapprove of the war in Iran and have expressed frustration with the cost of living, both issues that have been seized upon by Democratic Party candidates in their campaigns.
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