Vice-President JD Vance speaks during a midterm campaign rally at Hyder Warehouse in Hendersonville, N.C., on Monday.Kenny Holston/the New York Times/The Associated Press
Vice-President JD Vance declined Monday to endorse Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for re-election a day after President Donald Trump endorsed the embattled Israeli leader.
“The president has the most influential endorsement in American or international political history,” Vance said during an interview with journalist Mark Halperin.
“I endorse American candidates, and that’s where I’m focused on the midterms,” Vance said, while travelling Monday to campaign for Republican Senate nominee Michael Whatley of North Carolina. “So, I’m not getting involved in Israeli elections.”
Vance has campaigned for a foreign leader – then-Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, last spring before the right-wing leader’s party lost that country’s parliamentary election.
Vance’s deference to Trump on Netanyahu comes at an extraordinarily sensitive time for Jewish Americans and the U.S. alliance with Israel. Concerns about antisemitism have surged across the political spectrum ahead of the midterm elections.
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Republicans have been eager to portray Democrats, notably Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed, as hostile toward Jews and Israel, while they deal with their own internal schisms.
Vance has faced skepticism from Jewish Republicans about his commitment to Jewish Americans and the U.S. alliance with Israel.
Last month, Vance spoke privately in Las Vegas to the Republican Jewish Coalition, a leading GOP group committed to advocating for a strong U.S. relationship with Israel and against antisemitism.
Vance left a positive impression on his RJC audience while stopping short of disavowing influential conservative podcast host Tucker Carlson.
Vance has faced general questions about his association with Carlson, a former Fox News host who faced backlash last year for interviewing antisemite Nick Fuentes on his podcast.
In June, Vance sharply criticized members of Israel’s government for opposing Trump’s efforts to resolve the war with Iran.
In July, Vance said elements of the Israeli government had tried to influence American sentiment to derail negotiations.
“There are some people within their system that we know beyond a shadow of a doubt are manipulating and trying to change American public opinion to keep the war going on indefinitely,” Vance said during an appearance on Joe Rogan’s podcast.