Trump’s Perpetual Loyalty Test: Israel Edition
Al Jazeera ponders if US support for Israel is costing Donald Trump politically, as if the primary concern is the former President's polling numbers, not the actual, quantifiable costs. This narrative cleverly sidesteps the fact that US presidents, Trump included, routinely rubber-stamp billions in aid to Israel, a policy solidified long before Trump's political career. For instance, the US
provided an estimated $3.8 billion in military aid to Israel in 2023, part of a ten-year Memorandum of Understanding—deals largely orchestrated by lobbying groups like AIPAC, who spent over $17 million in 2022-2024 to ensure such 'support' continues. The question isn't what it costs Trump; it's what it buys. It buys political silence on the expansion of settlements, the occupation, and the
devastating humanitarian crisis in Gaza. It buys F-35s and bombs, not better healthcare or infrastructure for American communities. One might wonder if the 'cost' Al Jazeera refers to is the slight dip in polling when pro-Palestinian sentiment grows, rather than the moral and geopolitical weight of enabling a continuing conflict with American taxpayer dollars.