Ex-Netanyahu chief of staff: Trump's appointees give Israelis reason to be optimistic

Donald Trump's picks for key national security and foreign affairs positions in his upcoming administration give Israelis reasons to be optimistic for US-Israel relations, Ari Harrow, former chief of staff of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, told Zvika Klein on The Jerusalem Post Podcast.

Harrow touted Trump's record of supporting Israel during his first administration, and noted that it is very clear his next term in office is going to be headed in a similar direction.

"I think that any doubt or any questions that existed as to what direction Trump was going to take the second time around were really quashed very quickly when he started to announce the people around him," he explained. 

Despite some fears that Trump would drift towards the isolationist stance of some of the fringes of the Republican Party, Harrow noted that any isolationist appointees were given domestic positions. By contrast, his picks for secretary of state, secretary of defense, and national security advisor come with strong pro-Israel records. 

"I think that when it comes to Israel... these are the individuals that are going to set a very clear path that we as Israelis will be very, very happy with," Harrow said.

Israel is getting ready for an outsider leader

Harrow also noted Trump and some of his appointees as having backgrounds outside of politics, specifically noting Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy as entrepreneurs, as well as other world leaders.

"You look at [Javier] Millie in Argentina, you look at [Emanuel] Macron in France, [Volodymyr] Zelensky in Ukraine. These are all former entertainment figures that have shifted over to policy and politics," Harrow noted, adding that it reflects a global backlash against the establishment.

Israel could face a similar fate, it just needs a face. 

"People want something new. They want something fresh. And we no longer buy into this template that you have to walk a very specific, predetermined path," Harrow said.

"And I think that while that individual has yet to show his face in Israel, I definitely think that post-October 7, where most of the country feels like, you know, we need a fresh start on many different fronts, whether in two years from now or five years from now, it wouldn't surprise me if we saw somebody come out of the blue and take control."

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