Trump says pro-Israel lobby has lost influence in Washington
“Twenty years ago, Israel had the most powerful lobby I have ever seen. No politician could voice even the slightest criticism. Today, this is no longer the case.”
U.S. President Donald Trump told the Daily Caller on Friday that the pro-Israel lobby in Washington no longer holds the sway it once did over Congress.
Speaking in the Oval Office with correspondent Reagan Reese, Trump recalled, “Twenty years ago, Israel had the most powerful lobby I have ever seen. No politician could voice even the slightest criticism. Today, this is no longer the case.”
He attributed the shift, in part, to critical voices from the progressive left, including Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
Despite the waning influence, Trump highlighted his own record on Israel, citing the recognition of Jerusalem as the country’s capital, the Abraham Accords, and strong military support against Iran. “No one has done more than me for Israel,” he said, while noting that public opinion, especially among young Republicans, is increasingly skeptical.
Trump also warned that Israel, while potentially successful on the battlefield, is losing in the court of public opinion. He compared deniers of the October 7th attacks to Holocaust deniers and urged Israel to end the conflict to avoid further isolation.
The president pointed to recent statements by figures in his own circle as evidence of the shift in Washington. Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene accused Israel of “genocide” in Gaza, while Steve Bannon questioned the reliability of the Netanyahu government—signs, Trump said, that “times have changed” in the nation’s capital.