President Donald Trump formally endorsed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for reelection on Sunday, a move that drew sharp criticism from the political left and from some of Trump's own «America First» supporters.
In a letter posted on Truth Social addressed «To the Great People of Israel,» Trump called Netanyahu «a great warrior Prime Minister, and an even greater partner for peace in the fight against the Islamic Republic of Iran.» He warned that if Israel chose «anyone other than Bibi, America will have to do the job itself, and I have no inclination to do so.» The letter concluded with a full endorsement of Netanyahu in his upcoming race and the declaration that «Bibi Netanyahu will never let you down!»
The endorsement comes ahead of Israel's Knesset elections, in which voters will choose party lists to fill the 120-seat parliament. No single party is expected to win a majority, and the next prime minister will be chosen through coalition negotiations. Current forecasts show Likud winning roughly 18 to 22 seats, with a Netanyahu-aligned right-religious bloc projected at about 49 to 51 seats, short of the 61 needed for a governing majority.
Netanyahu responded with a video saying that only he and Trump would destroy Iran's nuclear program. On X, he thanked Trump for «the tremendous support and the joint work» and said, «Together, we will complete the mission.»
The endorsement alarmed some security analysts. Danny Citrinowicz, a senior fellow at Israel's Institute for National Security Studies and a nonresident fellow at the Atlantic Council, said the wording worried him. «I may be reading too much into this statement, and I certainly hope I am wrong,» he wrote. «But it is hard not to interpret it as suggesting that Netanyahu promised Trump another joint military operation against Iran in exchange for his political support.» He added that «Israel cannot afford another war with Iran driven by political calculations rather than a genuine national security necessity.»
Kenneth Roth, former executive director of Human Rights Watch, pointed to the International Criminal Court arrest warrant issued for Netanyahu in 2024 over the war in Gaza. «Netanyahu has committed genocide, yet Trump endorses him,» Roth wrote. «I suppose that's not worse than aiding and abetting the genocide, which Trump also did.»
Some of the sharpest criticism came from the right. Conservative commentator Breck Worsham, who posts as ThePatrioticBlonde, called the endorsement a «slobber filled love letter of idolatry.» She wrote that Trump «just once again endorsed Netanyahu, KNOWING how much the American people hate him, KNOWING how much the American people detest Israel,» and accused him of giving «the middle finger to the country he was elected to represent.»
Rich Baris, director of the right-leaning Big Data Poll, noted that the endorsement came hours after a report said Trump would not weigh in on Israel's election. «Welp, that was wrong. He did,» Baris wrote.
The endorsement comes more than six months into Trump's war with Iran, which polls show is deeply unpopular with American voters. The letter also underscored the close alignment between the two leaders on Iran policy, an issue that has shaped both Israeli politics and the U.S.-Israel relationship in recent months.