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Herzog Refuses to Discuss Relations With A Possible President Trump

Israel’s Opposition Leader Isaac Herzog on Monday refused to repeat a mistake made by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in 2012, refusing to comment on the current 2016 presidential race during a Q&A at the Jewish Federations of North America’s General Assembly in DC.

Given the relationship between Netanyahu and President Barack Obama, Jerusalem Post correspondent Gil Hoffman asked Herzog whether he would be able to maintain a better relationship and get along with a Republican President if he gets elected as Prime Minister in the next Israeli Knesset elections. “Could you see yourself talking to President Trump in the White House?” Hoffman asked.

“I really, really have no intention of budging in into American politics,” the Labor Party/Zionist Union head responded.

In 2012, Netanyahu gambled and paid a heavy price for overplaying his hand in displaying warmth and enthusiasm for Mitt Romney in the presidential race.

But more broadly, Herzog said Israel should not become a partisan issue in U.S. politics. “I don’t see any problem in bipartisanship. Israel’s relations in America should be bipartisan, definitely close relations with the Republicans and Democrats alike and with any president who’s elected,” he stressed.

Herzog also mocked Netanyahu over reports that he’s eyeing to create an Israeli Republican Party – a larger right-center bloc. “Well, I think I can build the Israeli Democratic Party,” he quipped.

“I think that the only way to change the Israeli political scene is by joining forces with many elements together where Labor leads the camp,” Herzog added.

Earlier, Herzog told delegates at the General Assembly that “When it comes to Israel’s security, there is no opposition.”

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