President-elect Donald Trump announced his first foreign policy nomination for his second administration this weekend, selecting the pro-Israel stalwart Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) as his ambassador to the United Nations.

Stefanik, a close Trump ally once seen as a possible vice presidential pick, has become a star in the Jewish community over the past year for her aggressive questioning of university presidents about campus antisemitism. Given her past criticisms of the U.N., she’s likely to bring a strong focus on supporting Israel and attacking the U.N. system for anti-Israel bias to her new role.

Stefanik, currently the No. 4 Republican in the House, said in a statement that she’s “truly honored” and “deeply humbled” by the nomination. She highlighted antisemitism as one of the key issues that she’s aiming to tackle in her new role.

“The work ahead is immense as we see antisemitism skyrocketing coupled with four years of catastrophically weak U.S. leadership that significantly weakened our national security and diminished our standing in the eyes of both allies and adversaries,” Stefanik said. “I stand ready to advance President Donald J. Trump’s restoration of America First peace through strength leadership on the world stage on Day One at the United Nations.”

In a statement announcing her selection, Trump highlighted Stefanik’s service on the Armed Services and Intelligence Committees, and her work on campus antisemitism.

In a hint to how she’ll approach her new role, Stefanik has repeatedly blasted the U.N. as systemically antisemitic. She said that the U.S. would need to reconsider all funding it provides to the U.N. if the Palestinian Authority’s efforts to expel Israel from the General Assembly succeed.

“American taxpayers have no interest in continuing to fund an organization that Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have allowed to rot with antisemitism,” Stefanik said in a statement in October. “[Biden and Harris] must take the names of any country supporting this blatantly immoral effort and make clear the position of the United States — the UN’s single largest source of funding.”

Additionally, Stefanik has been a longtime supporter of permanently ending U.S. support for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, and backed Israel’s decision to bar the scandal-plagued U.N. agency from operating in the country. 

Stefanik also lambasted the U.N. in September for passing a resolution demanding an immediate end to Israel’s “unlawful presence” in the Palestinian territories..

“Last week, the United Nations overwhelmingly passed a disgraceful antisemitic resolution to demand that Israel surrender to barbaric terrorists who seek the destruction of both Israel and America” she said. “Once again the UN’s antisemitic rot is on full display as it punishes Israel for defending itself and rewards Iranian-backed terrorists.

“Instead of deplorably targeting the legitimacy of the state of Israel, the UN should be demanding that Hamas release every hostage and start enforcing UN Security Council Resolution 1701 to stop Hezbollah’s endless Iranian-backed terrorist attacks,” Stefanik continued.

She urged the administration to “call out the UN’s extreme antisemitism and moral depravity and unequivocally support Israel’s right to defend itself against both brutal terrorists and biased international organizations.”

Another potential issue for Stefanik to tackle at the U.N.: Stefanik joined a letter in mid-2023 calling on the U.S.’s European allies to re-impose U.N. snapback sanctions on Iran calling on European allies to impose snapback sanctions on Iran.

In a speech to the Knesset in May, Stefanik expressed support for Israeli “total victory” which “starts with wiping those responsible for Oct. 7 from the face of the earth.” 

She described herself as “a leading proponent and partner to President Trump in his historic support for Israeli independence and security,” on issues including moving the U.S. embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, supporting the Abraham Accords and moving Israel into U.S. Central Command.

“It is our duty as Americans to ensure that Israel does not stand alone. We must never let Israel stand alone,” Stefanik said in that speech. “I am confident that our relationship will not just endure, but will emerge stronger than ever before.”

She has also been a vocal supporter of Israeli efforts to go after Hamas and Hezbollah militarily. Breaking with the GOP’s more traditional hawks, however, Stefanik voted against supplemental aid to Ukraine earlier this year, while supporting aid for Israel and Taiwan.

Stefanik has been a frequent and reliable supporter of legislation and other efforts to support Israel and tackle antisemitism, including leading legislation to sanction the International Criminal Court and support Holocaust education, 

She signed her name to letters and resolutions, accusing the Biden administration of inking a secret nuclear deal with Iran, opposing the reopening of the U.S. consulate in Jerusalem serving Palestinians, calling on the administration to nominate an Abraham Accords ambassador, urging the administration to reinstate the Houthis’ terrorism designation, supporting internet access for Iranian dissidents, and commemorating the Oct. 7 attack

Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-NC), who leads the House Committee on Education and the Workforce where Stefanik questioned university leaders, said that Stefanik “has proven that she’s a fighter and anyone who has seen her in action in our hearing room knows that.”

“The United Nations is past due for a wake-up call, and I can’t wait to see all that she accomplishes,” Foxx continued.

Rep. Jared Moskowitz, (D-FL), a Democrat, said that the United Nations is “about to get some needed medicine” in Stefanik.

Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblatt called Stefanik a “critical partner and absolutely fearless in fighting campus antisemitism.”

“I’m excited to work with her to combat anti-Jewish hate & anti-Israel bias on the world stage,” he said.

The Republican Jewish Coalition’s National Chairman former Sen. Norm Coleman and CEO Matt Brooks said in a statement, “We are confident that Chairwoman Stefanik will swiftly bring much-needed reforms at the United Nations, defend the US and our ally Israel in the international arena, and be a strong voice against dictatorships and terrorists.”

They said, “there is no one better to combat the rot of antisemitism, hold Iran accountable, and help restore American leadership on the world stage with peace through strength.”’

Stefanik has faced criticism from more progressive segments of the Jewish community, who have described her as hypocritical for attacking universities, accusing her of spreading the Great Replacement conspiracy theory — which claims that elites seek to replace the American population with immigrants — in past campaign ads.