Mike Huckabee, a vocal supporter of Israel, was confirmed as Washington’s ambassador to the Jewish State last night.
The Senate approved Huckabee’s nomination in a mostly party lines 53-46 vote, with only Pennsylvania Democrat John Fetterman crossing the aisle, just two days after Israeli PM Netanyahu wrapped up a visit to the White House.
The former Arkansas governor has long been one of the US’ most outspoken pro-Israeli voices even among his Republican colleagues, with left-wing Jewish outlet The Forward referring to him as an “old-school Christian Zionist”.
Indeed, Huckabee himself has indicated that his support for Israel is at least partly based on his theology as a proudly evangelical Christian, including his emphasis of the biblical justification for the nation’s founding.
His appointment will likely be a boon to Netanyahu’s right-wing coalition, especially some of its more hardline elements, given his prior comments regarding the region.
A fierce opponent of Iran, Huckabee has also said that “Hamas will have no future in Gaza” and claimed to have visited Israel more than 100 times.
However, critics have accused Huckabee of going too far in some of his comments, including his previous remarks that “there is no such thing as a Palestinian” and “there is no such thing as the West Bank”, preferring instead to refer to the territory as “Judea and Samaria”.
His backing for the West Bank settlements, which are considered illegal under international law, and his advocacy of Israeli annexation of the West Bank have also raised concern.
The appointment has been warmly welcomed by Jerusalem, with Netanyahu tweeting: “Congratulations to my dear friend Mike Huckabee upon being confirmed as the next ambassador of the United States to Israel. This is a great day for the Israeli - American alliance.”
Huckabee responded personally to the post, thanking the Prime Minister for his well wishes and adding: “I look forward to working with you as we pray for the ‘Peace of Jerusalem.’”
Commenting on the confirmation in the Oval Office yesterday, President Trump predicted that Huckabee would be “fantastic” in the role, joking: “He’s going to bring home the bacon. Even though bacon isn’t too big in Israel. I had to clear that up.”
