Donald Trump�s inflammatory and artless comments about Hamas� horror in
Israel emphasize the defining characteristic of his attitude toward foreign
policy and his entire political world view: It�s all about him.

Trump criticized Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, lauded
Hezbollah militants as �very smart� and sought political gain from the
attacks that killed 1,200 people by claiming that if the last election was
not �rigged,� he�d be the American president and they�d never have
happened.

The ex-president openly admitted a grievance against Netanyahu, complaining
he had pulled out at the last minute from joining the US air attack that
assassinated Iranian intelligence chief Qasem Soleimani in Iraq in 2020.
Trump had previously fumed over the Israeli leader�s perceived disloyalty
in recognizing he lost the election.

Trump is now a private citizen, and it�s possible he wouldn�t have
addressed the situation in the same way if he were president � although
there were multiple examples of his tone deafness and indiscretion when he
was in the White House. But he�s also the 2024 Republican front-runner for
president and his statements are therefore scrutinized for clues over how
he would behave in office. His latest comments add to plentiful evidence
that a second Trump term would be even more riotous at home and globally
disruptive than his first four years in power.

The former president�s remarks also offered an opening to his GOP rivals,
who accused him of behavior unsuitable for a potential commander in chief
after an ally came under attack amid horrendous scenes of carnage in which
some Americans were also killed. Some bemoaned his apparent admiration for
Hezbollah, a Lebanese militia group that is hostile toward Israel.

�He�s a fool. Only a fool would make those kinds of comments,� former New
Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who has rooted his campaign in criticizing
Trump�s suitability for office, told CNN.

�Only a fool would give comments that could give aid and comfort to
Israel�s adversary in this situation,� Christie continued. �This is someone
who cares, not about the American people, not about the people of Israel,
but he cares about one person and one person only, the person he sees in
the mirror when he wakes up in the morning.�

The former president tried to defuse the growing controversy on Thursday
evening, releasing a statement in which he insisted that �there was no
better friend or ally of Israel� than him. He accused President Joe Biden
of weakness and incompetence. �With President Trump back in office, Israel,
and everyone else, will be safe again!� he said. The former president was
continuing the clean-up on Friday on his Truth Social platform, praising
what he said was the �skill and determination� of the Israel Defense Forces
and later posting �#IStandWithBibi.�

Trump�s original grievance-based analysis reflects a transactional,
unorthodox approach to foreign policy that often prioritizes his own
personal goals over a standard understanding of the national interest. It
also highlighted a contrast with his potential 2024 election opponent.
Biden reacted to the attack by using all of the tools of traditional
statesmanship, including rhetoric, personal behind-the-scenes contacts with
key foreign leaders and by mobilizing allies. Like Trump, Biden has had a
personal and political beef with Netanyahu � but shelved his differences
with him weeks before the attack and has been in constant contact with the
prime minister since it occurred.

Biden is seeking to strike a balance. He has shown the most ardent support
for Israel of any recent US president and acknowledged its desire to
retaliate and reestablish its sense of security after the most shocking
penetration of its borders and national psyche in 50 years. But Biden is
also sending private and public signals to Netanyahu that Israel�s response
should not infringe the laws of war and that he should consider the
humanitarian consequences of an invasion of Gaza, as he seeks to prevent
the war escalating into a dangerous regional conflict that could draw in
the US.

Biden�s opponents have every right to critique his foreign policies and to
ask whether a hands-off approach to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict meant
his administration dismissed the threat from Hamas. Critics also argue his
attempts to open dialogue with Iran, a key sponsor of the militant group,
emboldened the Islamic Republic and threatened Israel�s security. But Biden
is also forging a contrast of temperament and approach with Trump that will
be at the center of his campaign�s narrative if the 2024 election is a
rematch of 2020 and will boil down to this question to voters: Is Trump fit
for the Oval Office?
Trump singles out Netanyahu

Trump said on Fox News on Wednesday that Netanyahu had been �hurt very
badly� by the attacks. �He was not prepared, and Israel was not prepared,�
the former president said. His comments were not necessarily wrong and the
intelligence and political failures in Israel will be investigated after
the war. But the timing and tone of criticism is questionable given that
Israel, one of America�s closest allies, is suffering after a horrendous
attack on civilians and is in need of support not political points scoring
and second guessing. His willingness to trash Netanyahu, despite the
Israeli leader�s considerable efforts to align himself politically with the
ex-president, also shows how loyalty is usually a one-way street for Trump
and those who he believes have crossed him are liable to get a public
dressing down.

Trump�s comments were not the first time he has appeared to seek a
political benefit from his foreign policy and his positions on Israel
especially. Last October, he complained that American Jews were not
sufficiently grateful to him for actions like moving the US embassy from
Tel Aviv to Jerusalem when he was in the White House.

�No President has done more for Israel than I have,� Trump wrote on his
Truth Social network, adding that it was somewhat surprising that �our
wonderful Evangelicals are far more appreciative of this than the people of
the Jewish faith, especially those living in the U.S.� He was accused of
using antisemitic tropes demanding the loyalty of American Jews. The White
House said he insulted Jews and Israelis.

Trump�s remarks Wednesday on Hezbollah, which has the capacity to rain even
more carnage on Israel, also appeared inappropriate in the circumstances.
�They�re vicious, and they�re smart. And, boy, are they vicious, because
nobody�s ever seen the kind of sight that we�ve seen,� Trump said during a
political event in Florida. His statement was in keeping with his habit of
praising foreign adversaries he sees as tough even if they rule with an
iron fist, infringe basic humanitarian values and are US adversaries. He�s
rarely concealed his admiration of Chinese President Xi Jinping and North
Korean tyrant Kim Jong Un, for instance. And he added to his long record of
praising Vladimir Putin � an accused war criminal because of atrocities
committed during the war in Ukraine � when he recently described the
Russian leader as �a genius.�

Trump often appeared to be willing to cede national interests to his
political benefit while in office. For instance, at a summit with Putin in
Helsinki he sided with Putin who dismissed findings by US intelligence
agencies that Russia interfered in the 2016 election in attempt to help
him.

The former president is advocating a return to his �America First�
nationalist foreign policy, prizes tough talk and ruthlessness on the
global stage, and remains disdainful of allies and the international
security architecture that has been the foundation of American power since
the end of World War II. While these are positions that would represent a
sharp transformation of US foreign policy, it is quite legitimate for him
to present them to voters and try to win support for his vision.

Yet his recent comments will only reinforce the impression often left by
his actions as president that his own aspirations are most important. They
also show Trump�s quintessential contempt for the rules of politics,
foreign policy and even basic human decency, which explain why he horrifies
many Americans and foreign governments. But this behavior is key to his
authenticity for grass roots Republicans who abhor the codes of what they
see as establishment elites.
Trump�s remarks on Soleimani may have crossed a line

Trump during the Florida event criticized Israel for not taking part in the
raid that killed Soleimani. �I�ll never forget that Bibi Netanyahu let us
down. That was a very terrible thing, I will say that,� he said. It was not
immediately clear whether Israel had considered an operational role in the
strike or whether Trump had broken a confidence with an ally or even
revealed classified information.

The ex-president has a record however of loose talk on government secrets.
He has been indicted over the alleged mishandling of national security
material among classified documents he hoarded at his Mar-a-Lago resort
after leaving office. Last week, ABC News reported that Trump allegedly
shared US secrets about the submarine service and nuclear weapons with an
Australian billionaire. Trump denies all wrongdoing.