Blinken Says He Warned Netanyahu Israel Could Lose Young Republicans and Evangelicals

Former U.S. secretary of state Antony Blinken said on Sunday, November 8, that he had warned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Israel risked losing support among younger Republicans and evangelical Christians over the Gaza war. He recounted the spring 2024 conversation during a discussion with former secretary of state Mike Pompeo at the Jewish Federations of North America’s General Assembly in Washington. “You’re going to be losing young Republicans, young evangelicals,” Blinken recalled telling Netanyahu. He said the image of Israel held by younger Americans differed from that of his own generation, which had seen it as David confronting Goliath. He described this generational shift as a strategic challenge for Israel’s leaders, with implications for American politics and the future relationship between the countries. Blinken also said Israel appeared to understand that U.S. military financing would not continue indefinitely and was preparing its public to pay for its own weapons. He nevertheless maintained that the relationship’s underlying value endured. Pompeo emphasized the intelligence cooperation and institutional ties connecting the two countries. He said Israeli intelligence had helped protect him against Iranian threats and continued to save American lives through cooperation that largely remained out of public view. He also credited American military and intelligence personnel with helping protect Israel. Defending Israel’s conduct in Gaza, Pompeo urged its supporters to explain the military challenges it faced and warned against treating Israel and Hamas as equivalent.