American Jews owe President Donald Trump a thank you
In a decisive move against Iran and actions long before that, he has shown what a real guardian of the Jewish people looks like.
President
Donald Trump delivers an address from the White House on June 21, 2025
in Washington, D.C. after the U.S. bombed three Iranian nuclear
facilities. American Jews don’t have to like
everything U.S. President Donald Trump has said or done to state
unequivocally that he is the best friend Jews have ever had in the White
House.
Acknowledging this turn of events doesn’t
make you a card-carrying member of MAGA or even a Republican. If you
believe in the existence of a Jewish state, call yourself a Zionist and
recognize the many existential threats staring Israel down on a daily
basis, then you should at least be grateful for the monumental shift
taking place in the U.S.-Israel relationship.
No president in American history has worked this closely with the Jewish state to defeat its enemies and secure its future.
This is not a fluke. From his first term
to his second, Trump delivered for Israel and the Jewish people when so
many others had promised and failed. Moving the U.S. embassy to
Jerusalem. Taking on the antisemitic United Nations and withdrawing from
the U.N. Human Rights Council. Recognizing Israel’s sovereignty over
the Golan Heights. Fighting for the return of Israeli hostages.
Combating Jew-hatred on college campuses. It’s a long list.
Bombing Iran’s nuclear sites is a life-changing, world-altering decision that eclipses all the aforementioned accomplishments.
As the world’s leading state sponsor of
terror, the Iranian regime is responsible for murdering thousands of
people, including Americans. It sows violence across the Middle East and
threatens Israel’s existence through a web of proxy terrorist
groups—from Hezbollah in Lebanon to Hamas in Gaza to the Houthis in
Yemen.
Trump’s decision is remarkable on two
fronts. America executed the strikes flawlessly with zero leaks or
detection. When Trump posted news of the bombing on Truth Social, his
social-media platform, on Saturday night, the news surprised everyone
but his closest advisers. It was a triumph of American military might
and discretion.
The president also acted against the
advice of some of his closest supporters, who spent the weeks leading up
to the decision urging restraint. From political commentators like
former Fox News host Tucker Carlson to isolationists within the administration, a torrent of voices tried to sway him.
Thankfully, Trump ignored them.
There will be ongoing debates about the
efficacy of the attacks. Critics will parse whether Iran’s nuclear
program is destroyed or debilitated. Did Israeli and U.S. fighter jets
set the regime’s nuclear-weapons ambitions back by months or years? Or
is it destroyed altogether? While important, this debate misses the big
picture.
Not only did the Trump administration
collaborate with Israel from the beginning of this 12-day war, but it
also sent an impossible-to-ignore message to Iran and other rogue actors
that America will do whatever it takes to prevent a genocidal,
fanatical terrorist regime from acquiring nuclear weapons.
Nothing underscores Trump’s friendship
with Israel more than the betrayal of Senate Minority Leader Chuck
Schumer (D-N.Y.), who loves bragging that his family name means
“guardian” (shomer), signaling his commitment to the Jewish people. As the saying goes, with a shomer like Schumer, who needs enemies?
With Israel still reeling after the
Hamas-led terrorist attacks in Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, Schumer made a
conscious decision to use his position as then-majority leader to
denounce Israel and call for new Israeli elections in a cynical attempt
to bolster the political prospects of Democrats.
Despite being the most powerful elected
Jew in the country in 2024, Schumer refused to use his weight to pass
the bipartisan Antisemitism Awareness Act, even as Jew-hatred exploded
throughout the United States.
And with Israel on the verge of ridding the world of the Iranian scourge, Schumer could not muster a positive word when Trump showed what a real shomer of the Jewish people looks like.
Common sense is a common casualty of the
polarized political environment in America right now. Only a handful of
Democrats in Congress cheered the eradication of Iran’s nuclear threat.
Some liberal extremists called for Trump’s impeachment or rooted for the
Iranian regime—a regime that tramples on human rights, women’s rights
and LGBTQ rights—basically, any and all rights you can think of.
That’s absurd.
For the majority of American Jews, who surely voted for Kamala Harris, embracing Trump as a shomer
will remain anathema. They take the “never” in NeverTrump quite
literally. But Jews who care about a Jewish homeland should be able to
agree that there is no universe in which Israel is not better off with a
giant-sized crater or two in Fordow.
If that’s not tikkun olam, “repairing the world,” I don’t know what is.
American Jews don’t have to like everything U.S. President Donald Trump has said or done to state unequivocally that he is the best friend Jews have ever had in the White House.
Acknowledging this turn of events doesn’t make you a card-carrying member of MAGA or even a Republican. If you believe in the existence of a Jewish state, call yourself a Zionist and recognize the many existential threats staring Israel down on a daily basis, then you should at least be grateful for the monumental shift taking place in the U.S.-Israel relationship.
No president in American history has worked this closely with the Jewish state to defeat its enemies and secure its future.
This is not a fluke. From his first term to his second, Trump delivered for Israel and the Jewish people when so many others had promised and failed. Moving the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem. Taking on the antisemitic United Nations and withdrawing from the U.N. Human Rights Council. Recognizing Israel’s sovereignty over the Golan Heights. Fighting for the return of Israeli hostages. Combating Jew-hatred on college campuses. It’s a long list.
Bombing Iran’s nuclear sites is a life-changing, world-altering decision that eclipses all the aforementioned accomplishments.
As the world’s leading state sponsor of terror, the Iranian regime is responsible for murdering thousands of people, including Americans. It sows violence across the Middle East and threatens Israel’s existence through a web of proxy terrorist groups—from Hezbollah in Lebanon to Hamas in Gaza to the Houthis in Yemen.
Trump’s decision is remarkable on two fronts. America executed the strikes flawlessly with zero leaks or detection. When Trump posted news of the bombing on Truth Social, his social-media platform, on Saturday night, the news surprised everyone but his closest advisers. It was a triumph of American military might and discretion.
The president also acted against the advice of some of his closest supporters, who spent the weeks leading up to the decision urging restraint. From political commentators like former Fox News host Tucker Carlson to isolationists within the administration, a torrent of voices tried to sway him.
Thankfully, Trump ignored them.
There will be ongoing debates about the efficacy of the attacks. Critics will parse whether Iran’s nuclear program is destroyed or debilitated. Did Israeli and U.S. fighter jets set the regime’s nuclear-weapons ambitions back by months or years? Or is it destroyed altogether? While important, this debate misses the big picture.
Not only did the Trump administration collaborate with Israel from the beginning of this 12-day war, but it also sent an impossible-to-ignore message to Iran and other rogue actors that America will do whatever it takes to prevent a genocidal, fanatical terrorist regime from acquiring nuclear weapons.
Nothing underscores Trump’s friendship with Israel more than the betrayal of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), who loves bragging that his family name means “guardian” (shomer), signaling his commitment to the Jewish people. As the saying goes, with a shomer like Schumer, who needs enemies?
With Israel still reeling after the Hamas-led terrorist attacks in Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, Schumer made a conscious decision to use his position as then-majority leader to denounce Israel and call for new Israeli elections in a cynical attempt to bolster the political prospects of Democrats.
Despite being the most powerful elected Jew in the country in 2024, Schumer refused to use his weight to pass the bipartisan Antisemitism Awareness Act, even as Jew-hatred exploded throughout the United States.
And with Israel on the verge of ridding the world of the Iranian scourge, Schumer could not muster a positive word when Trump showed what a real shomer of the Jewish people looks like.
Common sense is a common casualty of the polarized political environment in America right now. Only a handful of Democrats in Congress cheered the eradication of Iran’s nuclear threat. Some liberal extremists called for Trump’s impeachment or rooted for the Iranian regime—a regime that tramples on human rights, women’s rights and LGBTQ rights—basically, any and all rights you can think of.
That’s absurd.
For the majority of American Jews, who surely voted for Kamala Harris, embracing Trump as a shomer will remain anathema. They take the “never” in NeverTrump quite literally. But Jews who care about a Jewish homeland should be able to agree that there is no universe in which Israel is not better off with a giant-sized crater or two in Fordow.
If that’s not tikkun olam, “repairing the world,” I don’t know what is.
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