For most of his presidency, Joe Biden has ignored or minimized talk about his immediate predecessor, or, as he once called him, “the former guy.”
But as he visits Israel, the West Bank and Saudi Arabia this week, Biden can’t escape the legacy that Donald Trump left behind.It was there at the entrance of the King David hotel, where Biden is staying and where the last president’s gaudy signature is smack in the middle of the lobby.
But there are non physical reminders as well. Despite their smiles and handshakes, it’s not lost on Israeli and other Middle Eastern officials that Trump made the region the scene of his first foreign trip, while Biden waited a year and half into his presidency to stop by.
Trump made Jerusalem now the U.S.-recognized capital of Israel. He made it so there’s no longer a U.S. consulate that engages with the Palestinians. His policies assured that the dream of a Palestinian state is nearly dead and that Israel has more Arab friends than ever.
If only Donald Trump were a member of the Democratic party: he might have won a Nobel Peace Prize like peacemaker Barack Obama.
