How Donald Trump and Kamala Harris differ (and agree) on Middle East policy

Contributing sentiments towards policy:

70% : ""He does listen to me, and I have a call with him tomorrow," Trump responded.
63% : but Harris stresses a ceasefire while Trump emphasizes Israeli victory.
59% : In an interview this week with Al Arabiya, a Saudi-owned channel, Trump said he would be able to achieve peace in the Middle East based on the respect he commands and relationships he has built there.
59% : A rare area of agreement between Biden and Trump was in their support for the Abraham Accords, the 2020 agreement that normalized relations between Israel and four neighboring Arab countries.
58% : Trump has depicted his sidelining of the Palestinians as one of the triumphs of his presidency.
57% : Trump, in the Republican Party platform, has pledged to "seek peace in the Middle East."
54% : Still, he noted that Trump had the final word in shaping the Republican Party platform, which pledged to "stand with Israel, and seek peace in the Middle East" and to "rebuild our Alliance Network in the Region to ensure a future of Peace, Stability, and Prosperity.
50% : I think we would add something very special, we'll still have something," Trump told Al Arabiya.
47% : "I did encourage him to get this over with," Trump said at an August press conference, referring to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
46% : In his interview with Al Arabiya, Trump predicted that he would bring Iran into the Abraham Accords along with at least a dozen other countries -- something that, if it were to happen, would entail a major realignment in which the top regional adversary of Israel and the United States becomes an ally.
44% : Since leaving office, Trump has grown closer to isolationists.
43% : Trump has, for months, also advocated for a prompt end to the war.
41% : "When he was president, Trump ordered the assassination of Qassem Soleimani, a leading Iranian general.
40% : But she predicted that Trump would tell Netanyahu, "'If you can't get your cabinet behind what we are trying to lead, then there will be repercussions in terms of the level of American support.'
35% : Both Harris and Trump support Israel's multi-front war against a range of adversaries, from Hamas in Gaza to Hezbollah in Lebanon.
35% : Speaking to the Israeli-American Council in September, Trump styled himself as Israel's "protector" -- and said the country would cease to exist if Harris wins the election -- a repeated prediction that has made Jews across the political spectrum uneasy.
35% : Trump has cast an end to the war as Israel's decision -- though he's also said he'd like negotiations.
33% : Trump says Israel's security depends on him.
33% : "From the start, Harris has worked to tie Israel's hand behind its back, demanding an immediate ceasefire, always demanding ceasefire," Trump said at his August press conference.
33% : "You have the Democratic nominee who has given an interview saying she really understands where the anti-Israel, antisemitic protesters on campuses are coming from," said Richard Goldberg, who served on the NSC under Trump.
31% : In his interview with Al Arabiya, Trump said of Iran that "they won't acquire" a nuclear weapon, though he declined to say how he'd accomplish that.
29% : And each candidate has given pro-Israel voters reasons for pause: Trump has taken a turn toward isolationism, while Harris has made efforts to appease critics of Israel in her party.
29% : In a post on his social network in February, Trump proposed loans instead of direct assistance to other countries; he did not name Israel specifically.
28% : And there are isolationists close to Trump who don't support continued aid to Israel, most prominently Tucker Carlson, the conservative talk show host.
27% : "Trump says one of his proudest moments was pulling out of the JCPOA, but he now says he wants to strike a different deal with Iran, though he does not provide details.
26% : Trump, though, remains unpredictable: He rattled Netanyahu in July when he publicly thanked Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas for wishing him a full recovery from his attempted assassination.
24% : Trump did not detail how that shift would occur.
24% : Goldberg, the former Trump NSC staffer, acknowledged that it is hard to anticipate where Trump will end up.
23% : If you have children who are going to college in college, grandchildren, this contrast could not be starker."...and Trump has worried the pro-Israel crowd with his move toward isolationism.
21% : Kirsten Fontenrose, a former Trump National Security Council staffer, said Trump could get impatient if he saw Israel as standing in the way of a grand deal.
17% : Acting on Netanyahu's behest, Trump pulled out of the deal in 2018.
16% : "Trump barely mentions the Palestinians -- except when he has used the term as a pejorative against political figures such as Biden and Democratic Sen. Chuck Schumer.
14% : "Harris and Trump both want no more fighting in Gaza ...
14% : One of the sharpest foreign policy distinctions between Trump and Biden, four years ago, concerned the Iran nuclear deal, inked in 2015 when Biden was vice president and Barack Obama was president.
13% : Trump and Harris do disagree on a range of Israel-related topics, from how Israel should fight its battles to their starkly different visions of America's role in the world.
1% : With just weeks to go before the election, Kamala Harris and Donald Trump have both tried to use Israel as a wedge issue: Trump has said the country will not exist in two years if he is defeated, and Harris's campaign has called his rhetoric on Israel antisemitic.

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