President Donald Trump’s nominee to be ambassador to Israel sought yesterday to distance himself from a series of his inflammatory comments that have hindered his quest to become a key member of the administration’s Middle East team.
Appearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, bankruptcy lawyer David Friedman repeatedly expressed regret for comparing liberal Jewish groups to Nazi collaborators, for characterising then-president Barack Obama’s views as anti-Semitic, and for disparaging Democrat senator Al Franken as a “moron.”
“From my perspective, the inflammatory rhetoric that accompanied the presidential campaign is entirely over, and, if I am confirmed, you should expect my comments will be respectful and measured,” Mr Friedman told senators during his confirmation hearing.
Mr Friedman, a longtime friend of Mr Trump, faced blunt questioning from senators who wondered if the New York lawyer was the best person to take on a central diplomatic role.
This article by Dion Nissenbaum is reprinted in The Australian (from the Wall Street Journal), (subscription required).