Now this is what real diplomacy is made of: when the other country says something you don't like, you just stop talking to them. Donald Trump has opted to bail on his GOP prerequisite trip to Israel to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Nick Gass has the details:
“I have decided to postpone my trip to Israel and to schedule my meeting with @netanyahu at a later date after I become President of the U.S.,” he tweeted, a day after it was reported that he would meet with the prime minister on Dec. 28 during a previously scheduled visit to the country.
The announcement came a day after a spokesman for Netanyahu said the prime minister rejected Trump's recent call to ban all Muslims from entering the U.S. in the wake of recent terrorist attacks, noting that Netanyahu meets with all presidential candidates who visit Israel. Such meetings do not constitute an endorsement of those views, spokesman Ofir Gendelman tweeted Wednesday.
Roughly three dozen members of the 120-seat Knesset signed a letter to the prime minister on Wednesday calling on Netanyahu to condemn Trump’s remarks and to cancel the meeting, which had been scheduled before Trump's Monday declaration about Muslims.
Netanyahu apparently missed the Trump school of diplomacy memo—that whole "I'm gonna meet with all presidential candidates" crap is a disgrace. Weak.
Trump's still a friend of Israel's though. As he told Fox & Friends, he was once the grand marshal of New York City's annual Salute to Israel Parade (now called the Celebrate Israel Parade).
And in case you hadn't heard, Mexicans adore Trump. He has a lot of Mexican friends. Oh, and Muslims. Them too.
