Like a rock star, or perhaps more aptly, a revered religious leader, new US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee was greeted at the Western Wall on Friday. "God bless you, Mike," worshippers called out, and "We love Trump." Many took photos of him, others asked for pictures or selfies.
Huckabee, who is shaping up to be the most publicized ambassador America has ever sent here, was clearly moved. "Mazel tov on your bar mitzvah, may God bless you," he said to a boy he passed. As a seasoned religious figure, he knows exactly how to conduct himself in these settings. Still, Huckabee is an Evangelical Christian - and the Western Wall is, of course, a Jewish site.
Video: US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee at the Western Wall /// Ariel Kahana
Indeed, the new ambassador looked and acted almost like a local rabbi. He wore his own kippah, and his face was adorned with a beard. "It was important to me to come during Passover. I wanted this to be the first place I visited," he explained.
In other words, he did not choose a church of any kind as his starting point, but rather the Jewish holy site. Alongside the rabbi of the Western Wall, he recited the "Shir La'Ma'alot" psalm and inserted a note into the ancient stones, a longstanding Jewish custom. Huckabee even made a point of saying "Yerushalayim" instead of "Jerusalem."
A deep-rooted connection to Israel
Huckabee's affinity for Jewish heritage is not the only connection he has to Israel. He has been deeply tied to the Jewish state for more than 50 years. "This place does something to me that I can't explain," he said Friday on the rooftop of the Aish HaTorah yeshiva, overlooking the Western Wall and the Temple Mount. More than anything, Huckabee believes in biblical, traditional and conservative values in a way that closely mirrors those of many Jewish rabbis.
In short, the new ambassador from Arkansas blends right in with the religious atmosphere of the Western Wall. Regardless of the underlying reasons, the fact that a senior Christian representative, a member of a faith that persecuted Jews for two millennia, can be described as "almost Jewish" is a fascinating theological and historical development.
There was another point where Huckabee precisely echoed Israeli sentiment: Iran. "Iran is not just Israel's problem. The Iranians don't only chant 'Death to Israel,' they also chant 'Death to America.' They often call Israel 'the little Satan,' and us 'the great Satan,'" he said.
"For the Iranians, Israel is just the appetizer, America is the main course. What they want to do to Israel is exactly what they want to do to us in America. And when people tell you they want to kill you, you should take them seriously," Huckabee said in response to a question from Israel Hayom.
Every Israeli would fully endorse the ambassador's straightforward declaration, "in the simplest of terms," as he put it. But what's currently inexplicable is the gap between Huckabee's accurate diagnosis of the Iranian cancer and the puzzling treatment plan proposed by his colleague, fellow administration envoy Steve Witkoff.
According to reports the Trump administration has not denied, Witkoff, speaking on behalf of the president, has embarked on a path of concessions to Iran. Technical talks between the sides are expected to begin Wednesday, with a third round of talks between Witkoff and Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi to follow next Saturday.
In essence, the US is entering a process that will almost certainly drag out negotiations, exactly what the Iranians have wanted. It appears there are also substantial concessions on the table that jeopardize both the US and Israel, potentially allowing Iran to continue enriching uranium.
If these are to be the final US positions in the negotiations, there is serious reason for concern. Postponing the threat of a nuclear Iran is exactly what Barack Obama did with the nuclear deal a decade ago, the same deal Trump withdrew from in his previous term. Trump's desire to avoid a military conflict is understandable.
However, if the cost is preserving the Iranian regime and its nuclear capabilities, it would be a historic mistake, no less severe than the 1938 agreement between British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain and Adolf Hitler on the eve of World War II.
