Trump’s Israeli ambassador nominee gets hearing date
The Senate will move in the coming days on David Friedman’s nomination to serve as President Trump’s ambassador to Israel, a Senate panel announced Saturday.
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee has scheduled Friedman’s hearing for Thursday.
That comes a day after Trump is slated to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House.
{mosads}Trump nominated Friedman, a bankruptcy lawyer, in mid-December.
His hearing comes following fresh remarks from Trump this week pushing back on Israeli settlement expansion, arguing it could undermine the Palestinian peace process.
“I am not somebody that believes that going forward with these settlements is a good thing for peace,” Trump said in an interview Friday with the Israel Hayom newspaper.
Trump also confirmed he is rethinking his plan to move the U.S. Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, a decision Friedman would take a leading role in if confirmed as ambassador.
“The embassy is not an easy decision. It has obviously been out there for many, many years, and nobody has wanted to make that decision,” Trump said.
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