Israeli Prime Minister Calls Trump Hosting Kanye West, Nick Fuentes A ‘Mistake’
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned former President Trump’s hosting of alt-right provocateur Nick Fuentes and disgraced rapper Kanye West in a private dinner at Mar-a-Lago on the podcast “Honestly with Bari Weiss.”
The Wednesday episode featured an exclusive interview with the Prime Minister and discussed a variety of topics ranging from Israel’s relationship with China to Netanyahu’s ousting in 2021 and the Israel-Palestine conflict in the Gaza Strip. Weiss also touched on the rising tide of antisemitism in the U.S. and asked about Trump’s dinner with West and Fuentes.
“One more question about antisemitism. Last week, Donald Trump had dinner at Mar-a-Lago, his home in Florida, with Kanye West and a Holocaust denier named Nick Fuentes,” Weiss stated. “Now, Trump has claimed he doesn’t know who Nick Fuentes is, but he certainly knows who Kanye is, who has spent the past many weeks on an antisemitic tear. What do you think of Trump’s decision to have dinner with Kanye and Fuentes?”
Fuentes has a long history of white supremacist and antisemitic statements, including denial of the Holocaust. Fuentes was also present at the Charlottesville riots in 2015 that Trump was heavily criticized for during his run for president in the 2016 election, according to Forbes.
Netanyahu was quick to mention that he had previously condemned Kayne’s earlier antisemitic statements.
“Well, first, I condemned Kanye West’s antisemitic statements. Straight away, I thought that was just wrong and misplaced,” he said.
The Israeli Prime Minister continued, explaining that he held the same opinion when it came to Trump’s choice of company, but also noted the “tremendous” support Trump had for Israel in the past.
“I think it’s a mistake. He shouldn’t do that. He has been a tremendous supporter of Israel, and I’m unabashedly appreciative of what he did for Israel,” Netanyahu said. “He did great things for Israel in recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital…[h]e moved the American embassy there. He recognized our sovereignty on the Golan Heights, from which we were attacked for years by Syria. He got out of this dangerous Iran deal, and I appreciate all that it doesn’t take away from. Also, you know, he’s been very supportive of the Jewish people. So I think he made a mistake. I hope it’s not repeated.”
Trump’s decision was heavily criticized, leading to a response from the former president’s Truth Social account claiming that he had invited “seriously troubled” West over and the rapper had shown up with “three other people, two of which I didn’t know.”
Trump followed that up with another post identifying Fuentes by name and explained that he was giving West “advice” concerning a potential 2024 presidential bid.
The person responsible for Fuentes’ presence at the dinner was Kanye’s new political advisor and another known alt-right provocateur, Milo Yiannopoulos, who said he had arranged the dinner to “make Trump’s life miserable.” Yiannopoulos also appeared on Tim Pool’s podcast, Tim Pool IRL, on Tuesday with West and Fuentes. All three stormed out less than an hour in due to Pool being unwilling to go along with the trio’s antisemitic comments.
Trump and Weiss did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment. Yiannopoulos, Ye, Fuentes, and Netanyahu could not be reached for comment.
