This is a big difference from having the embassy in Jerusalem, which Donald Trump finally moved after U.S. law stated was supposed to happen. This has the chance of causing big problems, and simply shows that Democrats hate Israel and Jews, and love the terrorists who attack Israel civilians. Of course, it’s surely Biden’s people pushing him to do this, because Joe has little clue what’s going on
Biden reiterates plan to reopen Jerusalem consulate despite Israeli objections
President Biden told Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett during their White House meeting that he will not abandon his plan to reopen the U.S. consulate in Jerusalem, setting up a major point of contention between the administrations.
Why it matters:Â The consulate handled relations with the Palestinians for 25 years before being shut down by Donald Trump. Senior officials in Bennett’s government see the consulate issue as a political hot potato that could destabilize their unwieldy coalition.
Between the lines: Several right-wing ministers, including Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked and Justice Minister Gideon Sa’ar, say the reopening of the consulate would be an infringement on Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem. It’s also a prime point of attack for Benjamin Netanyahu, who is now opposition leader.
The Israeli government would have to give its approval for the consulate to be reopened. And if even one member were to defect over the issue, the government could collapse.
“If the Biden administration wants to see Netanyahu abandoning his Pilates classes and going back to the Prime Minister’s Office, this is the best way to do it,” one senior official quipped to me.
Why the need for a consulate when the embassy is right there? A consulate is “a satellite office to an embassy located outside the capital city of a country, one that exists almost exclusively to provide visas and passports to people for whom a trip to the embassy is too far a distance.” That’s from this piece by Ambassador David Friedman, who writes
Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo closed the Jerusalem consulate in 2019 for several reasons, one of which is foundational and unrelated to policy. With the opening of the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem in 2018, there was no basis for a consulate to exist. The Jerusalem embassy provides consular services on a non-discriminatory basis to all Israelis and Palestinians — equal treatment for Jews, Christians and Muslims. The consulate thus became obsolete and a waste of taxpayer dollars. I know of no other country where the United States maintains an embassy and a consulate in the same city.
Some argue for the reopening of the consulate in Jerusalem just for the purpose of engaging in diplomacy with the Palestinians and signaling a willingness by America to recognize, in the future, a Palestinian capital in Jerusalem. That would be illegal and unwise.
It would be illegal because the Jerusalem Embassy Act of 1995, passed overwhelmingly by both the U.S. House and the Senate, provides that “Jerusalem should remain an undivided city.†A U.S. consulate in Jerusalem to a foreign body clearly runs afoul of American law.
It would also cause a lot of friction and cause confusion with U.S. policy, but, we know this really is all about pandering to the Palestinians, who are run by Hamas, who’s stated goal is to wipe Israel off the map. As if Joe didn’t have enough problems right now, he wants to create more. Seriously, he didn’t cause enough problems with giving Afghanistan to the Taliban, along with all the weapons?