Over the weekend, South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley (R) celebrated the opening of the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem. Opened in 2018 on May 14th, the promise had been made 23 years prior.
In an op-ed for the Jewish News Syndicate, Governor Haley, who’s a presidential candidate, called the opening of the U.S. embassy an important moment for the U.S. and Israel alike.
“In 1995, Congress passed and President Bill Clinton signed the Jerusalem Embassy Act, which pledged to move the American embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem,” Haley informed, saying that it was a controversial move when it shouldn’t have been.
5 years ago today, America opened our embassy in Jerusalem. One of the proudest moments at the UN was vetoing the UN resolution attacking America for this move. We took the "kick me" sign off America's back and we took names. #StrongAndProud https://t.co/QYq9vaoxZG
— Nikki Haley (@NikkiHaley) May 14, 2023
However, “Republicans and Democrats alike ignored the act. Even though it was passed by an overwhelming margin, three straight presidents declined to implement it,” Haley lamented.
During the Trump Administration, Haley was the ambassador for the United Nations. In the op-ed, she explains that there were several members of the Trump Administration that opposed the Act.
“A country that can’t fulfill a simple decades-old promise to an ally is a country no one respects,” she noted, saying that not doing so “made America look weak.”
“After Donald Trump finally made the decision to implement the Act, I proudly vetoed a U.N. resolution criticizing the U.S. for doing so,” she shared, admitting that she “was the lone veto out of the 15-member Security council.”
Now that the embassy is in Jerusalem, Haley calls it “a proud symbol of American strength and the strength of the U.S.-Israel relationship.” In 2023 however Haley says that America is in a difficult position because of President Joe Biden (D), expressing that instead America is retreating.
Last week, Florida Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar (R) took to social media to criticize President Biden for not inviting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. She further criticized Biden for instead inviting the presidents of Brazil and Colombia.
