Huckabee meets Herzog day after Trump blasted Israeli president for not pardoning PM

A day after US President Donald Trump branded President Isaac Herzog “a disgrace” for not immediately pardoning Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee meets with the Israeli president during which the envoy hails the Israeli president, according to a readout from the latter’s office.

The Israeli readout of the meeting says the pair discussed the “critical importance” of close US-Israel cooperation in the ongoing military operation against Iran.

The readout adds that Herzog arranged the meeting days ago, before Trump blasted him in an Axios interview.

“President Herzog has been one of the most important friends that I have had since I arrived here as ambassador, and his leadership in this role has been not just important to us as a US government, but on a personal level, he and his wife have become very, very close to my wife and myself,” Huckabee said during the meeting, according to an Israeli readout.

“For 47 years, the United States has been under the threat of this regime. They wish to destroy us, but they know they have to destroy Israel first…And I’m just grateful that Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu decided that enough is enough,” Huckabee added.

For his part, the Israeli readout quotes Herzog as having said, “I utterly believe that once you undermine this empire of evil emanating from Tehran, we will be able to offer avenues of peace, goodwill, and a prosperous future for the people of the Middle East.”