Trump’s ambassador to Israel said to rap Rothman for judicial overhaul

David Friedman, who was former US president Donald Trump’s ambassador to Israel and who is considered very close with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has expressed concern at the government’s judicial overhaul plan, the Axios news site reports.

During a national security conference last week hosted by US conservative groups, Friedman, who had previously been Trump’s lawyer, spoke with MK Simcha Rothman, who is a key architect of the reforms.

According to Axios, citing participants in the meeting, Friedman hit back at claims by Rothman that giving the government control over the appointment of judges would make Israel more like the US.

Friedman said the situation in the US was very different and told Rothman that while he was in favor of reform, the government’s plan “was going too far for me and for many Americans” because it will harm the court’s ability to protect minority rights.

Friedman reportedly singled out the so-called “override clause” that would let the government re-legislate laws struck down by the courts.

According to Axios, Friedman said that in the US, the courts exist to protect minority rights and the override clause will prevent the Israeli courts from doing the same.

“You compare this to the US, but it doesn’t work like that in our system,” he told Rothman to applause from the room.