White House says Biden has been consistent in his message to Israel: ‘Compromise’

A White House National Security Council spokesperson tells The Times of Israel that a recent private message US President Joe Biden sent to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was “the same message you’ve been hearing from us all along.”

The spokesperson did not elaborate on what that message was, but a different US official tells The Times of Israel that Biden urged Netanyahu to halt his government’s effort to overhaul the judiciary.

“We strongly urge Israeli leaders to find a compromise as soon as possible,” the NSC spokesperson says.

“As you heard from the President yesterday and as he’s said consistently both privately and publicly over the past six weeks, we are concerned about recent developments in Israel and have called for a compromise before moving forward on these reforms,” the spokesperson continues.

“The President has long said that fundamental reforms like this require a broad basis of support to be durable and sustained. That’s why he has called for a genuine compromise and urged the Prime Minister during his recent phone call to help forge one as soon as possible.”

“We have welcomed the decision taken on Monday to pull back the legislation and engage in a national dialogue. As the President said, he’s hopeful they’ll be able to find a genuine compromise. We believe that is the best path forward for Israel and all of its citizens,” the spokesperson says.

“US support for Israel’s security and democracy remains ironclad.”