Former US Presidential Candidate Joe Walsh spoke to The New Bengal Gazette editors Syed Abubakr and Sumit Singh on the proposal by US President Donald Trump to “takeover” Gaza and transform the Palestinian territory into “the Riviera of the Middle East”. Walsh was a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives. Walsh was elected by voters from Illinois’ 8th Congressional District. He announced that he was running for president of the United States on August 25, 2019. However, he suspended his presidential campaign on February 7, 2020.
Question: US President Donald Trump has restated his plan for a US takeover of the Gaza Strip, after his idea was rejected by Palestinians and leaders around the world. Trump said that Gaza “would be turned over to the US by Israel at the conclusion of fighting” and that Palestinians “would have already been resettled in far safer and more beautiful communities, with new and modern homes, in the region.” What’s your response to this unprecedented announcement by President Trump?
Answer: A few responses. Number one, Donald Trump is an idiot. He’s a stupid man, and he’s a dangerous man. The United States is not going to own Gaza. That will never happen. The United States would never support ethnic cleansing. That will never happen. Donald Trump doesn’t care about Israel. He doesn’t care about the Palestinian people. Donald Trump only cares about Donald Trump. So, Donald Trump thinks he can take over Gaza and build a bunch of condos and make a bunch of money. That’s all Trump cares about.
Now, having said all of that about Trump, when it comes to Israel, again, Trump doesn’t understand any of this stuff, but the whole notion of the two state solution, that’s kinda dead. And I personally think that’s a very good thing. But this is just a personal move by Trump to increase his power and wealth.
Question: Do you think this proposal by Trump will have a negative impact on the second round of negotiations between Israel and Hamas at a time when a ceasefire deal is already in effect? Don’t you think it will lead to a trust deficit on part of Hamas with regards to US involvement in the negotiation process?
Answer: Yes. I do. I think, again, no matter what Trump said, he shouldn’t have said anything now, while American hostages and Israeli hostages are still held. Because by coming out now with any kind of crazy proposal like this, it risks angering Hamas, angering the Palestinian people, killing the ceasefire deal, and, potentially killing American troops and potentially killing whatever hostages are still alive. So timing wise, it was very, very stupid.
Question: Earlier, in a joint press briefing with Netanyahu, Trump had said that he envisioned a “long-term” US ownership of Palestine after all Palestinians were moved elsewhere. Don’t you think his desire to transform the Palestinian territory into “the Riviera of the Middle East” reduces the significance of Palestinian homeland to merely being a so-called undeveloped beach property?
Answer: I think the Palestinian people should be angry and outraged and hurt. And that’s another really good point. I mean, based on what Trump said, he’s probably increased the recruitment of Islamic terrorists. So, I agree with all of that. What he said will never happen, and it was a stupid time to say something that will never happen while this war is still going on and hostages are still being held. Because you are right, the Palestinian people should be very upset.
Question: Critics argue that this plan amounts to an occupation rather than a rebuilding effort. Do you see any merit in their concerns?
Answer: There’s zero desire in America to occupy Gaza. No American wants that. Think about what Trump said since he got elected. He wants to take over Greenland. He wants Canada to be our fifty-first state. He wants to take back the Panama Canal, and now he wants to take over Gaza. The American people don’t want any of this. The important thing to know about Trump is that Trump is an autocrat. He’s a dictator. Remember Trump’s very first reaction when Putin invaded Ukraine. Trump said it was a genius move. Because Trump, like Putin, believes, I can just take whatever I want. That’s how dictators think. That’s not how an American President should think.
Question: As a former Republican, how do you see Trump’s continued grip on the party, especially pertaining to the foreign policy arena?
Answer: Sadly, I say this as a former Republican. Donald Trump’s grip on the Republican party is ironclad right now. I mean, most Republicans in Congress think his Gaza idea is wrong, wrong headed, and stupid, but they don’t say that publicly. Much of what Trump does, Republicans oppose, but they’re afraid to say that publicly because he rules this party. It’s his party. It’s, in essence, not a political party anymore. It’s like a cult. It is a cult.
Question: Trump assumed office with a campaign promise of ending the war. Do you think this move will instead fuel more conflict in the already volatile region of the Middle-East?
Answer: I don’t see how this will help end the war. Again, I say this as someone who’s very pro-Israel, who doesn’t believe in the two-state solution. But having said all of that, no. The odds are what Trump said is going to make everything worse right now. It could extend the war. It could garner Hamas more support and, again, endanger the lives of the hostages.
Question: In the destruction of Gaza, Israel has been criticised heavily by the world. Does this make America complicit in Israel’s actions?
Answer: Well, respectfully, I disagree with the premise. I don’t think Israel is at all responsible for how Gaza looks right now. Hamas deserves 100 percent of everything that has happened in Gaza. Everything since October 7. Hamas decided to go to war. Hamas decided to do what they did on October 7. They’re responsible for everything Israel’s done since then, and Israel has gone out of its way to protect Gazans, to protect civilians, to fight urban warfare like it has never been done in history. And again, the history that Hamas uses civilians as human shields, and they’ve been doing this for twenty years. So, no. Hamas has to be gone. There’s no solution here with Hamas having any influence. And every dead Ghazan, that’s on the hands of Hamas.
Question: Think of a hypothetical situation. If any country proposed to “redevelop” a US city which is under crisis by displacing the residents of that area without their consent, wouldn’t the Americans be outraged? Then why does the US assume it can do the same to any other country?
Answer: At one level, I agree with you. America would be upset, which is why I don’t believe America has the right to take over Gaza or own Gaza. Just like I don’t believe America had the right to invade Iraq way back then and how we tried to put our own kind of democracy into Iraq. We don’t have a right to invade countries and tell countries how they should be ruled. I completely agree with you on all of that. That’s why what Trump said, even though Trump and I agree that the two-state solution thing isn’t workable, Trump took a bad step in saying that America should own it. No. We’re no longer a colonial power. That’s wrong.
