Written by Staff Writer at CNN
President Donald Trump has criticized Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for congratulating former Vice President Joe Biden for declaring his candidacy for the 2020 presidential election.
“Bibi Netanyahu has just called to congratulate me on my recent announcement that I will be running for re-election,” Trump tweeted late Friday evening. “He hasn’t called me to congratulate me on the Iran deal or the Iran hostages. F**k him!”
Bibi Netanyahu has just called to congratulate me on my recent announcement that I will be running for re-election. He hasn’t called me to congratulate me on the Iran deal or the Iran hostages. F**k him! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 26, 2019
Trump went on to defend himself from charges that he is unfit for the office, tweeting: “Does anyone really believe that a Democrat will be better than the highly successful and popular Donald J. Trump at the White House in 2 years?”
Does anyone really believe that a Democrat will be better than the highly successful and popular Donald J. Trump at the White House in 2 years? I, for one, am very excited to have @RealDonaldTrump running for re-election. I look forward to November 2020! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 26, 2019
In the next two years, Trump will be expected to oversee several of the most significant foreign policy challenges facing the US.
Those issues are the presence of Iran in Syria and Iraq, China’s expanding influence in the region, the re-election of Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas, and securing a solution to the North Korean nuclear crisis.
Trump is expected to lay out his foreign policy priorities in his State of the Union address later this month, which will also serve as his last major policy speech before the midterm congressional elections.
Following his announcement earlier this month, Biden said that his candidacy would be based on the need to address challenges such as gun violence and climate change and the practicality of seeking a second term.
CNN’s Matina Stevis contributed to this report.