New Republic: U.S. Embassy aide in Israel accused of suppressing reports on settler violence against Americans

U.S. Embassy Aide Accused of Suppressing Reports on Israeli Settler Violence

David Milstein, an aide to U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, has been suppressing reports critical of Israeli actions, according to The New York Times.

Key details from the report:

• Milstein quashed reports from the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem documenting Israeli settler violence in the occupied West Bank—including attacks against American citizens.
• He sent a cable to Washington praising Israel for cracking down on settler violence, despite embassy staff having drafted a report stating the Israeli government was not taking action.
• After Congress raised concerns about Israeli authorities and settlers killing nine American citizens, Milstein suppressed another embassy report, hindering lawmakers' investigations.
• Milstein demanded all communications from the embassy's section on Palestinian affairs go through him, causing embassy cables to drop from several per week to only a few per month.

Sources described this intervention as unprecedented for the embassy, preventing the U.S. government from receiving accurate information about Israel through diplomatic channels.

President Trump has rarely criticized Israel or Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during his second term. He appointed Huckabee—a Christian Zionist and staunch Israel supporter—as ambassador. It remains unclear whether Milstein's actions have Huckabee's blessing.

Last month, Canada, France, and the U.K. announced sanctions on Israeli settlements in the West Bank. The U.S. has threatened tariffs in response to those sanctions.

Trump Rally Sees Multiple Protests, Supporter Violence

President Donald Trump did nothing as a rallygoer attacked a peaceful protester during his campaign event in San Antonio, Texas, Wednesday night.

Incident details:

• Trump's remarks were interrupted by at least seven separate protesters.
• As one demonstrator was escorted out, a rallygoer in a red hat seized the protester's shirt, yanked his hair, and pulled him to the floor.
• Trump did not intervene, instead smiling and asking the crowd, "Is there anything like a Trump rally?"
• In a separate incident, a rallygoer in a white cowboy hat stalked two protesters, smacked one's hat off, and appeared to lunge or kick before being held back by security.

Trump told demonstrators to "get the hell out of here" and claimed they were "paid by enemies of our nation." After the sixth interruption, he said, "You know, I never talk about looks of a person, but those are really bad looking people."

Leaked Audio: Ken Paxton Tells Benefit Recipients to "Suck It Up"

More audio of Texas Republican Senate candidate Ken Paxton has leaked, featuring the embattled lawmaker telling people who depend on federal benefits programs to prepare for cuts.

Speaking at a donor meeting, Paxton said:

"The growing out of this is part of the solution, and making some reasonable cuts to mandatory spending—you're gonna have to do it. There is no solution. That's just the reality. We have to suck it up."

The audio, first reported by The Texas Tribune, is the fourth leak from the same meeting. Previous leaks revealed Paxton calling Trump a drag on his campaign and saying Trump's war on Iran was raising prices.

Paxton faces Democratic candidate James Talarico, who leads in most polls by a small margin.

Trump Admits Expecting Quid Pro Quo for Pardons

President Donald Trump suggested Wednesday night that he expected Texas Representative Henry Cuellar to become a Republican after receiving a presidential pardon.

Speaking at the San Antonio rally, Trump said:

"I made no deal. I didn't say, 'Oh, I'll give you the pardons if you turn Republican.' I didn't say that. No, I could have done that very easily but—where a crooked politician would have done that. But I thought there would be a good chance that Cuellar might say, 'Wow, he did something really wonderful, you know, somebody has a heart.'"

Trump later mused that Cuellar's daughters had "begged" him for the pardon and wished they had used the "same level of charm to convince their mother and father to do the right thing."

On Truth Social, Trump accused Cuellar of "a tremendous act of disloyalty" and called him an "extremely ungrateful person."

The FBI raided Cuellar's home and office in 2022 as part of a federal probe into his ties to Azerbaijan. Cuellar and his wife faced 12 charges of bribery, money laundering, and conspiracy before Trump intervened.

Trump Suggests Iran Could Strike San Diego, Los Angeles

President Donald Trump doubled down on remarks suggesting Iran could attack American cities, speaking at the San Antonio rally.

"But you wanna see trauma? You wanna see problems? ... Let them hit a missile into San Diego or Los Angeles on the way. Let them hit—you wanna see a horror show, you wanna see problems? Let them hit San Diego. Let them hit Los Angeles."

Trump made a similar remark at a Nebraska rally earlier this week, saying, "They can take out a city. Let them take out Los Angeles; let them take out San Diego. That's—this is a very small price to pay, and it's going to be over with very soon."

Some viewers interpreted the comments as an invitation to Iran. Trump's team insisted the remarks were taken out of context, stating that "let them" was a warning of what could happen if the U.S. did not intervene.