When: Friday, December 2, 2016, 10:00 — 11:30 a.m.
Where: The Brookings Institution, Falk Auditorium, 1775 Massachusetts Ave, NW, Washington, DC
What:
President-elect Donald Trump recently told the New York Times, “I would love to be able to be the one that made peace with Israel and the Palestinians,” and suggested he might appoint his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, as a special envoy for the region. He and his advisors have expressed divergent views on the conflict at different times, however, leaving his ultimate approach murky. Meanwhile, President Obama is considering what legacy to leave for President-elect Trump towards a key U.S. ally, including whether to take any action on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict during his remaining weeks in office.
On December 2, the Center for Middle East Policy at Brookings will release the results of new public opinion polls by Nonresident Senior Fellow Shibley Telhami focusing on American attitudes towards Israel and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Findings from two polls—one taken just before the election, and one just after—set the stage for both Obama and Trump in weighing their approach to the conflict.
Telhami will reveal the poll results, and will discuss their implications with Karen DeYoung, senior national security correspondent for the Washington Post, and Sarah Yerkes, a visiting fellow in the Center for Middle East Policy. Tamara Cofman Wittes, senior fellow and director of the Center for Middle East Policy at Brookings, will moderate the panel. Following the discussion, the panelists will take audience questions. This event launches the Center for Middle East Policy’s 13th annual Saban Forum, a U.S.-Israeli strategic dialogue, which runs from Friday, December 2 through Sunday December 4.
Join the conversation on Twitter at #Saban16.