By Virginia Allen & Crystal Bonham, The Daily Signal | February 05, 2025
The relationship between Israel and the U.S. is not one of charity, according to national security expert Victoria Coates.
Over the years, the “material assistance” the U.S. has provided Israel has shifted from largely being economic to “become security assistance,” Coates, vice president of the Institute for National Security and Foreign Policy at The Heritage Foundation, told the “Problematic Women” podcast.
“This is a mutual investment in our safety, and that has borne great dividends,” she said. “It’s not stuff we can talk about on the podcast, but I can just assure the audience that those are real.”
Coates argues that the partnership between the two nation’s keeps America’s adversaries in the Middle East at bay.
“There’s a reason the Iranians call us the big Satan and the Israelis the little Satan,” Coates said. “And everyone’s going to go after the little Satan first. But if they get the little Satan, guess who’s next?”
The relationship between Israel and the U.S. extends beyond the importance of the physical safety and survival of both nations and also includes a culture war—an issue Coates addresses in her new book, “The Battle For The Jewish State: How Israel—And America—Can Win.”
Coates joins “Problematic Women” to explain the history behind America’s friendship with Israel, and how the two nations can work together toward mutual national security and cultural interests, and to discuss President Donald Trump’s meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Virginia Allen is a senior news producer for The Daily Signal and host of "The Daily Signal Podcast" and "Problematic Women."
Crystal Bonham is a senior advisor to the president in Communications at The Heritage Foundation.
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