The president-elect of the United States, Donald Trump, has chosen businessman of Lebanese origin Massad Boulos, father-in-law of his daughter Tiffany, as senior advisor for Arab and Middle Eastern affairs. It is the second time in less than 24 hours that, after the appointment, this Saturday, of his daughter Ivanka’s father-in-law, convicted felon Charles Kushner, as future US ambassador to France.
Compared to Kushner, whom Trump pardoned in the last part of his first term, Boulos has at least had an important performance in the electoral campaign, leading the Republican’s penetration into the Arab-American community of Michigan, with a Democratic tradition, organizing dozens of meetings in areas with a high percentage of voters dissatisfied with Democratic President Joe Biden’s unwavering support for Israel in the wars in Gaza and Lebanon. Thanks to the help of Boulos, among others, Trump won by a landslide over the Democratic candidate, Kamala Harris, in the Lebanese-majority district of Dearborn Hights, which tipped the balance in his favor in the decisive hinge state.
“[Boulos] “He has long been a champion of Republican and conservative values, an asset to my campaign, and was instrumental in building tremendous new coalitions with the Arab-American community,” Trump wrote in a post in Truth Social. “Massad is a negotiator, and an unwavering supporter of PEACE in the Middle East,” he added.
Trump and Boulos, who introduced his father-in-law to the large Arab community in the United States and is a visible figure, along with the Republican, in numerous campaign events, have reiterated that the Republican president will bring peace to the Middle East, although neither of them has offered concrete details about the plans. Boulos theoretically completes the list of appointments of senior officials of the second Trump Administration for the region, after the election of; the future ambassador to Israel, from the Government of Benjamin Netanyahu, or the special envoy for the Middle East, the Jewish real estate magnate—and veteran golf partner of the president-elect—Steve Witkoff, with no experience in the area. All of them are unconditional supporters of the Israeli nationalist-religious Executive.
Huckabee, for example, in the territories occupied by Israel, considering that Palestinians descended from the inhabitants of Palestine before the creation of the State of Israel “do not exist.” , who aspires to be confirmed by the Senate as Secretary of Defense, has defended the reconstruction of a Jewish temple on the site of the Al Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem, the third holy site of Islam.
Boulos, on the other hand, has knowledge and contacts in the area, having held positions of responsibility in his country of origin and maintaining links with Lebanese politicians, which is likely to be helpful, announced last week, and which in practice is subject to the conditions of the first. His profile is interpreted as a counterweight, at least theoretically, to the pro-Israel majority of the future US Executive. Trump’s father-in-law helped him capitalize on dissent within the Arab Democratic base over support for the Israeli offensive in Gaza, where more than 44,000 people have been killed since the Hamas attacks on October 7, 2023.
Trump won Michigan by just over 10,000 votes in 2016 and Biden won the state for Democrats in 2020 by about 154,000 votes. Thanks to Boulos, Trump won in that State last November over Vice President Harris with 49.7% of the votes.
