David M. Friedman

On December 15, 2016, the transition team of President-elect Donald Trump announced that Friedman had been selected to be the nominee as the United States Ambassador to Israel.[10][25][29] Friedman's nomination was controversial; some American Jewish, Israeli, and Palestinian individuals and advocacy groups argued against his nomination. Saeb Erekat, chief negotiator for the Palestinian Authority, said that moving the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem and annexing West Bank settlements would lead to the "destruction of the peace process" and send the region down a path of "chaos, lawlessness, and extremism".[30] Friedman had said in an interview for Haaretz during the campaign that Trump would be open to Israel annexing parts of the West Bank.[13][31] The U.S. has opposed Israeli settlements in the West Bank since 1967.[32]

The liberal advocacy organization J Street "vehemently opposed" Friedman's nomination.[33] During the presidential campaign, Friedman had attacked J Street supporters, writing in Arutz Sheva in May 2016:

Are J Street supporters really as bad as kapos? The answer, actually, is no. They are far worse than kapos—Jews who turned in their fellow Jews in the Nazi death camps. The kapos faced extraordinary cruelty and who knows what any of us would have done under those circumstances to save a loved one? But J Street? They are just smug advocates of Israel's destruction delivered from the comfort of their secure American sofas—it's hard to imagine anyone worse.[34]

When asked about his comments on J Street at the Saban Forum in early December, Friedman had stood by his statements, saying that J Street supporters were "not Jewish, and they're not pro-Israel".[35][36] The advocacy organizations Americans for Peace Now, Ameinu, the Israel Policy Forum, and the New Israel Fund also opposed the nomination.[37] Six Democratic members of the House of Representatives, including Jewish representatives Jan Schakowsky, Jerrold Nadler, John Yarmuth, and Steve Cohen, urged their colleagues in the Senate to vote against Friedman.[38][39]

Five former United States Ambassadors to Israel – Thomas Pickering, William Harrop, Edward Walker Jr., Daniel Kurtzer, and James Cunningham – signed a letter declaring Friedman unqualified.[40]

Other Jewish and Israeli groups and individuals supported Friedman's nomination. Nathan Diament, executive director for public policy at the Orthodox Union, commended Trump for the nomination as a change in the relationship between Israel and the United States from the relationship under the Obama administration.[41] Morton Klein, president of the Zionist Organization of America, said Friedman "has the potential to be the greatest US Ambassador to Israel ever".[37] The Republican Jewish Coalition and Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein, founder and president of the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews, both supported the nomination.[37] Israeli politicians Tzipi Hotovely, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dani Dayan, the Consul General of Israel in New York, and Minister of Education Naftali Bennett all praised Friedman and welcomed his nomination.[37][42] The Yesha Council, the umbrella organization governing West Bank settlements, also supported the nomination, saying Friedman had a "deep love for all of the land and people of Israel, including those in Judea and Samaria," the Biblical names of the area of land which is referred to internationally as the West Bank.[37]

David Friedman is sworn in by Vice President Mike Pence.

Friedman's confirmation hearing was held on February 16, 2017.[43] The hearing was contentious; protesters from Americans Muslims for Palestine and the Jewish group IfNotNow were arrested after interrupting the proceedings several times.[44][45] Friedman said he believed a two-state solution is the best way to resolve the conflict.[43] He had previously questioned the need for it, stating as a representative for the Trump campaign, "a two-state solution is not a priority ... A two-state solution is a way, but it's not the only way."[32][46] He had also called it a "scam" and a "damaging anachronism" in a February 2016 column for Arutz Sheva.[47][48] He also agreed to sell off his business interests in the region and end his support for the expansion of Israeli settlements.[44] He apologized for his past language towards J Street,[43] maintaining his differences of opinion with the organization.[49] Yael Patir, the Israel director of J Street, did not accept the apology.[50]

Several Democratic members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee criticized Friedman's fitness for the position, while the Republican members generally expressed their support.[44] On March 9, 2017, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee approved his nomination in a 12–9 vote. All Republicans voted in favor, along with Democrat Bob Menendez from New Jersey.[51] Friedman was officially confirmed on March 23.[52] All Democratic and independent senators except Bob Menendez and Joe Manchin, from West Virginia, voted against him. 50 out of 52 Republican senators voted for him; two Republicans did not vote.[53] On March 29, Vice President Mike Pence officially administered the oath of office, swearing in Friedman.[54] He succeeded Leslie Tsou, who served as the interim chargé d'affaires after Daniel Shapiro left the position on January 20.[55][56]