Trump Claims Netanyahu Pressed Him Over Israeli Court Hearings, Urges Herzog to Pardon Former PM

Donald Trump is once again inserting himself into a foreign leader’s legal troubles, this time claiming that former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu complained to him about his court hearings. According to Trump, Netanyahu’s legal challenges are politically motivated, and Trump is lobbying Israel’s President Isaac Herzog to pardon Netanyahu—a move Trump says would make Herzog a “national hero.”

This intervention is strikingly familiar. Trump himself has repeatedly abused the U.S. pardon power to protect loyalists and political allies, including January 6 rioters and figures implicated in obstruction of justice. Now, he is openly advocating for a foreign leader to receive similar clemency, signaling a disturbing disregard for judicial independence both at home and abroad.

Netanyahu faces multiple corruption charges, including bribery and fraud, that have been thoroughly vetted by the Israeli legal system. Trump’s framing of these proceedings as unfair echoes his own false claims about American courts and elections. By urging Herzog to pardon Netanyahu, Trump is promoting a dangerous precedent of executive interference that undermines democratic norms.

President Herzog has not yet responded to Trump’s call. But the episode highlights how Trump’s penchant for loyalty over law extends beyond U.S. borders, reinforcing authoritarian tendencies and weakening global respect for the rule of law.

At Only Clowns Are Orange, we will continue tracking Trump’s corrosive influence on governance and accountability—whether in Washington or Tel Aviv. When leaders treat courts as obstacles to be pardoned rather than institutions to respect, democracy itself is at risk.