Pompeo cancels plan to film Trump ad in Israel

In this screenshot from the RNC’s livestream of the 2020 Republican National Convention, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo addresses the virtual convention in a pre-recorded video from Jerusalem, Israel, on August 25, 2020. Image by RNC via Getty Images
(JTA) — Secretary of State Mike Pompeo canceled plans to film a campaign ad in Israel to encourage Americans living there to vote for President Donald Trump.
The decision not to participate in the campaign by Republicans Overseas Israel followed the uproar over Pompeo’s prerecorded message from Jerusalem to last week’s Republican National Convention, and following legal consultations, Israel’s Channel 12 News reported, citing sources involved in the discussions.
Pompeo was accused of violating the Hatch Act, which forbids federal employees from participating in some kinds of political activity. His speech to the convention filmed atop the King David Hotel, with the Old City as a backdrop, triggered a congressional investigation.
Republicans Overseas Israel launched a campaign last month to encourage American-Israelis to vote for Trump and running mate Mike Pence, along with GOP Senate candidates.
Pompeo was in Israel last week following the announcement of a U.S.-brokered normalization agreement between Israel and the United Arab Emirates.
The post Pompeo cancels plan to film Trump campaign ad geared to US expats while in Israel appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.
Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.
This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on. Make a gift today!
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Most Popular
- 1
Opinion The dangerous Nazi legend behind Trump’s ruthless grab for power
- 2
Culture Did this Jewish literary titan have the right idea about Harry Potter and J.K. Rowling after all?
- 3
Opinion I first met Netanyahu in 1988. Here’s how he became the most destructive leader in Israel’s history.
- 4
Opinion A Holocaust perpetrator was just celebrated on US soil. I think I know why no one objected.
In Case You Missed It
-
Culture In Germany, a Jewish family is reunited with a treasured family object — but also a sense of exile
-
Opinion Trump’s heedless approach to an Iran deal could be a big problem for Israel
-
Fast Forward In NYC, Itamar Ben-Gvir says he’s changed — and wants ‘the Trump plan’ in Gaza
-
Opinion Itamar Ben-Gvir’s visit to a Jewish society at Yale exposed deep rifts between US Jews
-
Shop the Forward Store
100% of profits support our journalism
Republish This Story
Please read before republishing
We’re happy to make this story available to republish for free, unless it originated with JTA, Haaretz or another publication (as indicated on the article) and as long as you follow our guidelines.
You must comply with the following:
- Credit the Forward
- Retain our pixel
- Preserve our canonical link in Google search
- Add a noindex tag in Google search
See our full guidelines for more information, and this guide for detail about canonical URLs.
To republish, copy the HTML by clicking on the yellow button to the right; it includes our tracking pixel, all paragraph styles and hyperlinks, the author byline and credit to the Forward. It does not include images; to avoid copyright violations, you must add them manually, following our guidelines. Please email us at [email protected], subject line “republish,” with any questions or to let us know what stories you’re picking up.