Israeli businessman Oren Dobronsky, named by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as one of his personal picks for Likud's Knesset election list in October, has caused political embarrassment for the party after an old social media post in which he called Donald Trump a "piece of shit" resurfaced shortly after the announcement.
According to the Times of Israel, Dobronsky had posted a sharp attack on the American president on X over the nuclear deal with Iran and the way he said Israel had been treated during the negotiations.
In the post, Dobronsky asked readers to set aside for a moment whether the Iran deal itself was good or bad. He questioned in what kind of world it could be considered normal for an ally that had fought shoulder to shoulder with the United States not to be invited to the negotiating table.
He then raised the tone further, claiming that Trump had not only failed to invite Israel to the talks but had not even shared the text of the agreement with the Israeli government. He wrote, in English, that Trump was a "piece of shit" for treating an ally that way.
The post drew particular attention once Netanyahu's selection of Dobronsky became public, given the close political relationship between the Israeli prime minister and Trump.
Dobronsky apologizes to Trump
Dobronsky moved quickly to walk back his earlier comments, publishing an apologetic post on Facebook. He described Trump as the greatest friend Israel has ever had in the White House and said he had spoken publicly in support of the American president countless times.
Regarding the post that resurfaced, he said that on that occasion he had reacted without knowing all the facts, lost his temper and published something he now regrets. He went on to personally apologize to Trump, saying he holds him in particularly high regard.
The walkback came on the same day as Likud's announcement, as Dobronsky prepares to move from the world of business and Silicon Valley to the front line of Israeli politics.
A reserved spot on the Likud list
Dobronsky, a longtime Silicon Valley entrepreneur and co-founder of the technology company Hotbar, will take the first spot on Likud's Knesset list that the Israeli prime minister has the personal right to reserve.
His selection was presented as a move aimed at technology, and artificial intelligence in particular. Likud, which described Dobronsky as right-wing, said he would be part of its team and, after the elections, is expected to take a leading role in developing artificial intelligence across the Israeli economy, education system, medicine and other sectors.
Who is Oren Dobronsky
Dobronsky comes from the technology and business world and is one of the co-founders of Hotbar, a software company founded in Israel in the late 1990s. He spent much of his professional career in Silicon Valley.
His selection by Netanyahu is tied to Likud's ambition to place particular emphasis on the development and use of artificial intelligence. Should the plan move forward after the elections, Dobronsky is expected to work on integrating AI into critical sectors ranging from the economy and education to healthcare.
His entry into politics was nonetheless marked by controversy before he had even reached the Knesset, forcing him to publicly disavow one of his sharpest past statements and apologize to Trump.
