Dr. Bahaa Helmy Writes: Differences and Common Ground Between the US Presidential Candidates

The competition is heating up between Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican candidate in the US presidential election, and Hillary Clinton, the Democratic Party's candidate, who is still being challenged by Bernie Sanders from the same party.

Despite the great differences between Hillary Clinton and Trump in their approaches to the election campaign, and the contrast between their statements, some of which are almost extreme, they agree on the importance of supporting Israel.

On the one hand, Trump's statements are hostile to Muslims, and he says he will bar them from entering America, even though the Associated Press revealed his investments in four companies to build a hotel in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

He also declares his opposition to immigrants, whether from Mexico or elsewhere, and his plans to build a separation wall, deport immigrants and abolish citizenship for those born in America, etc. These statements draw much criticism: some have described them as crazy statements, while others have described them as a movie.

Hillary Clinton, the Democratic candidate who dreams of becoming the first woman to hold the presidency of America, differs in her use of diplomacy, in light of the experience she gained alongside Clinton during his presidency and as Secretary of State, giving her campaign a diplomatic and political character while criticizing the other candidate and using some of his extreme statements against him.

She seeks to win the votes of African Americans, as well as the votes of Black voters, and attacks Trump fiercely over his policies, ideas and career, which run counter to the ideas and policies of her Democratic Party.

In this context, Obama mocked Trump's personality and his investments in real estate, casinos, golf courses, entertainment venues and competitions, especially beauty pageants.

However, the candidates agree on two basic matters. The first: placing the State of Israel and support for it at the top of their priorities, each expressing this in a different way.

When it comes to Israel, Trump declares his pride in his Jewish origins and his bias towards it, considers himself one of Israel's great supporters in the United States, says he led the «Salute to Israel» parade in 2004 and continuously supports Netanyahu, has described Israel as «the beacon of American hope in the Middle East», has argued that Israel faces great danger because of the nuclear agreement with Iran, and pledges to ensure that Israel remains in very good shape forever and ever.

Clinton, for her part, says that a strong and capable America is there to achieve Israel's security, and that force will be used if Iran poses a threat to Israel. She has reiterated her support for resolving the Palestinian problem on the basis of two states, and condemns anti-Semitism and all forms of intolerance in our societies, etc.

The second matter: the candidates are close in age, the three of them all being of advanced years: Hillary is 68, her Republican rival Trump is 69, and the second Democratic candidate, Bernie Sanders, is 74. This is surprising: while the US administration is keen to support young people and civil society organizations in various countries of the world, we see no sign of the same interest in supporting American youth, at least in this election.

Setting aside any assessment or prediction of who will win this election, especially after arms companies backed Trump's campaign, we affirm that there will be no change in America's strategic substance or objectives whichever candidate wins; the difference lies in the policies and scenarios for implementing what has been planned.

This is nothing new: Israel is always the balancing weight in American elections and policies, and we must reassess our position in light of the new realities on the regional and international scene and the many alliances, so as to act according to the requirements of the country's supreme national interests.