FOREIGN POLICY/ISRAEL/MIKE PENCE/PALESTINE: “Vice President Mike Pence’s planned visit to the Middle East, the cradle of Christianity, ought to have had a particular poignancy in the days before Christmas…
But then on Dec. 6, President Trump recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, smashing seven decades of American policy and provoking violent protests. One by one, Christian leaders publicly canceled their meetings with Mr. Pence.
President Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority — a critical figure in the Trump administration’s ambitious plans for a sweeping Middle East peace deal — also canceled.
Then Mr. Pence himself canceled the whole trip, saying he needed to stay in Washington to oversee an important tax reform vote — an assertion that drew a measure of skepticism.
A White House official also said it was ‘not practically possible’ for Mr. Pence to travel because the tax vote would have pushed his trip against the Jewish holiday of Shabbat and Christmas.
Now, as he prepares for his tentatively rescheduled trip in mid-January, the unanimous chorus of rejection from Christian leaders bodes ominously for his ambitions for the visit.”
-Declan Walsh, “Pence’s Christmas Pilgrimage Is Canceled. His Next Mideast Move Is Complicated.,” The New York Times online, Dec. 20, 2017