ealing with the Middle East seems to have become a surefire way to gain access to the highest circles of power in the United States. Or perhaps it's the other way around, given how President Donald Trump's erratic leadership has blurred the lines at the top of the American government.
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The Trump administration's politicization of US national security
As a result, foreign policy is being steered by a core team made up of Vice President JD Vance, Foreign Minister Marco Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent (due to the unprecedented importance of tariffs) and Steve Witkoff.
The latter, a former business and golf partner of the president, has thus overshadowed the Pentagon chief and the heads of intelligence agencies. Witkoff's meteoric rise began when he was first appointed special envoy to the Middle East, before becoming Trump's emissary to Vladimir Putin, despite persistent criticism of his lack of rigor and professionalism. None of this mattered to the American president, who showered Witkoff with praise during his triumphant speech before the Israeli parliament on October 13, claiming that "everybody loved him."
