A Trump Victory for Classic Diplomacy
Why the Gaza hostage release reaffirms that American involvement abroad remains vital in a darkening world
Yesterday, the released Israeli hostages came to the White House and met a President who was visibly moved and warm. He told them it was one of the best days he’s had since coming into office. That moment, very human, marks this administration’s most remarkble foreign policy success.
These hostages would never have come home were it not for the Trump administration- and for the President personally - deciding that they would not only invest their attention and time, but the very prestige of the American presidency, in securing a ceasefire in Gaza. They changed the entire equation. They demanded that all the live hostages be released together, at once, and that this would be the starting point.
Reaching this moment required something else as well. To soften Hamas’s position, the administration gave Israel the space to act more aggressively- in Gaza and during the 12-day war with Iran. Hamas found itself increasingly isolated and staring at the prospect of an invasion of Gaza City. The previous adminisration tried a balancing act that probably prolonged the war.
What Trump did is an example of statesmanship at its best. From the first days of the war, whenever I raised the prospect of a general release with experts, every single one told me the same thing: it’s a noble goal, but Hamas would never agree - definitely with the IDF still in Gaza. Yet the United States threw its full weight behind it. The President made the case, held the line, and in doing so expanded the realm of the possible. This is what leadership on a global scale can do.
And it’s also something bigger. At a moment when many assumed that American diplomacy had been hollowed out, this story demonstrates the opposite. It shows that the classic tools of American statecraft - leverage, coalition-building, and the willingness to invest political capital- are not obsolete. They remain potent, capable of reshaping realities. Even if experts routinely dismiss those options as impossible.
When Washington chooses to lean in, to focus, reality can bend.
In a darkening world, this kind of American leadership can protect the vulnerable - while reminding us all America is still Humanity’s best hope. The Gaza hostage release and ceasefire, saving already many thousands of lives, is a case study in why U.S. diplomacy remains essential. Its a message to isolationists: look what America can do
.