A senior adviser to U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee has been accused of suppressing a diplomatic cable that was critical of the Israeli government, according to a report from The New York Times. The Times, citing three U.S. officials who work alongside the aide, said David Milstein, a longtime Republican operative, quashed the memo before it could be transmitted to Washington.
The memo in question reportedly criticized Israel's decision to advance new settlement construction in the occupied West Bank. Milstein's alleged intervention prevented the document from reaching lawmakers and policymakers on Capitol Hill, according to the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Beyond that single incident, multiple U.S. officials with direct knowledge of embassy operations told the Times that Milstein also insisted on personally clearing all communications from the embassy's Palestinian affairs section. They said his actions were undermining the standard of professional diplomatic reporting and raised concerns about the integrity of the information being sent back to Washington.
People who have interacted with Milstein described him as going to “unusual lengths” to cast Israel in a favorable light, according to the Times. That characterization aligns with his professional history: his LinkedIn profile shows prior roles as an aide to Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and as an adviser on Jewish and pro-Israel outreach for Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis's gubernatorial campaign. He also served as a special assistant to former U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman during President Trump's first term.
Milstein made headlines in September when his wedding invitations included a request for “monetary wedding gift[s]” in “U.S. dollars or Israeli shekels,” complete with a QR code, as reported by Politico's Playbook. That incident drew sharp criticism, including from an intelligence community source who told Politico that Milstein was “a giant walking counterintelligence red flag” and that his blatant solicitation of donations was “absolutely jaw dropping.”
Huckabee, however, has defended his aide. In a post on social media, he wrote: “If there is anyone I've worked with presently or over the past 50 years of my adult life which I've had absolute confidence in as one with impeccable integrity, it's David Milstein.”
The controversy comes as the Trump administration has reversed a Biden-era policy by lifting sanctions on extremist Israeli settlers, even though Huckabee has previously condemned settler violence in the West Bank as an “act of terror.” Huckabee has also pushed back against growing American skepticism of Israel, telling NewsNation that social media disinformation and foreign propaganda are largely responsible for the negative perceptions.
This latest report adds to a pattern of scrutiny over the embassy's political alignment. In a related development, Secretary of State Marco Rubio has faced questions about alleged influence peddling by another ambassador, though he has sidestepped direct answers. The State Department has not commented on the Times' findings regarding Milstein.
The alleged suppression of the memo raises broader concerns about the politicization of diplomatic reporting, a practice that can skew U.S. policy decisions and undermine the objectivity of the foreign service. As the administration continues to navigate its relationship with Israel, the integrity of the information flowing from the embassy in Tel Aviv remains a critical issue.
