Israel, ISIS and the Iran Nuclear Deal: The Comeback of the Middle East in the 2016 American Presidential Campaign

This chapter investigates the relevance of the Middle East issue in the 2016 American presidential campaign. After describing the early campaign’s international context and the past and current public opinion’s perception on foreign policy, the article analyzes the primary candidates’ proposal on Middle East and other linked topics. The whole presidential primary campaign on both sides was full of references to the Middle East, often linked to other adjacent topics such as immigration and terrorism. Republicans are usually favoured by voters on foreign politics while Democrats are preferred when it comes to welfare. As shown by electoral manifestos and TV debates, the Middle East issue remained central also in the Clinton v. Trump final race. However, opinion polls and media coverage explained how the 2016 presidential campaign will probably be remembered for the harsh personal attacks exchanged against each other by the two nominees. The unexpected Donald Trump’s victory was certainly not driven by his statements on Middle East, but his presidency will probably be characterized by a complete new approach towards that area.