2015–2025: how strategy bent U.S. policy — from Rubio and the Accords to Ellison’s influence and TikTok’s data pipes — shaping Gaza’s future and exposing the Arab world’s data blind spot.
A Decade in the Making
For the last ten years, Israel has been playing a game that most others either fail to see or refuse to study. It is the game of anticipation and architecture: shaping the narrative before it reaches the public, selecting allies long before they hold office, building institutions that will matter when crises erupt, and embedding itself in the systems — political, diplomatic, digital — that define U.S. foreign policy.
This period, from 2015 to 2025, illustrates how strategy and leadership, when applied consistently, can bend the policies of the world’s most powerful state toward the interests of another nation. The United States, with all its military, economic, and cultural weight, often ends up executing a foreign policy that serves Israel’s priorities more faithfully than its own. And it happened not through chance, but through foresight and deliberate preparation.
Example, Not Centerpiece: Marco Rubio and the Candidate Strategy
Consider Marco Rubio. In 2015, Larry Ellison, the billionaire founder of Oracle, invested millions into Rubio’s super PAC, Conservative Solutions PAC【4view0†source】. Rubio, in turn, became one of the most vocal hawks on Israel【0search8†source】, a position that elevated him within the ranks of those seen as “safe hands” for foreign policy.
Some alleged leaked emails suggest Ellison even consulted Israel’s UN Ambassador Ron Prosor about Rubio’s reliability【1search20†source】. Whether these documents are authentic or not, the story is illustrative: the grooming of political figures happens years in advance. It is not about controlling a single candidate; it is about building a bench of dependable leaders who will, when the time comes, act in alignment with Israel’s strategic agenda. Rubio is simply one example of a wider practice: investing early in narratives, individuals, and institutions that will eventually carry weight in Washington.
Controlling the Message Before It Leaves the Podium
In 2016, Donald Trump’s AIPAC speech became a pivotal moment in his campaign. It was widely regarded as one of the clearest statements of support for Israel delivered by a U.S. presidential candidate. But the important detail is not the speech itself — it is the process behind it. Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law, drafted the text, and Israeli Ambassador Ron Dermer reportedly played a direct role in shaping its content【0search12†source】【0search5†source】.
What this demonstrates is narrative control in action. Before the American candidate spoke, the message had already been curated, refined, and locked to align with Israel’s preferred framing. The speech was not a reflection of Trump’s raw instincts; it was the product of a network of influence that understood the stakes and knew how to protect them.
This is leadership not in the sense of speeches or rallies, but in the deeper sense: the ability to anticipate risk, shape outcomes, and ensure alignment before events unfold.
Restructuring the Region: The Abraham Accords
The Abraham Accords (2018–2020) were celebrated in the West as breakthroughs in Arab–Israeli relations. Yet their real significance lies in their structural engineering. By securing normalization agreements with the UAE, Bahrain, Sudan, and Morocco【0search12†source】, Israel achieved something profound: it locked Gulf money, intelligence, and security cooperation into its orbit under U.S. sponsorship.
The Accords reduced the leverage of the Palestinian cause in regional politics, elevated Israel as a legitimate partner to Gulf monarchies, and created a durable foundation of alignment that is resilient to changes in leadership or public opinion. From a strategic perspective, this was not about “peace.” It was about building a scaffolding of long-term influence that no Arab crisis response could undo.
Investing in Institutions: Tony Blair Institute
Parallel to this regional engineering, investments were being made in Western institutions that shape governance and policy worldwide. Since 2021, Ellison’s foundation has donated roughly £257m to the Tony Blair Institute【1search1†source】【1search0†source】, turning it into a global powerhouse advising governments across Africa, the Middle East, and beyond.
In 2025, Blair’s name suddenly appeared in proposals to manage Gaza’s post-conflict transition【1news31†source】【1news30†source】. For most, this looked like a surprising idea. For those who study the long game, it looked like a perfectly predictable outcome. Influence had been seeded years earlier, and when the crisis came, the prepared actor was ready to step forward.
This is not soft philanthropy; it is strategic leverage. Institutions like TBI are deployed as vehicles of legitimacy and control, filling governance vacuums in ways that serve the interests of those who built them up in the first place.
Capturing the Digital Battlefield
In the modern era, the battlefield is no longer just diplomatic or military; it is digital. Oracle, Ellison’s company, now oversees TikTok’s U.S. data storage and algorithm security【2search1†source】【2search4†source】【2search12†source】.
This is more than a business deal. It places control of a critical social platform — one that shapes the information diets of millions of Americans — under the oversight of a company whose leader has long invested in pro-Israel causes and institutions. If narrative control once meant crafting speeches and funding think tanks, today it means controlling the very platforms through which narratives circulate.
This is leadership adapted to the age of information warfare. It is foresight turned into infrastructure.
The Pattern That Emerges
When you step back, the pattern is undeniable:
- 2015–2016: Invest in candidates, secure reliable voices.
- 2016: Control the message before it reaches the public.
- 2018–2020: Restructure the region through the Abraham Accords.
- 2021–2025: Capture institutions like TBI and position them for future crises.
- 2024–2025: Secure dominance in the digital sphere through Oracle/TikTok.
This is what strategic leadership looks like: anticipation, preparation, embedding influence in advance, and reaping the rewards when crises strike.
Whose Foreign Policy Is It?
The uncomfortable reality is that much of U.S. foreign policy over the last decade has served Israel’s strategic interests more directly than America’s. From UN vetoes to normalization deals, from Middle East crisis management to digital platform oversight, the U.S. has acted as the executor of a strategy designed elsewhere.
And while Israel builds pipelines of influence that last decades, Arab states remain reactive — firefighting today’s crises, ignoring tomorrow’s structures, and never investing in the long-term scaffolding that secures real power.
Disclaimers
- Verified facts: Ellison’s donations (OpenSecrets/FEC), Rubio’s pro-Israel positions, Kushner/Dermer’s role in Trump’s AIPAC speech, Abraham Accords, Ellison’s funding of TBI, Oracle/TikTok oversight, Blair floated for Gaza role.
- Allegations: Ellison–Prosor 2015 emails (unverified leaks); claims of Israeli staff inside the Pentagon (no credible evidence). Included only as allegations, not facts.
Disclaimer: This article blends documented facts with analysis and commentary. Allegations are clearly labeled and should not be treated as established facts.
References
- OpenSecrets/FEC: Ellison donations to Rubio’s Conservative Solutions PAC【4view0†source】
- Rubio’s pro-Israel positions【0search8†source】
- Kushner/Dermer role in Trump’s AIPAC speech【0search12†source】【0search5†source】
- Ron Prosor bio (UN → Germany)【0search6†source】
- Ellison’s $16.6m FIDF donation【3search0†source】【3search3†source】
- Ellison’s funding of Tony Blair Institute【1search1†source】【1search0†source】
- Oracle/TikTok oversight【2search1†source】【2search4†source】【2search12†source】
- Blair proposed for Gaza role【1news31†source】【1news30†source】【1news29†source】
- Drop Site claim of Ellison–Prosor emails【1search20†source】
Leadership Challenges of the 21st Century 