The Secretary-General of the PJD, Abdelilah Benkirane, has not hidden his pessimism about the return of Donald Trump to the White House. «It's a difficult period», he stated during a meeting on Sunday with the party's youth wing. Benkirane described Trump's plans as «threats», particularly the proposal to relocate the Palestinian population from Gaza to other Arab countries, such as Egypt and Jordan. «How are we going to prepare for this difficult stage?» he asked. «Under these conditions, we might one day be forced to dig tunnels. I'm not telling you to start digging tunnels at home», he clarified. «Trump is roughing up the Europeans and threatening the Chinese. He doesn't even care if we exist», he added. In October 2016, while serving as head of government, Benkirane expressed his preference for Hillary Clinton over Trump in the U.S. presidential elections. «It would be in the interest of Moroccan-American relations. On the other hand, Donald Trump scares me a little», he admitted in an interview with an Arab-American media outlet.
