I have not been paying attention to the travails of Israel, and it’s toddled right along. Prime Minister Netanyahu’s Likud Party won a plurality in the recent elections, but came up short of a majority. Shockingly, Netanyahu was unable to orchestrate the necessary alliances to build a majority and create a government, which leaves Israel looking forward to another election cycle. I was particularly interested in this bit, from WaPo:
Addressing the country early Thursday, Netanyahu delivered remarks that sharply contrasted with his beaming speech at his campaign headquarters on election night. His failure to form a coalition with his traditional partners dents his reputation as a veteran political operator.
But there is also much more at stake. His party had been in the process of forwarding legislation that would shield members of parliament, including Netanyahu, from prosecution. In October, Netanyahu’s lawyers are scheduled to present his defense in a pre-indictment hearing to criminal charges including bribery, fraud and breach of trust.
I wish I could say I was shocked, but this is the predictable behavior of a corrupt party leader frantically trying to cover up his behavior, and Netanyahu has certainly had many rumors of corruption floating around him for years. Akiva Eldar provides more information in AL Monitor:
… the incitement against the country’s courts as reflected in several unbridled legislative proposals being promoted by Netanyahu and his allies has brought quite a few guardians of democracy out of their ivory towers. Supreme Court Chief Justice Esther Hayut took off her gloves. Retired judges lashed out at the proposed Override Clause that would allow the Knesset to override Supreme Court rulings and limit its authority. Philanthropists threatened to withhold funding for public institutions. Academics announced that they would start their classes with lectures on the meaning and importance of democracy. Pundits called for popular revolt and even for mass legal violations.
The rightward tilt of Likud means it must ally with minor parties affiliated with various religious sects – which I suspect means parties which believe they are doing God’s will and for whom compromise is not to be brooked. Thus Netanyahu supped with the devil, and his ladle was not long enough.
