Fool Me Thrice
On Yom HaShoah, Gantz betrayed his voters and his alleged ideals by signing a toothless coalition agreement with the corrupt prime minister he was trying to replace.
Here we are. Again. Another rival neutered by the longest-serving prime minister in Israeli history.
On Monday night, Benny Gantz, the former IDF chief of staff who spent more than a year pretending to be the only viable candidate to replace Bibi Netanyahu, signed a coalition agreement guaranteeing none of his electoral promises to Blue & White voters while absolutely enabling the under-indictment PM to survive politically and possibly avoid ever serving the sentence he deserves.
It would be unbelievable if not for the three-election cycle in which astute observers saw Gantz give in inch by inch to every single one of Netanyahu’s policy positions.
From dismissing unilateral annexation to enabling it. From demanding political reform assuring a member of Knesset could not serve as prime minister while under indictment to… letting a member of Knesset continue to serve as prime minister while under indictment. From promising to protect the independence of the judiciary to letting an unelected Likud MK serve on a ministerial committee selecting judges.
It would be a cruel joke if it didn’t make me want to tear my eyeballs out.
It is a cynical and practically sinister move to claim, as AIPAC has, that this was “a significant achievement in forging a broad-based government” when technically, with Blue & White splintering, the Joint List, the faction representing the Arab minority which makes up almost a fifth of Israelis, is being completely shut out.
I wouldn’t call that broad and I would feel embarrassed to refer to this devil’s bargain of a coalition as a unity government.
For my part, I wouldn’t get too invested in an agreement that Bibi is likely to reneg on the moment he is replaced by Gantz in 18 months. Bibi is many things, but he is not a man of his word, and it has been a decade since he even pretended to care about what’s best for Israel.
This is not a unity government in the face of an emergency, it is an existential crisis in the form of a coalition government actively perpetrating an injustice by covering for the corrupt Bibi who should not be leading Israel while under indictment.
Have I mentioned Bibi is under indictment?
Because it is very relevant. Because it should be on every Israeli’s mind until the next election. Because Bibi will do anything to avoid doing time like Olmert. Including signing a bullshit coalition agreement that’s worth less than the paper it was printed on, except to King Bibi, who now gets to ride out his legal troubles while still running the country.