Politicians have a range of options when responding to public protesters, but physically tussling with them or taunting them with childish gestures is certainly not advisable. Unfortunately, this is precisely what a group of Israeli politicians did during their visit to New York City last week. Right-wing lawmaker Simcha Rothman was accosted by a group of Israeli demonstrators and proceeded to wrestle a megaphone away from one of them on camera – an incident that made national news in Israel. Similarly, government minister of diaspora affairs Amichai Chikli was photographed giving what appeared to be the finger to nearby protesters during the Celebrate Israel parade, leading to unfair criticism.
These altercations are not one-offs, however, but rather a reflection of the dysfunctional state of the Israeli right and a potential harbinger of its future. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has successfully maintained his position as the undisputed king of Israel’s main right-wing party, but this has involved systematically pushing out any rivals competent enough to challenge him, reducing his party to a cult of personality. As a result, there are no successors of his political caliber on the right, leaving a void that will likely be filled by politicians more akin to the likes of Rothman and Chikli. This legacy is a worrying one, given that English language skills are mistakenly equated with political skill, resulting in politicians who mistake performative trolling for effective politicking.
Netanyahu’s strategy has ensured his own political longevity, but it has come at the cost of leaving behind a weak and clownish group of potential successors who will be tasked with leading the Israeli right when he departs the scene. As such, the recent altercations in New York are not a coincidence, but rather a consequence of this political vacuum on the right.
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