editorials
Déjà vu, all over again
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nless there is some tectonic shift in Israel’s body politic over the next dozen weeks, the country will hold national elections on March 23, 2021. This will be Israel’s fourth national election in two years. And it will likely result in a stalemate — necessitating a fifth round. Those are the consistent early predictions from polls taken last week, shortly after the Knesset missed its budget vote, triggering new elections. The polls suggest that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his Likud Party would remain the largest vote getters. Nonetheless, their projected loss of seats in the Knesset could make the remarkably durable and creative Netanyahu vulnerable. Political gridlock has been the hallmark of the last three elections. But changes are in the air. Rather than their classic left-right split that prevailed in the previous rounds, Israelis are now divided over Netanyahu himself. And the anti-Netanyahu faction on the right has grown under the banner of former Likudnik Gideon Sa’ar and his new right-wing party, New Hope. Initial polling projects New Hope winning second place,
just a few seats behind Likud. If Sa’ar and Netanyahu rivals Naftali Bennett and Avigdor Lieberman join forces with centrists Yair Lapid and Benny Gantz — whose Blue and White Party has shrunk to a handful of seats — they could almost make a Knesset majority without Netanyahu and Likud. As tantalizing as that might be to the antiNetanyahu players, they will have trouble building a large enough majority without including at least one of the leftwing parties — which appears to be a political non-starter. We are concerned. Last week, the Israel Democracy Institute published information showing the frequency of elections in 20 of the world’s parliamentary democracies. Israel came in dead last, with an average of 2.3 years between votes over the past 25 years. First-place Ireland has an average of 4.5 years between elections. While there is no established connection between frequency of elections and quality of governance, Israel shows troubling signs of political dysfunction that demand resolution. Commentators from the left and right have expounded
theories and proposed solutions. They have pointed fingers at everything from the distraction of Netanyahu’s legal problems to the need for fundamental electoral reform as the reason for the current problems. At least part of what each is saying is correct. But a clear, immediate solution is needed. Netanyahu has been an extraordinary leader. He deserves credit for his many impressive accomplishments on domestic and international fronts, even as he remains answerable for those areas where he has not had success, including his legal challenges. Perhaps this is the time for the “Magician of the Middle East” to orchestrate one last parting deal that installs new government leadership, ensures continuity of center-right policies, frees Israeli society from the stranglehold of the rabbinate and ensures Israel’s longest-serving prime minister a dignified and peaceful retirement. Or maybe something else. Whatever the approach, Israel needs to avoid a fifth election.
A $900 billion down payment
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December 31, 2020 | Washington Jewish Week
loans. A moratorium on evictions is extended until Jan. 31 and there is emergency assistance for renters. What’s missing is the Democratic-favored aid to state and local governments, which have borne the brunt of the pandemic’s impact. Also left out of the package was a Republican priority — a liability shield to protect businesses from virus-related lawsuits. Included was $1.4 billion in new money for Trump’s border wall. Nine-hundred billion dollars is a lot of money, and there are significant consequences to passing sprawling aid packages. Someone has to pay for them. America isn’t printing money to pay for the spending, but it is selling
government bonds at a low rate of return. We are literally mortgaging our future to save our future. That makes sense. But we need to be careful. U.S. debt will grow by a record $4.5 trillion in 2020. How are we going to pay for it? Many Americans have already shown that they aren’t ready to sacrifice for the national good, even if it is for something as easy as wearing a mask. So we worry that getting Americans to agree to pay more in taxes to offset relief spending will be very difficult to achieve. We hope the same bipartisan support we have seen for relief efforts will continue in support of necessary funding for it.
FEV ERP I TC H ED
e are under siege. The U.S. will end 2020 with 330,000 people dead from COVID-19 — a virus none of us had even heard of when the year began. Some 18.7 million Americans have been infected by the virus, entering them into a lottery whose results are anywhere between no symptoms and death. More than 12.6 million people are out of work. Small businesses are struggling or closing. Demand for hospital intensive care beds exceeds capacity. It is in the face of this frightening national reality that the recent $900 billion stimulus package was passed. But it took Congress and the White House an unacceptably long eight months to agree on the legislation. In the end, the $900 billion was more money than some Republicans wanted, much less than many Democrats demanded, but is much better than doing nothing while Americans struggle and suffer. President-elect Joe Biden called the bill a “down payment” on inevitable future relief legislation. Everyone knows it won’t be enough. To help ensure passage, the legislation was attached to a $1.4 trillion omnibus spending bill, which will fund the federal government through next September. While President Trump objected to the size of the $600 stimulus checks in the package, most of his complaints — aid for Egypt, Pakistan and Cambodia, for example — were actually about items in the omnibus spending bill. But focusing on the bipartisan stimulus package, there are welcome jobless benefits, aid to small businesses, stimulus checks, money for vaccine distribution, and aid for schools and child care. Faith-based organizations are eligible for PPP
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