Day 293 Of The War: A Tale Of Two Speeches

On Sunday night, when I heard Biden’s dramatic announcement that he decided not to run for president, I was very sad. But then I thought it would bring at least one good immediate consequence: nobody would care about Netanyahu’s speech in Congress; he would be the uninvited, annoying guest who insists on crashing a party.

Most Israelis are ashamed of Netanyahu. His decision to fly and give a speech while he is sabotaging any chance of signing a deal to bring back the hostages, his exploitation of former hostages who accompany him to Washington so he can appear as the hero who saved them, and the embarrassing stylized photos from inside the plane and going down the stairs—all these actions have led to widespread disapproval and even contempt in Israel.

In those photos, he carefully chose accessories around him, like a hat (inside the plane) with the writing “absolute victory,” which he got from one of his extremist admirers, resonating with the MAGA hats that Trump wears. Most Israelis who used to appreciate Netanyahu’s qualities, even if they did not agree with him, despise him today. Yes, Biden is 81 years old and occasionally mixes up names, but, as the old Hebrew saying goes, Netanyahu’s old age puts his youth to shame.

Last Saturday night in Kaplan, protesters demanded that Netanyahu not travel before he seals the deal for the return of the hostages. The families explicitly asked him not to go. But, as always, he disregarded this request and, in his arrogance, said that the hostages do suffer but they are not dying. Then he flew to sell his shtik in the United States.

Most Israelis objected to this frivolous and irresponsible trip and the unnecessary speech. And then on Wednesday, because of the circumstances of Biden’s resignation,  the president gave a speech, in which he explained his decision to step aside for a fresh, younger voice, praised his Vice President Kamala Harris, and thanked the American public for the privilege of serving. This  honest and noble speech was delivered shortly after Netanyahu’s speech.. 

Thus, it was no surprise the American media was very busy with President Biden’s speech and the re-energized Democratic election campaign, and nobody paid attention to the fact that Netanyahu speaks good English. In contrast to Biden’s historic speech, no one will remember Netanyahu’s speech. Was it a lesson in humility for Netanyahu? I don’t think so, but many of us had a moment of schadenfreude. Benjamin Netanyahu does not represent me.

I would like to thank the great artist Zeev Engelmayer for his poignant pictorial journal of the war and for his generosity.