The Right to Lead
Three years have passed since the worst day in Israel’s history—and the worst for the Jewish people since the Holocaust.
I honestly believed that October 7, and the three years of war that followed, would be different from the other tragedies, wars, and attacks we have endured. I thought the sheer magnitude of that day would forever be engraved in our collective memory. I was wrong. Too many of our political leaders, starting with our long-serving Prime Minister, have banked on the short memory of the Israeli voting public, at least those who vote independently. This, obviously, excludes the majority of the Haredi communities who vote based on whatever their Rabbis tell them to. That subject is worthy of its own post.
Many of us believed that the scale of the tragedy and the clear failure of leadership would permanently etch October 7 into our national consciousness. Netanyahu believed it too—he saw the real possibility that October 7 would mark the beginning of his political end. But with regard to the country and its future, Netanyahu has never presented a strategic plan or any coherent strategy throughout his career. Instead, all of his strategic muscle has gone into building his personal political strength, securing his future, and crafting his legacy. October 7 was no different. Not once since that day, has he considered taking responsibility or resigning, the two things most political leaders in Western countries would have done. But when your entire reason for existence is to remain Prime Minister, not for the benefit of the country or its people, but for your own personal interests, your ethics, your moral compass, and your sense of political responsibility, if you still have any, become irrelevant.
Netanyahu has spent more time and energy rewriting the narrative of October 7 than addressing its failures, all to preserve the short memories of his voter base. Every cabinet member and coalition partner who held a leadership position on October 7 is riding on those coattails. In the days following the attack, many of these same partners saw the writing on the wall and fully anticipated a collective government resignation. Many even called for an official state commission of inquiry. But those considerations were overruled by a Prime Minister focused on political self-preservation, and those leopards quickly changed their spots, falling in line with the abandonment of responsibility and setting their goal to maintain the government at all costs. Not a single one of these political leaders has any right to ever hold a leadership role again. None of them deserve the people. They gave up their right to lead when they chose personal self-interest above the interests of the people and the state.
Let’s examine what drives most people to enter politics. Here is a list of the most common reasons:
- Desire to create change
- Public service and civic duty
- Personal experience with an issue
- Ideological or partisan commitment
- Ambition and career advancement
- Representation and identity
- Community roots and local involvement
- Networking and relationships
- Crisis or timing
- Ego, recognition, or family legacy
People rarely cite just one reason. Most politicians describe a combination, for example, personal experience plus party recruitment plus ambition, or civic duty plus ideological commitment. And their stated reasons don’t always match underlying ones. Many politicians start their careers with noble intentions, and a few even maintain that nobility throughout. Too many, however, do not. Over time, power, influence, lifestyle, ego, and corruption seep in and may even take over. This is one of the main reasons many countries and positions have term limits. I am reminded of the famous saying: “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.”
The evidence of absolute power and its attendant corruption is all too evident in many countries that have never been democracies, and in too many democratic countries with leaders who came to power only to dismantle their country’s democracy in pursuit of absolute power. Israel, under Netanyahu, is unfortunately one of these countries. On the optimistic side, he hasn’t yet fully succeeded, and we all have a chance to prevent that from happening with our votes on October 27, just 20 days after the third anniversary of Black Saturday, October 7.
What Should Motivate Our New Leaders—and Who Should They Be?
The main motivation of every person and party we vote for must be to rebuild what has been destroyed: faith in the army and the government; a feeling of security and the actual provision of real security; rebuilding the Gaza envelope and the northern communities with the full involvement and cooperation of their residents; restoring Israel’s position in the world through proper political and public diplomacy, which have been abandoned and devastated over these three years; ending the divisiveness that has been emblematic of the Netanyahu era and replacing it with a drive toward unity; and passing a bill that will draft every able-bodied 18-year-old, no matter gender, religion, or political affiliation, into civil service duty, whether it be in the military, hospitals, ambulance corps, teaching, or other defined community service.
And who should be our new leaders – the people we vote for?
First and foremost, they must be worthy of our vote. This means they must prove their worthiness every day, not just before elections. They must feel that they owe the entire population their utmost effort to look after the interests of the country and its residents (citizens and all who live here) with every decision they make. As soon as they shift to pursuing their own self-interests before those of the country, that is the day they must put their possessions in a box and leave their leadership role.
Every one of our new political leaders must be a role model, possess a visible moral compass that guides their viewpoint, outlook, and decisions, have a proven record of honesty and ethical integrity, and choose country over party and self at every turn.
These are the most basic and most important qualities, values, and characteristics that must be a prerequisite to deserve our vote, our faith, our respect, and our future.
Not a single coalition partner from this government comes close to meeting even one of these requisites, let alone several. Starting with the top, they are not worthy of us, and they are not deserving of a single vote of confidence. Let’s send them all home on October 27 and bring about the leadership for the Israel we dream about, the Israel we know we can be, the Israel we deserve.
Only a New Government Can Honor the Fallen and the Hostages
There is one more truth that must be stated plainly: only a new government, with new leadership, can truly honor all who have fallen and all who were taken hostage. This government has shown, through its actions and its inaction, that it is both unwilling and completely incapable of doing so. The fallen deserve leaders who will learn the lessons of their sacrifice, not ones who rewrite history to protect themselves. The hostages and their families deserve leaders who will fight for their wellbeing and future with every ounce of moral and political will, not ones consumed by political survival. Honor is not a speech or a ceremony. Honor is accountability, responsibility, and action. This government has failed on all three. Only new leadership can restore the dignity that the fallen and the hostages are owed.
In summation
Three years after October 7, too many Israeli leaders, chief among them Benjamin Netanyahu, have avoided accountability, rewritten the narrative, and prioritized personal survival over the nation’s interests. The entire current coalition has forfeited its right to lead by choosing self-preservation over responsibility. This government has also proven itself unwilling and completely incapable of honoring the fallen and the hostages, a sacred duty that only new leadership can fulfill. True leadership requires moral integrity, a proven record of honesty, and a commitment to country over self. On October 27, we have the opportunity to demand better. We must vote for leaders who will rebuild trust, restore security, unify the nation, honor the fallen and the hostages, and serve the people, not themselves. Let’s send this government home and elect the leadership Israel deserves.
