Political Commentary

Another parallel between Israeli and US politics is that in both countries, swing voters that move between the two warring political camps on the Left and Right have all but dried up.

The straw breaking Netanyahu's back is the sovereignty issue, which now appears to be slipping through his fingers as he wages a last-ditch effort to salvage something of the historic initiative.

This is a critical week, not just for the settlement enterprise but for the political system. If the Americans demand Blue and White's cooperation as a condition for green-lighting the sovereignty initiative, the government will instantly become a pressure cooker.

PM Netanyahu’s hesitation about applying Israeli law to Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria and the Jordan Valley is clearly a product of the immense pressure he is under from every direction to shelve President Trump’s Middle East peace plan.

Normalizing ties with Israel is just as important for the Arab world as it is to us. The Right would also be wise to be less audacious vis-à-vis US President Trump, who has proved to be a vital ally.

After a 509-day-long political gridlock, and in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, the new government's induction was anything but festive.

With novice politicians slated to head half of the ministries, a serious shakeup in Likud, and coming off 18 months of minimal activity over the political logjam, the new government is facing more than one uphill battle.

There’s one achievement Netanyahu will not agree to concede: annexation of settlements in Judea and Samaria and applying Israeli sovereignty over them and the Jordan Valley.  

The unprecedented political rollercoaster ride during the past 12 months means that the new unity government has a daunting task to carry out.