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Golly, he sure feels strongly about this — goodness knows he’s mentioned it often enough. [IsraelTimes] President Biden urges Netanyahu and his coalition not to move ahead with the imminent legislation of the first bill in the planned judicial overhaul.
In a statement to Axios and Walla! journalist Barak Ravid,
...in other words, a news site Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu — not to mention the rest of Israel’s voters — would never see. Talk about ineffective communication! Biden says, "It looks like the current judicial reform proposal is becoming more divisive
...politicians call things divisive when when the other side sez something they don't like. Their own statements are never divisive, they're principled ...
, not less."
"Given the range of threats and challenges confronting Israel right now, it doesn’t make sense for Israeli leaders to rush this — the focus should be on pulling people together and finding consensus," the president says.
More from a longer Times of Israel article on the subject: Just last week, Biden issued a statement to The New York Times in which he said, “This is obviously an area about which Israelis have strong views, including in an enduring protest movement that is demonstrating the vibrancy of Israel’s democracy, which must remain the core of our bilateral relationship.
The protest movement endures because of US State Department support on the orders of the Biden administration. Take away that support and it would collapse like a sand castle during an earthquake. “Finding consensus on controversial areas of policy means taking the time you need,” he continued. “For significant changes, that’s essential. So my recommendation to Israeli leaders is not to rush. I believe the best outcome is to continue to seek the broadest possible consensus here.”
But Netanyahu did not alter course and told Biden in a phone call a day before the president gave the statement to the Times that the opposition isn’t interested in compromise and that he would be going ahead with the legislation curtailing judicial review without the broad consensus he once assured Washington that he would secure.
“We won. Get over it.” The Israeli premier told Biden, however, that he would seek more widespread support for subsequent parts of the overhaul, which would be passed later this year.
It took until last week’s phone call for Biden to agree to meet with Netanyahu, following seven months of refraining from such a sit-down due to the administration’s ongoing displeasure with the judicial overhaul plans and Jerusalem’s policies in the West Bank.
Seven months of spleen-venting, to no avail. Way to demonstrate how important America is in your watch, President Biden! Amid the growing protests within the military, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant was said to working to try and delay the Knesset vote on the reasonableness bill and work toward a "wide consensus" that will "ensure the security of the State of Israel, while leaving the IDF separate from political discourse."
The defense minister was instrumental in getting the controversial overhaul paused in late March. After calling for a halt to the legislation in a public address, he was fired by Netanyahu, leading to massive protests, a nationwide labor strike and the shuttering of Ben Gurion airport. Netanyahu temporarily suspended the legislation, agreed to talks with the opposition under Herzog’s aegis that have since broken down, and eventually reinstated Gallant.
This time, Channel 12 reported Friday, Gallant was trying to work within the political system to try and defuse the crisis.
In a follow-up report on Sunday, Channel 12 said Netanyahu immediately called Defense Minister Yoav Gallant after his efforts on a compromise were reported by the network on Friday and angrily told the defense minister to back off.
"You think your proposal can be beneficial but it does great harm. Stop acting like you’re the prime minister. I’m handling the incident, stop interfering," Netanyahu was reported by Channel 12 to have told Gallant during their call.
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