Interview opportunity with Israel mayor David Rubin
The upcoming Israeli election on March 23rd has the entire post-lockdown Israeli population in suspense. The left-right divide that has gridlocked Israel’s previous three elections in the past two years seems to have vanished overnight and the focus of attention is on Prime Minister Benjamin (Bibi) Netanyahu, Israel’s longest-serving prime minister and his ability to survive for another term. The left-right divide has, in fact, been transformed into the question of whether, once the dust clears on the night of March 23rd, there will be a Bibi coalition or an anti-Bibi coalition.
Here to shed some light on Israel’s often confusing politics and its ramifications for us is David Rubin, the former Mayor of Shiloh, who also happens to be the author of six books, including “Trump and the Jews”.
Suggested Questions:
- Mayor Rubin, can you please explain why Israel is having its fourth election in just two years? Israel is a parliamentary democracy in which we vote for a party, and the leader of that party is dependent on his party’s performance. After the election, the various party leaders recommend who they think has the best chance of forming a majority coalition of 61 or more Knesset (parliament) members and that leader is given the task of forming a solid governing coalition. The problem in the last few elections is that after the election, the right-leaning parties and the left-leaning parties have been deadlocked, and therefore, no potential leader has been able to get the elusive backing of those 61 Knesset members that would put him over the top.
- Is Netanyahu going to receive that backing? Well, that depends on which poll you believe. According to the current average of polls, Netanyahu’s Likud party wins the most seats, but a coalition of anti-Bibi parties also has close to a majority. If they coalesce, they can prevent Bibi from forming the coalition.
- Does that mean that if Bibi doesn’t have 61 Knesset members backing him, that the Left will form the next coalition? Absolutely not. It would still be a right of center coalition, just not with Bibi. About 70-80 of the 120 Knesset members hold views that are right-of-center. Some of the anti-Bibi candidates like Naftali Bennett and Gideon Saar are further right than Bibi.
- Would you like to make any end of the campaign predictions? In these last few days, we can expect Netanyahu to be fiercely attacking his slightly more right-wing opponents like Bennett and Saar, but especially Bennett, who is considered the kingmaker in this election, since although he would like the Netanyahu era to come to an end, he has not ruled out joining either a pro-Bibi or anti-Bibi coalition.
- In your most recent book, “Trump and the Jews”, you explained a lot about some of the challenges that Israel faces every day. Where can people get a copy? They can go to the website www.DavidRubinIsrael.com , or just go to Amazon and type in the words, “Trump and the Jews”.
About Mayor David Rubin:
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David Rubin, former Mayor of Shiloh Israel, is the author of the book, “Trump and the Jews” and five other books.
Rubin is the founder and president of Shiloh Israel Children’s Fund, established after he and his then three-year-old son were wounded in a terror attack.
He can be found at www.DavidRubinIsrael.com or at http://www.ShilohIsraelChildren.org
CONTACT: Jerry McGlothlin 919-437-0001 jerry@specialguests.com
