Opinion: Trump, Netanyahu and the politics of divide and rule
Jack Mendel is the former Online Editor at the Jewish News.
by Jack Mendel, Online Editor
Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu are two very different people, but share a lot of similar ideas.
Ignore the fact that Trump was born into privilege and has bizarre hair, or the fact that the Israeli leader has a well-groomed political act with an ex-army image, they share a similar worldview.
Whilst Netanyahu builds walls to stop terror, and even supports building a fence to protect Israel from ‘predators’, Trump wants to ‘build a wall’ to stop Mexicans coming in. He has branded them as ‘criminals and rapists’ and ‘killers.’
They share a defensive mindset, in which they are always the victim. They always have to protect themselves against a threat.
They are good at ‘othering’, at painting someone as that threat, that they can champion protecting against.
At Israel’s last election, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the Arab citizens of Israel were voting ‘in their droves’. He demonised them, and it was a key moment in his eventual successful re-election.
The frontrunner in the race for the Republican presidential candidacy, Donald Trump followed Netanyahu’s suit recently. After the San Bernardino terrorist attacks in 2015, where two Muslim terrorists killed 14 civilians, Trump called for a “total and complete” ban on Muslims entering America.
Netanyahu and Trump latch on to minorities as being ‘the problem’ in society. This problem can be solved by bans, blocks, walls and bold speeches, apparently.
The reality is, that this approach has been not just an utter failure, but especially in Netanyahu’s case, used as a distraction from a string of his own failures.
If you look at Netanyahu’s tenure as Prime Minister, it has been one disaster after another, all of which have reduced trust and increased insecurity in Israel.
Whether catastrophic wars in Gaza, settlement building, walls snaking through the West Bank, international isolation, internal religious conflict or the worsening of the ‘peace process’, Netanyahu has not made Israel ‘great again’, in the words of Trump. Quite the opposite.
He has dug Israel into an even deeper hole than the one it was already in, blamed it on others, and said the responsibility is his to clean it up, so elect me, again, and again.
His use of inflammatory language is nothing more than a blame game for what is largely a failure to deal with problems.
Unfortunately, in the real world, no amount of booming speeches at the UN and hard talk can compensate for a lack of action and a failure to address big issues head on.
And, Trump’s campaign promises much of the same vague confrontational and provocative language, without much detail.
He says he wants to ‘build a wall and make Mexico pay for it’ and ‘ban all Muslims’, but never expands how he will do this. He doesn’t talk about dealing with the inevitable hostility he’ll receive from some of America’s 35million Mexican Americans, or how these policies will be viewed amongst the world’s 1.5 billion Muslims.
The problem, is that whilst many will mock both Benjamin Netanyahu and Donald Trump’s, bold, crass and often offensive statements which are geared to win support through fear; their tactics do work.
Trump’s remarks about Muslims propelled him into the lead of the Republican race, and the Israeli leader’s comments about Arabs voting helped seal his election.
They both promote the politics of divide and rule, and this has been successful in Israel. Israel has never been more divided, and Netanyahu’s ruling grip has never been stronger.
So, to Americans considering backing Trump, think of the mess he may create – because once he does, you may be stuck with him trying to clean it up too.
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
