Netanyahu Beats the Odds

Local and international media were against him; leaders throughout the international community were against him; even the president of Israel's greatest ally, the United States, was against him.  But despite all the opposition to him and everything he stands for, Benjamin Netanyahu came out on top.  It was essentially Bibi versus the world, and Bibi won.  In fact, he won more easily than anyone anticipated.  Most thought that if Netanyahu did win, he would do so by only a seat or two against his main rivals in the Zionist Camp, led by Isaac Herzog and Tzipi Livni.  But the newly re-elected Israeli Prime Minister surprised everyone, including myself, by receiving a six seat margin of victory.  Personally, I couldn't be happier, not just because Netanyahu is the best person to lead Israel, but also because his victory represents a big middle finger being waved in the face of his opponents, including U.S. President and Neville Chamberlain wannabe, Barack Obama.

Obama wanted nothing more than to see Bibi defeated and for a new government led by the bleeding heart lefties of the Zionist Camp to come to power in Israel.  Sorry, Obama, but you bet on the wrong horse.  Too bad you're such a poor sport, too, otherwise you would be congratulating Bibi yourself instead of having your sidekick, John Kerry, do it for you.  Now of course, Obama wasn't the only world leader who wanted to see Netanyahu fall, which is why many other world leaders haven't congratulated the Israeli Prime Minister on his election victory either.  As far as I'm concerned, they can all go to hell.  The only thing that matters is what Israelis want, and clearly Israelis want Bibi to remain prime minister because they know that he will never compromise their security.

Netanyahu must now work on forming a new government; a government that will not curtail his efforts to defend Israel's interests in the international community; a government that will tackle Israel's socioeconomic problems, such as the housing crisis, which Bibi mentioned in his victory speech.  Indeed, I would say that the greatest threat to his reelection was the public perception that he was ignoring the country's socioeconomic issues.  Thankfully, Israeli voters looked past this perception and chose to keep him in office.  This doesn't mean, however, that Israelis have forgotten about things like housing shortages and the high cost of living.  These issues will be right back on the agenda as soon as Israel recovers from election fever, so I think that Netanyahu would be wise to form a government that will tackle the country's socioeconomic problems, because if Israelis do not see an improvement to their standard of living soon, they may not give Bibi another chance next time.