{Originally seen in “The Teal Report” at https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/israel-need-mensch-jerry-waxman-cfhre/ }
Binyamin Netanyahu is no mensch. He’s traveled all the way to Washington, D.C. for a White House dinner, while 20 hostages remain trapped in Gaza’s tunnels, surviving on pita in near-total darkness.
“We have already transformed the Middle East beyond recognition, and we now have a chance to bring a great future to the state of Israel, the people of Israel and the entire Middle East,” he says. Just as those words are spoken, a rocket from Gaza strikes Kibbutz Nirim—still reeling from the devastation of October 7, 2023. Its residents had only just begun returning. I wonder if they feel this “transformation.”
“We have already transformed the Middle East beyond recognition, and we now have a chance to bring a great future to the state of Israel, the people of Israel and the entire Middle East,” he says. But those don’t sound like the words of a mensch. They sound like overblown self-praise—echoes of Trump-style bluster.
The 12-day bombing campaign on Iranian targets was, at first, well received by Israelis and much of the global community. Then Trump stepped in. Exercising presidential authority, he dispatched U.S. bombers to strike a couple sites and proclaimed the mission a sweeping success. “Obliterated,” he boasted, claiming Iran’s nuclear program was destroyed for good. Netanyahu and many Israelis applauded. Soon, “obliterated” became the official talking point, repeated across Trump’s administration—cabinet members and his press secretary parroting it as gospel, afraid to contradict their leader.
For Americans—and, frankly, Israelis too—this should raise alarms. Nothing Trump says is dependable. To him, words serve only one function: making him look good. Truth is foreign territory, one he enters reluctantly. And when he does speak truthfully, he rushes to distort it, just to maintain his balance in a world built on lies.
In that respect, Netanyahu mirrors Trump more than I’d once believed. I wanted to think differently. After the horror of October 7, I hoped Netanyahu had changed—that he’d grown into a leader focused on the well-being of his people above personal politics. I truly believed he was the right man to bring the hostages home and dismantle the terrorist leadership in Gaza.
But as the war dragged on, those hopes gradually faded. Opportunities to retrieve hostages slipped by, and my doubts about Netanyahu’s competence rose. Worse than that, my doubts about his *motives* came roaring back. His actions spoke not of leadership, but of calculation. Not of a mensch, but of a politician.
The Iran mission stirred a sense of admiration. I was genuinely impressed by the precision of Israel’s intelligence services and the Air Force’s execution. For a while, I was silently cheering the operation on. But on the twelfth day, when Trump’s bombers entered the fray and he declared the war won, the images of Netanyahu celebrating with smiles and praise for Trump spoiled everything.
True leaders don’t celebrate like that—not while soldiers are still dying in Gaza. Not while the families of 50 hostages continue to endure unimaginable grief. Even in moments of clear success, real leaders exercise restraint.
“We have transformed the Middle East beyond recognition,” Netanyahu says, fully aware that neither he nor Trump will be contenders for a Nobel Peace Prize.
Days after Trump’s dramatic display in Iraq, media outlets reported no substantial evidence that Iran’s nuclear program had been destroyed. I couldn’t help but wonder—were we all duped again? Was Israel double-duped? Trump has never been a mensch. Netanyahu, meanwhile, is turning into a bitter disappointment—and that’s the most generous way I can describe his leadership.
Looking back, the events seem quite different through the lens of hindsight.
On October 7, 2023, when Palestinian terrorists breached Israel’s borders and ravaged civilian communities, Netanyahu was Israel’s prime minister. The worst terror attack in Israel’s history occurred under his watch. There were no apologies. No resignations.
At the start of the war, the country united behind the IDF and the Netanyahu government. But did Netanyahu truly stand behind his people? While Israel poured millions into bombs and weapons, soldiers were left scrambling for essential gear. I saw social media posts urgently requesting donations for helmets and protective clothing. It was bewildering. Netanyahu had once worn a uniform. How could he allow soldiers to enter a war zone so under-equipped?
Over time, the IDF bombarded Gaza, uncovered and destroyed tunnels harboring caches of weapons, and claimed control over parts of the Strip. With strong backing from President Joe Biden, a temporary cease-fire was reached, leading to the release of several hostages. Hope began to bloom. But that cease-fire broke down. Why? Back then, I laid the blame squarely on Hamas. Now, I’m not so sure.
In the months that followed, President Biden continued to press for cease-fires and hostage exchanges. I disagreed with some of his tactics—especially the lopsided prisoner swaps and the insistence on a “day after” roadmap—but I respected the focus: freeing the hostages.
Netanyahu, on the other hand, had different priorities. With his coalition constantly at risk, politics took center stage. His National Security Minister, Itamar Ben Gvir, threatened to collapse the government if Netanyahu strayed from the mission of crushing Hamas. Ben Gvir even boasted about blocking a hostage deal.
Ben Gvir, who never served in the IDF, somehow holds the title of Minister of National Security. October 7 happened on *his* watch, too. I remember asking myself, “How could this be happening?” It was Shabbat. It was Simchat Torah. It was the 50th anniversary of the Yom Kippur War. Where was the heightened alert? Where were the troops? Yet, not a word of remorse from Ben Gvir. No resignation. Just more politics.
Later that year, when another cease-fire and potential hostage deal emerged, Ben Gvir shot it down, reportedly saying, “I don’t want Biden to have a win.” Netanyahu didn’t reprimand him. He protected the coalition instead. That’s what mattered most: survival in office.
Trump won re-election in November 2024. Not long after, and before he was sworn in, more hostages were released under a plan laid out by Biden’s team. Since then, only one American-Israeli hostage has been freed—a day or two before Trump received a private jet as a “gift” in Qatar.
Of course, we welcomed that hostage home. But it also raised a question: If corruption can secure freedom, why are there still 50 people held in Gaza?
Trump and Netanyahu have both been lauded for the Abraham Accords. But after October 7, not a single Arab leader rushed to Israel’s defense. So what was the point? For that matter what value do the peace treaties with Egypt and Jordan really hold?
And now, Netanyahu heads to a White House dinner—a moment of self-congratulation for both him and Trump. Yet at this moment, there is no verified news of a new cease-fire. No concrete plan for more hostage releases. Still, Netanyahu talks of victory, insisting that the terrorist threat has been “severely weakened” and that peace is within reach. He says this after 21 months of grueling conflict—after the deaths of 800 Israeli soldiers, the destruction of Gaza, the displacement of Israeli families, and the devastation of entire Israeli communities.
What, really, do we have to show for it all? Ben Gvir still holds office. Netanyahu still clings to power. And the rockets from Gaza still fly.
A prayer and a plea for Israel: Hear, O Israel—land of chutzpah and miracles—may you heal from your wounds and find your way back to wisdom. May you cast off the liars and corruption that have led you astray. And in a land of innovation and compassion, where your rescuers travel the world to save lives and your farmers make the desert bloom— from 8 million Jewish people in our homeland, can it really be so difficult to find just one mensch to unify and rebuild a nation in need?
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