Statesmanlike in a narrow government

During the election campaign, Benjamin Netanyahu pledged he would try to form a wide government that could better meet political and security challenges, extricate the economy from the recession and strengthen the education system. Netanyahu also said his most grievous error from his previous term as prime minister was not forming a unity government. Yet the political reality runs counter to his declarations: Netanyahu is having trouble persuading Tzipi Livni to join his coalition and he is near establishing a narrow government comprised of Likud, the extreme right and the ultra-Orthodox.

Like Livni, who is steadfast in her positions, Netanyahu has a right to adhere to his principles. Yet even in a narrow government he will have to act as the leader of all the people and adopt a statesmanlike approach, just as he did as head of the opposition in the previous Knesset and as a candidate in the elections.

During his last term in high office, Netanyahu indulged in unnecessary and damaging quarrels with wide swaths of the public and institutions that disagreed with his views. Even though he came to power after the murder of Yitzhak Rabin, he did not act as a unifying leader. Rather, his conduct exacerbated domestic strife. He is infamously remembered for whispering to Rabbi Yitzhak Kadouri that "left-wingers forgot what it is to be Jews" and his declaration that "what we call elites are those who hate everyone. They hate the people. They hate the Sephardic Jews, they hate the Russians, they hate whoever is not them."

Netanyahu sought to justify his behavior by claiming he was working toward social change, whereby "the old elites would be on the margins of the playing field while the erstwhile outsiders would take command." The formation of a right-wing government does not obligate him to resume this approach even if there is pressure on him to do so from within the coalition. The national challenges require him to focus and adopt a statesmanlike, unifying attitude rather than a sectarian-partisan approach. It is possible to enact reforms without resorting to incitement against adversaries.

A statesmanlike posture is especially important toward Arab citizens, against whom Netanyahu's senior coalition partner, Avigdor Lieberman, orchestrated a racist election campaign. This community must not be outcast from society, and it is important to eschew discriminatory legislation in the spirit of "loyalty oaths" as proposed by Lieberman. Netanyahu will be tested on his avoidance of divisive moves, culture wars and racist laws no less than his ability to handle Hamas, the Iranian threat and the economic crisis.