Rosner’s Domain | The Trump Envy Syndrome

I named it “The Trump Envy Syndrome” (TES). 

It is a psycho-political phenomenon that can be identified among Israelis who see Trump’s victory, his planned revolutionary reforms, as a roadmap for Israel. These are Israelis who won an election with a right-wing coalition before Trump. These are Israelis who admire the bold actions of Trump in America. Before the war, they, too, have tried to be bold, to revolutionize the system. One might think that they learned a lesson having tried and failed to pass a comprehensive and controvercial legal reform. But many of them reached the lesson you wouldn’t expect. They think that they failed not because of overereach but rather because of underreach: They were too hesitant, too timid. Trump’s victory, his audacity in governmental appointments, gives some of them reason to hope and act.

What is Trump trying to do? Many of his voters believe that it’s time to tame the so-called “deep state” systems that rule America against the democratic will of the masses. The sentiment in Israel is quite similar. It reminds one of the many complaints against the power of the Attorney General, the courts, the Shin Bet, the media, the gatekeepers, the senior bureaucracy, the IDF top brass. Naturally, for a similar problem some Israelis prescribe a similar solution: to appoint unconventional people to key positions who can set new policies, clean the house and hand the power back to the elected officials preferred by the public. 

You can belittle the claim that the systems are corrupt, you can try to convince your peers that that’s not the case, you can assume it’s a claim of cynics who just want more power. It doesn’t much change the reality of TES that is metastasizing in Israel. Clearly, there are those in Israel who have similar feelings to Trump voters. Clearly, there are leaders in Israel who think it’s necessary to clean house, some of them cynics, some of them truly believing the house is a total mess. There is readiness among these Israelis – let’s call them by name: Staunch Netanyahu supporters (in Hebrew they are often described as “Bibistim”) to go very far in this attempt to undermine traditional state institutions. 

Trump is currently doing this by daily appointments. You’re familiar with the names, so there’s no need to go over the list. Some Trump appointments are reasonable and routine, some are surprising, and some appear scandalous. But to whom do they seem so? To those who believe that the old order was, more or less, bearable. Not to Trump, who wants a revolution. He has convinced the voters, and himself, that a big shake-up is needed. He will have a cabinet like none ever seen in America before. 

His seeming lack of inhibitions has, in recent weeks, aroused the envy of leaders in the Israeli coalition. Trump starts a second term believing that to achieve his goals he needs to be more aggressive than what we witnessed in his first term. The Israeli coalition is adopting a similar mindset. Two years ago it attempted a revolution by being aggressive. This did not quite succeed, and the conclusion is that an even more aggressive approach is necessary. Thus, we see the return of the “legal reform.” Thus, we hear blunt statements against the established insitutions. Netanyahu, just a few days ago, called these authorities “hunting machines.” He and his allies see how Trump acts – and want the same. They see how Trump ignores the media, his political opponents, the elites – they want the same.

This syndrome is dangerous to Israel. First of all, because it’s not at all certain that what Trump is doing will lead to good results. Even those who support his moves cannot know that what he is doing will lead to good outcomes. It’s a gamble. So one needs to think about what happens if the gamble succeeds, and also what happens if the gamble fails. The answer is, in the case of America, not much. America is a superpower, with an ability to absorb a hard blow and recover. It has the resources of an empire. If Trump’s gamble doesn’t turn out well, it could make things worse, but there won’t be an existential threat.

Israel is not America, and therefore Trump Envy Syndrome is dangerous. here On the battlefield, it is important for Israel to remember that it is not a superpower, and plan its actions accordingly. And the same is true for societal and political actions. Netanyahu cannot be Trump, not because he is less smart, but because Trump operates in America while Netanyahu operates in Israel — different arena, different conditions, which require more cautious risk management. The aggression that Trump can afford in the American arena, without fear of societal collapse, is something that Israel’s government cannot afford, unless it is willing to risk, well, a societal collapse. In the midst of war.

Israel is not America, and therefore Trump Envy here is dangerous. On the battlefield, it is important for Israel to remember that it is not a superpower, and plan its actions accordingly. And the same is true for societal and political actions. 

What Trump Envy teaches us about the coalition isn’t that it’s ideologicaly flawed. It teaches us that the coalition has a severe case of megalomania.

Something I wrote in Hebrew

Following Netanyahu’s blunt attack on the legal system and the Shin Bet, I wrote the following comment:

What we call a “state” has various layers, most of which exist in our imagination. There’s society, landscapes, a flag, an anthem, traditions and culture. There’s territory and currency. And there are institutions. They are responsible for the concrete action that turns a collection of sentiments and ideas into something organized, something we can call a state. A state without institutions is not a state. A state that fights its institutions is a state fighting itself. A state whose prime minister battles its institutions is a state in real trouble. This means we are a state in severe trouble.

A week’s numbers

Trump Envy Syndrome is a symptom of Israelis who believed Trump is the better candidate for Israel (a clear majority) but also the better one for America (not a majority).

A reader’s response

Ari Cohen wrote: “Shmuel, are they really going to have ceasefire in the north?” My response: by the time you read this, it could already be a done deal. That’s why I didn’t want to write about this issue in length for an early deadline. Happy Thanksgiving. 

Shmuel Rosner is senior political editor. For more analysis of Israeli and international politics, visit Rosner’s Domain at jewishjournal.com/rosnersdomain.