Benzi Robin02.12.22 09:03 AM in Kislo Tishpeg
(Photo: Yonatan Zindel / Flash 90)
For a long time Otzma Yehudit chairman Itamar Ben Gabir has been working on a new image, as part of the effort to gain public legitimacy and a central place at the decision-making table.
The goal was to prove that he is not the same mischievous boy from the 1990s who is identified with the Yes movement, and not the provocateur who comes with a flag to the heart of an Arab city or demonstrates against pride parades.
Ben Gabir adopted a new style, a moderate tone of voice, he even underwent an upgrade in his personal style and started dressing up with suits and a more meticulous look. All this earned him wide public credit, exposed him to a larger audience and made him a much more acceptable figure.
Ben Gabir and his friends of the Otzma Yehudit faction (Photo: Yonatan Zindel/Flash 90)
It’s true, it’s not that his opinions changed from end to end, but his volume level was reduced, which allowed a significant potential voter to listen to him and ultimately give him a central part in the electoral success of the “religious Zionist” list.
And here Ben Gabir is standing where he wanted – a central figure in the state’s leadership, with the ability to influence Israel’s national policy.
Who would have believed that a fringe representative within politics, who failed to pass the percentage of obstruction alone, stands today as an independent faction with six mandates, and is expected to soon become a senior minister and cabinet member in the Israeli government.
What was, is what will be
It is not easy to move from the position of the eternal opposition, the man who “screams at the gate” and runs between the scenes of terrorist attacks throughout the country, while he harshly criticizes the exploits of the government and the mistakes of those who bear responsibility.
Ben Gabir during the election campaign (Photo: Yonatan Zindel/Flash 90)
Will Ben Gvir succeed in this complex task, which requires a diskette replacement and a 180-degree change in attitude? Judging by the past week, it seems that the designated minister has not yet accepted his new position.
Since the previous Saturday, the spirits have not calmed down around the affair of the soldiers who were recorded beating and cursing extreme left activists in Hebron, a document that made waves in Israel and the world and once again flooded the difficulty of managing the mixed life there.
Mixing politics and the military is always problematic, but now Itamar Ben Gabir faced a dilemma – how to proceed in this sensitive and explosive case?
It is clear what Ben Gvir, the former model, would do. He would run for interviews, take pictures with the soldiers’ families, attack the government and the army for neglecting the soldiers.
This week it was revealed that what was – is what will be, despite the attempts at rebranding.
Unable to rise to the mandatory status?
Ben Gvir was unable to break free from his old pattern, and rushed to do exactly what everyone expected of him. He returned his old suit, and came out in a flood of reactions against the army, Defense Minister Gantz, and even against Chief of Staff Aviv Kochavi himself.
It is enough to see the video that was taken together with the soldier’s father, and the whole updated son-lady image was reset back in the closet, in favor of Itamar of old.
It turns out that Ben Gvir did not understand that he is now in a different place with different responsibilities, and in the near future he will be sworn in as an upgraded minister of internal security (and forgive me for not getting used to the ridiculous update in the name of the ministry).
In his first test since the election he failed miserably and showed all his critics that he is unable to rise to the size of the hour and the binding status.
There are still a few days or weeks until the swearing in of the government, and his official entry into office. One can only hope that by then he will understand that from now on he is expected to behave more responsibly and maturely.
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