Bibi calls his critics "silly". Calls his changes "little". Don't believe it for a second.

Seven US presidents have said that Bibi is a compulsive liar. That's just the beginning The master of toxic tactics and manipulation is in full force. I give you Exhibition A.

Bibi gave an outrageous interview yesterday on CNN that was full of lies, spin, and toxicity. He called reactions to his dictatorial plan “silly” (trying to invoke images of female hysteria), he called his plans “minor fixes” (yeah, right, all 141 bills on the docket are little), he said that the protests were signs of a healthy democracy (ignoring the fact that his government is violently trying to quash the protests and that dozens of people are still injured by the out-of-control police controlled by racist gun-loving Ben Gvir), and then concluded by twisting the entire story. He said that the REAL threat to democracy is NOT his overt plan to grab power and keep it forever while punishing protesters and the media and rewarding radical extremists. No, no, that’s not the real threat, he says. The REAL threat is the Supreme Court. If the Supreme Court rules that his Reasonableness Cancel Law goes against the Basic Laws of Israel (the closest thing we have to a constitution), then THAT will be a problem. He called THAT “unprecedented”.

Yes, of all the things going on right now in Israel, the one thing that Bibi called “unprecedented” is that the Supreme Court may override his law. He ignored what is truly unprecedented: the 7-month-long protests by half a million Israelis. The hundreds of thousands marching to Jerusalem. The economic demotion of Israel. The pilots’ strike. The reservists’ strike. And of course, his coalition’s completely unprecedented and blatant attempt to quash all opposition and fix himself into power. No, no. Bibi dismissed all of this as nothing, as silly. And then went on to twist the whole thing and say that the Supreme Court doing it’s actual job is the “real” threat to democracy.

And then, to top it all off: He made a veiled threat that if the Supreme Court rules against him, that could lead to more violence.

I want to break down some of the powerful toxic tactics Bibi used in this little speech. First of all, we need to know what we’re listening to. Second of all, he considers this such a successful tactic that he has instructed all Israeli foreign ministries around the world to get trained in this language. We need to be able to name it, call it out, and reply to it.

I’ve been saying this since 2016: When the guy in charge uses toxic tactics, he is effectively training all of his followers in doing the same. It worked for Trump, and it is working for Bibi, and he is now OFFICIALLY training his megaphones in toxicity and lies.

So we need to be prepared to respond and call out the toxic tactics.

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Refuting the lies

But first, I want to make sure that we all understand that Bibi’s plan is not “minor” or silly. It’s huge. Massive. Collosal. And, yes, it will spell the end of all semblance of democracy: [You can see the breakdown HERE in Hebrew]

When Knesset reconvenes in October, of the 141 bills currently on the docket, they will be looking at 42 laws that seem designed to neuter the judiciary, 11 laws to control the electoral process; 24 laws for strengthening Orthodox religious control of the country; 7 laws to politicize public bodies; 30 laws that infringe on basic human liberties; 4 laws to close down the media; and 12 laws to regulate academia.
(Hat tip: Fern Reiss, Olim for Democracy)

NOT minor. NOT silly. NOT little.

This is HUGE, STRATEGIC, and INTENDED TO BREAK DEMOCRACY.

Here is one example of a bill that you may not have heard about that has the potential to completely transform the electoral system, and enable the coalition to invalidate entire parties if they so choose — thus gaining even more seats. This is from the Facebook post of Attorney Nitzan Caspi Shilony of the Center for Women’s Justice:

Currently on the Knesset table is a bill that is really the end.
Correction to the Basic Law: The Knesset states that the decision of the Election Commission is final and definite and cannot be challenged.

In the Election Committee there is a majority for the coalition and therefore this section of the law can be used in order to keep people in power forever.
This clause actually prevents free and fair elections.
The committee can determine, for example, that an Arab party is not a Zionist and therefore does not comply with No. 7 of the Basic Law of the Knesset and invalidate it. It can invalidate any other list for similar reasons.

It's not just the Reasonableness Clause. We are not scared for no reason. There is a clear and stated intention here, and we just have to believe what they are telling us.

Just so we are clear. This is happening right now. Journalists interviewing Bibi or any of his posse need to know this. They need to be able to challenge the FACTS here. That there are in fact 141 bills that will be voted on in coming months, each stripping away what is left on the bones of Israeli democracy.

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“I’m not the dictator! YOU are!”

And now to name Bibi’s toxic tactics.

Number one is lying. (See above) We need to understand that, as every US president who has ever worked with him knows, Bibi is a compulsive liar. He says, “This isn’t happening” when in fact it is PRECISELY what is happening. For example. Lying is at the core of toxicity.

But it’s not just the lying. It’s much worse than lying.

Bibi is also master of a tactic I call The Fling Back. It’s a very schoolyard-bully type of tactic which deflects all criticism by putting it back on the victims.

Bibi’s camp has been doing this ever since they came into power and began facing criticism. His critics are screaming, “You are breaking democracy!” But rather than reply to the criticism, the response has been, “No YOU are breaking democracy!”

This has been head-spinning. After hundreds of thousands of protesters on Kaplan were saying that the coalition is threatening democracy, Bibi’s camp started a campaign in the EXACT SAME SPOT with the EXACT SAME WORDS. “Protesters are a threat to democracy!” or “The Supreme Court is a threat to democracy!”

Whatever criticism is being directed at Bibi, he throws right back. And then people get confused because suddenly they can’t tell who is speaking and what they are saying. Wait, WHO is making WHAT claim? WHOSE sign is that on the Ayalon about democracy?

Last week it became absurd when, along Kaplan, on one side of the street were anti-government protesters screaming about democracy and holding Israeli flags, while on the other side of street were anti-protester protesters screaming about democracy and holding Israeli flags.

This leads to the third tactic that I want to highlight today, which is the False Moral Equivalency. Think “There are nice guys on all sides” or something like that. Especially around Tisha B’Av, we were hearing stuff like that. “ALL SIDES want the same thing.” (That is a complete lie. One side wants democracy and equality while the other side wants to grab power.) Or, “Both sides are responsible for violence” (again, a complete like — see my post from yesterday.).

This is not about “disunity” and it is not about two sides needing to get along. There is one side that is using force and violence to silence all opposition and critics and to create a system in which they will have power forever and never have to listen to critics ever again. The other side is trying to protect the country from that terrifying reality. That’s it. There is no moral equivalency, and both sides are not the same.

The language of moral equivalency is a form of victim-blaming. It is an attempt to blur the actions of the violent bully and tell the victims of that bully that they are the same way, that it is their responsibility. Don’t buy it.

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There is so much more. Each day we are inundated with so many assaults that it is nearly impossible to keep up. That in itself is a tactic — to tire out one’s victims so that they give up.

I may be tired, but i’m not giving up. I will write about this as long as my mind and body allow it.

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