Netanyahu is accelerating military action because he anticipates losing U.S. support
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/by/mona-charen. "Opinion | Support for Israel Is Collapsing. Netanyahu Sees That. - The New York Times." March 30, 2026. www.nytimes.com
The Gist
The author argues that Netanyahu sees growing anti-Israel sentiment from both the American left and right, so he's trying to eliminate all of Israel's enemies now while Trump is president, before U.S. support disappears completely. Basically, he's rushing to finish the job while he still can.
Conclusion
Netanyahu is racing to eliminate regional threats now because he recognizes that U.S. support for Israel is declining and may not be available in the future
Premises
- Support for Israel is collapsing from both the progressive left (who view Israel as settler colonialism) and the hard right (influenced by figures like Tucker Carlson)
- This creates a 'pincer movement' of anti-Israel sentiment from both political extremes in the United States
- Netanyahu has calculated that Israel will not have U.S. support in the future
- Netanyahu is attempting to accomplish maximum military objectives while Trump is in office and support still exists
- The strategy involves eliminating Iran, Hezbollah, and Hamas as threats to achieve long-term security
- Once these threats are eliminated, Israel won't need to worry about American public opinion
Assumptions
- Netanyahu is a rational strategic actor who makes decisions based on long-term calculations
- Current U.S. political trends regarding Israel support will continue or accelerate
- Military elimination of regional threats is achievable and would provide lasting security
- Trump administration support represents Israel's last opportunity for major military operations with U.S. backing
- American public opinion significantly influences U.S. foreign policy toward Israel