Israel's Education Minister Naftali Bennett is not exactly disappointed with President Donald Trump. He is more disappointed with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Reports that Trump is planning a two-state solution and that he wants to revive the diplomatic process so he can reach the ultimate deal to resolve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict have sounded a death knell to the Israeli right's expectations and messianic visions, which considered the prospect of a Palestinian state dead and buried. Bennett, the chairman of HaBayit HaYehudi, laid out his view in detail during an interview with Al-Monitor.
"I expected that this is what would happen if we were passive," said Bennett. "We should have acted as soon as Trump took office and maybe even earlier. There was a vacuum, and we should have filled it, but we hesitated and got the same old template instead."
I asked Bennett what he meant. What exactly should have been done that wasn't done while the Trump administration took shape? "I am the only person in the government of Israel who ever made a business deal in general and a business deal in America in particular," said Bennett. "I lived in the US for years. I know New York and the American business world. I made dozens of deals with the biggest banks in America. What I learned about dealmaking in America from this is to tell the truth, even if it is unpleasant. Don't bluff. I had a very big client near Atlanta, a big bank, and we were supposed to provide it with a computer program costing several million dollars. I saw that we were going to be a few months late on the delivery date. It was a terrible problem. It was a major bank. In the past, we used to fudge it, take our time and come up with excuses. This time, however, I decided to do something different. I called the bank's CEO and told him the truth. We would not be delivering on time and would need another three months. He told me that he was disappointed, but that he appreciated the fact that I told him that straight up. You can do a lot in America, but you have to do it with integrity. You have to tell the truth, and the truth is that a Palestinian state will not be created in the foreseeable future."
"Would you have said it like that to Trump, right to his face?" I asked Bennett.
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