When he first assumed the prime minister’s office in 1996, Netanyahu had a dream: to establish a White House in Jerusalem. In his worldview and essence, Netanyahu is more an American politician than an Israeli one. He despises the Israeli governmental system, which he feels ties the hands of the elected leader and leaves him at the mercy of nonelected functionaries and the entire governmental apparatus. Netanyahu’s ideal model is that of the American presidential system, in which the president enjoys a guaranteed four-year term of office and sweeping powers to boot.

In his first term of office, Netanyahu tried to call the director of his office his “chief of staff” and aspired to change the system of government. His efforts crashed when the inexperienced Netanyahu succeeded in antagonizing the entire political system and lost an early election to Ehud Barak with a wide margin.

But his dream endured. In recent weeks, Netanyahu has again expressed his hopes for change, this time out loud. At first, as Donald Trump’s against-all-odds victory in the US elections stirred Netanyahu’s imagination, he confided to others in private conversations. “We need to be like Trump,” he repeated to ministers and close associates, a political source told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity. On Dec. 11, Netanyahu spoke openly at a Cabinet meeting. "Trump can make 4,000 appointments. We should be able to make a few hundred appointments that don’t need a tender,” Netanyahu told the ministers. “We also need to be able to govern.”

Israel’s system of government puts tight limits on the number of political appointees and personal appointments that government ministers can make. A large percentage of government positions require a formal tender, while other senior posts require that appointment committees be set up to submit their recommendations to the appropriate ministers. Ministers are able to make a very limited number of political appointments. At that last government meeting, numerous ministers complained that they find it difficult to appoint and fire senior officials in their ministries due to the complex procedures guiding the appointment committees. Netanyahu agreed. It was exactly the sort of complaint he was waiting for, the perfect opportunity. The civil service apparatus should focus on appointing mid- and low-level officials, while allowing the ministers to make high-ranking appointments without tenders, he said, complaining that the regulations “won’t let us run the country" and arguing, "It is a fact that the IDF [Israel Defense Forces] chief of staff is not appointed by an appointment committee and neither is the police inspector general, yet it works well.”