In his Oval Office address following the Oct. 7 attacks, President Joe Biden, while not addressing Benjamin Netanyahu by name, nonetheless issued an unmistakeable word of caution to Israel's prime minister: "When America experienced the hell of 9/11, we felt enraged as well, and while we sought and got justice, we made mistakes. So I caution the government of Israel not to be blinded by rage."
No one who knows anything about Netanyahu has been surprised that he's ignored Biden's words of caution. He used the Hamas attack on Israeli citizens as a pretext to unleash a nightmarish amount of violence on Palestinian citizens while giving bloodthirsty speeches to justify these actions. It couldn't be clearer that Netanyahu, whose tenure has been increasingly weighed down by ugly corruption scandals and a threat of criminal sanction, is hoping for a repeat of what President George W. Bush enjoyed in the aftermath of 9/11: A surge in approval polls, boosted by a "rally 'round the flag" effect.
