Judicial reform in Israel: the left mounts a coup d’état
schecter.substack.com
Anyone following the question of judicial reform in Israel closely would know that the process is long overdue. The Israeli Supreme Court is no bulwark against democracy. It has arrogated to itself the right to strike down laws passed in the Knesset. It grants standing to anyone who wishes to bring a suit before it without that claimant needing to be a party to the suit. It self-selects its own members. It judges matters on the grounds of reasonability as determined by the justices, not on the grounds of whether the claims are legal or not. Add to this that the Attorney-General is not part of the government and that the legal advisers to ministers are beholden to the Attorney-General and not to the minister they advise. The upshot is the government is hamstrung by the courts, which has arrogated to itself the power to prevent the government from exercising its duly sworn duty to legislate and govern via bills passed in the Knesset, Israel’s parliament. This untenable position means that even regarding questions of national security and defense the courts may interfere and overrule government policy. May interfere and has interfered, which explains in part why governments dominated by the Likud have not pursued policies to deal effectively with the criminal Palestinian population steeped in Jew hatred which extends to the Jewish state. I say in part, because there is also the extreme proportional representation governing Israel’s electoral system, which ensures that Likud dominated governments have always been coalition governments, often involving partners with opposing viewpoints on this question.
Judicial reform in Israel: the left mounts a coup d’état
Judicial reform in Israel: the left mounts a…
Judicial reform in Israel: the left mounts a coup d’état
Anyone following the question of judicial reform in Israel closely would know that the process is long overdue. The Israeli Supreme Court is no bulwark against democracy. It has arrogated to itself the right to strike down laws passed in the Knesset. It grants standing to anyone who wishes to bring a suit before it without that claimant needing to be a party to the suit. It self-selects its own members. It judges matters on the grounds of reasonability as determined by the justices, not on the grounds of whether the claims are legal or not. Add to this that the Attorney-General is not part of the government and that the legal advisers to ministers are beholden to the Attorney-General and not to the minister they advise. The upshot is the government is hamstrung by the courts, which has arrogated to itself the power to prevent the government from exercising its duly sworn duty to legislate and govern via bills passed in the Knesset, Israel’s parliament. This untenable position means that even regarding questions of national security and defense the courts may interfere and overrule government policy. May interfere and has interfered, which explains in part why governments dominated by the Likud have not pursued policies to deal effectively with the criminal Palestinian population steeped in Jew hatred which extends to the Jewish state. I say in part, because there is also the extreme proportional representation governing Israel’s electoral system, which ensures that Likud dominated governments have always been coalition governments, often involving partners with opposing viewpoints on this question.