The talk of an alleged Deep State here in Israel reminds me of The Protocols of the Elders of Zion. This document – fabricated by Russia’s security services at the beginning of the 20th century, when the czar’s throne was shaking – supposedly contained a detailed plan by international Jewry to control the world.
But what is that Deep State, which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claims controls the country? What is the mysterious entity that exploits the legal system in order to undermine the people’s will, as he and his acolytes declare?
It is a network of unofficial power centers that operate within and without the official system, to promote an agenda that will serve their own interests while circumventing the government, thus undermining the will of the people. The ruler is painted as someone who is acting to save the country from them. If, in order to do so, established institutions must be diminished – so be it.
Other leaders have drawn on Deep State terminology
In addition to leaders such as former Philippine strongman Rodrigo Duterte (recently extradited to the International Criminal Court), US President Donald Trump and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan (who had his main rival arrested), prominent among leaders who draw on Deep State terminology is Hungary’s Viktor Orban.
He often refers to conspiracies by civil society and globalists (a code for Jews). Netanyahu has chosen to join such authoritarian rulers who encourage and exploit fears so that they can entrench their rule by undermining the foundations of democracy.
It should be noted that there is a genuine debate about the power of public officials, whether it provides the continuity and stability that enable democracy, or undermines it. Such issues were raised by American president Dwight Eisenhower.
A former general and World War II hero, his speech upon departing the White House in 1961 included a warning against the excess power of the military-industrial complex – its components are vital while their combined power is problematic.
But there is a vast difference between concrete criticism designed to seek balance and improve how systems function, and turning them into a scapegoat while offering no substitute except “yay” sayers.
Everyone who has taken control of an existing operation knows that there may be among the veteran workers those who are unable or unwilling to adjust to the agenda, demands, or even style, of new management. She also understands that without the support of experienced staff, none of her goals will be achieved.
But if the Protocols are fake and some criticism of public structures is justified, how are they similar to the accusations of Deep State? Especially as one focuses on the establishment while the other targets Jews, one undermines bureaucracy and the second enabled pogroms?
In both cases, those in power blame “them” for secretly using “their” power to distort aspects of society, such as the economy, to serve “their” goals. Only “he” will save us from “them.” If only we allow “him” to eliminate or at least weaken “them,” “he” will restore us and our beloved country to our rightful grandeur.
In both cases, it is all but impossible to return the evil spirit that has been released back into the bottle.
Some 20 years after its publication, the Protocols of the Elders of Zion was exposed as fiction. But its distribution continues, including during dark times, as if it were truth incarnate.
In Israel’s case, what will be required to renew the people’s trust in the state, not the alleged Deep State but the real one, and in its institutions? How much time until the populist accusations by its leader dissipate, allowing us to return to normality?
The writer was Israel’s first ambassador to the Baltic states after the disintegration of the Soviet Union, ambassador to South Africa, and congressional liaison officer at the embassy in Washington. She is a graduate of Israel’s National Defense College.