The main thing that Netanyahu’s opponents can’t stand about him is how difficult it is to beat him in an election. They know that he garners an enormously strong group of people that see in him the leader that has raised up the pride of the Israelis and has represented them on the world stage better than perhaps any other Prime Minister in the history of Israel.
So, one of the few directions to bring him down was employed. Fictitious cases were conjured up against him. The more the details appear about the cases, the more ridiculous they appear. Netanyahu is “accused” of bribery for trying to get positive coverage from a newspaper reporter. Is there a single politician anywhere in any country that does not strive to receive positive coverage from news outlets. It is a patently ridiculous charge.
But his opponents are not looking for a conviction as much as they are looking for the idea of a corrupt Prime Minister to stick to Netanyahu. That is the only way they can deal with what they deem to be a reasonable explanation for him winning election and reelction so often.
The truth is that Netanyahu is both an adept politician and a person who embodies exactly what Israel needs at this juncture in it’s history. Security is the #1 need of the Israeli population. Netanyahu talks endlessly about Iran and defending Israel from it’s many enemies. He doesn’t just talk. He knows when to hit back and hit hard. Some think he doesn’t hit back hard enough. But nobody thinks that he is not willing to hit back hard.
But additionally, in the year 2000, the second arab intifada began and that basically destroyed any misconceptions many Israelis had about giving peace a chance. It became clear that empowering Arabs to police themselves meant arming potential terrorists. Netanyahu tirelessly opposed these policies and convinced enough Israelis that the only way forward towards peace was peace through strength. He did not come off as a hardlineer, but an open minded right-winger who would not roll the dice on Israeli security.
Netanyahu has been at the head or near the head of the pyramid for most of the last 28 years of Israeli political society. Nothing looks to change in the coming years.