Smotrich against the appointment of Aharon Barak: "Netanyahu did this without consulting us - this is a mistake"/Knesset Channel
Every year before the Eurovision Song Contest, we all pull out the anti-Semitism meter that identifies our enemies, even before they know they are.
Our song is placed low in the betting chart?
It's because the Europeans hate us.
Didn't we make it to the finals?
Israeli squatters campaigned against us and succeeded.
The unbelievable happened and we won first place?
Look how we defeated these anti-Semites.
The main thing is that we have a good excuse in hand, which allows us to justify failures and reinforce successes.
But when the Minister of Finance pulls out the anti-Semitic card in his response to the rating company Moody's, for its decision to downgrade Israel's credit rating, as if it were a singing competition in Sweden and not an economic event, this is the place to tell him the obvious: Mr. Minister of Finance, this is not Eurovision.
It's the economy, Smotrich.
Smotrich and Orit Strock.
Coalition funds continued to flow as usual/Flash 90, Sraya Diamant
A guided reading of his response to Moody's, which was published at the end of Shabbat, begins with my concerns and descends into the abyss of the bizarre.
It opens by describing the strength of the Israeli economy in all indicators and its ability to support all war expenses.
But from there, she moves to arguments of persecution of Jews, which are suitable for the Hague Court of Justice, and not to Israel's geopolitical strength and its effect on its ability to repay debt.
And if that is not enough, in an unclear burst of hubris or a deep misunderstanding of the status, the Minister of Finance underestimates the economic understanding of the authors of the report, one of the three largest rating companies in the world, and writes: "Moody's announcement on the downgrade does not include serious economic arguments And it is entirely a political manifesto based on a pessimistic and unfounded geopolitical worldview, which reflects a lack of confidence in Israel's security and national strength, and apparently also a lack of confidence in the righteousness of its path in the face of its enemies."
Without insulting us or the minister, I don't think that the righteousness of Israel's path in the war interests you The Moody's analysts. I also do not sign that they are pro-Israel by definition, but they are not pro-Palestinian either. They are analysts. And by virtue of their role, they analyze the situation according to the data that is in front of them, and as it seems on the face of it, Israel has not done enough to present Conflicting data, which will make them decide differently.
Moody's offices.
The rightness of Israel's course in the war does not interest the analysts/ShutterStock, Daniel J. Macy
"Moody's is not even able to define Hamas and Hezbollah as terrorist organizations in its announcement," Koval Smotrich, "and implies that it would have avoided the downgrade if only Israel had accepted the suicide plan offered to it by elements of the international community to stop the war and establish an Arab terrorist state in Gaza And Judea and Samaria."
Are you serious?
Should Moody's call Hamas and Hezbollah terrorist organizations?
We are in the UN, should we demand condemnation from the members of the plenary? Do they care if an Arab state is established in Judea and Samaria?
This report presents an analysis of data.
Not political positions, or diplomatic formulations, and whoever thinks that in this position paper the analysts should express support for Israel's just struggle against the black forces, or support settlements beyond the green line, is confused.
They measure the country's risk level, check its economic strength, the strength of the government and institutions, financial stability and sensitivity to risk events.
The minister is right when he says that our financial situation does not justify a downgrade.
I also think that if in the second intifada, when we were in a much worse economic situation, Israel's rating did not go down, there is no reason to lower it even now.
It's just that his job and that of the professional team led by the accountant general was to convince the delegation that visited here before the publication of the report. And they failed.
Protesters last night.
The minister did not heed the warnings, he and his team failed in the information mission/Navot Tzur
If Moody's were really anti-Semitic, our credit rating would have gone down long ago, following the consequences of legal reform.
It is a fact that this did not happen, despite a sharp warning and the lowering of the rating horizon.
They gave the government a grace year and another almost 130 days of war, during which they warned, explained, directed, and asked, but the Minister of Finance refused to listen.
He, along with the entire government, which is responsible for the original and revised budget, sat smugly in the first class of the plane, instead of holding the helms, and when the plane dives down, he shouts at the control tower that they are anti-Semitic.
After all, the economic question that is on the agenda is not whether we will defeat Hamas, but whether we will defeat ourselves.
If we know how to overcome the tendency of sectoralism and the concern for base, and we will work for the country.
If we close unnecessary offices, we will recruit everyone, cut coalition expenses and funds, and strive to end the war quickly.
In the meantime, the 2023 budget is unbridled, the 2024 budget looks bad, tens of billions are burned every month for the fighting that does not see an end, Hezbollah is beating us and we are careful not to hit it back too hard, and the government is not ready to talk about "the day after" in Gaza.
More in Walla!
Governor of the Bank of Israel: "The government needs to address the economic issues raised in the Moody's report"
To the full article
At Moody's they wanted to understand if there was a direction, a strategy, an end point.
A decision on an Israeli military government, or the establishment of Gush Katif, could also have helped to avoid downgrading.
I tend to believe that they don't really care if the Palestinian Authority controls Gaza, or Egypt.
Despite the shows of disconnection throughout his term, which were reflected in his dismissive reactions to financial data that were not to his liking, Smotrich knowingly dragged us into the abyss.
He understood the warnings given to him up the road and preferred to laugh at them and trample on them, confident in the righteousness of his wrong way.
He did not announce a cut in the 11 billion shekels that are diverted to coalition funds, he did not raise a security cushion from foreign sources at a good interest rate to reduce the pressure on the state coffers, and he does not work to recruit everyone and share the burden.
The first downgrade in the history of the State of Israel will forever be in his name.
Doz Poa to Bezalel Smotrich, for destroying the value of a country within a year.
More on the same topic:
Bezalel Smotrich
credit rating
Credit Rating
Moody's
War of Iron Swords
Gaza war
antisemitism