US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met on December 29 at Mar-a-Lago. While the future of the Middle East was on the agenda of the official talks, it is also possible that the two men discussed the scandals engulfing them and threatening their political standing, including among their usually loyal bases.
Netanyahu and Trump are, in many respects, political twins. As masters at ruling through resentment and a sense of revenge, they can rely on a loyal base that forgives their excesses. Their cynicism allows them to ride the same popular resentment and thirst for revenge, despite personal trajectories that should have prevented them from doing so.
Trump and Netanyahu's narratives
The son of Ze’ev Jabotinsky’s secretary, educated at the finest American universities and propelled very early into positions of high responsibility, Netanyahu – an Ashkenazi – managed to surf on the resentment of part of Israel’s Sephardi electorate, who were poorly treated upon their arrival in the country.
Netanyahu’s extraordinary cynical talent lies in presenting himself even today as the spokesperson for the dispossessed, the ultimate outsider, despite having held power almost continuously since 1996, either as prime minister or as a senior minister.
Trump, a talentless heir to a very wealthy real estate developer, demonstrated the same skill by portraying himself as the representative of those left behind by globalization and the forgotten victims of the American dream, in defiance of common sense.
Skilled manipulators and television creatures, Trump and Netanyahu have succeeded in imposing a narrative and turning it into political capital. With resentment as their driving force rather than genuine support for a policy agenda, they have built a loyal base that turns a blind eye to their shared misdeeds – abuse of power, nepotism, and corruption.
This base is convinced that their champions are unjustly attacked by a “system” fearful of losing its privileges, incapable of recognizing the supposed qualities of their heroes: the economy for the average man for Trump, national security for Netanyahu.
Facing scandals before elections
It is in this context that the Epstein affair and Qatargate collide head-on with the certainties of both men, who face difficult elections in 2026.
A corruption and influence-peddling scandal benefiting Qatar within the prime minister’s own office, Qatargate directly affects Israel’s security, to the advantage of a problematic state close to Hamas and one that undermines Israel’s image worldwide.
A moral scandal, the Epstein affair exposes the moral depravity of powerful men, as well as Trump’s ties to these globalized elites, at a time when the average American is buckling under rising living costs and healthcare expenses, in a slowing labor market.
Netanyahu and Trump are masters at making their supporters swallow bitter pills, in the name of “love of country” and the fight against “traitors.” This narrative is now being undermined by both affairs, which expose their duplicity and strike at the heart of their political DNA – security for Netanyahu, and the defense of the downtrodden against elites for Trump.
For the first time, compliant lawmakers from Likud and the Republican Party are balking at letting these scandals pass, unsettling their usually docile bases.
The alliance between the United States and Israel is in the hands of two weakened, illiberal leaders, terrified at the idea of leaving power – completely so for one, and partially, in the event of a Democratic victory in the midterms, for Trump – and of having to answer for their actions, particularly in these two affairs but also beyond them.
The convergence of elections with the Epstein and Qatargate scandals thus makes them particularly dangerous, as they are ready to do anything to remain in power.
Born and raised in France, the writer is the correspondent of French Jewish radio, Radio J, in the US, where he has been living for 15 years. He also holds US and Israeli citizenships. His opinions are his only.