Current sectionOpinionShare to FacebookShare to XArticle printing is available to subscribers onlyPrint in a simple, ad-free formatSubscribeComments: Zen reading is available to subscribers onlyAd-free and in a comfortable reading formatSubscribeNetanyahu and Trump. Credit: Jonathan Ernst/ReutersEven if both the United States and Israel vote against their would-be autocrats this fall, the question remains: What comes next? In both countries, the opposition is in fragmented and adrift09:40 PM • June 26 2026 IDTIt's no surprise that the country that most closely mirrors the United States in terms of the tensions surrounding preservation of its liberal democracy is Israel. Israel has been America's "little brother" for decades, perhaps back as far as the Six-Day War in 1967, when President Lyndon Johnson's "amber light" (an ambiguous signal understood as tacit consent) was considered sufficient assurance to allow Israel to launch the air strikes that commenced the war. The United States refused to acquiesce to the demand, in United Nations Security Council Resolution 242, that Israel immediately withdraw from the territories it conquered, thus leading to the occupation that is now 59 years old. And so on.In the NewsThe U.S. and Israel, Both Backsliding Democracies, May Already Be Beyond RepairHow the Bondi Massacre Destroyed the Australian Safe Haven for JewsSettlers Tried to Torch Palestinian Homes. They Messed With the Wrong VillageA Turkish Reporter Fled Erdogan's Grip. Then He Met the Hitman Sent to Kill HimSettler Indicted Over West Bank Rampage That Left Eight Palestinians WoundedRemembering and rebuilding two years laterICYMIAs the World Watched Gaza, Israeli Settlers Charged Ahead in the West Bank. A Clash Is ImminentWhere Does Andy Burnham Stand on Israel and Palestine?Report: Netanyahu 'Likely' to Sabotage Iran Deal, U.S. Officials Tell TrumpThe IDF's Russian Roulette in Lebanon Continues – and No One Can Explain WhyShin Bet and IDF Planned to Warn Netanyahu Before Oct. 7. Mossad Head RefusedTrump's Threats to 'Blow the Shit' Out of Iran Strain First Round of Truce Talks