Bibi to Vanity Fair: ‘I’m Not Manipulative’
Vanity Fair has published an in-depth profile of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in its upcoming July issue, in which Netanyahu emphasized that he is “not a natural politician.”
In the article, David Margolick explores Netanyahu’s largely successful effort to “vanquish his domestic foes” such as the Israeli media and the political opposition.
In an interview in Jerusalem, Netanyahu echoed recent statements by U.S. President Barack Obama to Orthodox movement leaders in Washington. Obama then said that he personally gets along well with Netanyahu, and Netanyahu told Vanity Fair that the “relationship with Obama is friendlier than it has been portrayed” and that they are “two people who appreciate the savviness and strength of the other.”
On the other hand, he did downplay the reported friendship with the Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney. “I remember him for sure, but I don’t think we had any particular connections. I knew him and he knew me, I suppose,” he said regarding the period they both worked at the Boston Consulting Group in the 1970s.
The Israeli prime minister who makes many people wonder who “the real Bibi” is was also eager to clarify how he sees himself. “I’m not naturally manipulative,” he told the magazine. “I’m not a natural politician. I’m not consumed with political machinations.”
For more, go to Haaretz.com
It’s our birthday and we’re still celebrating!
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news.
This week we celebrate 129 years of the Forward. We’re proud of our origins as a Yiddish print publication serving Jewish immigrants. And we’re just as proud of what we’ve become today: A trusted source of Jewish news and opinion, available digitally to anyone in the world without paywalls or subscriptions.
We’ve helped five generations of American Jews make sense of the news and the world around them — and we aren’t slowing down any time soon.
As a nonprofit newsroom, reader donations make it possible for us to do this work. Support independent, agenda-free Jewish journalism and our board will match your gift in honor of our birthday!
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
