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Episode 69: Israel's Great Divide - An Insider's Look at the Judicial Reform

Host: Haviv Rettig Gur
Guest: Prof. Moshe Koppel (Chairman, Kohelet Forum)
Date: December 19, 2025

Overview

In this episode, Haviv Rettig Gur hosts Prof. Moshe Koppel to dissect the deep rifts in Israeli society over the controversial judicial reform movement. As the founding spirit and brain trust behind the proposed reforms, Koppel presents the right’s perspective, critiques of both the Supreme Court and political actors, and unpacks the intense backlash and mistrust erupting between Israeli camps. The discussion explores the historical context, the nature of Israeli democracy, the design of checks and balances, and proposes paths forward for constitutional change and reconciliation.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Setting the Stage: The Israeli Divide

• The Spark and the Conflagration:
  • Haviv expresses shock at the mass mobilization against judicial reform, the inadequacy of right-wing leadership in managing checks and balances, and the country's descent toward crisis.
  • Koppel insists on nuanced framing: both right and left have agency and responsibility; there was mutual distrust and a history of provocative overreach ([03:54], [09:08]).

Philosophical Foundations

• Koppel's Vision for Israel:

  • Advocates for a pragmatic, classical liberal vision: Jews thriving in a society free of external persecution or assimilation, able to innovate culturally and religiously ([03:54]).
  • Quote:

    "I am, to put it simply, I tend towards libertarianism. Call me a classical liberal, if you will." — Moshe Koppel ([03:54])

• Reform Behind the Veil of Ignorance:

  • Argues for long-term structural design, not based on current partisan advantage:

    "When we talk about structural reforms, we should be thinking 50 years and 100 years down the road when we don’t actually know who will control which institutions." — Koppel ([03:54])

The Political Handling and the Protest Movement

• Public Choice Theory & Political Self-interest:

  • Politicians, left or right, act out of self-interest, leading to consistently imperfect governance.
  • Quote:

    "All governments are bad, okay? So we need to understand this before we dive in..." — Koppel ([09:08])

• Negotiation Breakdown:

  • Haviv laments the government’s confrontation and lack of cross-camp trust-building.
  • Koppel agrees with the poor handling, especially starting from maximalist positions, and the erosion of trust—but asserts there was more openness to compromise than the public realized ([19:14], [49:37]).

The Supreme Court’s Power: Problems and Reforms

• Diagnosis of Judicial Overreach:

  • Judges effectively self-perpetuate via appointments, expand standing to anyone, and strike down even Basic Laws without constitutional grounding ([20:48]–[28:15]).
  • Quote:

    "There are literally no limitations on [the court]. This really does need to be addressed." — Koppel ([23:16])

• Attorney General as Supra-Executive:

  • Barak's legal revolution empowered the Attorney General far beyond international norms, fostering bureaucracy that undermines ministerial authority ([38:22]).
  • Example:
    • Attorney General's binding power over government decisions; responsible for both prosecuting and defending ministers ([39:16]).

Substance of the Proposed Reform

• Judicial appointments: shift committee balance away from sitting justices.
• Limit unreasonableness grounds for disqualifying government decisions.
• Remove or clarify the court’s power to overturn Basic Laws.
• Override clause: allow Knesset to re-legislate laws struck down by the court, but Koppel calls this a mistake ([45:30]).
• Quote:

  "There should not have been an override, okay? Not at any number. … The court would have become even more activist." — Koppel ([47:20])

Trust, Intent, and the Collapse of Consensus

• The Trust Crisis:

  • Haviv stresses that ordinary Israelis—especially centrists—were focused on trust and intent, not legal technicalities ([46:44]).
  • Lack of clear communication and “bad optics” by right-wing leaders made compromise politically untenable.

• Behind-the-Scenes Negotiation (and Its Failure):

  • Koppel details direct outreach to opposition, multiple compromise drafts, and near-deals torpedoed by mutual mistrust and presidential intervention ([49:37]).
  • Quote:

    "Yariv Levine said … all he needs to do is walk into my office and have a negotiation. … To this day, Benny Gantz has not walked into his office." — Koppel ([51:13])

Checks, Balances, and the Israeli “Non-System”

• Israeli Democracy's Anomalies:

  • Weak division between legislative/executive, party leaders control lists, no direct representation; coupled with an executive increasingly unaccountable ([11:44]).
  • Koppel and Haviv both lament the continued absence of a written constitution and Bill of Rights.
  • Quote:

    "Nobody anywhere thinks we have a serious constitutional order. … [Everyone] is playing fast and loose." — Haviv ([31:59])

• The Minority Problem:

  • How are minorities (especially Arabs) protected if the court is weakened? Koppel’s answer is a real constitution, not an all-powerful court ([61:59]).
  • Quote:

    "I want us to have a constitution that guarantees minority rights and freedom for everybody. I want a judiciary that will protect those rights using a constitution. ... What I don't want is for the court to have unlimited power..." — Koppel ([61:59])

Elite Hegemony and Societal Schisms

• Koppel describes “cosmopolitan old guard” versus “provincials”; argues anti-reform backlash was about preserves of institutional/elite control ([63:55]).

• Cites conversations with anti-reform leaders noting their ignorance of the reform’s substance, but deep anxiety over losing institutional power ([63:55]).

• Generational Change:

  • Koppel predicts a generational shift—after the war and protests, new leadership will find compromise where current elites couldn’t ([92:44]).

The Prestige Game

• Key explanation for judicial overreach: asymmetric prestige. Governments consistently acquiesce to the court due to lack of public/societal backing ([85:54]).
• War and crisis have eroded the old elite's prestige; a more balanced equilibrium is emerging, opening space for compromise on governance ([90:25]).

Memorable Quotes

"This is not about me. However, I must say I have personally written two complete constitutions. … The Eitan Koppel constitution, you can look it up." — Koppel ([35:58])

"The only way we're going to develop our civilization as Jews is by trying different things and seeing what sticks … every community and every individual needs to have complete freedom to try what they want." — Koppel ([03:54])

"With no trust, starting out in a radical, maximalist position... is catastrophic to trust and catastrophic to the negotiation." — Haviv ([17:22])

"The government cannot deviate by much from that median voter. The median voter in Israel is a democrat … wants Israel to be a traditionally Jewish state, not a theocracy, okay?" — Koppel ([58:56])

“[The protesters said] ‘we just know that we don't trust you people, but we trust the courts and therefore we're opposed to whatever it is that you're doing.’ … What happens if we get a really, really bad government? Who's going to save us if not a benevolent court?” — Koppel ([63:55])

"Democracy isn’t enough. Democracy has never been enough. The founders of America ... were terrified of the mob." — Haviv ([77:11])

Important Timestamps

• Veil of Ignorance, Democracy Vision: [03:54]
• Public Choice Theory and Politicians’ Interests: [09:08]
• Judicial Appointments Process Explained: [20:48]
• Supreme Court’s Real Power Problem: [23:16] – [28:15]
• Attorney General’s Expanded Power: [38:22] – [39:16]
• Judicial Reform Substance and Flaws: [45:30] – [47:20]
• Behind-the-Scenes Compromise and Political Blame: [49:37]
• Importance of Trust and Intent in Reform: [46:44], [54:18]
• Minorities and Constitution: [61:59]
• Koppel on Elite Hegemony and Generational Shift: [63:55], [90:25]
• Prestige and Erosion of Old Elite: [85:54], [92:44]

Conclusion & Final Thoughts

The episode frames Israel’s judicial crisis not as a mere legal debate, but as a multi-layered cultural, generational, and institutional reckoning. Both Haviv and Koppel agree that Israel needs real checks and balances, a proper constitution, and a judiciary that defends rights without becoming a super-legislature, but disagree about the willingness of current leaders and the adequacy of existing political mechanisms. Koppel remains optimistic that a new generation, shaped by recent trauma, will find the pragmatic center required to move beyond the present stalemate.

For more discussion, support, and follow-up, listeners are invited to Haviv’s Patreon and encouraged to send in their thoughts and questions.