The Israeli Economy Is Under Threat

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The Israeli economy is really an extraordinary success story, particularly the last 20 years in which has been driven by tech and driven by the people who are on the streets. There is a sense that these people feel they've had a sort of implicit deal with the government: You take care of stuff and will build the economy. And if they don't step forward now, the society that they want to live in will disappear.

For months, Israeli citizens—including CEOs, doctors, hedge fund executives, lawyers, and soldiers—have protested in the streets against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plan to diminish the authority of the nation’s Supreme Court. The government aims to give Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, the power to overrule the court’s decisions with a simple majority vote. It could have far-reaching consequences within Israel—and for its standing as a strong democracy in a volatile region of the world.

Bloomberg’s Israel Bureau Chief Ethan Bronner joins this episode from Tel Aviv to talk about what’s at stake—and why so many Israelis from all walks of life are demanding Netanyahu withdraw the plan.