"The Broken Covenant: Netanyahu & Israeli Democracy", a Heartfelt Read by Robbie Michaelson

Hailing from the Canadian province of British Columbia, auto industry expert and now author Robbie Michaelson is all about the care and well-being of Israel, its people, and the quest of that country's democracy. In Michaelson's new book, The Broken Covenant: Netanyahu and Israeli Democracy, he delves into the hearts of the people of Israel, seeking to establish a democratic society where they can live freely and safely. What's more, in a June 25, 2025, Blog in The Times of Israel , Michaelson takes aim at Benjamin Netanyahu and the rest of Israeli leadership as he talks about the horrors surrounding the Gaza situation and the continuing hostage crisis following that October 7, 2023, historical date. This blog was released only four days after Michaelson's last Times of Israel Blog, "Has Israel’s Government Lost Touch with Israelis? " on June 21, 2025.

Mr. Michaelson, a Canadian who is Jewish and has an immeasurable love for Israel, Canada, the United States, and the free world, is a very concerned citizen, and rightfully so. With a passionate heart, Michaelson talks deeply regarding the many struggles Israel has dealt with over the decades, especially today with that country's conflict with Iran, Gaza with the hostages remaining, and seeing what has been going on at many college campuses across United States, as well as at the November 2024 large anti-Israel and anti-NATO protests that happened in Montreal as the U.S.-led military bloc held a meeting there. With so many anti-Semitic criminal activities, Michaelson, in his book, reflects back to the beginning of the Benjamin Netanyahu regime starting in the 90s, and then to where it is today.

Representing the culmination of decades of firsthand engagement with Israeli society, politics, and security dynamics, Michaelson draws upon his experiences as a witness to these earth-shattering moments in Israel's history. He calls himself an observer, but he's purely an educator of how and why Israel must do what needs to be done to defend itself. Michaelson volunteered following the Six Day War, living through two wars and serving in the IDF as an M-109 driver in the Sinai desert, he later reported on Jewish affairs across Europe. Robbie Michaelson's work offers a deeply contextualized examination of Benjamin Netanyahu's governance and its consequences for Israeli democracy.

So how did Israel's longest-serving prime minister transform a vibrant democracy into a system increasingly designed to serve personal rather than national interests?

In this unflinching analysis, Michaelson examines Netanyahu's systematic erosion of the democratic institutions and norms that once defined Israeli governance. Drawing on decades of firsthand engagement with Israeli society, Michaelson traces Netanyahu's evolution from conventional politician to architect of democratic decline. The Broken Convenant is not a tell-all book about Netanyahu, but rather the decisions he has made that have, in many ways, put a stranglehold on the people of Israel.

Mr. Michaelson is surely not alone. In a March 9, 2025, article in The Times of Israel (prior to the twelve-day Iranian conflict), almost 73 percent of Israelis believed Netanyahu should take responsibility for what transpired on that October 7 day and resign. That article also included a public opinion poll that found that 48 percent of Israelis believe Netanyahu should resign immediately, while 24.5 percent believe he should step down following the end of the war in Gaza. The same newspaper on July 2, reported on a new survey published that week by the Israel Democracy Institute (IDI) think tank, which found that Netanyahu's support remained low, at about only 40 percent, even after the Israeli strikes on Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile developments.