With Israeli elections looming and the region in turmoil, Prime Minister<\/p>\n
Benjamin Netanyahu found himself once more enmeshed in a gossipy scandal
\non Tuesday: a new government report alleged possible financial malfeasance
\nat his official residence, while his wife faced criticism for pettiness
\nand possible security breaches after complaining about their kitchen in a
\nvideo.<\/p>\n
The uproar jolted an election campaign in which Netanyahu’s opponents have
\ntried to portray him as enjoying a lavish lifestyle and being out of touch
\nwith the struggles of average Israelis. Netanyahu’s allies angrily
\ndismissed the allegations as part of a campaign to deflect attention from
\nimportant national security issues.<\/p>\n
In its report released Tuesday, the state comptroller, an official
\nwatchdog, cited large sums of public money spent on food, furniture,
\ncleaning and gardening at the couple’s official residence in Jerusalem and
\ntheir private home in the exclusive coastal city of Caesarea. Cleaning
\nexpenses in that home alone averaged more than $2,100 a month in
\ntaxpayer’s money, according to the report, even though the couple only
\nspent the occasional weekend there. It also said they pocketed proceeds
\nfrom recycling bottles that had been purchased for entertaining official
\nguests. It said the bottle returns, and purchases of garden furniture for
\ntheir private home, may have violated the law.<\/p>\n
The Netanyahus are no strangers to such scrutiny. The prime minister has
\nlong been saddled with an image as a cigar-smoking, cognac-drinking
\nsocialite, while his wife has come under fire for her own expensive tastes
\nand alleged abusive behavior toward staff.<\/p>\n
The Netanyahus accuse the Israeli media of a longstanding witch hunt
\nagainst them. In a statement, Netanyahu said he respected the findings of
\nthe comptroller and pledged to implement recommendations to curb wasteful
\nspending. At the same time he lashed out at the “ongoing media campaign”
\nthat he said is aimed at toppling him.<\/p>\n
“There is absolutely no indication of any assault on the public’s
\nintegrity and certainly no indication of any criminal transgressions,” he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
A former member of their housekeeping staff has filed a lawsuit claiming
\nhe was mistreated and verbally abused by Sara Netanyahu. In one instance,
\nMeni Naftali alleged she called him at 3 a.m. to complain that he had
\nbought milk in a plastic storage bag instead of a carton. In another, he
\nclaimed that she chastised him because some flowers in a vase were a day
\nold.
\nNetanyahu said expenses have dropped significantly in the two years since
\nthe departure of Naftali, a man he described as “an embittered former
\npublic employee.”<\/p>\n
Over the years, reports have been released about the high cost of the
\nNetanyahus’ catering, housekeeping, furniture, clothing and makeup. In one
\ncase, the premier was chided for spending $127,000 in public funds for a
\nspecial sleeping cabin on a flight to London. Even their costly purchases
\nof scented candles and pistachio-flavored ice cream have been derided.<\/p>\n
Two days before the state comptroller released its report, Netanyahu
\nposted a 15-minute video on Facebook that appeared aimed at countering the
\nhedonistic image ahead of March 17 elections that have focused on the
\neconomic woes of middle and lower-class voters.<\/p>\n
In the clip, Sara Netanyahu unveils to interior designer Moshik Galamin a
\nsimple home with creaking doors and windows, frayed carpets, dusty lamps,
\ncracked light fixtures and paint peeling off neglected walls. She bemoans
\nhow they didn’t have the budget to fix upholstery before the 2013 visit of
\nPresident Barack Obama and says he was forced to sit on a coffee-stained
\ncouch.<\/p>\n
“I don’t notice the details because I don’t dare think about it,” she says
\nas she points to mildew in a courtyard. “When you walk out, make sure the
\ndoor handle doesn’t break off,” she said with a giggle as he parted.<\/p>\n
Galamin, who hosts a popular home remodeling TV show, said he funded the
\nshoot \u2014 which opposition lawmakers say violated Israeli campaign finance
\nlaws. A former chief of the Shin Bet security service called the film a
\n“severe security breach” and said terrorist groups would have been willing
\nto pay a hefty sum to acquire such an inside look at the prime minister’s
\nhome.<\/p>\n
Galamin was not granted access to the upstairs living quarters, and
\nIsrael’s Channel 10 TV claimed the kitchen in question is not even the one
\nthe Netanyahus use, but rather a secondary administrative kitchen.
\nNetanyahu’s office had no immediate comment on the TV report.<\/p>\n
The video, perhaps ironically, is set to catchy background music that
\nincludes the theme song from the Netflix series “House of Cards” and
\nJustin Timberlake’s hit “Cry Me a River.”<\/p>\n
“It was like a horrific traffic accident_something that you can’t bear to
\nwatch but at the same time you can’t tear your eyes away,” wrote Sima
\nKadmon, a frequent critic of the Netanyahus, sarcastically adding outrage
\nover “the shameful quality of life the royal family has been forced to
\nlive in during its years in power.”<\/p>\n
Netanyahu’s rivals pounced on the material. The centrist Yesh Atid party,
\nwhich has made corruption a centerpiece of its campaign, said the report
\nand video reflected how disconnected Netanyahu was from real problems of
\naverage Israelis, who just three years ago took to the streets en masse to
\nprotest the country’s high cost of living.<\/p>\n
“What matters are the citizens, not the carpets,” it said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
With Israeli elections looming and the region in turmoil, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu found himself once more enmeshed in a gossipy scandal on Tuesday: a new government report alleged possible…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":36141,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-36140","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n