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Israel Declares War on Free Speech // Dave Smith
Dave Smith | Trusted Newsmaker
Israel Declares War on Free Speech: Dave Smith Sounds Off
Comedian and political commentator Dave Smith opened a recent episode of Part of the Problem with a blistering take on Israel’s crumbling PR strategy and Benjamin Netanyahu’s recent trip to the United States. Joined by co-host Robbie “the Fire” Bernstein, Smith argued that Israel is quickly losing the information war, and the heavy-handed censorship that often follows criticism of Israel is only accelerating that collapse .
A PR Disaster on the World Stage
Smith compared Israel’s communication failures to the COVID years, when unpopular policies like lockdowns and vaccine mandates collapsed under their own weight. At first, he recalled, critics of those policies felt like a tiny minority, but as time went on, more people began to break ranks until the narrative simply fell apart. According to Smith, Israel now finds itself in a similar freefall. “They are really losing this,” he said, describing Netanyahu as politically toxic in the way Anthony Fauci became during the pandemic .
Netanyahu at the UN
The co-hosts highlighted Netanyahu’s United Nations speech as a perfect example of this disconnect. Most of the assembly walked out before he began speaking, leaving him addressing a sea of empty seats. Meanwhile, the few Israeli delegates still in the room cheered his every word, creating optics that Smith called “disastrous.” To make matters worse, Netanyahu cracked jokes about Hezbollah casualties, a move Smith saw as grotesquely out of touch given that he is currently accused of war crimes and even genocide by large segments of the international community .
The Tone-Deaf Leader
Smith and Bernstein were incredulous that Netanyahu would mock his enemies while under indictment by the International Criminal Court. “You’re being accused of genocide, and you’re cracking jokes about the people your government has killed,” Smith said. He argued that such behavior reveals not only callousness but also a fundamental misunderstanding of how bad Israel’s reputation has become globally. For a state the size of New Jersey that relies on billions in U.S. aid to sustain its wars, bragging about devastation rings especially hollow .
The Palestinian State Question
Beyond bad optics, Smith stressed that the real problem for Israel comes whenever the conversation shifts toward Palestinian statehood. Recently, both the UK and France publicly supported a Palestinian state, forcing Netanyahu to push back in his UN remarks. Smith argued that in Western civilization, the default expectation is that people either govern themselves or have full rights within another state. By denying Palestinians both statehood and citizenship, Israel’s position becomes “indefensible” in the eyes of the world .
Why Censorship Backfires
The hosts tied Israel’s growing PR problems to the suppression of debate. Smith noted that critics of Israeli policy are often smeared as anti-Semitic or silenced online, but this only fuels backlash. “When you’re just talking your mind and they censor you, it’s a recipe for disaster,” Bernstein added. They drew parallels to the trans debate in the U.S., where once-taboo opinions quickly became mainstream consensus. In their view, the same rapid shift is happening with criticism of Israel: once-dangerous statements are becoming widely accepted .
Netanyahu’s Legacy and Annexation Fears
The conversation also turned to Netanyahu’s long-term political project. Smith reminded listeners that Netanyahu rose to power opposing the Oslo Accords and has consistently fought against a Palestinian state. Rumors now suggest he may try to annex the West Bank outright as his legacy move. Smith recalled that even Yitzhak Rabin’s widow blamed Netanyahu for fueling the rhetoric that led to Rabin’s assassination in the 1990s, underscoring how extreme Netanyahu’s stance has always been .
The American Angle
Throughout the episode, Smith emphasized that as an American, his concern is how U.S. policy enables Israel’s actions. Billions in American taxpayer dollars not only fund Israel’s wars but also prop up regimes in Jordan, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia to maintain regional stability. For Smith, this makes Netanyahu’s boasting even more insulting: “You’re not even self-sufficient. You couldn’t conduct any of your wars without American support,” he said .
Dave Smith framed Israel’s attempt to police speech and control narratives as a losing battle. Like other unpopular causes before it, censorship and denial can only work for so long before reality crashes through. Between walkouts at the UN, rising international calls for Palestinian statehood, and the backlash against online suppression, Smith believes Israel is running out of road. The harder Netanyahu tries to silence critics, the louder the dissent becomes .
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