A veteran celebrity from New York has become the center of an online debate recently after sharing a political meme. The meme mostly questions why people are freaking out over the notion of having to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, especially after New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani labelled him as a war criminal. Ironically enough, the actress who started the discussion is Jewish herself.
80-year-old Bette Midler, who now lives in New York City, is the actress in question, and over the weekend, she posted on Instagram a screenshot of an online discussion. The post specifically states, “I love how everyone is appalled at the very concept of arresting the President of Israel, like we didn’t black-bag the President of Venezuela earlier this year.”
Midler’s post was referring to how the US military seized former Venezuela president Nicolás Maduro back in January and why it can’t do the same for Netanyahu. Consequently, New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani has accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of being a war criminal in accordance with the International Criminal Court and its active warrant. Mamdani’s statements against Netanyahu have sparked backlash from conservative politicians.
For the record, Mamdani is not exactly poised to have Netanyahu arrested in case he sets foot in New York since the city supposedly lacks the legal authority to enforce the ICC warrant, though his denouncement of the Israeli Prime Minister has led to a counter-accusation from Netanyahu himself. Meanwhile, Midler’s political posts have invited discussion online.
Midler’s long feud with Trump and Netanyahu
Midler, aka The Divine Miss M, has won multiple Grammy Awards and made her breakthrough in 1972. Apart from a successful singing career in the past, she has also earned Academy Award nominations in a couple of movies. Additionally, Midler is an outspoken Jewish celebrity and critic of the Trump administration and Israel, and has long been criticized by the US President himself, who called her a “washed up psycho” in 2019.
Hence, Midler’s political post has earned equal parts praise and backlash. “She’s got a point,” according to one Reddit user, with another replying, “Exactly. The outrage is wildly selective,” and “It always is with MAGA and conservatives.” Bette might have also collected newfound fans in the process: “[expletive], I knew Bette was cool, but I didn’t know she was cool like that.”
Others debated Midler’s post, arguing, “One has been protecting his people, the other has been killing his own people… don’t misinform!” regarding the Netanyahu and Maduro comparison. Even Trump was brought into the conversation again, for some reason, with one Instagram user suggesting, “How about arresting Trump first,” supposedly rather than Netanyahu.
