Israel’s parliament, or Knesset, passed the first of several judicial reforms proposed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government on Monday, defying protests and pressure from the White House.
The new law prevents courts from using their own idea of “reasonableness” in blocking government policies. Critics had long argued that the “reasonableness” doctrine allowed the left-leaning judiciary to abuse its power, and that it tended to do so more often against Israel’s conservative governments.
Netanyahu came out of hospital on Monday morning, where he had been fitted with a pacemaker over the weekend, to attend the vote.
U.S. President Joe Biden, whose administration publicly opposes Israel’s internal reforms, issued a last-minute warning to Netanyahu not to proceed. (Biden’s own administration has mulled “packing” the Supreme Court.)