Housing Minister Uri Ariel’s constituents can be very demanding. Once the government decided to renew negotiations with the Palestinians and release prisoners with blood on their hands — including some members of Hamas — Ariel had no choice but to provide an explanation. Given that there were no relevant answers that would appease his voting base, he and the chairman of his party, Economy and Trade Minister Naftali Bennett, needed to come up with some convincing spin that would allow them to sit in the government and keep their cabinet positions.

This is how Ariel’s festive announcement on Aug. 11 about the marketing of 1,200 housing units across the Green Line should be interpreted. Ariel and Bennett are facing a crisis, so Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu allows them to boast about new construction in the occupied territories, and the Americans turn a blind eye to ensure quiet in the coalition. "The government of Israel is taking steps to reduce the cost of living in all parts of the state of Israel. No country in the world would allow other countries to dictate where it can and cannot build." That was the content of the housing minister’s defiant announcement on Aug. 11, just three days before the renewal of the negotiations.

It was inevitable that Ariel’s announcement would evoke angry responses on the left and in the Palestinian Authority. Even Finance Minister Yair Lapid released a special response, warning that this was like slipping a stick between the spokes of the wheel of peace. Everyone from Knesset member Zehava Gal-On of Meretz to Palestinian official Saeb Erekat condemned the announcement as an impediment to the talks. They brandished the marketing of construction tenders across the Green Line as evidence that Netanyahu is not coming to the negotiating table in good faith.

This is exactly the response that Ariel and Bennett were hoping for. The automatic condemnations from the left only boosted their achievement among their constituents. The way the settlers see it, if Gal-On is angry, they must be doing something right. So these two men exploited the tumult for all it was worth. Bennett responded to the enraged Palestinian reaction on his Facebook page on the night of Aug. 11, writing, “Saeb Erekat is now saying that we are not allowed to build in our capital, Jerusalem. The question is not, ‘Why are we building in Jerusalem now?’ but ‘Why haven’t we been building in Jerusalem until now?’ We will continue fighting to build up our land, without any apologies.”