President Barack Obama’s eight years in the White House strengthened Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s hold on the Israeli right at large, not just its extremes. Throughout that time, the prime minister cultivated the myth that if he did not stand firm against Obama, the Iranians would race toward their goal of obtaining a nuclear bomb and Israel would be forced to evacuate the settlers.

At the start of Obama’s first term, Netanyahu was taken aback by the president's chilly attitude toward him. He was concerned by Obama’s decision to skip Israel when he travelled to Cairo to deliver his historic speech calling for a “new beginning” in the relationship between the United States and the Arab world June 4, 2009. The trip came just one month after Netanyahu’s first meeting with the president in the White House, where Obama asked Netanyahu to stop all settlement construction in the West Bank and east Jerusalem.

At first, Netanyahu seemed traumatized, but must have soon realized that Obama’s stubbornness could benefit him politically among the Israeli right. Obama was perceived as pro-Palestinian and soft on Iran. Netanyahu nurtured this sentiment, at least behind the scenes at first. By the end of Obama’s second term, however, the prime minister liked to boast that he was the only person who dared stand up to the US president.

Then Joe Biden got elected and took his time making his first phone call to the Israeli prime minister. The delay was political gold for Netanyahu, especially before an election. As vice president, Biden was a full partner in Obama’s Middle East policy. As a result, many on the Israeli right regarded the snub as a badge of honor.