According to Prof. Yael Aronoff (footnote 33), "Netanyahu is the most 'American' Israeli leader. For many years, he held dual Israeli and American citizenship. He lived in America between eight and ten and during his high school years; he attended MIT and then Sloan Business School after serving in the Israeli army."
As far as I can tell, Bibi is no longer an American citizen: he gave up his dual citizenship when he entered Israeli politics. But suppose he hadn't - dual citizenship is common enough in Israel not to be a big deal, and it was good enough for Golda Meyerson. Alternatively, suppose he did so in a way that had no legal force: it's easy to sign a document renouncing American citizenship, but very hard to do so effectively.
If Bibi stays an American citizen, are there any plausible circumstances under which he might have said "the hell with this" after one of his Israeli political defeats, moved back to the United States, and decided to start a new political career here? Suppose, for instance, that Likud ditched him as party leader after the 2006 election and he came to the US and joined the post-9/11 Republican Party. Is there any chance he could have been recruited as a senatorial candidate - maybe in Pennsylvania in 2010 - and any realistic chance of him being elected? Or would the GOP's Bibi-worship never have developed without his 2009-13 and 2003-15 premierships? Netanyahu coming to the United States as an electoral loser ditched by his own party might not have the Jacksonian appeal that he, and to a lesser extent Putin, have acquired among hawkish GOPers in OTL.
Finally, to broaden the challenge, is there anyone else who might plausibly be elected to office in the United States after being head of government of another country?
As far as I can tell, Bibi is no longer an American citizen: he gave up his dual citizenship when he entered Israeli politics. But suppose he hadn't - dual citizenship is common enough in Israel not to be a big deal, and it was good enough for Golda Meyerson. Alternatively, suppose he did so in a way that had no legal force: it's easy to sign a document renouncing American citizenship, but very hard to do so effectively.
If Bibi stays an American citizen, are there any plausible circumstances under which he might have said "the hell with this" after one of his Israeli political defeats, moved back to the United States, and decided to start a new political career here? Suppose, for instance, that Likud ditched him as party leader after the 2006 election and he came to the US and joined the post-9/11 Republican Party. Is there any chance he could have been recruited as a senatorial candidate - maybe in Pennsylvania in 2010 - and any realistic chance of him being elected? Or would the GOP's Bibi-worship never have developed without his 2009-13 and 2003-15 premierships? Netanyahu coming to the United States as an electoral loser ditched by his own party might not have the Jacksonian appeal that he, and to a lesser extent Putin, have acquired among hawkish GOPers in OTL.
Finally, to broaden the challenge, is there anyone else who might plausibly be elected to office in the United States after being head of government of another country?
