Welcome to What Matters Now, a weekly podcast exploring key issues currently shaping Israel and the Jewish World, with host Amanda Borschel-Dan speaking with author and public intellectual Micah Goodman.

Looking to the French for historical framing, Goodman proposes that Israel is on the brink of a new epoch -- the third Israeli republic.

The author of influential works such as “Catch-67” hypothesizes that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's signing on to US President Donald Trump's 20-point plan signals a tectonic shift in political alignment -- away from extremism. 

Today, says Goodman, as most Israelis turn their eyes to a horizon of normalization with Arab and Muslim countries, the fundamental division in Israeli politics is not between the left and the right, but rather the right and the far-right, he says.

As the war winds down and grassroots activists prepare for the October 2026 elections, Goodman proposes that most Israelis are not far apart in their key values, and unity can prevail to bring to fruition a new political era.

And so this week, we ask Micah Goodman, what matters now.

What Matters Now podcasts are available for download on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by the Pod-Waves.

IMAGE: Micah Goodman (courtesy) / Israeli excavators work in the Gaza Strip as the sun sets, seen from southern Israel, October 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)